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As LED light installation specialists in Melbourne, we get plenty of questions about LED lightbulbs and eco-friendly lights for homes and businesses. Here are some of the most common questions about these lights.  1 – What Lights are Eco-Friendly?  LED lightbulbs are the most eco-friendly lights on the market. A good-quality LED not only lasts considerably longer than regular lightbulbs, but they also use far less energy to generate light and are fully recyclable, so they’re perfect for the planet and your wallet!  2 – Which is Better – LED or CFL?  Compact fluorescents, called CFLs, are more energy-efficient than traditional incandescent lights, using about 25-35% less energy. However, they are nowhere near as energy efficient as LEDs, which use 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs. They also have a far longer lifespan (around 50,000 hours or more), which means you don’t have to replace them as often ad CFLs either.  3 – Do You Need an Electrician to Inst...

 LED lightbulbs are widely recognised for their very long lifespan – up to 10 times that of a regular lightbulb. During that lifetime, they use very little energy to produce a lot of light, which is why they’re the first choice for your home or office if you want to reduce your carbon footprint . But what do the average rated LED lifetime hours mentioned on the box really mean? Here is some insights from accredited LED installers under the Victorian Energy Upgrades Program .  What are Average Rated Lifetime Hours and Why Do They Matter?  When LED lightbulbs are manufactured, batches undergo tests to determine how long they last. Essentially, they are switched on and monitored until they start to dim and fail. The results of this test determine the Average Rated Lifetime Hours for those lights. For example, if 100,000 lightbulbs from that batch were tested and 70% failed after running for 1,000 hours, these lightbulbs would have Average Rated Lifetime Hours of 1,000 hours...

When you’re picking out new eco-friendly lights for your home, you’ll see the letters “CRI” on the packaging followed by a number. So, what does this mean and is it important? Here are some insights from our team who are providing eligible homeowners with an LED upgrade through the Victorian Energy Upgrades program .  Firstly, CRI stands for Colour Rendering Index. This is a scale that measures how colours look under artificial lighting in contrast to natural sunlight. The scale ranges from 0 to 100, with 0 indicating that the light changes colour significantly from what it looks like in natural sunlight, and 100 indicating that colours will be the most similar in appearance to how they look in natural sunlight.   As a result, it’s very important to consider the CRI of your eco-friendly lights before you buy them, as they can have a big impact on the atmosphere and aesthetics of your home.  What is the Best CRI for Lighting a Home?  Almost no lighting offers a...

 Thinking about what New Year’s Resolutions you should set this year? Along with your goals to get fitter, eat healthier and have more fun, you can also help the planet! Here are some New Year’s Resolutions that will help you reduce your carbon footprint and reduce energy consumption , from LED light installation specialists.  1 – Try a Plant-Based Diet  Going vegan being the single biggest measure you can take to reduce your carbon footprint, reducing it by a massive 73%. This translates to a reduction of 1,560kg CO2e – the same amount of carbon that’s produces by driving a car halfway around the Earth! Of course, it also takes willpower, financial resources and access to vegan foods in order to make it happen. Start by reducing your meat protein intake or going vegetarian – even eating less meat will make a big difference.  2 – Go Car-Less  Rather than using a car, use a bicycle or even your feet to get you to work or run your errands each day. You’ll not o...

 If you’re growing your cannabis plants in a grow tent or indoor setting, then you need the best quality lighting solution – and that means LEDs . Here are just some of the benefits of these eco friendly lights , including their ability to reduce energy consumption, from LED light installation experts.  1 – Temperature Control  Unlike other lights, LEDs produce very little heat, which makes it much easier to control the temperature in your grow space. This prevents your space from overheating and overexposing your crop.  2 – Correct Light Spectrum  LEDs have the correct light spectrum for plants, maximising absorption to support plant nutrient uptake and growth. This makes them far more effective than other lightbulbs.  3 – Long Lifespan  Grow lights have to work all day, every day if you want the best results. LEDs have a much longer lifespan than other lightbulbs, typically lasting 6-10 years compared to the average 2-4 years. Generally, these eco f...

 When buying LED lightbulbs , you’ll see descriptive terms on the packaging that classify the light as warm or cool. But what does this mean? And what option is better? Here’s some insight from LED light installation specialists accredited under the Victorian Energy Upgrade Program .  Colour Temperature  It’s all about the concept of colour temperature. Essentially, warm lighting emits a light that is closer to natural lighting, ranging from a yellow to a reddish light. Cool lighting emits a more artificial lighting that is bluer in colour. To determine where the LED lightbulbs you are looking at fall on the scale, it’s important to ignore the description and focus on the Kelvin rating, which will be a number in the thousands followed by a (K) symbol. This scale measures lighting in numerical values, and while the word descriptions and labels on the LED lightbulbs will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer (they’re more like paint colour descriptions than exact, defined...

 It’s important not to forget outdoor spaces when it comes to great home lighting, as it not only makes your space more welcoming and useful in the evening hours, but also impacts home security. Here’s a rundown of outdoor lighting basics, from energy efficient lights to security, from accredited providers of free LED upgrades under the Victorian energy efficiency scheme .  Lighting for Home Safety  It’s important to make sure your home is safely accessible during low light hours by lighting pathways, driveways, signage (like your house number) and stairs. This will make your home easier to find as well as preventing painful falls and injuries caused by missteps in the dark.   Good ideas for outdoor safety lighting include individual step lights at stair level or flexible strip lighting on stairs (this prevents people from blocking out lighting to the stairs as they navigate them), and standalone lighting at critical points like home and driveway entrances....

If you are looking to reduce your home’s carbon footprint, upgrading to sustainable lighting is probably high on your list of priorities. However, LEDs are very different to other lightbulbs on the market, so it’s easy to go wrong on this seemingly simple project. Here are some common mistakes and how to avoid them, from LED light installation specialists accredited under the Victorian energy upgrade program .  Mistake 1 – Replacing Watt for Watt  Usually, you’d replace a 20W lightbulb with another 20W lightbulb – but this doesn’t work with LEDs because they use far less watts than any other bulb. Replacing a lightbulb this way is going to light your house up like a stadium!  Instead, look at the lumen per watt measurement on each bulb before you buy. This tells you how much light the bulb outputs for the watts consumed. A 6W LED bulb can easily replace a 40W incandescent, 29W halogen or 8-9W compact fluorescent.  Mistake 2 – Not Considering Colour Rendering Index ...

Many people are currently working from home for the foreseeable future, and that means that home energy costs are going up. Here are some useful tips on how to reduce energy consumption , from installing eco friendly lights to improving natural lighting and more, from our team specialising in free LED upgrades . Smart Power Strips   Electrical devices, whether they are smartphone chargers, computers, tablets or kitchen appliances, draw electricity while plugged in – even when they are not in use. Smart power strips like those manufactured by Belkin, Samsung, iHome and others not only work in connection with smart devices like Alexa and Google home assistant, they also ensure tech devices don’t draw power when they aren’t in use.  Improve Natural Lighting   Improve your home office to take advantage of natural lighting during the day – it won’t just reduce your lighting bill, the increased sunshine will also help reduce heating needs, making it a great way to reduce energ...

The technology behind LED lightbulbs is different to any other lightbulb, and was so revolutionary that the scientists behind this invention won the Nobel prize for physics in 2014. Here’s some insight into the science and technology behind these bulbs from our lighting specialists, who are accredited under the Victorian energy upgrades program to install free LED upgrades .  LED Technology  LED (Light Emitting Diode) lightbulbs are what is commonly called solid-state lighting technology (SSL). This means that they work on a piece of solid matter called a semi-conductor. Unlike incandescent bulbs, which require a filament or fluorescent lightbulbs that need a gas, illumination in LED lightbulbs is the result of electrons moving in the semi-conductor material. As a result, they use very little electricity, don’t get hot and last as long as a standard transistor, as there is no filament to burn out.  Unlike incandescent or fluorescent lighting, LEDs do not...

There are a couple of challenges to overcome when replacing your old lightbulbs with LED lightbulbs , and one important one is getting the colour of your bulbs right. Here are some tips from our team, who is offering free LED upgrades to homeowners around Melbourne under the Victorian energy efficiency scheme . The Color Temperature Scale   Knowing the colour temperature scale is important when choosing LED lightbulbs for your home, as this ensures you get the right colour lighting for your space.  Colour temperature is measured in Kelvin (K) and is usually technically referred to as Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT) on lighting specifications.  The way we describe colour temperature is a little confusing because it is the opposite of heat temperature. For example, the higher the colour temperature in Kelvin, the cooler the colour, and the lower the Kelvin, the warmer it is.  When choosing LED lightbulbs for your free LED upgrade under the ...

LED lightbulbs are one of the greatest sustainable energy innovations of our time! Here are some interesting facts about LEDs from our team of specialists. We provide free LED upgrades to homes through the Victorian Energy Upgrade Program . Fact #1 – LED Lightbulbs are Technological Innovations  The LED is also known as a light-emitting diode, and the team of scientists who were behind the invention of these lightbulbs in the 1990s won the Nobel Prize in physics for their innovation. The bulbs are a type of solid-state lighting that utilises a semiconductor to convert electricity into light, technology that allows them to use 85% less energy than typical halogen bulbs. It’s this ability to provide great lighting using a fraction of the energy that has made them part of the Victorian Energy Upgrade Program.  Fact #2 – They’re Versatile  LED lightbulbs can be used in almost any lighting application, from residential lighting (task lighting, security ...

The Victorian Energy Upgrades program is a great opportunity for households to cut energy costs, save money and support sustainable living goals. Here is a guide to what is available under this program, which includes a free LED upgrade , from accredited LED upgrade services providers. A Home Energy Assessment   This is an energy audit that shows exactly how much energy your home is consuming, where this energy is being used and where you can save energy effectively without reducing your comfort. Accredited independent providers will schedule an assessment of your home and give you a rating on a scorecard, giving you a star rating that you can compare to other homes. The higher your rating, the more sustainable your home is, which is great when it comes time to sell!  Hot Water Systems   Hot water heating accounts for up to 16% of the average home’s energy bill each month, and you can reduce this by upgrading to a new, more efficient system. This is ma...