Hints & Advice on Lighting and Lamps

LED

LED is undoubtedly the future of light source. However, the majority of LED Lamps are already made of high quality components. We only sell LED Lamps that we ourselves have tested and that we know are good. LEDs have several advantages over for example low-energy bulbs. LED lights up to full strength directly , the are long life light spurces, low energy consumption and contain no harmful substances. Unfortunately there is also a lot of low quality LED products on the market at this time. We will now try to explain the diffierences between high quality and low quality LED Lamps.

Why is the life expectancy of less importance?

LEDs (just like fluorescent ) lighting loses effect during their lifetime. The reason for this is the heat produced behind the lamp, the LEDs itself never gets hot . The small heat produced means makes the LEDs lose brightness after time. On good LED luminaires / lamps there is therefore a cooling device behind the LEDs that constantly cools the LEDs, this will cause the lamp to last longer and lose less effect. A good LED lamp loses maxiumum 15 % of its brightness during the first 25.000 hours , then the LEDs continue to light but drops more rapidly in brightness.

So, a poor quality LED Lamp that´s supposed to have a life time of 40,000 hours with warm white light will rapidly lose brightness the first 4000 hours, about 40%. After this, the lamp is basically unusable because of the loss of brightness. It´s therefor irrelevant that the LEDs keeps function for a further 36,000 hours beacuse of the poor brightness. So if you want to invest in LED and be satisfied with the quality and the light, invest in real luminaires / lamps from the beginning. It pays off!

Outdoor Lighting

Stainless steel is in most cases not stainless. Unless the lamp is relatively expensive, it´s probably not made in real stainless steel. To preserve the fine surface you therefore need to rub in the lamp with oil a few times a year. The material and the color is more than just a matter of taste for some. If you live near the ocean, the salty breezes toil hard on the material that easily rust. For tough conditions like these, we recommend fixtures of external illumination that are made of galvanized steel or copper .

Downlights / Recessed spotlights

Downlights has become very popular in recent years and look very nice in the ceiling. When preparing for recessed spotlights, you should do an air gap between the roof and behind of about 12cm. Downlights requires a safety distance behind the spotlight, and 12cm is usually standard. If you have isolation in the ceiling you must have a protective jar that you put behind the spotlight, they are available in both max. 20W and max. 35 sizes. NOTE: If you do not have isolation and have 12cm > behind the spotlight, do not use a protection jar. The more free air around the spotlight, the better.

If you use a light fixture that is approved to have halogen spotlights in but choose to have the LED as light sources, it is important to keep in mind that the installation must still be approved for halogen. If you move from your home and the new owners rather have halogen light sourcesthis can result in major fire hazard and danger to life.

Permanent installation of 12V or 230V should be performed by a certified electrician. One recommendation is to always put the transformer in the middle of the illumination surfac , then usually the maximum length from transformer to the last bulb is 2 meters . NOTE Before drilling, always check the measurement fixture.

Light Sources

E27 is the classical and most used base. E14 means little composure.

GU10 is a reflector lamp with bayonet base. In order to remove a GU10 lamp you will sometimes need a suction cup, or you can press both thumbs on the lamp and turn left.

MR16 is 12V reflector lamp with two pins, the same size as a GU10 . The light is released by pulling it straight out .

MR11 is 12V reflector lamp but much less than an MR16 , the same size as the much rarer GU10 mini. Released by pulling the lamp straight out .

G4 is a small 12V halogen bi-pin, remember that you should not touch directly on a G4 lamp. You should use a piece paper in between, due to the fat on our fingers that allows the lamp to drop significantly in life time. The lamp lasts considerably longer than its counterpart in 230V, G9 .

G9 is a small 230V lamp that resembles a G4 lamp. The difference is that instead of two pins, the G9 lamp has two circular arcs. You should not touch the bulb with your fingers for the same reason as with the G4 lamp.