CREJ - Property Management Quarterly - February 2015

LED lighting: Benefitting you and your building

Sometimes things that sound too good to be true really are great, such as light-emitting diode lighting upgrades for your properties. There are many benefits, trends and options for LED lighting, as well as issues you need to consider when choosing products.

Energy experts will tell you that LED lighting is the “low-hanging fruit” to cost-effectively save energy.

There are four major financial benefits of LED lighting:

1. Reduced maintenance costs, both materials and labor, because of LED lighting’s long lamp life.

2. Lowered utility bills because they provide up to 85 percent lighting energy savings; reducing heat output, lowering AC load for additional savings in air-conditioned spaces; and reducing demand charges with utilities like Xcel Energy, further decreasing costs over time.

3. Longer warranties than with traditional lighting.

4. Available rebates from many utilities to further incentivize improvements.

Upgrading to LED lighting also demonstrates a commitment to sustainability, while providing LEED credits, to attract an increasing number of tenants who demand LEED or energy-efficient space. The U.S. Department of Energy projects that increased use of LED lighting will result in 19 percent energy savings in 2020 and 46 percent in 2030 nationwide.

There are many other benefits to these durable lighting options. Customer satisfaction increases with the quality and longevity of LED lighting, and the light’s life is not affected by being turned on and off.

The lights have no UV emissions to damage artwork, and they have no mercury, which reduces disposal costs and eliminates hazardous cleanups. They are instant-on, which ensures there will be no issues similar to when the lights went out at the 2013 Super Bowl, where they had traditional lighting. Also, LED lights love cold temperatures, which is great for garages, refrigerated spaces and exteriors, although they are designed to work in any environment.

LED Options

There are LED lamp, luminaire and retrofit kit options. Retrofit kits include a light component and driver to cost-effectively upgrade existing fixtures rather than replace them.

In terms of aesthetics, LED lighting is beyond the old, common blue look. There are attractive options for interior and exterior applications, including multiple Kelvin temperatures for warm to cool white options.

Some manufacturers let customers choose a custom Kelvin temperature they like (for a price, of course). Customer satisfaction with less yellow, more daylight-like lighting seems to be increasing.

There are many positive trends with LED lighting, starting with lower prices. LED options are now available for nearly any application.

Most are dimmable and many LED luminaires incorporate wireless controls.

The lumen-per-watt output (or efficacy) continues to increase with over 100-lumens-per-watt products available.

LED lighting’s Color Rendering Index, which measures the ability to show “true colors,” is also increasing.

The CRI of most interior LED lighting is 80 or higher, with 90+ CRI options available.

Screw-in lamps were previously only for dry or damp locations, and 120 input voltage. You can now buy 277v and wet-location listed LED lamps.

Selection Considerations

Warranty. Expect a minimum fiveyear manufacturer warranty. Some manufacturers provide 10-year warranties, although that may not apply to all components.

Lamp life. A 50,000-hour rated lamp life is typical, but many LED lighting products now have a more than 100,000-hour life. Keep in mind that the driver life is often shorter than the lamp life.

Dimmer compatibility. Dimmable LED lighting may be incompatible with your current dimming system.

For example, lamps may flicker at lower output levels. Dimmable LED lighting can be designed to dim to 1 percent or only 20 percent. Lighting manufacturers may list compatible dimmers on their websites, but you should test before you buy.

Directional light. One of the benefits of LED lighting is that it is directional, so light does not “spew” where it is not needed. But you must select the right light distribution for the job. If you are working with a vendor or consultant, they should be able to provide photometric analyses, if needed.

Energy use. The wattage listed for LED lamps and luminaires is the total energy used. This is not the case for traditional lighting, including fluorescent tubes, compact fluorescent lamps with pin bases, and metal halide and high-pressure sodium fixtures. The amount of energy used by the ballasts in traditional lighting fixtures must be taken into account. For example, a 175-watt metal halide lamp fixture uses 210 watts of energy.

Independent testing. LED products should be backed up by LM79 and LM80 testing from independent laboratories. LED lamps can also go through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star testing process to be Energy Star listed, and LED luminaires and retrofit kits can go through the DesignLights Consortium process to become DLC qualified. The Energy Star and DLC processes provide additional evidence that products meet certain standards. There are many excellent products that are not Energy Star or DLC listed, but such listing may be tied to rebates.