For all you NEON haters and LED lovers

[Suncoast Neon]

Boston's Famous Citgo Sign Catches Fire

POSTED: 12:28 pm EDT October 15, 2008

UPDATED: 2:28 pm EDT October 15, 2008

BOSTON, Mass. -- The world-famous Citgo sign that sits behind the Green Monster in Fenway Park caught fire Wednesday.

Two ladder trucks were dispatched to the sign late Wednesday morning. The fire blackened some of the panels on the red, white and blue sign.

Fire department spokesman Steve MacDonald said flames were visible when firefighters got there, but the fire was quickly put out. MacDonald said the blaze was likely caused by an electrical short circuit and estimated the damage at about $5,000.

The sign, said to be the largest sign in New England at 60 by 60 feet, was originally built over the Cities Service divisional office in 1940. The original neon tube sign was rebuilt in 2005 to feature thousands of LED lights.

October 21, 2008

Don't Blame Neon!

The Citgo sign that is located behind the Green Monster in Fenway Park caught fire on October 15, 2008. Immediately "neon" was the blame. Unfortunately the neon sign that was in the stadium since 1940 was rebuilt with LED's in 2005. So in reality it was an LED fire, not a neon fire. Why is it that neon is the scapegoat for all things that go wrong? Just because LED's are a newer technology, doesn't mean it is a better technology. Neon has stood the test of time, meanwhile LED's are still unproven. And yes LED's can cause fires as well!

[Erik Sine]

We had a thread about this long ago when it happened, wonder what happened to it.

[YYZ]

So in reality it was an LED fire, not a neon fire. Why is it that neon is the scapegoat for all things that go wrong? Just because LED's are a newer technology, doesn't mean it is a better technology. Neon has stood the test of time, meanwhile LED's are still unproven. And yes LED's can cause fires as well!

In reality, it wasn't much of a fire at all. A few sections of LED tubes burned up, causing more black smoke and stains than actual flame.

Think about it... someone spots the smoke and calls the fire department. By the time they arrive they said they did actually see flames tat needed to be put out - but nothing was burning other than a couple of square feet of plastic that burns very slowly to begin with. Here was the final result:

There would never have been enough temperature for the fire to spread through the sheet metal, though it's possible it could have spread to more pieces of plastic tube that would have created a lot of black smoke. Oooh. LED fire.

[manuellynch]

Fire is Fire Marko. There are a ton of stories about LED systems catching on fire. UL has a group focused on how to stop more of these systems hitting the market.

[LiteGirl]

Who's leds were they?

[manuellynch]

Who's leds were they?

It looks like they are LED tubes...so SloanLED or some Asian knock off... may be tough to ever know.

[Brian]

In reality, it wasn't much of a fire at all. A few sections of LED tubes burned up, causing more black smoke and stains than actual flame.

Think about it... someone spots the smoke and calls the fire department. By the time they arrive they said they did actually see flames tat needed to be put out - but nothing was burning other than a couple of square feet of plastic that burns very slowly to begin with. Here was the final result:

There would never have been enough temperature for the fire to spread through the sheet metal, though it's possible it could have spread to more pieces of plastic tube that would have created a lot of black smoke. Oooh. LED fire.

I agree... is an LED fire different than a neon fire? I think not!

[YYZ]

Who's leds were they?

IIRC, they were YECSO's own brand.