Lighting with LED

History of the Light-Emitting Diode (LED)

Most people think of LED’s as being a fairly new technology, when in fact LED’s were first discovered over 100 years ago. The Light-emitting diode (LED) was first discovered in 1907 by H.J. Round of Great Britain. However, it would be several decades before the first practical LED would be developed.

The first practical LED was developed in 1962 by Nick Holonyak, Jr. while he was working for General Electric Company. It would be the late 1960’s before LED’s first became available for commercial use, and were only available in the color red. These red LED’s only produced enough light to allow them to be used in applications such as indicator lights for items such as TV’s, radios, or appliances. Other colors of LED’s were developed in the early 1970’s but didn’t go into production until the 1990’s

LED Today

There are two basic types of LED being used today:

Indication: These LED’s are low wattage, typically less than 0.2 watts, and used primarily in applications such as indicator lights on electronics, signals, and signs.

Illumination: As the technology of LED’s was improved through the 1990’s white LED’s and high power LED’s, higher than 1 watt made LED illumination a possibility.

Advantages of LED’s

• Low power consumption compared to conventional lighting.
• LED’s produce no UV output which can damage fabric and artwork.
• Extremely long life.Today’s LED can last up to 50,000 hours.
• LED’s produce very little projected heat.Friendly to the enviorment.

Today’s LED has been developed to the point that it is now usable for lighting throughout your home. Below are examples of what you will find in LED’s for your home.

Pendants and spot scan be mounted on monorail
systems or hung individually on mono point canopies.

LED Tape Lighting can be used in various colors
to create dramatic effects.

LED under cabinet lights make an excellent
source for task lighting.

Decorative LED Rail Lights with adjustable
heads can be mounted on the wall or ceiling

More Than Just Lighting

Here at Rensen House of Lights you will find much more than just lighting. We carry a wide array of items to decorate your home, from framed artwork to furniture for every room in your home. Here is a sample of some of the great items you can find in our showroom.











Framed Artwork

Mirrors

Bathroom Vanities








Furniture







Accessories

Layers of Light

Lighting is one of the most exciting yet underused elements of design. Adequate lighting is imperative to the function and purpose of your home, but good lighting can also go beyond simple function.

There are three main components to a good lighting design: ambient light, task light, and accent light.

Ambient Lighting (aka General Lighting) - Ambient lighting is the primary lighting of your room. This light could come from a chandelier, ceiling mount fixture or recessed cans. In a setting like as a media room or theater room this may be a softer light around the perimeter, such as wall sconces. Ambient light should provide a uniform level of light throughout the room. Proper ambient lighting would help reduce harsh contrasts between concentrated pools of light, aid in traffic and provide light for basic visual tasks throughout the room.

Task Lighting- Task lighting allows you to see essential details of an activity. This light can come from mini pendants over your kitchen island or bar, a table lamp on your nightstand or puck lighting under your kitchen cabinets. Task lighting may be used for activities such as cooking, reading, crafts, etc. and should provide enough light to avoid eyestrain or accidents. Your task light should be located near the area of you activity and placed in a manner to avoid glare while providing an even distribution of light.

Accent Lighting (aka Decorative Lighting)- Accent lighting may be used to highlight artwork, plants, statues, alcoves and even wall texture. This lighting can be achieved by the use of track lighting or monorail systems, recessed cans, spots, wall sconces or picture lights. Proper use of accent lighting can add visual drama to a room by creating focal points and highlighting specific objects or pictures.

Just like clothing, lighting looks best in layers. Lighting is one of the main factors in design that makes all of the other elements work well together. By adding layers to a room, you can add depth and dimension to the entire space.

Back To Our Roots: Thomas Edison Inspired Lighting

A home decorating show I saw recently reminded me of these really neat lights that Hudson Valley Lighting offers. The interior designer on the show was transforming a man's apartment with a very masculine, old world style of decor. Think dark chocolate leather furniture, vintage world map-like artwork, and a vintage trunk as a coffee table! The wall sconces she chose were what really peaked my interest! She found them at an estate sale which genuinely made them old and perfect for the apartment! After an accident left the glass shades broken, she decided to use nostalgic Edison style bulbs in the sconces instead of replacing the glass. The sconces looked incredible and added so much style and character to the overall look of the room! The Heirloom collection by Hudson Valley uses these very same bulbs to give them their vintage style. Although this collection has a very specific style its applications are endless! Come by the store today to see this collection as well as many others offered by Hudson Valley Lighting.

Source: http://www.lightstyleorlando.blogspot.com/

Does size matter?

How big does my Dining Room chandelier need to be?

This is a question we hear almost every day. When choosing a new dining room chandelier size does matter. You want to choose a fixture that will fit the room as well as your dining room table. There are a few general rules you can follow to help determine the size of your new chandelier.

One formula used to determine the size of your Dining Room chandelier is to select a fixture that is half the width of your table. So if you have a table that is 48” wide x 72” long you want to be looking for a chandelier around 24” in diameter. If you have a round table that is 60” in diameter you should be looking for a fixture that is around 30” in diameter. Your chandelier should always be hung centered over your table, even if the table is not in the center of the room. The width of your chandelier should always be at least a foot less than the width of your table. Your chandelier should be installed 30” above your table top.

If you have an exceptionally long table you might want to consider hanging two chandeliers. If doing this you would look for chandeliers that are 1/3 the width of your table. So if you have a table that is 54” wide x 120” long you should be looking for chandeliers in the range of 18’ in diameter. In this case the two chandeliers should each be centered over their half of the table.

The ceiling height of the room is the determining factor in selecting the proper height of your chandelier. Many Designers and lighting follow the rule of allowing 2 ½”–3” for each foot of a rooms height. Using this calculation, a room with an 8’ ceiling can use a chandelier that is approximately 20” to 24” in height. If the ceiling is 10 feet high, then a chandelier that is 25” to 30” would look more appropriate.

To determine the wattage needed to properly light your room, a basic rule to remember is find the square footage of the room and then multiplying it by 1.5 watts. If the ceiling is over nine feet tall you might want to adjust that multiplier up to 2.0 watts. So if your Dining Room is 10’ x 12’ with 8’ ceilings you should be looking for a fixture that will provide around 180 watts. If that same 10’ x 12’ room has a 10’ ceiling you might want to consider going up to 240 watts. It is always better to over watt than it is to under watt. If you think the fixture is too bright or glary after installation you can always decrease the wattage or add a dimmer. If the fixture is not bright enough you may have no choice but to select a different fixture or add additional light sources such as sconces or recessed cans.

Dining room chandeliers should always be put on a dimmer. This allows you to use the area for multiple activities from doing homework to having a nice romantic dinner.