Retrofitting your home or business with LED light fixtures has a wide array of benefits from saving you money on your utilities, to reducing your carbon footprint, to providing you with better overall light quality. Unfortunately, there are many retailers (particularly online) that sell inferior products – some of which don’t even meet Canadian standards. So, what should you look for when you are purchasing LED light fixtures? The following is a guide to get you started.
Certifications
In Canada, any electrical product that is sold is required to have one of the following certifications: CSA, ETL, or cULus. One or more of these certifications must be in place to comply with regulations, insurance requirements and general safety.
- CSA – The Canadian Standards Association is internationally recognized as a certification for billions of products. When an LED fixture has the CSA mark on it, it means the product complies with a specific set of standards to ensure quality, sustainability and safety.
- ETL – The ETL mark on a product indicates that the product complies with North American standards.
- cULus – The cULus Underwriter’s Association is an internationally recognized, independent, third-party quality tester for product safety.
Another certification that you will want to look for if you are purchasing LED fixtures for commercial use is DLC or Design Lights Consortium. This platform allows manufacturers to submit high performing products to be considered by energy efficiency programs and utility companies for rebate programs.
LED Light Fixture Warranties
Once you know that the LED fixtures that you are considering have all the necessary certifications, the next thing to look at is warranties. LEDs should have a fairly long lifespan but things can (and do) sometimes go wrong.
When you invest in an LED retrofit, it is good to know that you are working with a company that will stand by its product by offering good warranties. In addition to warranties, you may want to ask your provider about any maintenance programs they may offer.
Proper Lighting Analysis
Finally, when you are purchasing LED fixtures, it is always best to work with a company that will conduct a proper lighting analysis for you. Say for example, that you are swapping out your old fluorescent lighting for LEDs in an office. It is not as simple as just putting LEDs where you once had fluorescent lighting. This is because LEDs are much brighter, and you, therefore, need less of them. If you were to simply use the same amount, chances are you would find the lighting far too bright!
With a proper lighting analysis, a technician will come in and determine how many fixtures are needed and where they need to be in relationship to each work station in order to provide optimal light quality with minimal glare.
LED retrofitting can be a great investment, but it does need to be done right in order to experience the maximum benefits. For a consultation contact Daisy Energy today.
