Lighting Choices Go Small: LED’s Find Many Uses

In RC Planes of rcplanes (February 26, 2010 6:41 pm)

Lighting is an important aspect of any design. The source of lighting will alter the feeling and usefulness of a space. There are many sources of lighting including natural direct or indirect light, tungsten lighting, fluorescent lighting and LED lighting. LED light bulbs have come a long way. LED bulbs were once too expensive to be considered part of interior design options for the basic consumer. Innovation in materials and design has reduced the expense of producing usable white light for the home. Light Emmitting Diodes offers many advantages and are a more environmentally sustainable choice for lighting.

{LED|The initials LED stands for light emitting diodes. LEDs are solid state lighting sources that can convert an electrical impulse into light. LEDs last much longer then tungsten bulbs and because of the solid state, are much less likely to stop working due to vibration or a sudden bump. The lights are little and hardy. LEDs run the range of the color spectrum into non-visible light like infrared and ultraviolet with out the need for filters. These traits make LED lighting a great choice for many projects.

Light Emitting Diodes send a slender shaft of illumination great for task lighting, like workbench lighting or kitchen work station lighting. The illumination of a wider area can be carried out with reflectors and strip lighting. Stair cases and cupboards are great examples of areas that LED lights can be employed. LED’s are very useful for safety lighting and are used in airplanes, theaters and other places where lights can help illuminate passage ways without causing light bleed. These same principles can be used in home lighting for stair cases, walkways and closets.

One of the great advantages of these lights is the ability to train light in defined locations with a variety of colors. Using LEDs in interior design for space lighting is becoming less expensive and more adaptive. Similar to track lighting these lights can isolate small sections. In addition, some LED lights can actually change color according to the need and desire of the home owner. The walls of a space can shift color depending on the setting and desired ambiance. Using carefully chosen colors the lights can alter the hue of the room. Matching the colors of paint and lightrequires some experimentation and foresight. The room needs to look good in natural light as well as artificial light. Small patches of the wall can sculpted with light. This allows for creating a sense of texture and depth onto a one dimensional wall.

Light emitting diodes can also be employed special decorative purposes. Door knobs can light up red or green to indicate occupancy or vacancy, faucets and shower heads can change the color of water. Heat sensitive diodes can even indicate if the water is hot or cold. These lights can be sensitive to the temperature of a room, shifting the color to help create a better ambiance. In a cool space, the lighting can shift to warmer colors and in a warm space the lights can shift to color tones. There are many applications for light emitting diodes with more on the way. Interior designers will use LEDs more as the cost continues to decline and applications increase.