Dino Chantziaras of DDM Lighting, a specialty lighting design and installation contractor, notes that LED lighting continues to gain in popularity.
"The price of electricity keeps rising," he says. "LEDs provide a cost-effective lighting solution. They offer considerable longevity, even when they’re always on. In a dozen years we expect to see LED lighting penetration of 65 to 80 per cent, unless something new and more exciting comes along."
However, LEDs continue to generate a significant number of pervasive myths, which Chantziaras continues to challenge. He debunked these myths during Construct Canada.
1. LEDs don’t produce heat and therefore do not require heat management
"They generate heat, although they don’t get past 45 Celsius," he says. "Heat management involves a heat sink, preferably aluminum with a small amount of brass — that should be enough."
2. LEDs last forever
"They don’t last forever," he says. "But like bad rock stars they remain on the stage even as they fade away. LEDs begin to fade at around 10 years, so whenever I do a new installation I give the client 35 per cent more light than they actually need. That way when light levels begin to fade, they still have enough light."
3. LEDs can withstand heat
"Even a perfectly heat-sinked project in Dubai will require additional heat management," he says. "Ideally, LEDs should operate at standard room temperature. When you’re way outside that range you may have to do a correction with bigger heat sinks or additional air flow."
4. LEDs must be approved by CSA
"People tell me that they demand a CSA approved product," he says. "There are currently 26 organizations that can approve LED lighting."
5. LEDs look blue
"This is a comment we usually get from an unsophisticated consumer who last looked at an LED a decade ago," he says. "I can demonstrate that LEDs no longer have a blue cast, but I tend to tell them that they don’t need to choose LEDs. Their lighting choices are not court ordered."
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