Come See Us at the 2016 Colorado Garden & Home Show

The 2016 Colorado Garden and Home Show is less than a week away2006 Colorado Garden and Home Show Label! For the 17th year in a row, Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Colorado will be exhibiting our latest outdoor/landscape lighting designs and products. Stop by our exhibit (Booth #1442) to see the latest energy-saving LED lighting products that will beautify your home and property, make them more safe and secure, and extend your outdoor living hours well into the evening.

2016 Colorado Garden & Home Show; Colorado Convention Center, Denver

Saturdays:   Feb. 13th &  Feb. 20th         –    10:00 AM to 8:00 PM &nbsp
Sundays:      Feb. 14th & Feb. 21st           –    10:00 AM to 6:00 PM &nbsp
Mon. – Fri.   Feb. 15 through Feb. 19th   –    12 Noon to 8:00 PM

Booth #:       1442

In the next few days, we will also be posting a $2.00 Off Discount Coupon for use in purchasing a ticket. We look forward to seeing you at the show!

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Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Colorado Celebrates 15 Years in Business!

Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Colorado is pleased to announce that we juCelebrating 15 Years in Coloradost completed our 15th year in business serving the landscape and outdoor lighting needs of residential, commercial, and municipal customers in the Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins, Loveland, Colorado Springs, and communities all along the Colorado Front Range and beyond.

Read the Press Release that our corporate Outdoor Lighting Perspectives office in Richmond, Virginia published about us.

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Visit Outdoor Lighting Perspectives at the 2014 Denver Home Show

DHS_150NEWCome visit Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Colorado in Booth #2050 at the Denver Home Show to see the latest landscape and architectural LED lighting products and services. The 3-day event will feature many home improvement and outdoor living contractors, and guest speakers include Kevin O’Connor (host of This Old House) and Josh Flagg of Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing.

DENVER HOME SHOW

National Western Complex (4655 Humboldt St. – East of I25 on I70)

Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Colorado (Booth #2050)

  • Friday, March 14     10 A.M  –  9:00 P.M.
  • Saturday, March 15     10 A.M.  –  9:00 P.M.
  • Sunday, March 16     10 A.M. – 5:00 P.M.

CLICK HERE to obtain $2.00 Off discount tickets for the show.

We look forward to seeing you at the show!

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Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Colorado Finds Local LED Lighting Solution for Problematic Step Lights

TerraLUX LIne Voltage Linear LED Engine

TerraLUX LIne Voltage Linear LED Engine

Sometimes when you are looking for a particular lighting solution, you need not look any further than your own back yard. We had met some homeowners at a recent show who said that they had problems with their line voltage step lights (21 total) that had been installed throughout their brick outdoor living area (steps, patios, and retaining walls). The Progress step lights used 20W bulbs that are typically used in exit signs, and the way the lights were designed made it virtually impossible to keep water and moisture from entering the lights. That’s not a good thing when water comes into contact with a line voltage incandescent bulb – and the homeowner practically had a full-time job replacing bulbs.

After doing a quick Google search, I was pleased to learn about TerraLUX – a leading edge manufacturer of retrofit LED products that is located a few miles up the road from us in Longmont, Colorado. TerraLUX has developed a line of linear line voltage LED engines that can be used for retrofitting recessed step and wall lights, and for other lighting applications as well. The linear light engines are available in 4-, 6-, and 8-inch lengths and they are fully-integrated, self-contained and plug and play. Best of all they are IP-65 rated which means they can tolerate water sprays in somewhat leaky step lights. We chose the 3000K LEDs and they have an L70 of 60,000 hours, and a five-year warranty.  By the way, L70 = 60,000 hours is a shorthand way of saying in lighting nomenclature that at an operational elapsed time of 60,000 hours, the LEDs will still be generating 70-percent of their maximum lumen output.

In the photos below, you can see what the step lights looked like (with the louvered faceplates removed) when we started the work.

Pre-Retrofit Step Light in Bad Condition

Pre-Retrofit Step Light in Bad Condition

Pre-Retrofit Step Light In Good Condition

Pre-Retrofit Step Light In Good Condition

 

 

 

 

 

 

The linear LED engine mounts to the same reflector that the original incandescent bulb socket was mounted to, and this assists with heat dissipation away from the LED module itself. TerraLUX has patented the LEDSense® thermal management circuitry that optimizes the lumen output in conjunction with the LED’s operating temperature. In the photo below, you can see the results of the completed LED retrofit:

Step Light Retrofitted with TerraLUX Linear LED Engine in Denver Country Club

Step Light Retrofitted with TerraLUX Linear LED Engine in Denver Country Club

These linear LED engines are dimmable and can be used to retrofit a wide variety of lighting applications including wall sconces, ceiling fixtures, and recessed step and wall lighting fixtures in both residential and commercial settings.

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Is It Too Late to Add Deck Lighting to an Already-Built Deck?

Multi-Story Deck on Hillside in Douglas County, Colorado

That is a question that we at Outdoor Lighting Perspectives (OLP) of Colorado are frequently asked this time of year as homeowners look forward to using and enjoying their outdoor spaces.

Our response is that it is never too late to add deck lighting. At a project that we completed this week, the homeowner wanted to have deck lighting installed in the back yard in addition to landscape and architectural lighting for the front yard.

The only existing lighting on the upper deck consisted of two unshielded line voltage carriage lights. When these lights were turned on, the glare ruined the entire ambience of the evening as well as the view of Castle Rock beyond. The homeowners requested the following:

  • They wanted three deck lights installed on each of the stucco columns on the upper deck.
  • They wanted to be able to control the deck lights manually via a switch inside the house – next to the door leading out to the upper deck.
  • They did not want to see any exposed wiring.
  • They wanted to have both automatic and manual control options for the landscape lighting in the front yard.

Our installation crew was able to open a small access hole at the bottom of the center column and at the top – and to successfully pull the low voltage wiring home run to the upper deck. From there, the connections to the other two deck lights could be made and wiring pulled to each of the deck light locations. In a few spots, the wiring was hidden at the base of the columns with moulding strips painted to match the stucco.

Deck Light Installed on Stucco Column

The final result looks like the lighting was installed at the same time as the deck – no visible wiring and no visible conduits. The deck lights were also painted to match the stucco after this photo was taken so that they would blend in to and become part of the column itself.

 

New Switch for Deck Lighting Is a Snap with LCA

Lastly, the manual control of the newly installed deck lights was easily accomplished through the use of OLP’s Lighting Control Automation™ (LCA). The low voltage transformer powering the deck lights was mounted under the lower deck – and on a different electrical circuit than the switches shown in the photo. The switch on the left side controls the carriage lights on the deck – and the switch on the right controls the lights in the dinette. The switch on the right side originally looked exactly the same as the one on the left.

In the photo, the switch on the right was replaced with one of our LCA intelligent switches (note the LED at top), and instead of a solid Decora switch plate – it is now split in half vertically. The left side now controls the dinette lights as before and the right side now controls the new deck lights. Through the use of LCA technology, the deck lighting switch sends a signal from this totally unrelated electrical circuit over to the circuit powering the transformer. It was as simple as that – no new extensive hard-wiring nor interior drywall/painting repairs were required to accomplish this.

 
So it’s never too late to add to add deck lighting to your outdoor spaces – and summer is right around the corner!
 

Come See Us at the CAI Spring Showcase & Trade Show

Come see us at the 2011 CAI Spring Showcase & Trade Show – Friday April 29th from 7 am to 4 pm (Booth # 104) at the Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum – 7711 E. Academy Blvd. in Denver. The theme of this year’s event is Traveling Through Time with Your HOA.

Outdoor Lighting Perspectives (OLP) of Colorado will be exhibiting the latest in ceramic metal halide, LED, and induction fluorescent lamp/fixture technology for a wide range of typical HOA lighting applications including area lighting (street, park, walkway); signage/monument lighting; and stairwell/building lighting.

The new induction fluorescent technology offers increased performance life (up to 100,000 hours) with dramatically lower operational (up to 50-percent energy savings) and maintenance costs. Further, it offers a vast improvement over High-Intensity Discharge (HID) fixtures with respect to nighttime visibility and color rendering.

One of the new programs that OLP of Colorado is offering is a Free Energy Savings Assessment – so that HOA’s and building owners can assess retrofit and replacement payback periods for different lamp technologies. So if you are involved with a community or an HOA, please plan to stop by and see us.

Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Launches New Commercial Lighting Program

Induction Fluorescent Retrofits

Two weeks ago I had the privilege of attending a new and exciting commercial lighting training class at our company headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. The class focussed on new “green” lighting technologies (LED and induction fluorescent) for commercial applications such as area lighting (street, park, walkway, etc.), parking garage lighting, and wall and warehouse lighting. Almost all of these lighting applications can be found at apartment/townhome communities, business parks, parking garages, auto dealerships, warehouses, restaurants, etc.

Our company will be offering Free Energy Savings Assessments (Lighting Energy Audit/Payback Period) – and show how replacing outdated outdoor lamps (especially High-Intensity Discharge (HID) (high pressure sodium, metal halide) lamps) with our new LED and induction fluorescent retrofits can save a client up to 50% in their electrical bills.

Induction flourescent lighting has an extremely long performance life of up to 100,000 hours (over 22 years!) – that’s 5 to 8 times longer than the typical HID lamps. This technology offers a very high system efficiency with dramatically lower electrical bills and operational maintenance costs, and much better nighttime visibility. Additionally, federal government tax deductions provided through EPAct  (Energy Policy Act of 2005) for reducing building energy usage are in effect through the end of 2013 for interior applications such as parking garages, warehouses, and other commercial buildings. Additionally, many electric utilities such as XCEL Colorado  offer rebates for new green lighting installations or retrofits. OLP of Colorado will assist you in identifying all of the rebates, tax deductions and/or credits for which your particular project may be eligible.

 

Induction Fluorescent Lighting Compared to HPS

The photo above clearly demonstrates the excellent Color-Rendering Index for induction fluorescent lighting as well as its overall efficiency. Whether it’s for a completely new lighting installation or a retrofit opportunity, induction fluorescents are becoming more widely used. 

 
While LEDs are part of everyone’s current vocabulary, induction fluorescents are less well-known. However, that is about to quickly change because …
 
Induction Fluorescents     =     Twice the Life & Half the Price of LEDs!
 
You can learn more at SwitchYourLights.com.
 
 

 

 

 

Celebrate Earth Day Tomorrow – and Every Day!

Earth Day 2011Celebrate the 41st anniversary of Earth Day tomorrow – April 22. Because Earth Day this year falls on a holiday weekend, some communities have decided to celebrate it on previous weekends or schedule events throughout the months of April and May. Most communities are holding recycling events or environmental clean up events to prevent hazardous materials and valuable reusable materials from unnecesarily taking up valuable space in our landfills.

Last week I attended a training class (more later) at our company headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. While there we learned how we can help reduce energy usage for commercial lighting (parking garages, parking lots, building lighting) by 50 percent with new technology. Homeowners are doing their part by replacing inefficient incandescent bulbs with energy-saving LEDs and compact fluorescent (CFL bulbs).

Here are some of the Earth Day events along the Colorado front range.

Denver Earth Day Eventwww.denvergov.org/EarthDay; Friday April 22; 10 am – 2 pm; Greek Theater at Civic Center Park

Colorado Springs Earth Day – Free Rides – Friday April 22. Free rides on Mountain Metro, FrontRange Express; and Ute Pass Express.

Earth Day Fort Collinswww.sustainablelivingassociation.org/earth-day-2011 ; Civic Center Park; Saturday April 23, 11 am – 5 pm.

From day to night – lighting done right

One of the things we offer is a free nighttime demonstration so that you actually get to see what a particular lighting design will look like for your home and property – prior to an installation.  That eliminates all of the guesswork and surprises – and you will know exactly how much you will have to invest to achieve that desired lighting effect.

Most of our typical lighting installations in Colorado range in price between $3,500 and $6,500. Not surprisingly, most homeowners have no idea how many lights they may need or want – or what their investment range might be until we do the evening lighting demonstration.  And that’s perfectly OK because we do not want you to purchase a lighting system sight unseen.

Additionally, we do our nighttime demonstration for these other reasons:

  • It is your house, not our’s – and you know best how you would like to have your house and property illuminated in the evening.
  • Exact placement of the fixtures can be determined in order to safely light steps and other hazards, and to effectively light architectural features.
  • We can show you several different lighting options that you may not have considered previously.
  • The evening lighting demonstration is an event that your entire family can participate in and provide input to the lighting design.

Here is what you will see.

 

Outdoor lighting Colorado before and after
Outdoor lighting Colorado before and after

My Landscaper Did My Landscape Lighting But It’s Never Worked Right

Inferior Quality Low Voltage Bulb

I certainly do not want to pick on landscapers, but one of the most frequently heard comments at the recent Colorado Garden and Home Show was – my landscaper did my lighting but it’s never worked right.

During the last two weeks, I evaluated two lighting systems that coincidentally had exactly the same fixtures.  The low voltage path lights were manufactured by a well-known national lighting manufacturer that had rolled out a lower-priced line of fixtures for landscapers to use. The path lights use the incandescent T5 wedge-base bulbs that have an average life of only 500 to 1,000 hours. In addition, the manufacturer states that these fixtures are rated for damp locations (somewhat sheltered from the weather) instead of wet locations (snow, rain, sleet, etc.). The fixtures have no lenses to protect either the bulb or the socket from moisture, moths, and spider webs – and that degrades the bulb life even further.

Making the situation in both installations even worse is the fact that the installers used the daisy chain method of installation – that’s when numerous fixtures are connected in series one after the other on the same circuit. Invariably with that wiring technique, the installer typically sets the voltage higher than it should be to ensure that the light at the very end of the circuit receives enough voltage to light up. What that also means is that the first light in the series is receiving 14, 15, or 18 volts – and since the bulbs are only rated at 12V – the first bulb starts burning out very quickly causing a domino effect down the line.

In one of the locations, the landscaper installed over a dozen step lights in poured concrete steps and patios – and it appears that no sleeves had been installed so that the system could be rewired if necessary. More problematic is the fact that as the concrete continues to cure over time, it will react with and break down the protective insulation and eventually corrode the wiring.

Outdoor lighting systems can last a lifetime if high quality products are used and professionally installed – and it’s very disconcerting to see a beautifully landscaped yard with an inferior lighting system. Sometimes we can come up with a cost-effective solution for the homeowner to remedy the lighting system – but sometimes we almost have to start from the beginning.