LED Street Lights Cut LCC Power Bill By 72%

by Dean Mance | Aug 2, 2016 | Our Projects, Reduce Your Power Bill

Case Study: Launceston City Council Installs First LED Street Lights

The Client
The Launceston City Council provides services to over 65,000 residents in the municipality. The future direction and focus of the council is guided by the Greater Launceston Plan.

The two key themes of the GLP are community needs and values, and recognising the importance of sustainability. As part of the comittment to deliver services in a responsible and sustainable manner the council has engaged the services of Jim Taylor as the City Of Launceston Sustainability Officer.

The Challenge
There are over 5,000 street lights in the Launceston area, which run from 8 to 14 hours a day, depending on the time of year. This generates a hefty power bill for the council and Jim has been investigating ways to reduce the cost of running these lights.

Any alternative must have low running costs and be as low maintenance as possible. Being pole top fittings there is a considerable cost and use of resources just to access a light fitting for repair. Also, the change from old to new light fittings should be as simple as possible.

The Solution
Jim decided to test the Sylvania StreetLED 22w LED street light fitting to replace the existing 80w mercury-vapour fittings.

Mance Electrical assisted by installing 6 of the new fittings to light poles in the car park at the bottom of Park Street, near the Tamar Yacht Club. These are the first LED street lights to be installed in the Launceston Municipality.

The Results
Installation of the lights was trouble free, due to the well designed mounting system. The light output of the new LEDs is clear and bright and compares favourably with the old mercury vapour lights.

Power consumption is a massive 72% less than the original fittings.

With over 5,000 street lights in Launceston the potential cost savings are substantial.

For advice on converting your existing lights to LED phone Mance Electrical on 6331 4711

Contact us for more information

New LED Down Lights

by Dean Mance | Jan 15, 2016 | Common Repairs, Keep Your Family Safe, Reduce Your Power Bill

Getting Cheaper And Better All The Time

Cheaper To Run
Cheaper To Maintain
Safer To Operate
Easy To Install

LED down lights have greatly improved over the last year or so. There are many new brands on the market and prices have dropped by around 50%.

The new lights on offer are more compact, with the LED drivers built in to the light fitting instead of having a separate driver that plugs into the light. This makes them easier to install, especially in confined spaces.

Some new LED downlights can even be completely covered by insulation without causing overheating problems.

Overheating is a big safety issue with the old style down lights. The dichroic lamps burn at up to 300 degrees and there are restrictions on clearances to timber and flammable materials.

The safety regulations were often ignored and a large number of homes have been damaged by fire as a result.

Click Here to read our in-depth article on The Dangers Of Old Style Down Lights

LED down lights solve all the safety problems caused by old downlights as they run very cool in comparison.

LED down lights are also much cheaper to run and have much lower maintenance costs as well.

The quality of light output has improved dramatically, with fittings available from 8 watts to 15 watts, with a choice of warm white, neutral or cool white output, so it’s easy to find a suitable down light for your situation.

Many fittings are dimmable too, which gives you even more options. The only proviso is you must match the correct dimmer to your light fitting to ensure the best result and avoid flickering or a limited dimming range.

There is also a choice in style and colour of the fittings themselves. LED downlights are available in either white, brushed chrome or brass finish. The diffuser on the front face can be slightly recessed or flush with the trim ring

LED down lights are available in sizes that will directly replace the common sizes of old style downlights so swapping over to new fittings is usually a straight forward job.

Switching to LED lights will save you at least 80% on running costs. Depending on the amount you use the lights, the pay back time could be less than a year. The more you use the lights, the more money you will save.

Replace your old unsafe down lights with new LEDs. Save money and reduce the risk of fire in your home. Phone Mance Electrical on 6331 4711.

Christmas Lights Survival Guide

by Dean Mance | Dec 3, 2015 | Fun Ideas For Your Home, Keep Your Family Safe

The Unexpected Dangers Of Christmas Lights

It seems that every year the bar is raised higher and higher in the neighbourhood Christmas lights competition.

Displays are bigger and brighter, with more and more lights added each successive year. Home owners go to a lot of trouble and some of the displays look quite impressive, but did you know there is a dark side to those festive lights?

There are a number of injuries and even deaths each year directly attributed to Christmas lights. Electrocution, fire and falling off roofs can make the quest for festive lighting a hazardous endeavour.

The major source of problems are old and poorly maintained light strings.

That old set of Christmas tree lights you’ve been dragging out every December for a couple of decades should probably be replaced. Any lights that operate with 240 volts at the lamp have the potential to cause electric shock or start a fire.

Old Christmas lights can also cause overloaded circuits, a problem that has been solved by new LED lights.

LEDs are ideal for Christmas lights due to their low power consumption, low voltage power supplies and the range of colours that can be produced. Even with new LED lights there are safety issues you need to to be aware of.

You should only buy your Christmas lights from a reputable local retailer to ensure they are safe and approved for use in Australia.

If you buy online make sure your lights are sent from an Australian based distributor and not sent direct to you from overseas. It doesn’t guarantee the safety of the lights but it does give you an opportunity to seek redress in the event of a problem.

If you import any electrical product direct from overseas you assume all the responsibilities of an importer and will be personally liable for any problems the lights cause.

If some one is injured by non-compliant lights you will be responsible. If you home is damaged by fire due to faulty Christmas lights your insurance company may not pay if the lights that caused the damage were not approved for use in Australia.

The usual commonsense safety measures still apply to low voltage or LED lights.

Don’t use lights that have damaged cords, broken lamps or damaged power supplies.

Don’t mix old and new light strings, they are probably not compatible.

Do keep power packs and extension cord connections out of the weather.

Do use a proper ladder for accessing your roof and make sure it is footed correctly and secured at the top if possible.

Do ensure that any lights you buy are approved for use in Australia.

While a good display of Christmas lights can look amazing, some people go just a little too far.

Last year a Townsville man disconnected the street light outside his home in order to make his lighting display stand out more effectively. He removed the cover from the base of the pole and pulled apart the live wiring connections, which disabled the street light but created a very dangerous situation.

Enjoy your festive lighting display but make sure you keep your family safe as well.

For advice and help with all lighting issues phone us on 6331 4711. Mance Electrical Launceston

Israel Plants Solar Trees

by Dean Mance | Aug 17, 2015 | Solar Power

Solar Trees Provide Shade And Power

Israeli inventor, Michael Lasry has created a “solar tree” which collects solar power and provides a shaded seating area with outlets for charging mobile phones and a screen for accessing the internet.

The solar tree also provides chilled drinking water and is a wi-fi hotspot. Excess power produced by the tree is stored in a battery which then powers LED lights at night and provides back up power on cloudy days.

The seven solar panels on the tree produce 1.4 kilowatts of power which is enough to run 35 laptop computers.

The solar trees are a stand-alone installation, not connected to the electricity grid. The $100,000 price tag means there may not be a solar tree in every park any time soon, but they are a great example of what is possible with small scale solar installations.

The inventor also plans to install internet connected cameras in the trees allowing communication between tree users across the world.

If you’d like to join the thousands of Aussies who enjoy the benefits of a small scale solar panel installation give us a call for a free on-site inspection and a detailed proposal tailored to your specific site.

Phone Mance Electrical on 6331 4711

New LED Exit Lights Save Time And Money

by Dean Mance | Jul 19, 2015 | Common Repairs, Keep Your Family Safe, Reduce Your Power Bill, Save Money

Traditional exit lights with fluorescent tubes require a lot of maintenance to ensure they will operate correctly in an emergency.

With the new range of LED exit lights now available it’s usually cheaper to replace a faulty older exit light than it is to repair it.

LED exit lights have many advantages over the older style lights. They require much less maintenance, are cheaper to purchase, have more reliable batteries and chargers and use much less power.

Power consumption is an important consideration as many exit lights are required to run 24 hours a day. There are big savings to be made on running costs alone. The cost savings from lower maintenance requirements are on-going for the life of the fitting, which is considerably longer than for a fluorescent style exit light.

Each new lights come with a range of “running man” style graphics all in the one box. There is no need to purchase a specific left or right arrow diffuser for each location. The one fitting can be adapted to suit all situations.

If your commercial property has exit lights they are required to be checked every six months, with a log book on site to record the testing date and any repairs carried out.

For all exit and emergency light installation, testing, repair and replacement in Launceston and surrounding areas, phone Mance Electrical on 6331 4711