LED Lighting for Home

[Dan from LA]

Hello sign people!

I made a new friend last week, he built a house out of the local stone high up in the Malibu hills 30 years ago! His family lives off of solar power, and an artesian well that he dug himself. They are completely off the grid.

They are using some small photovoltaic panels and car batteries for storing electricity. However, the compact fluorescent lights they are using aren't as effecient as the LEDs we all use for our signs.

Does anyone have any experience with lighting their homes with LEDs? I know there are several products out there for use in regular light fixtures, but I don't know which ones are reliable.

Thanks for any help you may have to offer. I will publish my results once I help him switch this system over to LED, my goal is to make their lighting and home electricity needs 100% solar... currently they use a gasoline generator for addtional electricity.

Dan

[fishing nut]

Other than the CCFL have you tried 990V 25mm cold cathode lighting.

[Dan from LA]

Other than the CCFL have you tried 990V 25mm cold cathode lighting.

Thanks Fishin, I am looking for something that can be used in their lamps and lighting fixtures, as well as being low voltage. Stirling's entire house burned flat in the Malibu fires in 1991, so anything that could potentially start a fire is a very serious threat.... this is one of the main reasons I would like to eliminate the gas generator.

[signeye]

Try Bill Young at Solid State Solutions 501 920 9456...they have some Edison base bulbs, mr16 and t12/8 replacements...a little pricy but in this instance it might be a good fit.

Edited September 21, 2009 by signeye

[YYZ]

LEDs as replacements for other bulb styles will have limited options. The form factors don't lend themselves to very good products for the time being...

...where LEDs do best in residential is newer styles of lighting, such as indirect cove or cornice lighting, under cabinet and recessed lighting. There are some decent recessed and linear downlights out there - it just depends how the house is wired.

Is he running the 12V (13.8) into the house off the batteries? Are there opportunities to run some indirect or accent lights, other than lamp or bulb replacements? We do a bunch of custom residential - but you the best results come from thinking outside the bulb, as it were.

[Tec]

Hello sign people!

I made a new friend last week, he built a house out of the local stone high up in the Malibu hills 30 years ago! His family lives off of solar power, and an artesian well that he dug himself. They are completely off the grid.

They are using some small photovoltaic panels and car batteries for storing electricity. However, the compact fluorescent lights they are using aren't as effecient as the LEDs we all use for our signs.

Does anyone have any experience with lighting their homes with LEDs? I know there are several products out there for use in regular light fixtures, but I don't know which ones are reliable.

Thanks for any help you may have to offer. I will publish my results once I help him switch this system over to LED, my goal is to make their lighting and home electricity needs 100% solar... currently they use a gasoline generator for addtional electricity.

Dan

Dan, I might be able to help if I knew what type of light fixtures they have and what there applications are. I assume that when you mention CFL's that you are talking about medium base 13w to 20w for general residential lighting.

I have not seen any LED's replacements for your everyday 60W A lamp that I would recommend at this time, but I am sure they are out there.

Here is one manufacturer that your freind may be able to utilize that I am currently testing.

http://www.arraylighting.com/

What I like about the Array product is the heat sink design and the flood verses narrow beam optics (60 degree and 25 degree). The ones I have burning produce minimal heat at very low wattage. Some of the product is available in 12V AC or 12V DC. With these you have the minimum load factor to deal with.

I have had a few quality issues with the product. The first par 30's would not screw into a socket and the GU10's would not work either. But overall I believe this to be good product if you have the right application. And for the Ed Begley's out there this product is made with recycled plastic.

What has suprised me with our LED sales is that Landscape is number one in volume followed by LED tape (undercabinet).

http://www.landscapelighting.com/portal/pr...detail/15731BBR

http://www.gmlighting.net/newledtask.html

Just about everything is this picture is LED, Notice the Blue LED Tape above the sales counter.

Keith

[bigclive]

They are using some small photovoltaic panels and car batteries for storing electricity. However, the compact fluorescent lights they are using aren't as effecient as the LEDs we all use for our signs.

Is he using the low voltage DC from the solar arrays battery bank or an invertor that steps it up to a standard AC supply? I'm afraid the LED blurb is still not terribly accurate about efficiency, and he'll be getting a lot more light from a compact fluorescent lamp than he can get from an equivalent power LED array. Where the LEDs score is in use on low voltage DC supplies, at low illumination requirements and in robustness.

If he's using straight 12V DC then small MR16 style LED arrays would be useful for localised lighting. As this is my first post on this forum I'll refrain from spamming the forum with the MR16 PCBs I sell for making custom LED lights.

[TelfordDorr]

Hey Clive,

Wondered when you would discover this forum. Welcome!

[bigclive]

Wondered when you would discover this forum. Welcome!

Thanks. I'm guessing this form will have a less violent response to the mere mention of LEDs on neon-l.

[imanut]

Thanks. I'm guessing this form will have a less violent response to the mere mention of LEDs on neon-l.

Just answered the question that I asked on your introductory post............welcome Clive. I had noted that your simple question about LED's wasn't taken too nicely in that other forum. I can only presure that the other list hasn't figured out that the enemy to neon is from within - and not so much wiht LED's. I maintain that the sign industry - by virtue of negligence, and sometimes stupidity, has shot its own foot off in the onslought of neon. But, on the list, anyway, both neon and led's can be discussed..............

Again, welcome.

gn

[YYZ]

Welcome Clive - it's been a long time. Glad to see you've found this forum, as it's a much more balanced place to discuss different sign & lighting technologies.

[Brian]

Just answered the question that I asked on your introductory post............welcome Clive. I had noted that your simple question about LED's wasn't taken too nicely in that other forum. I can only presure that the other list hasn't figured out that the enemy to neon is from within - and not so much wiht LED's. I maintain that the sign industry - by virtue of negligence, and sometimes stupidity, has shot its own foot off in the onslought of neon. But, on the list, anyway, both neon and led's can be discussed..............

Again, welcome.

gn

Agreed Gary, neon hacks are our (neon's) worst enemy! not LEDs

Welcome Clive I liked your introduction sounds a little like me!!! LOL