LED lighting / fixtures for novices?

[BillT]

Hi, I have just been tasked (unwantedly, grr...) with buying LED lights and fixtures for the boss. I know nothing about this, it's outside my usual area of expertise, but boss says learn all you can and then get on it. Aagh! I'm a mere office drone and spreadsheet jockey, but as I'm lucky to have a job at all, I think maybe telling the boss off is a bad idea.

Is there a tutorial for complete novices about lighting somewhere on the net? I'm hearing terms like troffer, suspended grid ceiling, diffuser, ballast door cover, and so on. It might as well be French for all I know. I've searched on the net, and it seems anyone who uses these terms is a professional who already knows what's going on. I just need a tutorial that says this is what a troffer is and it is used this way, a ballast is important because it blah blah blah, etc. We may end up sourcing products from China, and I had better know what I'm talking about before that happens. Any links? Thanks for any help anyone can offer!

 

[Norm]

Moved to: fixed lighting.
Norm

 

[LEDninja]

:welcome:

3 months ago the advice would be forget it. LED bulbs do not measure up. So there are no tutorials.
LED bulbs have made great strides so far this year. So you may be in luck. Or not.

What kind of office are you working in and what kind of existing lighting?
Are you trying to replace existing bulbs or are you trying to do a major renovation of the building?

Is there any reason your boss wants to change to LEDs other than the electricity bill?
I your boss do not like the cool white of fluorescent tubes, want something warmer and you buy cold white replacement bulbs that are out and out blue than your boss would be mad.

 

[blasterman]

We may end up sourcing products from China,

Trying to think of a lighting product not made in china, and drawing blanks :-)

The big thing to understand about LED lighting is if you're using retrofit bulbs, or replacing the entire fixture such as fluorescents. LED ceiling fixtures, such as those made by Cree are quite evolved and already doing quite well in commercial environments. Pretty much everything else is a copycat.

The other side of the coin are LED retrofits, which basically consist of LED based bulbs you screw into existing sockets. This is by far the larger market and has an increasing array of options and competitors, but unlikely to help you given very few commercial office spaces use screw in style bulbs. It's mostly a residential market.

You then have hybrids like Cree's CR6s which screw into place of existing recessed lighting. However, these are more orientated towards but not restricted to residential.

Basically your options for lighting commercial work spaces right are very, very limited with solid state. You've got the Cree LR24 which is an exceptional product....and then what else [??] (somebody fill in the blank if they can). T8 fluorescent is quite a bit cheaper and still holding it's own.

 

[purduephotog]

Trying to think of a lighting product not made in china, and drawing blanks :-)

The big thing to understand about LED lighting is if you're using retrofit bulbs, or replacing the entire fixture such as fluorescents. LED ceiling fixtures, such as those made by Cree are quite evolved and already doing quite well in commercial environments. Pretty much everything else is a copycat.

The other side of the coin are LED retrofits, which basically consist of LED based bulbs you screw into existing sockets. This is by far the larger market and has an increasing array of options and competitors, but unlikely to help you given very few commercial office spaces use screw in style bulbs. It's mostly a residential market.

You then have hybrids like Cree's CR6s which screw into place of existing recessed lighting. However, these are more orientated towards but not restricted to residential.

Basically your options for lighting commercial work spaces right are very, very limited with solid state. You've got the Cree LR24 which is an exceptional product....and then what else [??] (somebody fill in the blank if they can). T8 fluorescent is quite a bit cheaper and still holding it's own.

LR24 HE I think it is- draws about 80% of the power as advertised.

Very nice light.....

 

[Ken_McE]

Hi, I have just been tasked (unwantedly, grr...) with buying LED lights and fixtures for the boss.

Do they want to know if it's a good idea, or have they already made their decision?

I'm hearing terms like troffer,

Light that sits up inside the ceiling with its face level with the surface of the ceiling.

suspended grid ceiling,

Those white tiles that sit in a metal grid you see for office ceilings.

diffuser,

Anything that sits between you and the light and serves to scatter the light around and make the bulb less painful to look at.

ballast door cover,

Just a hatch or cover to hide the ballast.

I just need a tutorial that says this is what a troffer is and it is used this way,

Usually just a fluorescent light that sits up inside the ceiling instead of hanging down. Don't know why we use 'em, but we do.

a ballast is important because it blah blah blah,

A ballast sits between your line voltage and your bulbs. It sends them power that has been adjusted to suit their needs. Old School incandescent bulbs don't need them, they are happy with 120 V or 240 V AC straight from the socket. Fluorescent, LED and HID lights are more fussy.

We may end up sourcing products from China,

You need to be very, very careful about quality if you import directly. You might consider having a qualified electrician inspect samples from every batch, and be prepared to refuse ones that have been "economised" excessively.

 

[purduephotog]

OK, if your boss is telling you that you are going LED, then the only player in the suspended ceiling game is CREE.

Get the LR24 http://www.polar-ray.com/Cree-LR24-Series_c_49.html

Visit Cree's Lighting site and look at the places they've redone with it. Yes, you can do it cheaper. No you can't have it UL warrantied.