by I-5 Design & Manufacture

Great LED Lights Use For Automotive Headlights

At the back? Makes you infinitely grateful to be living in these electric times – or for the birth of men like Thomas Edison, come to think of it.

Imagine the perils of driving at night in the 1800s – always worrying that your car might catch fire because of the open flame of your headlamp, or that said light might be snuffed out by a wayward gust of wind or splash of water.

I mean, can you imagine – an open flame in your car? Might as well slap on a couple of bumper stickers saying “ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN” or “BEGGING FOR IT.” And all for a piece of tech that could only nominally light your way. Thank heavens there was no traffic those days. Say it with me: conflagration.

So, given those Flintstone days of automobile history, we are certainly spoiled little brats for choice. It’s true that we creatures of the road rarely think about headlamps unless they’re busted, or some idiot is bearing down on us on the opposite lane with his beams on high.

Take HID or high-intensity discharge (also known as xenon) headlamps. The pristine bluish-white beams can be irritating or sublime depending on which side you’re viewing it from. For nerdspeak watchers, automotive website ridelust.com describes HIDs as “metal halide arc lights which use two tungsten electrodes to arc a power electric charge. This charge interacts with the gases inside and vaporizes metal salts present in the bulb, producing a plasma that emits a very intense light.”

Dizzy yet? What is very important to note is that “contamination like dirt or dead bugs on the lens can cause a great deal of glare to be directed up and towards other motorists.” This means that owners of said HIDs need to be responsible for them or risk seeing more motorists flip them off.

Given all the high-tech effectiveness of the HIDs, a new kid on the block is threatening to take over.

In high school, part of the curriculum in our school asked us to make electronic projects that entailed soldering components onto printed circuit boards that we made ourselves by “etching” the boards in ferric chloride. Quite a few of those assemblies involved small muti-colored nubs of light that, we were told, were called LEDs, or light-emitting diodes. Not only did these LEDs come in a variety of colors; they also didn’t heat up like traditional incandescent lamps.

From those heady days of juvenile creation, you might say the LED dragon has properly entered the automotive scene.

While credit for the first use of the LED on wide production-use headlamps belongs to Lexus (on its LS600 in 2008), Audi (locally distributed by PGA Cars) is widely regarded as the voracious, avid user of the innovation on its models. It is now a brand seen as a vanguard in LED headlamp technology.

PGA Cars public relations officer and motorsports manager Menchie Ramirez maintains that LEDs are highly superior to usual halogens because “it is energy efficient – presently four times so. By 2018, we expect it to be eight times more efficient. It also has an indefinite service life and reacts up to 10 times more quickly than traditional incandescent bulbs.”

More than that, Ramirez says that LED bulbs are environment-friendly because they do not contain mercury.

Aesthetically speaking, “The advent of the LED also opened tremendous creative possibilities for interior and exterior lighting design due to its size and material. Bundling several LEDs allows construction of modules, known as LED arrays. These are extremely flat, compact, and require less space than conventional light sources. It allows designers to realize complex lighting functions in tightest spaces such as cornering lights, for example.”

Ramirez also points out that LEDs are a lot better than HIDs because “they are easier on the eye as they do away with bright high beams that can be distracting.”

Another advantage of the LED is that (as mentioned) they do not produce too much heat – owing to a lighting process does not require heating up an element. A couple of the challenges though are, according to ridelust.com: the need for sinks for the heat that comes from the back of the lamp, and the temperature sensitivity of the LEDs, which means they deliver “different light levels at different ambient temperatures.”

Audi, however, “recognizes the potential of the LED technology. We utilize it in such a way that it gives our models their distinct look and character. A number of light emitting diodes can be combined to create distinct shapes that can characterize a particular model. For example, on the A4 and A5, the look is determined, elegant and dynamic. For the Q5 and Q7, the lights appear broad and powerful. In the R8, the lights give a ‘charging bull’ character bursting with vigor and pride. All models are now recognizable at a glance. Also, it opens possibilities for interior and exterior design where it can easily be incorporated into areas that need more flexibility thereby allowing more freedom for design concepts. This gives us an edge over our competitors,” narrates Ramirez.

Even Kia is, well, seeing the light. The new 2011 Sportage SUV that will be unveiled to the Philippine market soon features daylight running LED headlamps. “They are an additional safety feature of the vehicle,” says Boying Soriano, Kia Philippines marketing services manager.

Soriano continues that Kia expects to have more models using LED technology. “They provide an extra measure of safety while driving your vehicle in all driving conditions. Just like seatbelts, which were optional 20 years ago, I see LED daylight running headlamps to be a mandatory safety feature for all cars in the near future.”

As with other new technologies, automotive LED lights presently don’t come cheap, but there is good reason to believe they’re going to be on the headlamp assemblies (and most everywhere else) of more vehicles to come across more automobile brands in the very, very near future.

by Lady T 220

Light up Christmas with LED Christmas Lights

LED Christmas lights are extremely popular to apply as Christmas lights now days. Its long life and energy saving features are some of the benefits one can get from LED Christmas lights. There are en extensive ranges of LED Christmas lights are available, taking from the sizes of C7 to C9, C6 teardrops and G12 round bulbs. These lights are available as garland, rope lighting, net lights and icicle threads to hang from roof. Hanging up these LED Christmas lights has turned out to be very tortuous task of holidays. In earlier times, LED Christmas lights were available in red color only. On the other hand, incandescent bulbs give out only white light but are covered with colored glass. These lights were not that much bright. But modern LEDs were different from these issues. Today LED Christmas lights are available in all sizes and shapes and in a broad range of colors.

Untangling LED wires, maintaining balance on a ladder to hang it from roof top and attaching them are all tasks connected with this effort, but the major problem with people is to find the broken bulb. LEDs are very similar to incandescent bulbs except the fact that they do not contain a string inside that can burn out and burn the complete string of bulbs along with it. Another advantage of this LED light is the absence of too much heat. LED lights are often used in the dashboards of jet planes. Now even remote controlled LEDs are available in the market.

Undoubtedly, LED Christmas lights keep the festive season bright and add perfection to any decorating style. Decorating styles consist of using rope lighting to decorate building or trees, hanging lightings from trees or adding garland to stairs or decks. You can explore the extensive selection of LED Christmas lights products in Australia and check out for yourself how many possibilities you can find!!!

Find More LED Christmas Lights Articles

by tranchis

Rope Lights at Christmas

Rope lights can be a very festive decoration at Christmas time. Rope lights are safer that the mini string lights because their lights are inside a tube and protected from the winter weather and less easy to break.  

The tubing that surrounds these lights is very flexible so you will be able to follow the shape of your house. You can also be very imaginative and create your own designs and shapes with rope lights. Running them down the sides of your driveway or as landscape path lights will let those who come for visits know where to park and walk for safety. Another possibility would be to mount them on stakes and outline your front yard landscaping. For indoor use they can be used to decorate any large houseplant, your Christmas tree or brighten up a corner of a room.   

Light-emitting diode or LED rope lights are now available for conserving energy. These lights are very tiny bulbs with no filament and this is the reason they are able to use less energy; they also do not get very hot and will last longer than the regular bulbs. The LED lights will burn brighter; they are made of heavy plastic and are very long lasting. They can also last up to 100,000 hours and you can string up to about 600 feet together.  

Because these outdoor rope lights are encased in tubing you can create numerous shapes. Some of the festive shapes you can create are: stockings, bells, candy canes, trees, stars, animals, or a simple holiday greeting. Mounting clips are available for rope lights for the ease of mounting on different surfaces such as a fence or on a frame to stand on your front landscaping. These rope lights can be purchased in many different colors including multi-colored and clear. If you purchase Christmas rope lights that are classified as chasers you can place them on Christmas decorations that have wheels and it will give the impression that the decoration is moving. They can also be wrapped around trees, bushes and hedges, or around a flag pole.

Solar rope lights are a very good choice for landscape rope lighting as they do not need electricity, just the sun as their energy source. They can be used when it is rainy, overcast, or while it is snowing because of their polycrystalline cells. These solar cells are capable of capturing enough energy during dispursed sunlight or a small amount of daylight during the winter months to perform.  

Your backyard garden is also an excellent place for holiday rope lights. Deck rope lighting can be placed along the railings of your deck or along the edge of your deck flooring. They can also be mounted on your landscape fencing to highlight your entire backyard landscaping. Rope lights mounted on stakes used as landscape path lights are a great way to see around the garden. Using rope lights at Christmas and any time during the year is an innovative way of lighting up your garden and landscaping.

by rachel sian

Transform Your Home with Fairy Lights

If you think back to the magic moments in your life, you’ll surely remember the many wonderful festivals you celebrated with family and friends. Christmas, birthdays and weddings need that special festive touch to be truly memorable. If you have a special day coming up, you’ll be pleased to know there’s a fast and easy way to make it an event to remember – just transform your home into a place of festivity with fairy lights.

Christmas is the main time for using fairy lights but are you using them to their best advantage? When it comes to indoor fairy lights, you have a huge range of colours and styles to choose from.

Choosing the right colour is the key to creating your desired mood. For a traditional Yuletide feel, choose lights of white and gold; blue brings a relaxing feel to any room, while red is livelier creating a party atmosphere.

Style wise, other than the traditional strands that are draped over Xmas trees, you can get curtain lights – an array of strands which hang down from a main wire. There are perfect for use on windows and doorways.

Then there are net lights which can be cast over objects such as furniture and bushes. Also you can opt for the highly flexible rope lights. These are long strings which are especially suited for outdoor use. They can be wrapped around trees, posts and other structures.

You also have a range of effects to choose from. These include static, flickering and twinkling. Static lights create a more tranquil effect while twinkling provide a relaxing cadence of illumination. Flickering lights radiate energy and are perfect for parties.

Don’t forget the outdoors. Fairy lights strung on your trees or cascading down from your eaves can add an irresistible sparkle to your gardens and patio and imbue those drab winter nights with a festive glow. Static blue lights create a dazzling glow while multi coloured fairy lights create an amazing effect.

With so much variety at your disposal, you need to make a plan rather than just draping your lights over the Xmas tree and leaving it at that.

You can be as simple or elaborate as you wish. You might just opt for a simple set up of indoor fairy lights with a few colours to create warm, festive feeling. If you have children, arranging lights around door frames creates a magical ambience for children and gives them the feeling of entering an enchanted room.

When it comes to indoor fairy lights, the possibilities are endless, you really need to find out what’s available and think about how you can best use them.

The great thing about fairy lights is that they’re not just for Christmas. You can use them to add sparkle to any occasion both inside and outside the home. Birthdays always seem more festive with coloured lights strung up around the room and a wedding celebration is magical with white and pink bulbs glowing. Engagement parties, baby showers, graduation celebrations – the list of occasions that can benefit from fairy lights is endless.

When it comes to buying your lights, here are a few things to consider.

Modern fairy lights mainly feature LEDs (light emitting diodes). These bulbs are extremely economical and long lasting. They’re also very cool and virtually unbreakable. LED fairy lights will give you years and years of safe use.

Also you can get battery powered and solar fairy lights. These give you great flexibility as you don’t need to have a power socket handy. Battery powered lights can run for up to 36 hours and solar lights soak up the sun’s energy during the day to power your lights in the evening.

If you want to transform your garden into a winter wonderland, look into using fairy lights. Whether blue fairy lights for a relaxing living room or rope lights to illuminate your garden, they’re the best way to bring the magic to any occasion.

Fairy lights are the ideal, affordable way to transform your home into that special place for celebration. To see the huge range available, just visit the web sites of the UK’s leading vendors and make your choice from their illustrated catalogues. Just place your order for prompt delivery and start transforming your home into a festive place.

More Fairy Lights Articles

Go Green with Simple Outdoor Lighting Solutions: Solar Lights (Part Two)

As we move towards a greener environment, the use of natural resources is a simple solution to becoming more energy efficient. One of these natural resources is the sun. Solar energy is a valuable resource and an energy alternative to electricity. More and more homeowners are looking to solar energy to power their appliances and lights in their houses. For the outdoors, the use of solar energy should also be taken into consideration. This article is part two in a three-part article series about outdoor lighting and the use of solar lights.

Outdoor solar lighting is an option when entertaining in your backyard. Why worry about dragging a lamp with an electrical cord outside, plugging it in and then bringing it back inside after you are done using it? Solar Lighting illuminates the exterior landscape, is environmentally friendly, and uses energy from the sun to power the lights for the entire evening. Last but not least, solar lights are easy to install because no wiring is necessary! It is convenient and there is no need to worry or mess around with wires and outlets. Here are a few options worth considering when it comes to outdoor solar lighting.

Aurora Glow Solar String Lights

Create a beautiful summer setting with festive hand-blown glass string lights, Aurora Glow Solar String Lights. The six hanging lights are crafted from colored and clear hand-blown glass and luminescent details adorn a clear wire. It comes with high powered LED lights and copper hanging hooks for easy decorating. These lights are powered by the sun and have a solar panel located nearly 15 feet away from the first glass globe. You can plant or mount the solar energy collector away from the lights and enjoy the glow at night. During the day, they collect the maximum amount of sunlight, and are ready to go if you plan on entertaining that evening. There are many different areas in your yard where you can place the string of lights such as an arbor, archway, around the trunk of a tree, or the railing of a deck. It is also ideal beneath an umbrella. Equipped with a photo light sensor, the lights will turn themselves on as the sun goes down, and will turn off at dawn. Due to the artisan nature of hand-blown glass, each piece will vary slightly in color and in size. This makes each one unique!

Solar Garden Lights

Adding solar garden lights provides a pathway to your garden! Environmentally sound, they charge during the day to reserve a life of about eight hours. Constructed of polished stainless steel, these lights add a touch of class, at the same time providing cost efficiency. They are a wonderful accent to any outdoor landscape. These lights can easily be staked into the ground and are good for pathways, gardens, porches, and pool sides.

Solar Stepping Stone and Rock Light

Enhance the look of your flower bed by placing a solar stepping stone amongst the vibrant and rich colors of the petals. During the day, the stepping stone acts as a decorative item amongst the flowers. But at night, adds depth to the garden as it creates shadows with the light it emits. The solar module in the center converts sunlight into electricity, which is then stored in the integrated rechargeable battery pack. In the evening, the dual LEDs automatically switch on. There is no installation or wiring required. Simply install the stepping stone into the ground where it will get plenty of sun.

The solar rock light has the same concept as the stepping stone. The rock light keeps pathways safely lit for friends and family as they enjoy the outdoors, and creates an inviting and warm glow. Aim it at pathways, walls, or plants. Fully charged, it has a 20 hour of reserve life, and can be charged in direct or shadowed, sunlight.

Solar Powered Tube Lights

These tube lights are ideal for lining outdoor buildings, windows, trees, gazebos, architectural details, stairs, deck railings, and any other outdoor object you can think of. Using sunlight for power, tube lights help reduce expensive electric bills and can be placed anywhere without the hassle of wires or the need for electrical outlets. They stay lit for about eight to twelve hours depending on lighting conditions, and turn on or off automatically due to the built in sensor. It has 120 extremely bright LED lights available in white, red, green, and blue. It is water and weather resistant with over 100,000 plus hours of life. Each set includes rechargeable batteries, solar cell/electronics box, tube and wall mounting brackets, drywall anchors, screws, and instruction manual.

Be energy efficient! Garden Winds has many different outdoor lighting and decorating items that only require the energy from the sun to power them. Get inspired and make your outdoor landscape the first yard in your neighborhood to GO GREEN!

A discovery channel segment on Sunlight Direct’s fiber optic sunlight transport system.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

by John Brawley

Use Rope Lights Anywhere You Want

You’ve probably seen rope lights around before, perhaps being used as path lighting in a dark movie theater or winding around a tree as a holiday decoration. Those are just a couple of the many uses of rope lights. If you haven’t seen rope lights, think of Christmas string lights; rope lights are like those except that in rope lights the light bulbs are inside a plastic tube instead of attached to the outside of a power cord.

That’s basically what a rope light is; tiny light bulbs in a malleable plastic sheath that acts like a rope. The wattage of each light bulb on the rope is about .5 watts, and they’re most commonly spaced about an inch away from each other. A rope light with the latter requirements consumes around 6 watts for foot. At that rate it would take some 10 feet of rope lights to consume the same amount of power as a single 60 watt incandescent light bulb.

You can see that rope lights barely use any electricity. Coupled with that is their rated lifetime of around 25,000 hours. Even using them four hours each day, it would take some 17 years for these micro LED lights to burn out. The “rope” in rope lights comes in two common sizes: 3/8 inch and ½ inch. The only difference between these two sizes is the thickness of the plastic jacket; brightness and energy usage are not affected. If you want to check out rope lights of differing brightness, look for the watts per foot. A 5.5 watts per foot rope light is brighter than one with 3.36 watts per foot.

Uses for rope lights are almost endless. Place it along shelves, mantles, and use it to accent bookcases, cabinets, doors, and even windows. Dark places like the inside of a closet are great for rope lights, as they avoid glare and provide nice indirect light. Outdoor applications include trailing them along decks and deck railings, or illuminating stairs/steps/pathways.

Related Rope Lights Articles

by _rockinfree

Solar Powered Garden Lights – A Very Interesting Adornment To Every Houses

Solar powered garden lights are a fun filled item to your property and garden. If you have plans to create lighting to certain areas of your own home have you thought about using solar lights? Solar powered garden lights offer many perks over traditional exterior lights which includes set up it doesn’t require any wiring. You just place the light in the spot that you want it and begin mastering the next one. Solar powered garden lights are built with rechargeable batteries concealed within the light. Throughout the day, the sun lights on the solar panels, receiving the batteries upward for a night of light-weight.

They are one of the easier strategies to assist receeded power prices, in contrast to offering safety to your loved ones. Every light fixture incorporates the solar panel that changes sunlight into energy. Solar powered backyard lights, which are caught in the ground, are a great add-on to any garden or yard. These people absorb the no cost energy from the sun during hours of sunlight, and then radiate any peaceful and elegant shine for hours after nightfall. Solar powered garden lighting is simply the best way associated with lighting up the garden along with making it look far more beautiful. In fact, just with solar powered garden lights can you be ready to create softer decorations in your garden and therefore such lighting selections create some incredibly extra special effects.

They will also easily be put on in panels within your patio or veranda. No place is too weird to put a solar powered light inside of or on, because doing so demands absolutely no more power. These lights release a light that’s luminous enough with discretion on plants. The types of these lights are likewise good enough to complement the plant designs.

Solar powered garden lights are instances of lantern lights that are getting increasingly prevalent as they are straightforward to fit and will not amount to anything to run. There is a wide variety of garden solar lighting to select from which include lantern lights, pathway signals, hanging lights, planet lights and light made in the form of seeing stars. These are the environmentally audio choice. No external power source is necessary and solar garden lights could save a whole lot in energy costs.They are economical to use because they use no cost energy from the sun instead of energy. There is no additional charges to your electricity, therefore once installed, you will lay aside money.

Solar powered garden lights are a well known way to provide backyard illumination without accumulating huge costs or maybe using a lot of assets. However, they’re not befitting everyone. Solar powered garden lights are one of the most popular choice of shoppers these days. These lights depend solely around the sun to energy them up therefore rainy days won’t much work with this specific thing.

Solar powered garden lights are the top product to add an attractive touch to illumination your garden area. Being that they are available in so many colours, finishes, and types, you are sure to find that which you are looking for. Solar power garden lights are usually the same price because regular garden lamps and have several better benefits. So when buying garden lights, attempt solar powered backyard lights and we believe you’ll be very happy which you did. These are electro-mechanical lighting equipments which use solar energy that is saved in the Solar battery that turn heat and light energy regarding sun into electric impulses rather than convention electricity. Because the lighting is powered by the heat and light energy from the sun you do not need to fret of the electric bills.

by Andres Rueda

Upgrade With Indoor LED Lights

Indoor lighting is obviously essential to any home, but the type of lighting can make a big difference on many levels, from the appearance of your home to the energy-efficiency.  By simply adding new fixtures you can improve the look and even functionality of this important part of your home.  

Updating Interior Lights

Using outdated lights can make your home look and feel dated, like it isn’t well-maintained.  This is something people may notice when they come for a visit, but it is especially noticeable if you are trying to sell your home.  

In some cases outdated interior lights don’t provide the best kind of light for their intended purpose.  If you get accustomed to this you may not even notice this.  Certain fixtures diffuse light better than others, and some illuminate better than others.  

Another reason to update some of your fixtures or bulbs is to increase energy efficiency.  By using fixtures or bulbs that are more efficient you can save on electric bills and replacement bulbs.  Not only do efficient lighting technologies like LEDs cost less to operate, but they also don’t produce additional heat which can save you money on air conditioning during the warm months.  

Why Use LED Lights

The main reason people are switching to LED lights is for energy-efficiency and increased savings.  While they may cost more upfront, over the long run they are much less expensive than using traditional fixtures.  LEDs use less energy to operate, they don’t waste energy heating the bulb and the “bulbs” themselves last for years, even longer than CFLs (compact fluorescent bulbs).  

While LEDs are more common in outdoor lighting, as the vast majority of solar lights use them, they are made for use indoors as well.  More common uses are in the form of night lights, or accent lighting, but there are also a variety of beautiful wall sconces available as well.  

There are also a variety of battery operated LEDs that can provide light virtually anywhere you need it.  Most people think of under counter or night lights when they think battery powered, but there are a number of distinct and beautiful wall scones available as well to fit any style from contemporary to country.

Updating your home with interior LED lights wherever possible can give your home a fresh look while helping you save energy whether you use them as your main source or simply as accent lighting.

by Fire Engine Red

Outdoor Solar Lights: The Ideal Choice for Tasteful Outdoor Décor

Choosing “the best” outdoor solar lights is really a matter of individual style. You may want to feature lights that are decorative, traditional, modern or even fanciful. Solar lights are great for decks, patios, pools, walkways, driveways and gardens. Whatever your preference for a solar lights, it is not going to be difficult to find a type that you will like for years to come.

Solar Lights Explained

A solar light houses a solar panel that collects energy from the sun and then converts it into power for the operation of the light. A nickel metal hydride (NiMH) rechargeable battery stores the energy. The battery is turned on and off by a sensor allowing it to come on automatically at dusk and extinguishing at dawn. An LED lamp emits the light.

How long the light last throughout the night depends on the size of the solar panel and battery. Usually solar lights will work for about 10 hours with a fully charged battery. The brightness of an LED lamp is comparable to a 2-watt bulb. It takes 12 volts of electricity to power a low voltage landscape light.
Solar rechargeable batteries last approximately 1,000 nights and are easily replaced when they stop charging.

Path, Garden and Driveway Solar Lights

Set of 2 Solar Lanterns – Create a charming welcome along walkways and flower beds with solar lanterns. The LED stays lit for up to 8 ½ hours. Choose either soft amber or bright white light by pushing a button on the lantern. Set includes two 17-inch shepherd’s hooks for hanging the lanterns or you can stake them in the ground.

Solar Lights – Low profile, staked solar lights come in a stainless steel or copper finish. The lights lend a contemporary look to your driveway or walking path. A top solar panel gathers the light during the day allowing it to stay on for 12 hours at night. Lamp maintains a bright LED white light. Solar lights have an 11-½ inch post that sits on a 5-inch stake.

Solar Color Changing Lights – Add some color to the night. Place the solar lights around a pool to give it a magical appearance. The constantly changing colors are yellow, green, blue and red. One AAA rechargeable battery is included with the light.

Solar Driveway Light – Mark the end of your driveway with the sleek solar driveway light. Constructed from stainless steel and plastic, the durable fixture will stay lit for up to eight hours.

House Solar Lights

3 Way Solar House Light – Versatility makes the 3 Way Solar House Light an economical choice. Classic, square shape will go with any kind of house. Secure the light to the outside of the house, stand it on a fence post or keep it on the ground for pathway lighting. Wall mount, base and stake are all available with the light.

Cordless Flood Solar Light – You are free to stake the flood light anywhere in your yard without cumbersome cords or the need for electrical wiring. All you have to do is stake it in the ground. Position the solar light to shine on decorations, garden features or house address. The floodlight gives you 12 hours of light.

Mini Solar Spot Light – The spotlight is perfect for those nights when you get home late. Use it to illuminate your house number, mailbox, or keyhole. The light continues all night until the morning.

Attach the light fixture with screws or double-sided tape.

Fun Solar Lighting

Solar Glow In The Dark Garden Lights – Delight passersby with beautiful garden lights that emit a green glow. Globes have a unique swirl pattern made from artist rendered glass.  The design is meant to resemble the spinning earth. Lights come in a set of three and are connected to a solar panel by a 10-foot cord. Stake the luminous solar lights in flowerbeds.

Solar Animated Flower Lights – Surprise visitors with these flower lights. The flower petals remain open all day so the solar panel in the center can capture the sun’s energy. At night, the flower closes and beams with light. The waterproof lights are packaged in a set of two.

Solar Tiki Torch – Give your backyard island flair with the solar tiki torch. The torch harmlessly burns with solar light. Light comes with mounting hardware.

Solar Lighted Toad and Turtle – Pay homage to our natural friends by placing a lighted toad or turtle around your landscape. No, they are not radioactive. They radiate with a soft low light from sitting in the sun all day.  

It’s the energy efficiency, helpful lighting and atmospheric illumination that make outdoor solar lights a common sight in many beautiful properties.

by Janet Moore-Coll

The Use and Efficiency of Outdoor LED Christmas Lights

Just about everyone loves outdoor Christmas lights right? And just as much fun putting them up, decorating, and showing your holiday cheer.

Outdoor LED Christmas lights are the best way to go with all your Christmas light’s needs. LED technology has come a long way in the world of lighting. LED lights are used in everything from brake lights, electric clocks, calculators, traffic lights, and so much more devices we every day. They are little more expensive than the regular lights but they last much longer than all other lights, and consume very little electricity, thus saving money on electric bills. Here are just a few benefits LED lights have:

– Will last up to 100,000 hours
– 90% more energy efficient
– Rust proof
– Almost unbreakable
– Cool to the touch

Tips and ideas for outdoor LED Christmas lighting.

There always seems to be at least one or two beautiful decorated houses in every neighbourhood. Now you can be that house and have the most incredible light display. Just follow these steps and you can be the envy of the neighbourhood.

– First do some research on the internet and magazine for ideas and patterns of lights that you find to your likening. Print out the images and/or tear out of the magazine. Now really look at each and get a general idea of a pattern, or specific array you would like to see outside of your home using outdoor LED Christmas lights. And remember LED Christmas lights come in every shape, colour and style you can imagine.

– Take a good look at your house from the sidewalk or street. Get an idea and inspiration on what you could do to your house, going on any ideas you already may have, or would want to see.

– Consider your budget you have, the more lights you have the more your electricity bill will go up. Outdoor LED Christmas lights use a lot less electricity then standard lights, but will still use power (obviously).

– Have a shed or garage not connected to the house? Good idea to outline it with lights as well.

– Try not to just light the roof line; try lighting the windows, any steps, railings, and maybe some hedges or small trees and any architectural features you may have in your yard.

– Use scalloped net lights running along a porch railing.

– Hang icicle lights inside any windows you have.

– Use stakes to run chaser lights on the sides of your driveway or the walkway leading to your front door.

– The roof should be the main focus and foundation of your light display. You should do that first and then decide how you want to go from there and how more lights you want to use.

– For an amazing serene look, especially on an older house or country type home, use white lights.

Another huge advantage of LED Christmas lighting is the capability to safely hook them up together end to end. Other lights can be very dangerous. With LED lights you can hook up to 40 sets together. This gives you a lot more control of your lighting options.

So with outdoor LED Christmas lights you will not only be able to conserve energy, but have much more variety, creativity and options in decorating compared to tradition outdoor Christmas lighting.