Right now, Jay and I are touring Europe- basically we’re couch hopping at videobloggers’ houses! We took a short detour and stayed in a hostel in Edinburgh, Scotland. One of the cool things about this hostel was its energy conserving light systems (besides these LEDs, they had motion sensor hallway lights that were only on when you walked through!). This LED halogen replacement was super cool. LEDs have very low wattage, so they use a ton less electricity than even fluorescents- compare .5-2w to the average 13-20w fluorescents or 40-100w incandescents. They also are said to have an almost infinite life span. I think we’re going to be seeing a lot more of these in the future. Philips, one of the major light bulb manufacturers, just recently bought some LED technologies for future(istic) integration. The only issues are that LEDs are super focused, meaning they don’t spread light like other bulbs; they keep light kind of funneled and focused like a spot light. The other issue is that they tend be a more cold, blue color, rather than the pleasant warm glow of incandescents and the newer fluorescents. Hopefully LEDs will start to evolve into warmer hues and eventually replace the energy sucking lights we have now. I was really excited to see this light in use as a little reading light!
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[tags]LED, halogen, scotland, energy, green, ryanishungry[/tags]
Ryan,
We recently faciltated a project in Toronto, Canada that will have close to 1300 LED MR16 lamps replacing Halogen. It is the total hallway lighting in the Palce Pier condominium tower. The colour temperature is warm and the CCT is very high; no blueish look at all. You can read more about in my article in LEDs Magazine (http://www.ledsmagazine.com/news/5/1/6) or by visiting the CRS Electronics, the Canadian manufacturer, website (www.CRSElectronics.com).
Brian Owen
thanks for the comment and the links brian.
i’m excited to see more people interested in using LEDs for home lighting. this is great!
Ryanne,
Thank you for making the blog and for educating people about the potential of LED in general illumination. Now I also have your name spelling correct. Sorry for the previous error.
Brian
This video has me thinking about a “Home Solar Lighting Project” with my desire to go solar at the house it made me think perhaps LED lights running off a small 12v solar kit? Certainly cheaper than trying to do everything all at once and aside from the “Food” (water pump, fridge, and other kitchen stuff) and “Entertainment” (Computers & TV) that’s pretty much all we use electricity for. I think it’s time for some research.. Thanks for the inspiration!
That’s awesome! I love specular light (light that falls in a narrow shaft / is straight) much more than the going-every-freaking-where of fluorescent. Halogen light is gorgeous, but yes, very inefficient. That’s why they get so hot! Worse than old fashion incandescent. I hope LEDs are cool like halogen + we do all start using them instead. Like on film sets! The color of the light is BIG, though. It’s got to be a good color. Manufacturers should be able to get a great color by painting the inside of the glass — to make it warmer and the expected color temp.
waiting to see……
hey chris…i totally agree with you. When making your energy, it’s best to solve specific needs. So creating enough energy for LED lighting in the house would be doable and affordable. Probably just a small solar setup needed. keep us updated.
Hello Jen,
Just a few corrections. Halogen is also a very hot light source, thus the wasted energy. About painting the lens, you would only reduce the light as optics are very important. LED Christmas lights with coloured plastic lenses are not as ‘bright’ as those with a clear lense. To get a warm colour look, you need to start with the right LED. To get a multitude of colours, you combine red, green & blue (RGB) LEDs. When all 3 are combined, you also produce white light.
Brian
Agreed, I’ve been looking for (though not very dilligently I admit) the led bulb that includes perhaps two reds, a blue and a green (or some ratio thereof), in a larger array of whites. We’re having some dimmable CCFls (Cold-Cathode Florescent) sent to us to review on the show, interesting stuff though ultimately a temp solution I feel, like many florescent technologies.
Enjoy your trip,
Oscar
Director, Freshtopia.net
at least in my circle of filmmaker friends that are using on-board lighting fixtures, LEDs seem to be the new standard -not to mention last year’s Rockefeller Christmas tree was powered entirely by LEDs!
…the world going green -love it.
The Canadian CRS LED MR16 has received great interest from broadcast videographers for their ENG (News) or video cameras, as the batteries die quite quickly with Halogen and they have to carry extra battery belts.
I discovered you through bicyclemark and am just in love with the spirit of what you guys are doing.
Thanks Mikey. We always appreciate others who are making their own media. Keep it up! http://www.mikeypod.com/
Hello,
I have to say that I am replacing the compact fluorescents that I have used with incandescents. I just can not stand the light from the tubes. Granted, I have Seasonal Affective Disorder and am very sensitive to the color of the light around me.
Since I was sorta stuck when it came to lighting, I decided to work with and not against the situation. In my plans for a green(er)home, I have included tubular skylights and very powerful halogens. Again, let me explain.
In the summertime, I do not need light supplementation. I work outdoors all day and appreciate a darker, cooler house in the evening. Tubular skylights would fill this need well. They let in light, but not heat. Sunlight is also available later in the evening, so I do not have to turn on any other lighting. I can also put them were ever they are needed.
However, starting in November and running through mid-March, I need brilliant light in the evening to maintain mental health. The only light I have found effective is the light from halogen lights. It just so happens that I also need to heat my dwelling as well. So, the plans call for at least two 250 halogen fixtures in the living, dining, kitchen, bath, and hallway. They will be uplights about 2 feet from the ceiling. This way, I can use the lights that assist my medical need and also turn down the furnace. I get light AND I use the heat generated to warm the rooms without running the furnace.
Since the halogens will be hid in a cove of some sort, it will be very easy to fit a switch up there so that I can run the halogens in the winter and some cooler and more efficient source in the summer when it is necessary. Yes, I realize that this adds to the initial cost; however, quite often what is initially “more economical” is often not quite so great when considered in the long run.
http://www.sun-dome.com and http://www.solatube.com are the two manufacturers of tubular skylights that I am considering.
Its good the see all the responses and the fact that people are now talking about LEDs in a good light (sorry).
LEDs are getting there finally, but we are still some way off.. LEDs are more efficient that existing technologies, but are actually quite inefficiant when you start to look at how humans view light.
Binning, Colour shift, Ra, CCT, Lumen Maintenance, led efficacy should be your starting points when looking at LED lighting, once you begin to understand these points you can really start to get in to LEDs… Then you begin to realise we are only scratching the surface with the technology when you start to look at the quantum efficiency of the chips..
however if you only want to look at the cost… then its not all good news.. LEDs are expensive! Simple as that… and you can forget Philips they dont have the technology its other smaller companies that hold the key. Philips is a brand and although that is powerful it will be goverments and power compqanies that change the landscape of lighting in the world..
Its late and I need to finish up now…Ive enjoyed this and hope you will continue your quest for efficient LED lighting.
Cheers… from Glasgow!