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Going Green: The Energy Savings Benefit of Lighting Control Systems (2/10/2008)

By Hector Morazan, LiteTouch

In a report by the Lighting Industry Resource Council to the US Dept.of Energy, it stated that "the most efficient lighting energy source is one that is turned off. Effective use of daylight and aggressive use of lighting control technologies will be needed to significantly reduce lighting energy use." The Energy Conservation Project at LSU adds that 20% of all electricity produced in the US is used for lighting, but 50% of that is wasted by inefficient lighting sources or careless consumers.

According to the Home Lighting Control Alliance, if 100 million households were to control just one 60 watt bulb with one vacancy sensor, this would represent almost 500 million kilowatt hours of energy savings, about US$50 million per year and a reduction of almost a billion pounds of carbon dioxide. Indeed lighting control is often sold in terms of lifestyle convenience and security, but the inherent energy savings that the technology offers are something that custom electronics professionals can also promote.

Home Lighting Control Alliance logo.

Make a difference

As a company, LiteTouch has joined a host of industry experts calling on consumers and the trade to consider lighting control as an effective means of the reducing carbon footprint of residences and businesses alike. As part of an on-going energy savings educational effort to supplement and support the campaign underway by the Home Lighting Control Alliance, of which LiteTouch is a founding partner, we are informing consumers and the trade about how they can make a difference using the latest control technology.

Here are some facts and tips on how the consumer and their lighting control system can make a difference:

1. Ensure all lights are off when the occupant leaves the house. This can be facilitated by a 'Master Off' control, usually positioned by the front door, that ensures that lights and other automation equipment are never left on accidentally.

LiteTouch keypad with 'Master Off' and 'Master On' buttons.

2. Automatically activate exterior lights precisely at sunset. Lighting control systems with astronomical clock timers can be set to turn lights on and off at sunrise and sunset each day, even as the seasons change, ensuring that energy is not wasted by turning lights on too early and off too late.

Exterior lights controlled to come on when the sun sets.

3. Maximize the natural light coming into the home. By integrating automated blind and shade controls, a lighting control system can take advantage of daylight by adjusting shades to ideal levels, reducing solar heat gain and lower cooling costs.

4. Control or dim the latest in energy-efficient lighting sources. There are lighting control systems that support LED, CFL and fluorescent lighting technology, and which can increase the efficiency of incandescent lighting too.

5. Harvest sunlight to supplement artificial light. A LiteTouch DayLight Harvesting Keypad for example, measures the available sunlight and then adjusts artificial light sources appropriately to make the most of the sunlight, ensuring that only the energy you need is used.

6. Dim lights automatically. Energy costs can be reduced by 10% by limiting maximum light levels to just 90%, a difference that is barely noticeable. This dimming also extends bulb life.

Chart showing how much electricity can be saved by dimming, and how much longer bulb life can be extended.

Conclusion

It is well known that simple dimming reduces the stress on incandescent light bulbs and therefore extends their life (as well as reduces landfill waste), but by using lighting control technology in more sophisticated ways, even greater savings can be made.

Lighting automation inherently reduces energy consumption versus traditional toggle and dimmer switches, and is the only automation subsystem that reduces rather than consumes energy. In addition to comfort and convenience, lighting control can offer homeowners real savings when it comes to energy bills, and help to reduce their carbon footprint.

Hector Morazan is International Regional Sales Manager at LiteTouch, an industry leader in residential and commercial lighting control systems, and a founding member of the Home Lighting Control Alliance - a self-funded, member-driven consortium of leading lighting control manufacturers, systems integrators and industry support organizations. Its sole purpose is to promote the awareness, value and benefits of lighting control products for residential applications.

www.litetouch.com
www.homelightingcontrol.org