Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting technology over the 50+ years has become one of the most important electronic components in modern technology. From only being used in professional companies with an exceptionally high price tag to being readily available in the domestic market LED lighting has benefits for everyone.
As a business, you may already have LED lighting throughout your premises, for others this may be something yet to happen. The benefits of LED lighting in comparison to traditional halogen or incandescent bulbs are irrefutable and a worthwhile investment.
Lifespan
The number one advantage of LEDs, they have an incredibly long lifespan! Once fitted, you can enjoy high-quality lighting for years! The average LED light lasts 40 times longer than an incandescent bulb and 2-4 times longer than most fluorescent, metal halide and sodium vapour lights. A single bulb can last around 15 years with between 35,000 up to 100,000 hours of use. Many also come with 3-5 year manufacturer warranties.
Energy Efficient
LED lights are the most energy-efficient form of lighting using very little power they are 10x more efficient at converting energy to light than traditional bulbs. What makes them so efficient is that 80-90% of LED energy is turned into light not heat, incandescent bulbs, by comparison, lose 80% of their energy to heat and require significantly more energy. Consider, 5 watt of power does the same thing for an LED light that 60-watt bulb does for a filament bulb. Alongside the cost savings, switching to LED can dramatically lower your carbon footprint, for example, by replacing a single 60-watt light bulb with an LED results in a reduction of approximately 160kg of CO2 emissions per year. Now imagine that across an entire facility!
LED lights also contain no environmentally hazardous chemicals like mercury, they, therefore, don’t require special handling when they come to the end of their life.
Cost Savings
To give a cost comparison here is an example of how a 5 watt LED bulb compares to a 40 Watt filament bulb. The cost of a filament bulb being £1.29 and an LED at £2.79. With an average of 20,000 hours for the LED and 1000 for the filament bulb. This means one LED light will last as long as 20 filament bulbs making the overall cost £2.79 for the LED and £25.80 for the filament bulbs.
From an electricity consumption point of view, some facilities could see savings of 90% depending on the existing lights and the particular LEDs installed.
Improved Safety and Visibility
The number one safety hazard when it comes to lighting is heat emissions. As mentioned before, LEDs do not have this issue as they generate hardly any forward heat. When you think that a typical lightbulb can shatter into pieces without warning (thermal shock) it’s another tick in safety feature for LEDs as they cannot be damaged so severely that they are subject to burst!
LEDs can operate effectively on a low voltage electricity system which on the whole makes things much safer in the event of a problem. By operating on a low voltage, it makes them ideal for lighting outdoor areas and the light output is by far the most superior with a much better Colour Rendering Index (CRI) which is the measurement of a lights ability to reveal the actual colour of an object. You can really appreciate this by looking at the before and after of sodium street lamps and LED lamps.
From a health and safety point of view, the use of LEDs ensures that both internal and external areas are well lit. Once they are turned on there is no ‘warm-up’ time, they work instantaneously and better still they don’t degrade with switching on and off, making them ideal for automated lighting controls and sensors!
Lighting safety fact: In 1992 Windsor Castle burned for over 12 hours following a decorator accidentally leaving a halogen spotlight plugged in near a pair of heavy curtains causing them to catch fire!
Reliable and Durable
LEDs are a very durable and reliable form of lighting – they can operate safely in extreme temperatures without risk of degradation. LEDs can withstand more impact and vibration than other light bulbs because they have no filaments or other fragile parts. This stability makes them ideal for use in areas that will be subject to temperature fluctuations, inclement weather and jostling, such as outdoors or in-ceiling fan fixtures.
Design flexibility
LED lights are incredibly small which gives them so much potential and flexibility when it comes to design. They can be bunched together, made into a string, used in isolation. Anything you can possibly think of, it is more than likely possible with an LED light.
Reduced light wastage
By design, LED’s emit their light in one direction rather than all around. Traditional lighting directs light at 360 degrees requiring accessories to redirect or reflect the light to where it needs to be. An LED light emits light at 180 degrees reducing energy consumption because no light is wasted or trapped within reflectors and diffusers, which can keep over half the generated light from exiting the bulb. Think of a ceiling light, a bulb illuminates the ceiling when it is actually the room that you need to see. The directional nature of their output makes LED’s ideal for applications such as task lighting and recessed down-lights.
For businesses and homes making the change to LED lights can be a win win, with such a long lifespan and energy efficiency it is a worthwhile investment. However, there are some potential effects which must be considered before making the change. One being that LED lights do not effectively charge glow in the dark photoluminescent exit signs, meaning your exit routes would not be highlighted in the dark!!!
If you have any questions about LED lighting installations or before making the change, Talk to one of our experts!