LED bulbs do not need heat to operate well – in fact, if the diodes making the light get too hot, they can become damaged and not operate at all.
With temperatures rising, it won’t be long before summer is in full swing. Is your commercial building ready to handle the heat? For some, keeping the office comfortable is nearly impossible during the summer months. And one of the biggest reasons why is the lighting system. If your building relies too much on incandescent lights, it can make it really hard on your HVAC system to keep up. Upgrading to LED lights is one of the best ways to reduce the amount of heat generated from within and help your commercial building stay comfortable throughout the dog days of summer.
Incandescent Light Bulbs Generate Heat
Incandescent light bulbs generate a lot of heat – however, this is really because of the inherent design of the light bulb itself. Incandescent light bulbs use electricity to heat a filament – this is what makes light within the bulb. It is estimated that over 90% of the energy used to create the light is emitted as heat. Now, a single bulb in a large room won’t make a perceptible temperature difference. But multiple bulbs throughout a building may. And the difference may be even more perceptible in office settings, where a couple of bulbs in a small office, coupled with the heat generated from computers and other electronics, can make the room sweltering hot very easily.
LED Bulbs Manage Heat Generation Well
LED bulbs do not need heat to operate well – in fact, if the diodes making the light get too hot, they can become damaged and not operate at all. Thus, diffusing the heat generated from the light making process is critical to the operation of the bulb. This is done through the use of heat sinks, much as you might see on a computer motherboard. Heat sinks are created with grooves and fins that captures the heat generated and wicks it out into the ambient environment.
Now, if the heat sinks wick heat out into the ambient environment, how is it that they don’t heat up rooms as much as incandescent lighting? The answer lies in how much energy each type of bulb uses. As mentioned above, incandescent lights are very inefficient as over 90% of the energy used to create light is wasted as heat. LED lights are extremely energy efficient – between 70 and 80% of the energy used by the bulb system is used to make light. LED lighting uses much less energy than incandescent lighting as well. Much less overall energy used combined with highly efficient usage of that energy means there’s very little heat generated!
CHECK OUT OUR SERVICES FROM CMI LIGHTING
With over 35 years in the industry, CMI has an array of equipment to handle the logistics of any in-house job. We also frequently provide solutions to property managers and upcoming developments. CMI Companies provides services in Mid-Atlantic Region and proudly serves clients in Northern Virginia, Maryland, Richmond, Southern Virginia, Manassas, Prince William County, Fairfax County, Rockville, and Prince George’s County. Also, check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.