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5 Reasons why you should light your hotel, motel or restaurant with Cree LED Lighting

Monday, November 14th, 2011

Today’s guest blog post is by Mark Wanless, Cree’s national accounts sales director, who is holding down our booth this week at the International Hotel, Motel and Restaurant Show!

One of the easiest ways for hotels, motels and restaurants to cut their energy costs is to upgrade to energy-efficient LED lighting.

We’ll be at the International Hotel, Motel and Restaurant Show at the Javits Center in New York City Sunday through Tuesday talking about the benefits of LED lighting. But we know not everyone will have a chance to say hi to me, Jay, Jennifer at Cree booth #2676, so I’ve compiled some key things you need to know about Cree LED lighting.

1)      Cree LED Lights Can Cut Energy Costs. If your business is still shining incandescent downlights or Halogen track lighting, you’re just burning up money.  Most of the energy emitted from incandescent bulbs (yes, Halogen bulbs are considered an incandescent light source) is converted to heat instead of light. That’s why you’ll burn yourself if you try to touch a traditional light bulb.

When the Hampton Inn-Biltmore Square in Asheville, NC, replaced its incandescent and fluorescent lighting with approximately 680 Cree LR6 LED downlights, it saved more than 300,000 kilowatts, almost half of the original lighting output, according to an analysis of the hotel’s electric bills prior to and after the renovation.

HamptonHallway

2)      Cree LED Lights Are Designed for Really Long Lifetimes. What if you could go years without having to replace a burned out light in your lobby or dining room? Most of Cree’s LED lights are designed to last 50,000 hours. That means you could leave them on 24 hours a day, seven days a week and they could last more than five years!  Plus Cree’s LED lights use less energy and can last even longer when they are dimmed!

At the Hilton Garden Inn Nashville/Smyrna (pictured below) a total of 134 65-watt incandescent lights in the lobby were replaced with 134 10.5-watt Cree CR6 LED downlights. Those LED lights are designed to last 50,000 hours and feature a 5-year warranty, which means the hotel maintenance crew could go nearly six years without having to replace a light!

Hilton Garden Inn Nashville

3)      Cree LED Lights Are Dimmable. If you want to offer your guests mood lighting while they network over cocktails at the hotel bar or enjoy a romantic dinner in the restaurant dining room, dimming is key. Most of Cree’s LED lights, including our downlights and lamps, are dimmable to 5 percent. That means you can easily change the mood in a room depending on the time of day. Ever try to dim a CFL downlight? I bet it didn’t help improve the mood.

At the Courtyard by Marriott Louisville East (pictured below), hotel staff frequently dim the Cree LED lobby lighting in the evening, improving the night time atmosphere and saving even more energy.

Marriott Louisville2

4)      Cree LED Lights Can Cut Maintenance. Don’t believe all the light bulb jokes out there. Changing a light can be tricky if you’re running a motel or restaurant. Often you have to wait until there’s a lull in business to break out a ladder, or a lift, to change a bulb. We’ve heard stories of hotel bringing in a crew with a scissor lift in the wee hours of the morning, when lobby traffic was low, to change hard-to-reach bulbs. That’s too much trouble to have to go through on a regular basis, not to mention expensive. With long-lasting LED lights, you can cut back on lighting maintenance, freeing up your employees to focus on other more pressing tasks.

The maintenance and energy savings delivered by the Cree LED lights at several Denny’s restaurants in Colorado were so impressive that owner Pete LaBarre decided to install them outside the perimeter of the restaurants too.

Dennys4

5)      Cree LED Lighting is Beautiful. At Cree, we believe you shouldn’t have to choose between color quality and energy-efficient lighting. You deserve both. That’s why we invented Cree TrueWhite™ Technology, which is our patented approach to generating white light with LEDs. By mixing the light from red and unsaturated yellow LEDs, we’re able to create attractive, warm, white light that you’re used to getting with incandescent lighting.

The warm lighting is one of the reasons Denny’s Corporation chose Cree LED lights as the preferred lighting standard for all its new and remodeled stores across the United States, according to Mitch Riese, Denny’s corporate architect, senior manager of design & construction.

To learn more about LED lighting, you can contact a Cree LED lighting distributor in your area. Or if you’re going to be at the International Hotel, Motel and Restaurant Show, come meet us at booth #2676. You can even ask for me, I’m Mark!

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Posted in Cree, Energy Efficiency, LED Businesses | 4 Comments »

ENERGY STAR program helps spread word about energy-efficient lighting

Monday, November 7th, 2011

Today’s guest blog post is by Timothy Henning, Cree’s ENERGY STAR program manager.

If you go shopping for lighting or appliances, it’s hard to miss the blue ENERGY STAR® logo that’s displayed on many of the most efficient products. By now, many people have come to know it as the symbol of energy efficiency. But ENERGY STAR is more than just a sticker recognizing energy efficiency, and Cree is pleased to be an active participant in the lighting program.

What is ENERGY STAR? 

The ENERGY STAR program is a joint effort between the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) focused on providing consumers with energy-efficient products that save money and protect the environment at the same time.

By using ENERGY STAR approved products, ENERGY STAR reports that Americans have saved nearly $18 billion on utility bills and avoided greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 33 million cars in 2010 alone! 

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Partners Help Promote Efficiency

It takes a lot of effort to educate the world about the importance of choosing products that reduce energy consumption, so ENERGY STAR works with partners to help spread the word about energy-efficient products. This week, several Cree employees will be traveling to Charlotte, NC, in support of the 2011 ENERGY STAR Products Partner Meeting.

ENERGY STAR regularly hosts meetings for partners to gather to discuss new program initiatives, product specifications or other outreach activities. These meetings offer ENERGY STAR partners the opportunity to network with others to develop relationships and collaborations to promote ENERGY STAR. 

Cree Passed the Tests

While the ENERGY STAR program applies to a wide variety of products across a number of industries, Cree is an active participant of the lighting program. In order for Cree’s lamps and luminaires to earn the ENERGY STAR certification, our products must meet very strict photometric, electrical performance and regulatory requirements. 

Additionally, there are on-going program requirements and random product audits by the EPA to ensure the continued quality and integrity of the program.  To date, Cree has qualified 35 unique model numbers with more approvals anticipated before the end of the year! At Cree, we believe it’s important to meet ENERGY STAR’s requirements because it’s a key step toward getting good quality LED lighting in the market.

Simple Steps to Get Involved

Seeking out ENERGY STAR-qualified products isn’t the only way to help conserve energy. There are simple steps we can all take at home, work and in our communities to save energy, money and protect the environment. Currently, there’s a national campaign encouraging all Americans to take protect the climate.

Participating in the “Change the World, Start with ENERGY STAR” campaign is simple. Just take a moment to take a pledge to conserve energy by following some of the many steps outlined on the site.

And the next time you go shopping for energy-efficient LED lighting, be sure to look for the ENERGY STAR label.

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Posted in Cree, Energy Efficiency | 4 Comments »

Energy Awareness Month 2011 Blog Series Wrap-Up

Monday, October 31st, 2011

Energy Awareness Month isn’t a Hallmark celebration (yet) but for us energy-efficiency gurus, it’s a great excuse to shout from the rooftops the importance of conserving energy. This year we decided to celebrate with a month-long blog series focusing on the ways Cree’s products and employees are working to help improve energy-efficiency.  

But sometimes life gets in the way of Energy Awareness Month, which means you may have *gasp* missed some of our posts. Well, don’t despair. We’ve rounded up all of our posts from this month and summarized them in a nice, neat little package just for you.

Cree Energy Awareness Month

WEEK ONE

In our first week we highlighted some of the utility companies that are offering rebates for Cree’s energy-efficient LED lighting products, as well as the EcoSmart LED Downlight we make for Home Depot. We broke down the types of rebates utilities offer, and we showed off some of the best including programs in Illinois, Long Island and New Jersey.

REBATE

Oct. 4 – Utility Companies Offer Rebates for Cree LED Lighting

Oct. 5 – ComEd Offers Illinois Customers Major Rebates on Cree LED Lighting

Oct. 6 – LIPA Brings LED Lighting Rebates to Lucky Long Island Residents

Oct. 7 – Fist Pump! Rebate Gives New Jersey Residents Opportunity to Buy EcoSmart LED Downlight for $24.97

WEEK TWO

Typically this blog focuses on LEDs and LED lighting, but we couldn’t pass up the chance to teach you a little about another side of Cree’s business: Our energy-saving power products! We were honored to have Cree Co-founder John Palmour explain how silicon carbide-based diodes can make power supplies and electric motors more efficient. And we offered a great intro to our Silicon Carbide MOSFETs.  We also slipped a power post into week three because we’re wild like that (see below).

power plant

Oct. 12 – The Power to Do More: Cree Silicon Carbide-Based Diodes Improve Efficiency of Power Systems

Oct. 13 – Cree’s Silicon Carbide MOSFETs Help Improve Efficiency of Electronics

WEEK THREE

In week three, we primarily focused on Cree LED lighting, showing you a couple examples of ways our LED lights are saving energy in places you might not think of such as Kentucky’s State Capitol rotunda and gas stations throughout the country. We reiterated the importance of knowing the difference between lumens and watts when shopping for LED lighting. And we had to a leftover post from our Power week about solar panels that we couldn’t let you miss, so we slipped it in.

petrol1

Oct. 17 – Get Il-lumen-ated with Lighting Facts: Knowing the Difference Between Lumens and Watts

Oct. 18 – Making Solar Panels More Efficient with Silicon Carbide Schottky Diodes

Oct. 19 – Kentucky State Capitol Rotunda Shines with Cree LED Lighting

Oct. 20 – Energy-Savings Surprises at Gas Stations

Oct. 21 – Spotlight on One of Cree’s R&D Engineers

WEEK FOUR

In week four, we focused on Cree LED components, showing you a variety of special places you can find them (from a solar-powered car to the University of Michigan’s Big House). We also told you about our investigative applications engineers and how Cree EasyWhite technology can make it easier for you to design with LEDs. And, our senior director of components marketing did an outstanding job explaining why Cree is completely rethinking lighting.

Photo by Andreas Peña Doll

Photo by Andreas Peña Doll

Oct. 28 – Why We Push for Revolution, Not Evolution

Oct. 27 – Solar Race Takes Cree LEDs “Down Under”

Oct. 26 – Get Your Game Face on with Cree LEDs

Oct. 25 – Cree Applications Engineers Investigate LEDs

Oct. 24 – Bye Bye Binning, Hello EasyWhite: How Cree’s EasyWhite Technology Simplifies Designing with LEDs

We hope you learned something about our commitment to making products that help conserve energy. Now don’t leave without checking out our LED-lit pumpkin carving contest.

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Posted in Cree, Energy Awareness Month, Energy Efficiency | No Comments »

Energy-Saving Surprises at Gas Stations

Thursday, October 20th, 2011

Cree is celebrating Energy Awareness Month with a series of blog posts about ways Cree and our products are helping save energy. Today’s guest post comes from Chris Ruud, president of Ruud Lighting, Inc., a Cree company.

There has been and will continue to be major growth in consumer interest in green cars – hybrids, clean diesel, plug-in hybrids and pure electric – according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 US Green Automotive Study. That same study also shows that 10 percent of sales by 2016 will come from vehicles with these fuel-efficient technologies.

This is great news. However, that four-fold increase in sales numbers compared to 2010 numbers still means that there will be millions upon millions of traditional, combustion engines cars out on the roads that need petrol (gas, diesel) fuel.

Cree Energy Awareness Month

A great many of us will probably be counted among the millions that haven’t made the switch to hybrid or electric vehicles, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t doing our part to conserve energy. If you’re reading this blog, you’ve probably installed or considered installing LED lighting (one of the most energy efficient lighting sources on the market) and you have probably adopted at least one of the countless other energy savings initiatives recommended by the U.S. Department of Energy.

The same holds true for petroleum stations. Yes, gas stations may represent energy consumption in your mind, but station owners all across the country already have and are continuing to take steps to help the environment. This market was an early adopter of LED lighting as a standard and it is truly transforming the industry. While still serving a need for energy consumption, station owners are realizing that they can achieve significant energy cost savings by retrofitting the lighting with energy-efficient BetaLED luminaires and other Cree LED lighting products.

BetaLED lights illuminate this gas station in Farmington, CA.

BetaLED lights illuminate this gas station in Farmington, CA.

With a reduction in energy consumption in island canopy lighting reaching an astounding 80 percent at some installations and a payback realized in just three years, station owners are taking the lead in creating a sustainable future in this market. And with more than 150,000 gas stations around the country, the opportunity is there for some serious energy savings.

Energy savings isn’t the only reason for the installations and retrofits. Imagine it is late at night, you are low on fuel and need to fill up. Ahead, you see signs for a few filling stations. Which one would you choose?

petrol1

33 THE EDGE canopy fixtures from BetaLED were installed at this gas station in Plano, Texas, helping reduce energy costs from lighting by 31 percent.

If you’re anything like me, I’m choosing the one that looks like the one on the right – the one that is well lit. Thanks to BetaLED and Cree, this station and others across the country have sustainable illumination that creates a safe and inviting atmosphere.

Posted in BetaLED, Cree, Energy Efficiency | 2 Comments »

Energy Awareness Month 2011: ComEd Offers Illinois Customers Major Rebates on Cree LED Lighting

Wednesday, October 5th, 2011

Cree is celebrating Energy Awareness Month with a series of blog posts about ways Cree and our products are helping save energy.

When you hear the phrase “LED Lighting,” what comes to mind? If you’re like many, you probably think, “expensive.” And that’s okay – just know we’re doing everything we can to change that.

But some utility providers are offering rebates that make Cree LED lighting even easier on the pocketbook.

Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd), which serves more than 3.8 million customers across northern Illinois, or a whopping 70 percent of the state’s population, recently introduced major rebates on a host of Cree LED lighting products in an effort to help businesses and customers benefit from reduced energy costs.

Cree Energy Awareness Month

ComEd is offering rebates on Cree’s ENERGY STAR-qualified LR6 and CR6 six-inch LED downlights and the LBR-30 and LRP-38 directional spotlights. These rebates are part of the Smart Ideas for Your Business® Program, developed to help bring cost-effective energy-efficiency improvements to commercial and industrial customers. Each of these Cree LED lighting fixtures are designed to last 50,000 hours, and provide the high-quality light needed for conference rooms, office spaces and other common areas, while delivering higher efficacy than incandescent or compact fluorescent (CFL) lighting options.

Commercial and industrial customers can now receive a $15 rebate on Cree’s downlights and a $10 rebate on Cree LED spotlights! Considering the long-term, low-maintenance qualities of these LED lighting products, ComEd is offering its customers one heck of a deal!

Meanwhile, lighting-savvy homeowners can also save on high-quality LED lighting. If you truck on down to your local Home Depot store in ComEd territory, you’ll find the EcoSmart 6” LED downlight marked down to $29.97—thanks to ComEd’s incentive program.

So with more than just a golf clap, we applaud ComEd for its outstanding leadership in LED lighting rebates and hope it encourages more utilities to join the LED lighting revolution!

Want to find out more about utility rebates in your area? We have more information here.

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Energy Awareness Month 2011: Utility Companies Offer Rebates for Cree LED Lighting

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011

Cree is celebrating Energy Awareness Month with a series of blog posts about ways Cree and our products are helping save energy.

You can’t really blame utility companies for offering rebates that encourage customers to use mercury-filled fluorescent bulbs and tubes. That’s because back in the day, fluorescent lighting was pretty much the only option for energy-efficient lighting.

Thankfully, many of these same utility providers are staying hip to the now by expanding their rebates to LED lighting. This next generation of energy-efficient lighting products is winning support from utility providers that recognize LED lighting can offer improved light quality, longer life and better energy savings.

And many of those utility rebates are available for Cree LED lighting fixtures.

Rebates are now available for retrofit and new construction in utility territories across the United States. To see which utilities are offering rebates for indoor Cree LED lighting products, check out our rebates page.

Cree Energy Awareness Month

REBATE

Types of Utility Rebates

First a bit of Rebate 101. Utilities offer two types of rebates: Prescriptive and custom.

Prescriptive rebate programs provide a specific, predetermined dollar amount for each fixture replaced. These rebates offer extra savings potential since redesigns often reduce the number of fixtures needed.  Efficiency Vermont offers commercial customers prescriptive rebates of $30 to $40 off of Cree’s directional lamps, the LRP-38 and LRP-30, as well as $75 for the CR Troffer family. These incentives are Efficiency Vermont’s premium rebates and are only available to products that are qualified by either ENERGY STAR® or the DesignLights Consortium™. [Bonus – Cree’s fixtures are certified by both organizations!]

Custom rebates are based on the total energy savings for a specific project and are intended to provide rebates for approved fixtures not covered by a prescriptive program. The recently announced Cree CR Troffer Series is now part of custom programs from Maine to Florida. For example LIPA, NYSERDA and ConED (just to name a few), offer between $40 and $140 off per fixture when replacing T12 fluorescent tube lights, depending on watts saved and hours of operation.

Custom rebates can pay more than a prescriptive incentive especially in a 24/7 application when replacing incandescent fixtures. A ConED customer recently received $73 per fixture rebate under this program when replacing incandescent bulbs with Cree’s 4-inch downlight, the LR4.

Rebate Programs Develop Standards

Utilities in nearly every state offer some type of rebates on LED lighting, lowering the upfront cost of LED-based fixtures. These rebates are helping breakdown a key barrier for more widespread adoption of energy-efficient LED lighting in both commercial and residential settings. Additionally, rebates help promote quality fixtures, as each utility listed has developed stringent standards for the LED lighting products allowed in their respective programs.

We urge you to review the programs, listed by state, on the Cree rebate page. Check out your local utility and see what types of incentives they are offering to help businesses and homeowners make the switch to the most efficient type of lighting out there.

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Posted in Energy Awareness Month, Energy Efficiency | 2 Comments »

Energy Awareness Month 2011: Utility Rebates Help Bring LED Lighting Revolution Home

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

Cree is celebrating Energy Awareness Month with a series of blog posts about ways Cree and our products are helping save energy. Today’s guest post comes from Rick Bain, Cree’s director of business development who works with utility companies to identify opportunities for rebates on energy-efficient LED lighting. 

October is the Federal Energy Management Program’s (FEMP) Energy Awareness Month – the 20th anniversary of the campaign. Government organizations, including the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) FEMP, observe this month with activities and programs to increase public awareness about energy needs and help reduce our nation’s energy consumption.

Taking a page out of FEMP’s playbook, we’re adopting this year’s theme – “Turn Words into Action; Turn Action into Results.” You know us, we’ll always do our part to spread the message and further the adoption of energy-efficient LED lighting.

We realize that one of the main hurdles to widespread LED adoption is the upfront cost. That’s why we’ve been working with utilities around the country to help lower the initial expense. Right now, more than 20 states have utilities that are providing rebates to offset the cost of LED lighting.

From Maine to Florida and California to Washington and many, many states in between, we are helping turn education into actions and actions into results.

Cree Energy Awareness Month

I know that it may seem odd that utility companies want to help you save energy because, after all, they make money when you use more. But in a number of cases, utilities are required by crafty State Public Utility Commissions (PUCs) to provide energy-efficiency programs (and they get to recoup some of the program costs along the way).

Mandated energy-efficiency programs aside, they’re not going to sacrifice increased revenue just because it is the right thing to do. They still have shareholders and investors to satisfy. The truth is, utility companies are offering energy-saving incentives as an alternative to the capital expense of expanding power plant capacity. It is a win-win for them and a win-win for you.

Take a look at some statistics provided by the DOE. The estimates show that widespread adoption of LED lighting by 2025 will:

  • Reduce electricity demands from lighting by 62 percent
  • Eliminate 258 million metric tons of carbon emissions
  • Reduce the amount of materials being put into landfills
  • Avoid the building of 133 new power plants
  • Save the US more than $280 billion

We’re certain that more rebates will lead to more adoption – allowing us to get ever-closer to those stats. That’s why we have a team in place here at Cree that regularly meets with, and encourages, both the utilities and the PUCs. We work with them to review new technology and the benefits of providing more rebates for energy-efficient LED lighting.

We are enlightening (yes, I just used that pun) all parties in the LED revolution and have already seen some great success. For instance, on the West Coast, not only does San Diego Gas & Electric and Sacramento Municipal Utility District offer extensive rebates for its customers that upgrade to LED lighting, SDG&E has also outfitted its Energy Innovation Center with Cree LED lighting products. On the East Coast, Efficiency Vermont and Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) have some of the most aggressive rebates in the nation on downlights and LED PAR-style lamps. But there is much more to be done.

If you’re reading this, you’re ready. You’re ready to experience the savings, to do your part to be more energy-efficient. If your local utility provider doesn’t provide rebates for LED lighting, now is the time to push for it. Help them, encourage them to join the movement.

Continue to follow along all month as we do our part to support Energy Awareness Month and create more LED Revolutionaries along the way. And if you’re interested to see whether your utility company offers a rebate for Cree LED lighting, check out our list here.

Posted in Cree, Energy Efficiency | 1 Comment »

Benjamin Moore Paint Store Gets Cree LED Lighting Makeover

Friday, August 12th, 2011


In a paint store, color is everything. But it’s hard to make color samples stand out when exposed T-12 fluorescent tubes are lighting the way.

At the Benjamin Moore paint store in Staunton, Virginia, store owner Lesley Merritt was used to dealing with the store’s outdated lighting. When a fluorescent tube began flickering or burned out, she would guide customers to another spot in the store so they could inspect color samples in better lighting.  

But she doesn’t have to do that anymore thanks to the recently installed Cree LED lighting. Lesley replaced 28 T-12 fluorescent tubes with 18 long-lasting Cree CR24 LED Troffers. The troffers feature Cree TrueWhite Technology®, which is Cree’s patented technology that delivers highly-efficient light with high color accuracy, while maintaining color consistency over the life of the product. 

“Although we sell paint, color is essentially what we sell. So for colors to look more accurate and more vibrant here in the store is very helpful,” Lesley said.

Not only is the light quality improved, but the store is reducing its energy consumption, as well as the time and money it spends on lighting maintenance. By replacing 28 T-12 fluorescent tubes with 18 Cree CR24 LED troffers, the store is reducing its lighting energy consumption from 2,240 watts down to 792 watts.

BeforeA

AfterA

The CR24 LED troffer is designed to last a minimum of 50,000 hours. That means the store could leave the lights on for eight hours a day, seven days a week for more than 17 years without having to replace.

“In the past six years, all of the fluorescent tubes have been replaced at least once,” Lesley said. “Some have been replaced more frequently due to flickering and poor color quality. Usually we dealt with the flickering and the colors not matching for a long time before we would decide we were going to pay somebody to change the bulbs. I’m really looking forward to the new Cree LED lights not needing to be changed for a long time.”

BeforeB

After: 18 Cree CR24 LED troffers line the ceiling

There’s another perk to the new LED lights too: Lesley can’t hear them. The first day Lesley flipped the switch on the LED lights she said she couldn’t believe how quiet the store was compared to the constant hum of the fluorescent tubes.

Watch this video to get an inside look at the transformation of this store:

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Posted in Energy Efficiency, LED Businesses | 3 Comments »

Melting chocolate bunny remake features “dude” bunny melting under incandescent light

Tuesday, April 19th, 2011


A little over a year ago, we made two chocolate Easter bunnies YouTube stars. It was part of our mission to educate the world about how energy efficient LED lighting really is (and how wasteful incandescent lights truly are).

So when I noticed my local grocery store was stocking chocolate bunnies a few weeks ago, I couldn’t resist a remake. I bought a couple of “Dude” bunnies because, let’s face it, there is nothing cooler than a bunny sporting some bling and then I took over an empty office for the setup.

Dude Bunny Box

Check out the bling our dude is rocking!

It wasn’t long before my Cree colleagues noticed the chocolate bunnies were back and were asking if they could help eat them when they were done. What were we doing different this time, they wanted to know?

Well, we swapped out the Cree LRP-38 that we used in the original for a Cree CR6 LED Downlight. And we brought in some Peeps and other accessories for visual interest. But the basic message remains unchanged: LED lighting is about 85 percent more efficient than incandescent light bulbs.

And as the incandescent light bulb fades to black in the next few years as part of the incandescent phase out, we think it’s especially important to remind people that about 90 percent of the energy consumed by traditional light bulbs is wasted as heat. That’s the very reason why you’re about to see the face of one of these Dude bunnies melt off.

So take a moment to watch what happens to these Dudes. Then, when you’re done, perhaps forward this video on to someone you believe needs to be enlightened about LED lighting!

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Posted in Cree, Energy Efficiency, For Fun | 4 Comments »

Make a change during Earth Hour

Friday, March 25th, 2011


On Saturday night millions of people around the world will be turning off their lights for one hour. March 26 marks the 4th annual Earth Hour, a global initiative in partnership with World Wildlife Fund to raise awareness for environmentally sustainable action.

Participating is easy. At 8:30 p.m. Saturday, turn off your lights. There are no time zones to adjust for, it’s 8:30 p.m. no matter where you are. Sit in darkness and be comforted by the fact that you’re taking part in the largest voluntary action ever witnessed, with participation across 128 countries and territories and every continent, according to Earth Hour organizers.

This year Earth Hour boosters are asking people to go “Beyond the Hour” and pledge to do something else that will help make the world more sustainable. This could be as simple as pledging to use a refillable water bottle instead of sipping from disposable plastic water bottles. Or it could be more of a commitment, like pledging to start composting.

We like those ideas. But, since we’re all about energy-efficient lighting, we have an idea of our own.

During Earth Hour, when your electricity is already turned off, why not use this as an opportunity to replace an incandescent or fluorescent light in your home with an energy-efficient LED light?

Replacing an energy-wasting bulb won’t take long. You’ll be back to your candlelit board game or romantic dinner before you know it.

Then, when it’s time to flip on the switch again, you’ll be conserving more energy than you were an hour ago. Now that’s a change we can all get behind.

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Posted in Energy Efficiency | 1 Comment »

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