The 5 Rules of Outdoor Universal Lighting Design

 Lighting Tips  No Responses »
Jun 172013
 
PinExt The 5 Rules of Outdoor Universal Lighting Design

stock photo outdoor space vertical The 5 Rules of Outdoor Universal Lighting Design
Every space you inhabit should be safe and welcoming.

If you’re a designer, or if you live with a person who has special needs due to age, you’re probably familiar with universal design. It’s all about making a living space accessible to everyone. Universal lighting design specifically uses light to make these improvements and accommodations possible.

Most often, you hear about universal lighting design for task areas in kitchens and bathrooms, but it’s also a very important concept for the exteriors of homes and buildings.

When night falls, universally designed exterior lighting ensures a smooth transition between inside and out. It keeps porches, patios, steps, and walkways always inviting.

Use these rules to create an outdoor environment that is safer for everyone.

1. Create a visual destination.

Aging eyes need more light to distinguish detail. So, when an elderly person navigates in the dark, he needs the light to clearly indicate where he should go. All the lights should converge on, or point to a single destination, usually the front door or entrance. This spot is the brightest spot on the property.

bigstock Contemporary grand entrance 6548309 The 5 Rules of Outdoor Universal Lighting Design

2. Clearly define outdoor “zones.” Continue reading »

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8 Ways To Use Step Lights (Photo Inspiration)

 Thoughts on Light  No Responses »
Jun 142013
 
PinExt 8 Ways To Use Step Lights (Photo Inspiration)

Step lighting can take any staircase from dangerous and dull to safe and stunning. Whether you’re lighting stairs in the foyer or the basement, up to the porch or down to the patio, step lights add that perfect finishing touch.

If you’re thinking of adding stair lighting to any set of steps in your home, you may wonder what kind will look the best. For this blog post, I’ve pulled together 8 of my favorite step lighting photos that illustrate just how many ways you can use these handy light fixtures.

In the end, I’m sure you’ll agree that these are stairs worth staring at:

1. Shrouded Brick Step Lights

LED Step Lights At Home 8 Ways To Use Step Lights (Photo Inspiration)

These warm LED lights create the perfect atmosphere for breezy summer evenings on the porch.

2. LED Step Lights With Lenses

LED Step Lights Indoors 8 Ways To Use Step Lights (Photo Inspiration)

These sleek staircase lights add a beautiful layer of light to this basement, while also acting as safety lighting. Continue reading »

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How To Choose Good Camping Lights

 Lighting Tips  No Responses »
Jun 102013
 
PinExt How To Choose Good Camping Lights

camping 236x300 How To Choose Good Camping Lights
When planning your next summer camping trip, you should always have a quality headlamp, flashlight, and lantern on your packing list. The right battery lights will keep you safe and comfortable throughout your journey through the wilderness.

Here are some essential qualities you should look for in a good camping light:

1. Battery Operated. As nostalgic as those old kerosene lamps may be, battery operated lights are much more practical. You can turn them on and off whenever you need to, and they require much less paraphernalia. During bad weather, they’re a lot safer to have in your tent. Make sure to find one with a long battery life, or one with a recharge crank so you’ll have light until you choose to return to civilization.

2. Small. When you’re lugging your belongings up a mountain, an extra pound or two makes the biggest difference. You want something light, compact, and easy to carry.

3. Bright. Your light may need to be small, but its impact should be big. When rummaging through your knapsack, cooking your food, or scoping out a campsite, your lanterns, flashlights, and headlamps need to emit a massive number of lumens. This will keep you organized and out of danger. You may also find it helpful to invest in a light with several different brightness settings. That way you can set up your camp and read yourself to sleep with just one light. Continue reading »

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Brighten His Day (Father’s Day Wish List For 2013)

 Buyer's Guides  No Responses »
May 222013
 
PinExt Brighten His Day (Fathers Day Wish List For 2013)

Fathers Day Brighten His Day (Fathers Day Wish List For 2013)
Father’s Day falls on 2013 this year. So, it’s about time I share my Father’s Day gift picks!

I’ve put together a list of some of our coolest, handiest lights that will literally brighten Dad’s day (in an unexpected way).

We have a big selection, so I’ve broken down the list into categories based on some of the things Dads like to do:

For the Dad who can grill a mean steak…

You can’t go wrong with a barbecue light. It’ll make it easy for Dad to grill, even after the sun sets! Here are some options:

1. The Clamp-On MR16 Halogen Barbecue Light

Halogen Barbecue Brighten His Day (Fathers Day Wish List For 2013) Continue reading »

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How To Use Step Lights In Indoor Spaces

 Lighting Tips  No Responses »
May 132013
 
PinExt How To Use Step Lights In Indoor Spaces

step lights 300x199 How To Use Step Lights In Indoor Spaces
For a little more impact in a home’s foyer, or a little more safety in a dark basement, step lighting can help.

This blog post will help you learn how to light an indoor staircase, what lights you should choose for your project and how to install them.

Let’s get started!

First, decide where you want your lights to go…

On the step.

For a subtle accent on each step, you can install recessed lights within the riser (vertical) or the tread (horizontal) portion of the step. Your stairs will get a little more impact, but the lights won’t alter the overall brightness of the room very much. Tread lighting will give steps a runway-like appeal, while riser lighting will typically illuminate the center region of the stairs. If you choose to install your lights here, you’ll need to cut portions of the steps to set and hardwire the lights. We recommend you consult with a professional electrician before setting off to work.

Beside the step.

Another popular step lighting option that adds a little more brightness to the room’s overall light level is wall lighting. Here, you would install your step lights on the wall right next to your staircase, so the lights would cast beams directly down onto the step. Since you don’t have to worry about mounting these lights on the surface of the step, you have a little more artistic freedom – the lights don’t have to be flush with the wall, and they can be a little flashier if you choose. We recommend installing 1 light every 3 steps or so, but you can play with this number depending on how bright you want your staircase to be. Continue reading »

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Prepare Your Emergency Plans! Check Those Exit Sign Batteries

 Lighting Tips  No Responses »
May 102013
 
PinExt Prepare Your Emergency Plans! Check Those Exit Sign Batteries

Edge LitLEDEXITSign1 Prepare Your Emergency Plans! Check Those Exit Sign Batteries

My lights have already gone out once this spring, thanks to a lovely, unexpected North Carolina thunderstorm. Lucky for me, I live in an apartment with small rooms and large windows. During the day, electric lights don’t make that much of a difference.

However, if you’re charged managing a large shopping mall, school, theater, or office, your power outage protocol isn’t nearly as simple.

When the lights go out, it’s up to you to ensure the people’s safety.

Are you prepared?

Most importantly, you’ve got to maintain functional exit signs, because they might be the only thing during an outage that stands between order and panic. When the power goes out, your lighted exit signs will too, unless they have functional backup batteries.

We suggest you make it a goal to inspect the exit sign batteries around your establishment at least once every three months. Most exit signs have convenient “push to test buttons” that let you do this in a matter of seconds.

What if the battery isn’t working? Continue reading »

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Bike Lights For Night Riding

 Product Spotlight  No Responses »
Apr 112013
 
PinExt Bike Lights For Night Riding

Bike Lights Oval 300x300 Bike Lights For Night Riding
My town is about as bike friendly as you can get. Most roads have designated bike lanes, or friendly “Share The Road” signs. All in all, bikers and motorists get along well here, but we’re not immune to accidents. Last week, I was driving in the evening and I saw a car accidentally force a cyclist off the road near a stoplight. He wasn’t hurt, but I could tell he was shaken. As an enthusiastic cyclist myself, that worried me. Did the car just not see him?

Whether you’re hopping on your bike to enjoy the spring weather, or to be a little more environmentally friendly, safety should be a priority.

The most important thing to consider when riding at night is how to see and be seen.

Here are a few of our favorite LED bike lights for night riding:

1. Clip On Bike Lights  

Clip On Light 300x300 Bike Lights For Night Riding

These LED lights attach easily to the front and rear of your bike. The white light clips to the front break cables to help you see where you’re going, and signal to others that you’re heading their way. The red light clips to your seat rails, brightly marking your bike’s rear. They both operate in steady beam and continuous flash modes, visible from up to a mile away. They’re weather resistant and have a long battery life. Continue reading »

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How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy-Efficient

 Energy-Efficient Lighting  1 Response »
Mar 152013
 
PinExt How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy Efficient

White Cove Lighting in a Conference Room 200x300 How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy Efficient
This article is part of a series here on the blog about how to save the most energy with lighting in your home or business. Browse the entire series here.

Lighting accounts for at least 28% of the energy used in the average office building. That translates to a pretty hefty chunk of the monthly budget. But, by making big and small energy-efficient updates, you can spend less and enjoy a more comfortable office environment.

Big Changes…

If you still use incandescent or outdated fluorescent overhead lights, it’s time for an upgrade.

LEDs use about 80% less energy to generate the same amount of light as incandescent light bulbs. They also last about 25 times longer. So, if you use incandescent light bulbs in your recessed cans, you should replace them with LED lamps or retrofits. LEDs excel at downlighting, because they’re naturally a directional light source. Today’s models have light output and color quality very similar to incandescent lights, so you might not notice the change until you look at your energy bill.

If you have older fluorescent lighting in your office (like T12s), you’re also not saving as much energy as you could. T12 technology is over 70 years old, and incidentally was taken out of production last year. If you exchange your T12s for T8s, you’ll use 45% less energy. Not to mention, the color temperature and light quality of fluorescent lights have improved dramatically over the past few decades, so new lights could be a huge morale boost for all the office workers.

iStock 000005663021Medium 1024x670 How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy Efficient

Smaller Changes…

Office lighting isn’t just about what’s on the ceiling. To make sure you’re saving the most energy possible, you also need to take a critical look at the smaller light fixtures in the office. Continue reading »

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Product Spotlight: The FreeLite Photoluminescent Exit Sign

 Product Spotlight  No Responses »
Mar 142013
 
PinExt Product Spotlight: The FreeLite Photoluminescent Exit Sign

Photoluminescent Exit Sign 300x208 Product Spotlight: The FreeLite Photoluminescent Exit Sign
I’m very excited to share one of our most innovative products here at Pegasus Lighting – the FreeLite Photoluminescent Exit Sign.

This special exit sign uses absolutely no electricity and generates light that can be seen up to 100 feet away!

How is that possible? Well, the sign’s innovative photoluminescent technology absorbs the ambient light around it and stores it to use when the lights go dark. It does this completely on its own; it doesn’t require any extra maintenance or upkeep. No attention at all, really.

You may have experience with other self-illuminating signs, but unlike those our photoluminescent sign isn’t radioactive (it contains no tritium). You don’t have to test it periodically, and it’s completely recyclable, so you don’t have to worry about extra disposal costs. Continue reading »

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How To Have Great Lighting In A Rental

 Lighting Tips  No Responses »
Mar 012013
 
PinExt How To Have Great Lighting In A Rental

Having adequate, quality, and – heaven forbid – stylish lighting when you live in a rented space can seem like a far-away dream. Your landlord or property manager has certain limits and regulations on what changes you can make, so creating a lighting design you like feels next to impossible.

What’s a renter to do? It’s time to get creative with your lighting.

For The Kitchen

Let me guess. When you moved into your current place, your kitchen had a single ceiling light fixture – a linear fluorescent, a track light – on a basic on/off light switch. The brightness of that single ceiling light is too jarring in the morning, and when you’re chopping, dicing, and frying in the evening, it’s not enough.

Fluorescent Under Cabinet Lights How To Have Great Lighting In A Rental

The best thing you can do in here is add one or two light layers for extra task light. Start with under cabinet lights, because they’ll make it easier for you to see while cooking, and add a nice ambiance to the room. You can opt to leave the ceiling lights off when you want a lower light level, or use them with your ceiling lights when you’ve got your chef’s hat on. Continue reading »

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