How To Find the Best Outdoor Lighting Idea

How To Find the Best Outdoor Lighting Idea

Outdoor lighting is great for security reasons. There are some homeowners that use outdoor lighting for aesthetic reasons. Here are some great ideas for excellent outdoor lighting:
- How do you start? It is a fact that there are thousands of different outdoor fixture designs and styles. This can make it even more difficult for you to come up with a great outdoor lighting idea. The best thing to do is to first of all know exactly what you want out of your outdoor lighting. Is it something that you just wish to have for security reasons or do you want your lights to highlight and accent your outdoor property? Do you have a specific theme to your home and outdoor area? Your answers to these questions are crucial in determining the best outdoor lighting idea for you.
- If you are intent on making a grand show of your outdoor property and lighting, then you probably cannot do things on your own. Consider getting the professional opinion and help of a lighting consultant, landscaper and a licensed electrician. An electrician in particular may not be able to add an aesthetic outdoor lighting idea but he can make sure that your fixtures and wiring are compliant with government electrical codes.
- Rather than installing outdoor lighting after your entire home structure and landscape are done, it would make sense to try to incorporate outdoor lighting plans with your entire residential plan while you are still about to build your home or while construction is going on. This can help determine the proper placement of not just electrical receptacles but pipes and wires as well.
- Make an assessment of your property before you decide on any lighting plan. Aside from a possible theme, you should also look for the focal point or points of your property. What exactly do you want people to notice first when they enter. Is it the large tree in your yard, a pool, a statue, a fountain, a walkway or an entrance arch? Once you have determined this, you can pick the right outdoor lighting idea.
- Mix elements. You shouldn’t have just one kind of lighting for your outdoor property. Different areas require different kinds of lighting. Arches and entrances for example would look wonderful in uplights while statues would look better with downlights as would pathways, driveways and walkways. Patios and decks on the other hand would look wonderful with well designed lamps, lanterns, scones, table lighting and floor recessed lighting.
- One thing that you should never forget about your residential outdoor lighting idea is that you should be able to achieve a toned down and soothing effect. In other words, direct glaring lights should be removed. Select lighting with soft or natural glow.
- Consider using portable and movable fixtures. This will allow you some flexibility when it comes to choosing lights for specific events or seasons. You may for example temporarily replace your lawn lamps with tiki torches if you are in the mood for a tropical themed gathering. You can easily do the replacement without necessarily removing your present wiring or socket placement.

LED lighting - The Energy Efficient Way To See

LED lighting - The Energy Efficient Way To See

LED lights are the way of the future, producing brighter light while at the same time using less energy. The bulbs last a lot longer, too, meaning there’s a long term saving in maintenance. Light emitting diodes (LEDS) are being used worldwide to conserve energy.
The LED advantages are numerous:
LED lights have been around for about 40 years and were originally used as small instrument lights like the ones you might have seen in an aircraft. They have progressed to domestic and business use as a very reliable source of light that is energy efficient while at the same time providing superior light output. As the world starts to look for alternatives to save energy, LED lights have gained a very strong following and will probably take over from traditional bulbs in the future.
Longer life: LED bulbs last up to ten times longer than regular bulbs. Some people even speculate that they can last up to 40 years! This saves time, money and gives your business the added bonus of being friendly to the environment, which can mean a lot to modern employees and shoppers.
More light: as mentioned the bulbs have reflectors to increase their brilliance. For this reason they produce more illumination than regular bulbs. This is useful for areas in your home where you need more light.
LED lighting can be used in a number of ways, here are a few:
Strip lighting under cabinets: cabinets can create dark areas around counters and work spaces in kitchens. This can be dangerous as well as unhygienic, making it difficult to work and clean. Some intelligently placed LED lights will create the light needed and enhance the look and feel of any kitchen or similar work area.
Reading lights: LED lights point in one direction, making them ideal as reading lamps. They generate a much brighter light which also makes them the perfect choice for late night reading marathons.
Many people use LEDs to highlight certain areas or show pieces in their home or business. LEDs are perfect for drawing attention to certain areas.
Landscape lighting: entertainment decks really come to life with just a few LED lights in the right areas. They can create highlights or can be used to illuminate the natural look of the deck. They also are ideal for drawing attention to areas of a yard or garden and create different feel than traditional bulbs.
Many colors: LED lighting comes in many colors and this is the real untapped worth of them. Different atmosphere can be created in various rooms or your house or business. You can take advantage of different hues for displays and show pieces. Colored lighting can also be used as a filter on decks and in gardens, just like a photographer would use a filter to enhance the green of a landscape.
LED lighting is the way of the future and everyone’s ticket to a greener home or business. You will save on energy, but at the same time bring better light to areas. As well, you do not have to change your light bulbs as often as traditional bulbs. You are saving your money on a newer, more superior product that gives real results.
About the Author:
Tom Sanderrs is very knowledgeable about under cabinet lighting and you can find more out at this site about under cabinet fluorescent lighting.
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The next technology battle: Laser vs LED

The next technology battle: Laser vs LED

After the HD vs Blu-Ray disc format wars were over, Blu-ray emerge the clear winner, however soon to be replaced by HVD, but that’s another story.
Anywho, it seems we have another technology war upon us, also in the entertainment industry, but this time televisions.
The war this time is between Laser TV (currently backed by Mitsubishi, releasing their new LaserVue TV) and (O)LED, who’s currently being backed by mainly by Samsung (LUXIA), but other companies are heading this route as well like Sony, LG, Philips to name a few.
Mitsubishi LaserVue VS Samsung LUXIA
I’m probably just making more out of this than is warranted. LED TV has been out for a while now, and Laser TV is only just coming out now (that’s not to say the laser tv technology hasn’t been around for a long time, it has). However, now that Mitsubishi is pushing their LaserVue laser TV’s, will that spark enough interest to win over supporters for this technology. Will it be able to break into a market already tapped by LED TV technology?That’s yet to be seen. I think LED is definitely the future, so I don’t know where laser tv will find it’s place in a market against LED competition.
What do you think?
led

Read in the Dark LED Reading Glasses

Read in the Dark LED Reading Glasses
by Matthew on May 5, 2009

If you recently purchased a Kindle 2 and went to read it at night you will have quickly found out that you cannot see it. This is the problem with e-paper in that there is no backlight usually. For those of you who want to read at night these LED reading glasses might work for you. Of course they are compatible with e-books and regular books and what they do is provide light on the edges of the glasses so that you can read in the dark.
The reading glasses have super bright LED’s in each corner of the lenses and 4 batteries are held within the frames. The batteries are good for up to 30 hours of night time reading. The LED’s work with a switch built in to the hinges of the glasses and when the arms are opened the lights switch on.
The advantage of having LED’s built in to your specks is that you don’t have to faff around with a book light every time you turn the page.
In my book, the LED Reading Glasses are a winner! But there is one drawback: the glasses are only available with refractive lenses. In other words, you have to be presbyotic — nearsighted. They are available in 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 diopter. From Hammacher Schlemmer with a lifetime guarantee.
Available from Hammacher Schlemmer costing $39.95.

Businesses Warm to LED Lighting

AMBIENCE The Chicago Center for Green Technology, which uses solar power, installed LED lighting in its resource center

THE architect Cass Gilbert’s vision for the United States Custom House in Lower Manhattan resulted in one of the city’s grand classical buildings. But until recently it has been difficult to appreciate the subtlety and majesty of the 102-year-old structure when viewing it at night.

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Go to Blog » At its base, huge fixtures produced scattered light that cast strong shadows on the windows, giving the facade the tired look of an insomniac. Aging light bulbs had shifted in color, throwing off an unwanted rainbow of green and pink.

“The lighting was atrocious,” said Patricia DiMaggio, who noticed the poor illumination when walking by the building. “It wasn’t doing the job.”

Unlike most passers-by, Ms. DiMaggio was prepared to take action. A lighting engineer for Osram Sylvania, she was introduced to the right people at the federal General Services Administration. Donating time and material, Ms. DiMaggio promised to relight the building both to restore its grandeur and save energy.

Combining warm-hued LED and metal-halide fixtures, Ms. DiMaggio lighted previously dark areas of the building and removed unsightly shadows cast by aging traditional lamps.

“One person said, ‘I feel like I’m in Paris when I walk by the building,’ ” Ms. DiMaggio recalled.

Using LED-based fixtures, Ms. DiMaggio said, she cut energy consumption for lighting by 43 percent, saving $6,654 a year. With an expected life of 50,000 hours, compared with the 2,000 hours typical of incandescent bulbs, the lights have also lowered maintenance costs.

Although they have yet to substantially influence the residential lighting market, light-emitting diode lamps are increasingly being introduced in commercial buildings. Manufacturers are creating lamps that are reliable, color-accurate and at least as efficient as incandescent or compact fluorescent lights.

LED fixtures still cost more than conventional ones, but the energy savings can help commercial projects to pay for themselves in as little as two years.

That said, the quickly evolving technology is still in its early stages. “In 2006, I had a really hard time to light well with just LEDs,” said Brad Koerner, a designer at Lam Partners, a Cambridge, Mass., lighting firm. “By 2008, there was no longer any problem.”

Mr. Koerner oversaw the relighting of Boston’s Custom House Tower, which is now a Marriott hotel. The building’s lighting had fallen into disrepair over the last 20 years, with much of the upper half remaining in darkness.

Mr. Koerner installed LED-based fixtures from Philips’s Color Kinetics division that resemble warm incandescent bulbs. He replaced the 90-watt halogen bulbs with 50-watt LED fixtures, cutting energy use in half.

“Every month LEDs get so much better it’s amazing,” Mr. Koerner said. “It’s changing that quickly.”

While Derry Berrigan, owner of Derry Berrigan Lighting Design in Rogers, Ark., is using LEDs, she said much of what was currently sold was “pure junk. It’s like the Wild West.”

Seeking out high-quality products, Ms. Berrigan used fixtures from Cree and Insight Lighting to relight a prototype KFC and Taco Bell restaurant in Northampton, Mass.

She placed LEDs in the interior, reducing energy consumption by 81 percent, while LEDs outside saved 77 percent. Installing LED parking lot fixtures, which spread wider beams than conventional lighting, allowed Ms. Berrigan to remove two poles.

Costs can even be cut when a building is receiving its energy off the grid. At the Chicago Center for Green Technology, which uses solar energy, Ms. Berrigan used LED track lighting from Journée Lighting in Westlake Village, Calif., to illuminate the walls in its resource center, along with fixtures from Color Kinetics, Cree, Insight and other companies to provide general illumination.

With a resulting 64 percent drop in energy use for lighting, 47 of the center’s 200 solar panels could provide electricity for purposes other than illumination.

LEDs can also create a look that would otherwise be unachievable. Focus Lighting, based in New York, illuminated Rock Sugar Pan Asian Kitchen, a restaurant prototype in Los Angeles owned by the Cheesecake Factory chain.

Faced with lighting rooms with 25- to 30-foot ceilings and intimate bar and dining areas, Christine Hope, Focus’s designer, said, “LEDs were the perfect solution.”

Fixtures included LED strips behind the bar and, in cubbyholes, dozens of candlelike LEDs using just one to three watts per unit. That “would have been impossible to do with incandescents,” Ms. Hope said.

Color-changing LEDs programmed to cycle through the hues of dawn to dusk were placed behind large Buddhas. LED lights drawing three or six watts were installed in 25 globes in the courtyard.

Needing omnidirectional light in the dining room, Ms. Hope used compact fluorescent bulbs in three fixtures, their yellow shades providing the proper color for the room.

The LEDs reduced energy consumption by at least half compared with traditional incandescent and halogen bulbs, Ms. Hope said. “This restaurant is such a great example of what you can achieve with LEDs,” she said.

LED Lighting Gaining Acceptance

April 30, 2009, 8:30 am
LED Lighting Gaining Acceptance (Sort Of)
By Eric A. Taub
The recent replacement of the incandescent lamps in Grand Central Terminal in New York with compact fluorescent bulbs notwithstanding, the lighting industry continues to believe that LEDs, not C.F.L.s, will eventually be the technology of choice for many lighting applications.

As I note in an article about the commercial use of LED lighting in today’s Business of Green special section, lighting designers who just one year ago were wary of recommending LED products now are much more confident in doing so.

That’s partly due to the move, spearheaded by the Department of Energy, to set Energy Star guidelines for the next generation of lighting to convince consumers and businesses that LED products will perform as claimed.

But it’s also due to the improvement of the lighting itself. LED lamps are becoming more efficient, producing warmer, more inviting colors at higher brightness levels.

On Tuesday, I was shown a new reflector lamp from Nexxus Lighting, similar to the type installed in many kitchen and office ceilings, that produced a warm, pleasing light. It weighs about one-third of a competing lamp and uses 8 watts to produce the light of a 50-watt bulb.

But how many homes and businesses are satisfied with 50-watt lamps? When the industry starts producing 75- and 100-watt equivalents, LEDs will begin to gain traction. (Cree, a lighting company, has announced a reflector lamp that it says produces a similar look to a halogen lamp, uses 12 watts, and can replace up to a 90-watt incandescent lamp.)

Are LED lamps ready for the consumer? Hardly. Most of the strange-looking LED products sold in home improvement stores remain below par. Many manufacturers make unsubstantiated claims about lamp life and brightness.

But for the well-heeled set, there are plenty of highly regarded products that use a fraction of the power of an incandescent bulb. But they come at a high initial price. I recently visited a home in the tony Brentwood section of Los Angeles that was entirely lit with LED “downlights” made by Cree, and I couldn’t tell the difference between the light from those fixtures and standard bulbs. And Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway scooter, has lighted the home he owns on a small island only with Color Kinetics LED products.

The Department of Energy is conducting a seminar in a few weeks to discuss the state of LED lamps that can replace standard incandescents. And more commercial buildings, including a wing of the Pentagon and even a KFC/Taco Bell restaurant, have switched over to the new technology.

But despite these successes, many engineers remain resistant to using LEDs. A major real estate developer in Los Angeles recently showed me correspondence from his engineering team questioning why anyone in his right mind would use LED lamps in a commercial project, citing high cost as a reason to eschew their use. For now, the lighting industry and the building industry often seem to be speaking different languages

Color changing Luxeed U5 LED keyboard is a rave at your fingertips

Color changing Luxeed U5 LED keyboard is a rave at your fingertips

Luxeed's got a fine history of making the keyboard a fantastical piece of wonder, and its newest offering is not exception. The U5 LED keyboard has pretty much everything one could ask for in a colorful peripheral -- programmable, patterned LEDs which are guaranteed to brighten up your day. It boasts support for Windows, Linux and Mac (previous versions were Windows only), so if it's ever made available outside of Korea, we can guarantee you we'll be getting one for every member of our dance posse. They're available for pre-order in Korea now for KRW 99,000 (about $77 USD). One more mountain-moving shot after the break.

Scrolling LED Name Badge V2

This name badge features a scrolling LED message that can be fully customised.

The message scrolled can say anything you want and can be changed on the fly by using 3 onboard control buttons. 6 messages can be saved on the badge and each badge can be configured for different scroll speeds and brightness. The badge is smaller then a credit card and weighs about an ounce. Battery life of the badge is about 18 hours.

Scrolling LED Name Badge Features
# Holds 6 messages at one time, each message 256 characters long
# Onboard speed and brightness adjustment (9 speed and 9 brightness settings)
# All functions can be programmed without a computer (using the onboard programming buttons)
# Message text can be easily programmed using the onboard programming buttons
# Badge dimensions: 3-1/4” by 1-3/4”
# Comes with battery, badge and magnetic holder
# The Blue name badge takes 2 batteries (CR2016) and the Red 1 battery (CR2032)

Available from ThinkGeek costing $29.99.

World's smallest - New NANO petrol engine

SCIENTISTS have built the smallest petrol engine - tiny enough to power a
WATCH.

The mini-motor, which runs for two years on a single squirt of lighter fuel, is set to
revolutionise world technology.
It produces 700 times more energy than a conventional battery despite being
less than a centimetre long - not even half an inch. It could be used to operate
laptops and mobile phones for months on end - doing away with the need for
recharging.
Experts believe it could be phasing out batteries in such items within just six
years.
Engineers at the University of Birmingham have produced the engine; minute
enough to be balanced on a fingertip. Dr Kyle Jiang, lead investigator from the
Department of Mechanical Engineering, said: “We are looking at an industrial
revolution happening in peoples’ pockets.
“The breakthrough is an enormous step forward. Devices which need re-
charging or new batteries are a problem but in six years will be a thing of the
past.”

Other applications for the engine could include medical and military uses, such
as running heart pacemakers or mini reconnaissance robots. At present,
charging an ordinary battery to deliver one unit of energy involves putting 2,000
units into it.
The little engine, because energy is produced locally, is far more effective.
One of the main problems faced by engineers who have tried to produce micro
motors in the past has been the level of heat produced.
The engines got so hot they burned themselves out and could not be re-used.
The Birmingham team overcame this by using heat-resistant materials such as
ceramic and silicon carbide.

Professor Graham Davies, head of the university’s engineering school, said:
“We’ve brought together all the engineering disciplines, both materials, chemical
engineering, civil engineering, and mechanical engineering.
“What better place to have the second industrial revolution - in nano-technology -
than where the first took place, in the heart of the West Midlands.”

Trendy Tunto LED Lamp

Out of more than 3,200 submissions from more than 49 countries, the Tunto LED Lamp won a 2009 Red Dot Design Award. This groundbreaking LED lamp has absolutely no visible switches, making it the ideal lamp for my cord-detesting husband, who is impatiently waiting for everything to become cordless, especially kitchen items such as toasters and blenders.
At least he can take comfort in Tunto’s award-winning lamp, available soon through Finnish Design Shop (April 2009).

The Tunto LED Lamp works by “gentle touch,” explains Tunto founder and designer Mikko Kärkkäinen. Based in Helsinki, Tunto produces “unique interior design products,” including Skede, a chair whose back is a reused skateboard, and Kukka, a birch veneer table with a colored underside. The Tunto LED Lamp measures 300 mm H x 370 mm W x 170 mm D. Made of laminated oak or walnut, the lamp will come in various color combinations, though Tunto won’t specifiy exactly which. If the company’s other products offer a clue, then the Tunto LED Lamp might come in green, red, light blue, pink, or black–colors common to various Tunto offerings. OR, the Tunto LED Lamp might only be available in wood and black, since the simple design is a bit of a departure for Tunto. A hidden, touch-sensitive switch “gives the user a true feel of the material.” The simple arc and varied width of the lamp remind me of a boomerang, another object users like to feel in their hands (as opposed to flying rapidly at their heads).