Owning a beautiful home with soothing blue tinted light emanating from some fluorescent light panels in the living room ceiling is a dream we all share; well, maybe not everyone dreams about the “soothing blue tinted light” and the fluorescent panels, but everyone dreams of a beautiful and well lit house. In fact, owning a home is more than just a dream; it’s a basic human need; and a well planned lighting system is the key to making it stand out.
Have you ever heard the saying, “all houses are the same”? Well, to some extent, they are; since they all have floors, ceilings and walls. If it stands alone, a house is simply a structure and nothing more. What makes a house different is the person living in that house; what makes a house a home is you and everything unique about you. And, that’s why every great lighting system always includes decorative fluorescent light panels; because a decorative light panel allows you to bring your character into your home.
Since a lot of us can’t really afford to have our house renovated, the next best thing to do would be to plan how we want our home lit. It’s all about the lights and how decorative fluorescent light panels can help you transform an ordinary house into your own “personally styled” home.
First, you have to select the design you want from your fluorescent panels; and with each of the many decorative light panel designs as beautiful as the next, this is no easy task; unless you already know what you want. You may even choose different decorative light panel designs, from pastel colors and blue skies to gloomy gray and clouds, to place in the different areas of your house.
Once you’ve made your choice, all you have to do is buy those fluorescent panels and install them; and believe me, that’s the easy part. The price is so “drop down” affordable and the installation so easy, that you’ll surely be going out again to get some more of those beautiful fluorescent light panels.
So start planning you home’s lighting design now; and don’t forget to plan which style of decorative light panel you need for your perfect home; because a house is just a structure if you don’t make it your own.
www.FilmSensei.com - On this episode, Mat Nastos, the Film Sensei, takes a look at a great new fluorescent light bank for indie and low budget filmmakers - the Alzo Quad Pan-L Lite Bank. What a lot of my regular readers may have realized is that I am always on the look out for a good deal. As a low budget guerilla filmmaker, I don’t have a huge amount of money for new equipment and being able to find something high quality and at a decent price is my eternal quest. When I stumbled across the …
Most basic aquariums come with lighting already installed, but you can also buy lights if you want something different. For a novice the lighting in your aquarium should be sufficient if it’s fluorescent, however, this only applies to freshwater tanks. If you plan on setting up a saltwater aquarium, better lighting is a must.
Fluorescent lighting keeps fish the healthiest because it most closely resembles natural light - and it makes your fish look better! Don’t use candescent lighting in an aquarium, as it gives off a lot of heat and has a tendency to warm the water, possibly causing harm to your fish. Luckily, incandescent bulbs are easy to replace with fluorescent ones.
For fish only aquariums, use 3 watts of lighting for every gallon of water in the tank. This amount of light will control algae perfectly - anything stronger and you may notice green algae starting to form. Remember to change the lights once every 8 months to keep a consistent light level going.
For aquariums with plants, the lighting requirements are different. Unfortunately, many people make mistakes with lighting, causing their beautiful aquatic plants to wither and die in the span of a few weeks. But if you know what amount of lighting to use to keep plants alive, they will flourish, and stay vibrant and colorful. Install a tri-phosphor tube or full spectrum fluorescent bulb to supply the plants with the full spectrum of light they need to grow.
Although the lighting you employ depends on the type of plants you have in your aquarium, a full spectrum bulb that covers the red, blue, and green parts of the light spectrum should work for most setups.
A fluorescent bulb should do the trick for saltwater tanks containing only fish, but if you’re going to add other elements to the mix, such as coral or live rocks, everything changes. This type of aquarium needs more light. If you plan to start with just fish, and then expand to add other features, purchase an aquarium with space for two tubes so you have room to add more lighting as your needs change. Corals require large amounts of light, between 5 and 8 watts.
Setting up an aquarium and keeping fish can be a lot of fun, and it makes a great hobby. As long as you research your lighting needs ahead of time and know exactly what your aquarium needs to keep the fish, plants, and other features alive and well, you’ll be able to enjoy your aquarium for years to come.
If you own a business, you will sooner or later need to update the way you light it. There are several reasons why you will need a new or updated commercial grade lighting system. One of the most important reasons is that older systems are much less energy efficient. You are wasting money every month in electric costs with older, inefficient lights. You also might note problems in some lights such as flickering or humming, or constantly needing to replace the bulbs. There are many applications for commercial grade lighting systems. You might need interior lamps, security lights, or exterior lights for a parking lot or open space. All of these require a different type of lamp and possibly different bulbs in those lights. General advice and tips can help you to narrow down your many options. Once you have fine-tuned your choices, you can ask an expert if you have specific questions about your project.
If you have a commercial grade lighting system that is ten years old or more, it will be time for more modern replacements. Today’s parking lot lights are able to light larger areas, have truer coloring, and lack flickering and humming seen in older models. The most common commercial grade lighting systems several years ago used incandescent and commercial fluorescent lights for indoor lighting. Incandescent are not very energy efficient, since much of the energy they require ends up generating heat. Fluorescents and their fixtures of decades gone by were one of the few options. While they were more efficient, they would often flicker and hum, and everything under them often had a yellowish hue. The flickering and humming have been solved by modern fixtures with newer magnetic and electronic ballasts to control the electricity going to the lights better. Today’s fluorescents also have a different mixture of gases in them, so their coloring now is truer.
Security lights for your commercial grade lighting system will likely be tied into a motion detector. This will save energy costs by only turning the lights on when they are needed. A bright security flood light with a motion detector is a good way to deter criminal activity in and around your business at night. You should choose long-lived halogens or cool fluorescents for motion activated flood lights. If your flood lights are going to be lit all night long, such as for a parking lot, then you also have the option of high intensity discharge (HID) bulbs such as high pressure sodium, mercury vapor, and metal halide bulbs. These can be wired to a timer or light sensor to turn on at dusk and off at dawn, but since they take a few seconds to warm up before lighting, they should not be used with motion detectors.
If you are still uncertain about any aspect of choosing or installing your commercial grade lighting system, you will need to consult with an expert. A professional electrician can be hired to do the job as a contract worker, or you could talk to the experts at the lighting products retailer. Many reputable light stores are staffed by current and former electricians. These people can help to guide you to choosing the right lights and hardware if you want to install your commercial grade lighting system on your own.
Demonstration of Aquatic Life Compact Fluorescent light fixture lighting features
Dark sky regulations have been created throughout the nation to improve the overall quality of lighting while at the same time controlling its quantity. Dark sky laws are intended to minimize glare and obtrusive natural light that often finds its way into homes and neighboring businesses. This type of light pollution is common with fixtures that offer little or no directional control of the light and diffuse too much bright light into all directions in an inefficient attempt to eliminate all shadows. This only results in too much light shining vertically up into the atmosphere, posing a threat to many species of nocturnal animals and blotting out the view of the nighttime sky.
Dark Sky regulations are the result of worldwide efforts on the part of the dark-sky movement. This grass-roots movement began when astronomers became extremely concerned that artificial light from cities was obscuring the view of the stars. A number of associations now operate both nationally and globally to educate the public in the many hazards of uncontrolled artificial light and to help communities adopt dark sky regulations that call for energy efficient, full cutoff lighting fixtures in outdoor environments. These fixtures cast light downward and are ideal for controlling lighting levels in public areas.
The full cutoff fixtures required by dark sky regulations provide businesses and institutions with an alternative to the “blanket” approach to outdoor lighting that previous generations took. Rather than trying to brightly illuminate every corner of a building or commercial property, full cutoff fixtures illuminated only an intended portion from a specific angle of incidence. The purpose of illumination is not to flood the area with light, but rather to shine enough light onto an object or area with enough light to render color and contrast necessary for accurate depth perception and safe mobility.
By calling for a more precise approach to lighting in general, dark sky regulations require contractors to install equipment that benefits both the environment and the city’s budget. One of the biggest myths in our industry is the assumption that a large amount of bright light is the key to safety. Studies have proven otherwise. Humans only need just enough light to see contrasts between light and shadows and basic colors. This new data has allowed manufacturers to design fixtures with better, more efficient optics. These newer types of fixtures use reflectors to both aim and control the level of light. Because they rely upon precision rather than sheer power, full cutoff luminaires can do more work with fewer watts. This is why dark sky regulations now limit HID lighting fixtures to a 250 watts maximum and compact fluorescent lights to 25 watts maximum. These changes, although momentarily inconvenient to those who have to replace equipment to comply with dark sky regulations, will pay off in the long run with lower energy costs, improved general safety thanks to the reduction in glare, and a better overall aesthetic.
Dark sky regulations often mandate lighting curfews that require lights in certain areas to be turned off after businesses are closed and traffic is minimal. Contractors who outdoor lighting systems in an area such as this should use motion controlled sensors as much as possible. This will allow the lights to come back on if a person or vehicle approaches the areas. Other steps should be taken by the contractor to minimize the possibility of light trespass into adjoining properties and streets. Signs should be fully shielded, and landscape lighting should operate without glare. Luminaires such as sign lights, building lights, and step lights that are not specifically regulated by dark sky laws nevertheless have similar, separate codes that need to be followed. Dark sky regulations are flexible to an extent when it comes to athletic and sports field lighting, provided the local authority has certified them in writing to minimize glare and light trespass and operate within acceptable hours for sporting events.
If you are starting out with indoor gardening, there is a lot to learn. One of the important environmental factors that you will need to provide for your plants is appropriate light. Plants need light for photosynthesis. Plants have the amazing ability to change light energy through photosynthesis into glucose and oxygen, which they need to thrive and grow. You will want to consider the grow lights you use in your indoor growing area very carefully, because it is a major aspect that will affect the success of your gardening venture. There are several new grow lights, and very popular ones include HID lights, HPS grow lights, LED grow lights, and MH grow lights. These are all hydroponic gardening grow lights, and all can be used with plants grown in soil as well.
HID lights go by the full name of high-intensity discharge lights. MH grow lights and HPS grow lights are also high-intensity discharge lamps. HID lights produce a great deal of light that more closely resembles sunlight than the light produced by either incandescent or fluorescent light bulbs, which is better for plant growth and reproduction. The way light is produced by HID lamps is when you turn the electricity on, the current runs through a ballast, which regulates the electrical flow to the electrodes, which are inside an arc tube, along with various gases and metals. When an electrical arc is produced, the gas in the tube helps start the light bulb, and the metals, once they reach the appropriate temperature, evaporate and produce the light that you see.
HPS grow lights make excellent hydroponic lights. HPS stands for high-pressure sodium, and these are used by professional growers to produce vegetables and flowers indoors commercially. HPS lamps use mercury in the arc tube, as well as sodium, and this makes for good color rendering, or colors showing up accurately when lit by the bulb. The spectrum color that a bulb gives off is important, because plants thrive under different colors depending on their stage of maturity. If you are trying to grow lettuce, for example, you will want to use the blue light spectrum under which it thrives. If you have mature tomato plants that you want to produce fruit and flowers, then you will want to use a red/orange spectrum to induce the plant to behave appropriately.
LED grow lights are called this due to a light-emitting diode that allows the lamp to produce light. These lights are handy because they come in an array of colors used in growing plants, and they produce a lot of light that is easily focused where you need it. They have a very long life as well.
Another type of grow lights are metal halide lamps. The arc tubes of these compact and efficient bulbs contain argon gas, mercury and a mix of metal halides. Like the other choices for HID lights, these lights require the use of a ballast in order to function properly.
I read in an AP article today that Vick could very well be banned for life by the NFL under the league’s personal conduct policy for his involvements with dogfighting and gambling. If this were to happen, would the CFL be likely to let him join? What about minor leagues like the AFL? Or would it be time for Vick to hang up his cleats?
throughout the history of the CFL and NFL, the NFL has imported a few players from the CFL (Warren Moon, Joe Theisman, Doug Flutie, Kenton Keith to be more recent). Who do you think will be the next great import?
I am thinking either Kerry Joseph or Ricky Ray.
I want a detailed cost analysis comparing the cost of the two.