As you spend time outside this summer, make sure that you have the best outdoor lighting options with LED lights. At Luminocity, we use leading brands and durable fixtures so that there is never any compromise for quality. And with long-lasting LED bulbs and expert design from our lighting specialists, you’ll know that your lighting system is prepared to work for a long time. 

How do LED Lights Work?

LED stands for light-emitting diode, and these bulbs produce light via an electric current. This electrical current method is much more energy-efficient than traditional incandescent bulbs which rely on heat to glow properly. The other common type of light bulbs used in outdoor lighting are Compact Fluorescent Lights (or CFLs) which generate visible UV light with an electric current, argon and mercury. Although CFLs are more efficient than incandescent bulbs, LEDs are ultimately safer and even more efficient.

Your System Lasts Longer with LEDs

One of the biggest benefits of an LED lighting system is that they are much longer-lasting than other outdoor lighting systems. LED lights can last anywhere from 25,000 to 50,000 hours, as opposed to incandescent bulbs that last around 1,000-2,000 hours and CFLs with a lifespan of about 15,000 hours. With longer-lasting bulbs, you’ll find the need for personal maintenance of your system much easier. And when it comes time for professional maintenance, you can rely on an Annual Maintenance Plan (AMP) from Luminocity to take care of burnt-out bulbs, cleaning fixtures, updating your timing system, etc. 

LED Lights Are Better for the Environment

If you care about the environment, then an LED lighting system is for you. LED lights use much less energy than traditional incandescent or CFLs. And using less energy results in fewer carbon emissions and greenhouse gases. Incandescent and CFL bulbs are also more difficult to get rid of when they burn out, especially since CFLs contain mercury which can be dangerous for humans and local wildlife when not properly disposed of. By comparison, LEDs can safely be thrown in the trash or recycled with hardware stores like Lowe’s or Home Depot — plus you won’t need to get rid of them nearly as often as traditional bulbs. 

LED Systems Save you Money

Although the upfront cost of LED bulbs is higher than other options, you’ll find that money back in your pocket in the long run. With the bulbs lasting longer, you’ll need to purchase them less often, and since they use less energy you’ll see that savings reflected on your energy bills. Without outdoor lighting especially, LEDs are a great option to keep running all night long to spend more time outside and offer your family peace of mind and extra security. 

Get More Design Options with LEDs

Another great benefit to LED lights is the range of color temperature. Depending on your home’s landscaping, or the time of year, you may want either a cooler or warmer tone to the look of your lights. LEDs can offer a range of options including cool white, bright white and warmer tones, as well as specialty colored bulbs for holiday and party lighting. No matter your design needs, Luminocity can work with you to achieve your desired effect.If you have questions about LEDs or designing your outdoor lighting system, contact the experts at Luminocity today for a free consultation!

Our family lives in Indiana. In February, a cold front came through and dropped a lot of snow. Not only did it mean that I had to shovel my driveway, but it also meant that for a short time our house was dark at night. There was so much snow that our fixtures were buried.

One of the questions I am asked from time to time is, “Since LED lights aren’t hot will they still melt snow?” Over time, the LED fixtures melted our snow and with some warmer temperatures, we were back to having our home shining brightly once again.

Before LED became the predominant choice for landscape lighting, quartz halogen was used. If you happen to touch an older quartz halogen bulb that is shining bright, you will soon discover, often painfully, that it generates lots of heat. A byproduct of electricity passing through the filaments in the bulb is heat. For a long time, it seemed that that heat was a necessary part of having a bright light.

LED lights are different. There are no filaments that glow when electricity surges through. LED lamps are made not of filaments, but drivers and diodes. They not only get brighter but also operate cooler.

In the past, when we had quartz halogen lights, it was a rare event to have a dark house because the heat of the quartz halogen lights quickly melted the snow. In colder regions with plenty of winter weather, some homeowners have been reluctant to switch from older quartz halogen to the more efficient LED lights because they don’t want to risk having a dark house.

It is interesting to see the effects that the heat from fixtures make on the snow. The lights melt the snow on top and on the sides creating a tube effect. Regardless of the weather, we have a brightly illuminated home.

The LED lights have done the same thing but not to the same extent as the older and hotter lights we once had. The LED lights do generate heat and will melt snow – just not as fast.

In the first image, you can see the top of the LED fixture through the small tube it created showing that LED lights will melt snow. In the second image, there is a LED fixture under that pile of snow.

If you have LED fixtures and don’t have too much snow they will do fine. However, if you get dumped on with lots of snow, your house may be dark for a little bit until the fixture can melt the show or it is cleared away.

On those cold and snowy days, don’t worry about having a dark house. The LED lights will get to work and melt snow.

You’ve probably heard many great reasons why you should switch from incandescent lightbulbs to LED lightbulbs (LED stands for Light Emitting Diodes). Compared with incandescent lights, LED lightbulbs have a longer lifespan, convert electricity into light more efficiently, and offer significant savings in energy costs. 

However, here at Luminocity, we believe that there are some equally valid and often overlooked reasons why you should consider keeping your incandescent lights. Read through, and share your thoughts in the comments!   

1.  Some of our customers like the cozy wintertime look of melted snow surrounding their outdoor lighting.

Incandescent lights release 90% of energy consumed into the surrounding air as heat, melting the snow around them in a picturesque circle. (In comparison, LED lights release only 5% of energy consumed as heat.) If you like the look of melted snow surrounding your outdoor lights, then you should definitely avoid LED lights. 

2.  You probably enjoy interacting with Luminocity’s friendly and well-trained staff when they visit your house to replace burned-out incandescent lightbulbs.

If this is the case, you may not want to switch to LED lights. Incandescent light bulbs last an average of two years, while some LEDs can last for two decades. If you choose to switch to a LED lighting system, then you should be aware that you may subsequently interact with our excellent staff less frequently. 

3.  It can be nice to receive a clear signal of when it is time to change your lightbulbs.

Incandescent lightbulbs often burn out abruptly and so it is very easy to know when they need to be changed. LED lights, on the other hand, tend to gradually decline in brightness over a long period of time, so it can be more difficult to know when it is time to change them. In fact, Energy Star reports that the lifespan of LED light bulbs is measured not by when they burn out (as with standard incandescent bulbs), but by a prediction of when the light output will decrease by 30%. If you appreciate the abrupt burnouts that incandescent lights offer, you definitely want to steer clear of LED lights. 

4.  If you are a budding naturalist and love watching your neighborhood insects congregate around your backyard lights, then you should definitely keep your incandescent lights.

A recent study in Science magazine reported that incandescent bulbs attract around eight insects per hour, while warm-colored LEDs attract around 4.5 insects per hour. Incandescent lights are the way to go if you want to attract local insects! 

All of Luminocity’s new installations use LED lights. However, Luminocity still regularly services many older quartz-halogen lighting systems. Contact us today to have our lighting professionals visit your house and give you an estimate.