LED lighting is becoming more and more of a mainstay in homes and businesses due to the amount of energy and cost savings that can result when installed. The professionals at Alair Homes Orangeville can install this lighting into your home and have you saving money on your electric bill in no time. The following will provide a basic introduction to LED lighting and offer a look at what it is, the benefits of LED lighting and what to look for when shopping for LED’s.
What is LED Lighting?
It’s estimated that just under 16 percent of a person’s monthly energy bill is spent on lighting. This is the one aspect of the energy bill that is actually rising in the percentage it represents of the entire bill. Thankfully, LED lighting is designed to lower the amount of energy you need to use when keeping the lights on, which also reduces the cost of your energy bill. LED stands for Light Emitting Diodes and was actually first experimented with in the early 1900’s. However, it wasn’t until 2002, nearly 100 years later, that white light was able to be produced by an LED chip. Once the electrons within the semiconductor of the LED change, the diode will further change the electric current into light. Due to the LED chip, electricity is changed into light at a much faster rate, meaning that less electricity is used as opposed to a standard light bulb.
It is due to this faster rate of electricity turning into light that allows for the savings in a persons energy bill. It’s also important to note that LED’s can be recycled, while standard incandescent light bulbs cannot. This type of lighting is highly beneficial for refrigerators and freezers, due primarily to the fact that LED’s hold up much better in the cold than fluorescent lighting. LED’s are also much smaller than many other lighting types and can better fit in compact locations, such as accent lighting, ceiling lighting, cove lighting and cabinet lighting. It’s possible to make use of this lighting for landscape purposes around your home. No matter what you use LED lighting for, it’s clear that you will save lots of money, as it’s estimated that LED lighting uses around 75 percent less power than all other types of lighting.
What to Look for When Shopping for LED’s
When shopping for LED’s, it’s important to understand that not all LED lighting is the same. In fact, there are certain pieces of information listed on the packaging that can help you to determine which LED bulbs are right for you. Most homeowners tend to prefer incandescent lighting, while certain LED lighting can appear more bluish in color. As such, look for a temperature ranging from 2,700 to around 3,000 Kelvin. The CRI, or Color Rendering Index, might also come in handy when purchasing LED lighting. This refers to how well a light source displays the true color of objects under the lighting. If you want colors that don’t appear washed out, look for a CRI of 80 or more. LED lighting has a general estimated lifespan of around 40,000 hours, though there are times when wiring or circuitry could give out before this amount of time has passed.