SEIBU LED Lighting
Economy 7 customers could be hit with 35% energy price rise
Huge night time rate hikes could see households paying up to a third more for their electricity
Following four of the big six energy suppliers’ recent price rise announcements, several households have been informed that their Economy 7 plans will see a dramatic increase in cost.
A number of SSE Economy 7 customers have been told that their bills will rise by 17% this month – this follows an increase of 15% just over 12 months ago.
ScottishPower and npower have also announced that some of their Economy 7 customers will be hit with a 13% increase in their nigh time electricity rates.
It is believed that these new price hikes will affect the most vulnerable UK citizens. Roughly 10% of the British population use Economy 7 meters, which are also referred to as white meters.
Tariff changes likely to affect most vulnerable
An SSE customer on an Economy 7 tariff recently got in touch with the Guardian newspaper to complain that his night usage rates have increased by 35% in the past 13 months. The customer explained that SSE’s night time pricing increased from 5.98p per unit to 6.92p per unit in October 2012 and was set to jump to 8.11p per unit in November 2013.
The customer told the newspaper that the price is likely to mainly affect the UK’s most vulnerable citizens.
“This tariff is used especially by people with storage heaters, where it will constitute their major energy cost. I guess that this will include a disproportionate number of both poor people and old people – this is exactly the politically sensitive group whom you might think energy suppliers would try to hit less, not more,” he said.
How does Economy 7 work?
Economy 7 is a special type of electricity plan which sees households charged a different unit price depending on the time of day. People on an Economy 7 plan will pay less for electricity consumed during non-peak periods, typically at night. Households which are signed up to an Economy 7 plan have a distinct type of meter, which is able to measure electricity consumption during the night and day.
If you’re not sure whether or not you are on an Economy 7 plan, the easiest way to find out is to look at your latest energy bill. If it shows a separate rate for day and night time usage, then you’re on Economy 7.
by Michele Martinelli on 1 Nov 2013
http://www.uswitch.com/gas-electricity/news/2013/11/01/economy-7-customers-could-be-hit-with-35-energy-price-rise/.
David Cameron energy price pledge row deepens
The government has played down a pledge by Prime Minister David Cameron that energy firms will be forced to give all customers the lowest tariff.
Mr Cameron made the surprise announcement on Wednesday at prime minister’s questions.
But a minister summoned to the Commons to explain what the PM meant said the details had still to be worked out.
John Hayes vowed to help consumers “get the best deal” – but Labour accused the government of being in “chaos”.
Shadow energy secretary Caroline Flint said it had been a “shambolic mismanagement of energy policy” in what was “probably the quickest U-turn in British history”.
Mr Hayes told MPs the Energy Bill, which the government plans to publish next month, will reform the energy market and increase competition.
Analysis
Confused?
Well, you’ve every right to be.
The government say they want to introduce legislation to help consumers with their fuel bills. That much is clear.
What is a good deal less clear is if they plan – as the prime minister told MPs on Wednesday – to make companies pass on the lowest tariffs.
In other words, to use legislation to force firms to give customers the best deals available.
Today ministers have carefully refrained from repeating Mr Cameron’s tough message.
Indeed Energy Minister John Hayes said ministers would evaluate existing voluntary agreements “to see if legislation is needed.”
This confusion has prompted Opposition accusations of another omnishambles – or as some on Twitter have begun to refer to it “a combi-shambles”.
And at a time when the government is seeking to re-assert its credentials for competence – in the wake of the West Coast Rail upset – it’s a row Mr Cameron could well have done without.
He said the government needed a “robust” relationship with the six big energy firms and would take the “necessary steps to ensure people get the best possible deal”.
A number of options were being considered, he confirmed, including an evaluation of whether voluntary agreements made by the energy companies in April should be “made binding” through legislation.
Under this voluntary arrangement the six main energy providers agreed to contact customers once a year to tell them what the best tariff is for them, and how to get it and to contact customers coming to the end of a fixed-term contract with the same advice.
“This is a complicated area and we will discuss with the industry, consumer groups and the regulator in order to work through the detail,” Mr Hayes said.
Speaking to the BBC, Energy Secretary Ed Davey confirmed he was working on a plan to require energy companies to inform customers of the lowest tariffs available, but did not mention the prime minister’s more radical proposal to force them to charge the lowest tariff.
“I’ve been working with the deputy prime minister and others, working with the energy companies, to try to drive more competition, to get them to agree that they will tell their customers what are the best available tariffs, so customers can save money,” he said.
Reference – ” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19986929 “.
Electricity prices set to rise again in 2012…..
British Gas raises gas and electricity prices
British Gas has announced increases to the gas and electricity prices it charges customers.
It has raised its charges for both types of fuel by about 6%, adding £80 a year to the average dual fuel bill.
Britain’s biggest energy supplier said the “unwelcome” increase would come into effect on 16 November.
Its rival SSE, which trades as Scottish Hydro, Swalec and Southern Electric, has already said it will raise its prices by an average of 9% from Monday.
“We know that household budgets are under pressure and this £1.50 per week rise will be unwelcome,” said managing director Phil Bentley.
“However, we simply cannot ignore the rising costs that are largely outside our control, but which make up most of the bill.”
British Gas also warned that the rising cost of government energy policies was likely to add even more to household bills next year.
Rising costs
Speaking to the BBC, Richard Lloyd of consumer group Which? criticised the opacity and lack of competition in the energy market.
“What we need to see is action from the government and more pressure on… these very big lazy companies who think it’s OK to clobber people with above-inflation price rises at the very time when they can least afford it,” he said.
“Everybody knows that this is a market that is not competitive, not properly working for consumers.There is very little pressure on British gas to be efficient and to keep these price rises to a minimum.”
Over six million households in England already plan to cut back on their heating this winter because they are worried about affording their bills, according to Audrey Gallagher of the government-sponsored watchdog Consumer Focus.
“Today’s price rise will leave customers even more worried about the cost of heating their homes,” she said.
British Gas last raised its tariffs in August 2011, when gas prices went up by 18% and electricity prices by 16%.
Analysis
The supply of gas and electricity to UK households is dominated by just six big firms.
Two have now announced imminent price rises.
Three of the others will probably do the same as well, soon.
That is because they like to move as a herd and because they are subject to the same pressures on their costs.
The one exception is E.On, which promised in May not to raise prices again until 2013.
But that is now less than three months away.
There have been occasional price cuts in the past few years.
But take heed of what the regulator thinks: the only direction for energy prices in the coming years is up.
Then in January 2012, it cut its electricity prices by 5%.
The British Gas boss claimed that 85% of the price it charges customers is outside its control, including wholesale gas prices and the cost of government policies to try to reduce emissions and help the poorest households.
“Britain’s North Sea gas supplies are running out and British Gas has to pay the going rate for gas in a competitive global marketplace,” said Mr Bentley.
“Furthermore, the investment needed to maintain and upgrade the national grid to deliver energy to our customers’ homes, and the costs of the government’s policies for a clean, energy-efficient Britain, are all going up.”
The cost of government policies and the national grid upgrade added £50 to the average household bill this year, and is expected to add another £60 next year, British Gas said.
It said that winter wholesale prices it pays were proving to be some 13% higher this year.
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Bentley pointed out that although wholesale prices are actually currently lower than a year ago, British Gas, like most utilities, fixes the price at which it buys gas well in advance, and these fixed prices had risen.
The company reported £345m profit in the first half of the year, but the chief executive said that he expected profits to be down in the second half.
“Our margins are 5p in the pound,” he told the BBC. “That 5p is going into jobs for Britain, investments in new wind farms, investments in new gasfields.”
Reference –
What is fuel poverty?
More to pay on our energy bills…
The energy regulator will permit firms running the UK’s electricity and gas grids to add an average £12 to annual energy bills for the next eight years to pay for upgrades and maintenance.
Ofgem said it had cut £7bn from the total cost of work on UK transmission networks planned by energy firms.
The biggest of these firms by far – National Grid – said it was reviewing the “lengthy and wide ranging” plans.
Meanwhile a lobby group warned 300,000 more homes faced imminent fuel poverty.
Energy prices have risen 7% on average this year, according to the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, and are set to leave more households paying more than 10% of their income on home heating unless the government takes action.
Tax change
Ofgem’s announcement will enable £24bn in total investment in the energy networks up until 2021.
However, an Ofgem spokesperson told the BBC that over half of the £12 bill increase was not due to physical investment in the network, but was instead because of a change in accounting rules which would mean that energy firms could no longer claim back tax on the cost of replacing parts of the network.
The regulator’s announcement represents a slight increase on the £22bn investment allowance that Ofgem initially proposed in July – adding an average £11 to bills – which was attacked by National Grid for being insufficient.
“In analysing the proposals, we find numerous errors and questionable judgements which we cover in detail in our response,” the company had said of the initial plans in an open letter to Ofgem.
Under Ofgem’s revised proposal, the average increase in annual bills between 2013 and 2021 will equal £12, starting close to £8 at the beginning of the period, and rising to £15.10 by the end.
If National Grid chooses to challenge Ofgem’s new decision, it has until March to refer the matter to the Competition Commission.
National Grid and the distribution firms do not charge households directly for the cost of maintaining the grid, but the cost is instead passed through by electricity and gas suppliers.
The total cost of transmission and distribution comprises about 21% of gas bills and 10% of electricity bills.
Underground cables
Ofgem said that the increase in allowances compared with their July proposal was because the regulator had agreed to let gas network firms charge more for the cost of replacing gas mains.
National Grid operates the UK’s national electricity and gas grids, as well as four of the country’s eight regional gas distribution networks.
The electricity network in Scotland is owned by two other firms – Scottish and Southern and SP Energy Networks.
Ofgem had already reached an agreement with the Scottish firms in March over their investment plans, the cost of which will contribute £3.70 of the £12 average bill increase, to be borne equally across all UK households.
The planned investment spending across the UK is split between £15.5bn on electricity transmission and distribution, and £8.7bn on gas.
The investments will, among other things, hook up new wind farms and nuclear power stations to the electricity grid to replace traditional coal-fired power stations, and enable more liquefied natural gas imported from Qatar and elsewhere to be added to the gas network as North Sea gas supplies dwindle.
Other improvements will include the running of new and some existing high voltage cables underground, particularly where they affect areas of outstanding natural beauty, and the construction of a new undersea link connecting Scotland with England and Wales.
The spending on the gas network will also finance spending by the energy firms on raising public awareness about the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Reference – ” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20753715 “.
What Lamps Will Be Phased Out?
Electrical Construction and Maintance Posts: –
http://ecmweb.com/content/what-lamps-will-be-phased-out
Results of a recent survey of energy-efficient lighting professionals across the country in December by Hudson, Wis.-based Precision-Paragon (P2), an online source for lighting retrofit systems and information, reveals the demand for energy-efficient lighting is growing, despite the sluggishness of the recovery of the general U.S. economy and the severe downturn in the construction industry. More than two-thirds of survey respondents reported either meeting or exceeding their revenue expectations in 2011. In addition, although most respondents disclosed they don’t expect growth to occur until after the first quarter of 2012 — predicting the second and third quarters will be the most lucrative — they are confident this year will be even better than last year. More than 80% of survey respondents predict increased opportunities for growth, both in the industry as a whole and in their individual companies.
“We’re prepared for growth — our operations are set up so we can expand, if necessary, and we’ve added to our sales staff,” said Steve Kath, president of The Retrofit Companies, a St. Paul, Minn.-based lighting retrofit company, in a press release accompanying the survey results.
The industry’s growth is partially driven by the increase in rebate programs offered by electric utility companies, which offer incentives to owners who complete lighting retrofit projects on their facilities. These programs are particularly important in states with higher electric rates. “Some states, such as Minnesota, have lower utility rates than other parts of the country,” said Kath. “The lower rate lengthens the payback period, so the cost-savings from a retrofit project doesn’t look as impressive as it would in states with higher utility rates. The rebates really help make retrofits a more attractive option.”
Also behind the growing interest in lighting retrofits are improved efficiency standards for lighting technology from both the Department of Energy (DOE) and Congress. On July 1, 2010, manufacturers halted the production of the magnetic ballasts most commonly used for the operation of T12 lamps in commercial and industrial applications. Furthermore, nearly all 4-ft and most 8-ft T12 lamps the ballasts operate will be phased out of production starting July 14, 2012.
In addition to T12 technologies, regulations will cease production of the 32W, 4-ft T8 lamps, as well as nearly all standard halogen PAR38, PAR30, and PAR20 lamps. However, the most controversial phaseout has been the energy standards for incandescent lamps, set forth in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) (see Sidebar 1: The Truth About the Bulb “Ban” below).
Real Cost
Already, some of these technologies are no longer used in new lighting design. “T12 phaseout is irrelevant for architectural lighting designers,” says Glenn Heinmiller, chair of the energy committee for the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD), Chicago, and principal at Cambridge, Mass.-based architectural lighting design firm Lam Partners. “They haven’t been specified by us for maybe 20 years. The incandescent reflector lamp (IRL) phaseout will just mean that only the high-efficacy versions of PAR20, PAR30, and PAR38 halogen reflector lamps will be available. These are more expensive, but we often specify these anyhow due to better energy performance.”
Since 2010, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), Rosslyn, Va., has recorded a steady decline in the sale of T12 lamps, which previously were estimated at 30% of fluorescent 4-ft lamps sold every year. Yet, the National Lighting Bureau (NLB), the Silver Spring, Md.-based independent, not-for-profit, lighting information source, points out that there are still hundreds of millions of T12 fluorescent lamps installed in offices, classrooms, factories, and other facilities nationwide. “This is a technology that is essentially 75 years old,” says John P. Bachner, NLB’s executive director. “Nonetheless, people still have them installed.”
NLB estimates there are approximately 450 million T12 fluorescent lamps in place throughout the country and warns that those who wait to upgrade their systems may be too late to participate in incentive programs. “In essence, if you have T12 lighting, you’re going to have to change it,” says Bachner, who asserts that the upgrades shouldn’t prove too much of a burden to owners, considering there are viable alternatives. Bachner advises educating clients on retrofits and stresses the importance of making sure they understand the real cost of the lamp is more than the up-front price. Energy
consumption and lamp life must be factored into the equation.
There are other benefits of alternative lighting, as well. According to NLB, lighting options can do far more than minimize energy waste and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions; they can create a visual environment that is ideally suited to achieve whatever it is that people rely on lighting to get done. More often than not, the bottom-line benefit involved can be far greater than that available from electric utility-cost savings alone. NLB promotes what it calls “High-Benefit Lighting,” which is lighting designed to improve the speed with which workers perform visual tasks, reduce the number of errors made, make accidents less frequent by virtue of better seeing conditions, enhance security, increase retail sales, etc. When taking these benefits into account, the payback period for an upgraded lighting-system design dramatically decreases.
The Replacements
According to Bachner, availability of alternatives does not pose a problem. Manufacturers are well ahead of the standards. “For years, manufacturers have been producing more efficient products and providing guidance on how to use them appropriately,” he says. “There’s so much worldwide competition at this point, they are constantly coming out with new light sources.”
For example, incandescent bulbs — in the form of halogen-filled incandescent lighting — that meet the new standards of efficiency have been available since 2009. Also, new generations of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), which can emulate the color of incandescent, are available. “They’re very versatile and consume just a fraction of what incandescent lighting consumes,” says Bachner.
Nevertheless, linear fluorescent lighting remains the most widely installed technology. Eighty-four percent of the P2 survey respondents reported they will use linear fluorescent lighting in 2012. Fortunately, more efficient 4-ft T8 lamps and PAR lamps that meet the regulations are already available. “T12 lighting is pretty good, but T5 lighting is so much better and more efficient. So is T8, for that matter,” says Bachner.
In addition, the use of LED luminaires is growing. Respondents to the P2 survey estimate that 22% of the luminaires they install will be LED-based, up 9% from last year. Kath estimates The Retrofit Companies will install 10% more LED-based luminaires than it did last year. “We’re starting to install more LED-based fixtures for a number of reasons,” he says. “The technology is improving, costs are coming down, and a lot of electric utilities are beginning to offer more incentives for using LEDs.”
Despite its small rise in popularity, LED proponents still have to overcome consumers’ negative perception about the technology if they want to see its market share improve. “LED lighting means making a change in how we even think about lamps,” says Bachner, who argues that consumers are used to buying inexpensive lamps. “For years, you’d go out and get this light bulb that was inexpensive to buy but terribly expensive to own,” he says. “It would last six months, and then you’d have to replace it. With an LED light bulb, essentially what you’re buying is an appliance. This is an appliance that will provide light very inexpensively for 10 to 15 years.”
For this reason, says Bachner, the manufacturing base is switching from producing light bulbs and tubes separately from a fixture to manufacturing electronics. “For us old hands, seeing what’s going on is intriguing, to say the least,” he muses.
Comparison Shopping
As with early CFL technology, the two big complaints about LED technology have been the high up-front cost and the “cool” light quality. In addition, because of their electronics and wiring, they are not as readily compatible to dimming and other control systems (see Sidebar 2: Controls Compatibility below). In residential applications, these problems would be less noticeable, but in commercial buildings with numerous LEDs and more electronics, the potential for noticeable instability or other problems increases.
However, some lighting designers are already specifying LED PAR lamps for specific applications. “They’ve become very viable and are where things are going for retail track lighting, where halogen PAR lamps are traditionally a workhorse,” says Heinmiller. “Halogen PAR lamps will still be needed but more for specialty applications where excellent dimming or color rendition are required.”
To help consumers wade through information regarding lamps, in 2008 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star program developed rules for labeling lamps that meet a set of standards for efficiency, starting time, life expectancy, color, and consistency of performance. However, a recent study by the energy and sustainability management firm Ecova commissioned by the Institute for Electric Efficiency (IEE), Washington, D.C., reveals that not all Energy Star-rated lamps are equal. “Energy Star is a great program, but it’s not the end all, be all,” says Adam Cooper, research manager for IEE. “There are differences in quality.”
The IEE study, “Best-In-Class LED Reflector Lamps Summary Report,” focused on LED reflector lamps, which are commonly used in fixtures in residential kitchens, as well as commercial applications such as hotels, art galleries, and restaurants. The study divided the qualified bulbs into three categories, representing the three most common sizes of LED reflector bulbs — PAR38, PAR30, and PAR20. To qualify for the study, the bulbs within each category had to be on the Energy Star Qualified Products List on or before Dec. 2, 2011; be available for purchase, either online or through a retail outlet; and produce light within the light range of 2,700K to 3,000K, or the “warmer” range.
The number of winning bulbs in each category is approximately proportionate to that category’s share of Energy Star-qualified LED reflector lamps. As a result, the IEE top 10 list contains five PAR38 lamps, four PAR30 lamps, and one PAR20 lamp. Over the next several months, as more lights come into the market, IEE expects to include 10 bulbs in each category.
For easy consumer access, the study was published by TopTen USA, a nonprofit that helps consumers find and purchase the most energy-efficient products on the market in categories such as refrigerators, televisions, and computers. The LED lamps mark the organization’s first entries in its new lighting category. To download the Institute for Electric Efficiency’s white paper summarizing the results, visit: www.edisonfoundation.net/iee/Documents/IEE_Ecova_LED.pdf.
However, the study will also be used by IEE in its recommendations to electric utility rebate programs. “We wanted to develop a set of recommendations to identify both energy-efficient and aesthetically pleasing bulbs so that we don’t have a repeat of the early days of the customer experience of CFLs, which wasn’t very positive,” says Cooper. “For electric utilities that got dinged pretty good from the first rollout of CFLs, there’s some caution on their part about putting a lot of dollars behind a new technology. This helps them sleep better at night, knowing there’s been some rigor put behind these recommendations. They can then feel more comfortable using a pre-screened list for their effort.”
In addition to providing guidance for electric utility rebate program administrators, the study was also made available to the regulators who approve the use of electric utility dollars, which are funded through rate payers to support energy-efficiency programs. “Regulators require a certain cost effectiveness test for these programs,” says Cooper. “In some cases, there are energy-efficiency resource standards that set goals and targets for electric utilities to realize energy savings through these efficiency programs.”
Therefore, efficiency was a major factor in considering the bulbs, but not the ultimate goal of the study. “Efficiency isn’t the end of the discussion, and the CEOs understood that,” says Cooper. “It’s not so much let’s get bulbs in there to get the highest delta watt margin against the new standard. We’re rebating products, we’re buying down the cost of products, and we want to be certain that there’s a good sense the consumer, our end-user who will be buying these bulbs at a lower cost with electric utility dollars, will be happy with their purchase.”
Furthermore, some electric utilities may offer starter kits that include the recommended LED lamp. “The bulbs are still rather expensive, but they are looking at putting these recommended bulbs into a starter kit,” says Cooper. “This recommendation effort helps guide utilities to put a really good bulb into the kit so that people will not be turned off by the technology change.” The electric utilities may also offer kits for households with low incomes. “This would be a good application for low-income outreach,” continues Cooper.
Therefore, according to Cooper, the results include only the LED lamps that work as well as their less-efficient incandescent counterparts. “The idea is that if you’re replacing an incandescent bulb with an LED, then you want the LED bulb to in some ways mimic the feel of the incandescent, but still deliver light at a higher efficiency, a higher lumens-per-watt measure,” he says. “Energy efficiency is only one parameter.”
Sidebar 1:
The Truth About the Bulb “Ban”
Political hopefuls have based speeches surrounding the issue, and major news outlets have written stories about interior designers’ and restaurateurs’ plans for hoarding, but the National Lighting Bureau (NLB), the Silver Spring, Md.-based independent, not-for-profit, lighting information source, urges the lighting community to set the record straight. Contrary to popular belief, incandescent lamps have not been banned. “People are not being given good information about lighting,” says NLB’s Executive Director John Bachner, who blames poor media coverage for the confusion about the phaseout of 100W, 75W, 60W, and 40W incandescent lamps from the national inventory. “Incandescent lighting is not being eliminated or outlawed,” he emphasizes.
According to NLB, only the least-efficient, commonly used versions for which far more efficient and cost-effective alternatives are available, including incandescent alternatives, are being eliminated. “As long as people pick the right bulb for the result they want, in terms of lighting quality and dimmability, for example, the alternatives available right now can do everything positive that incandescent lamps do while costing much less, consuming far less energy, and contributing far less to our greenhouse-gas and air-borne mercury problems,” Bachner states.
The controversy stems from the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA), which contained maximum wattage standards for all general-service incandescent lamps product from 310 to 2,600 lumens. The original time line for these standards was to begin January 2012, but the final 2012 budget legislation, passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in December 2011, effectively delayed the start until October 2012.
At that time, wattages for 100W bulbs are required to drop by 27%, meaning a former 100W bulb will use only 72W of power, yet emit a comparable amount of light. The law will be phased in over the next several years, affecting 75W lamps in 2013 and 60W and 40W lamps in 2014.
With only improved efficiency on the line, Bachner urges the lighting community to speak up about the new standards. “Share your knowledge,” he says. “Educate people. The new lighting-efficiency targets require people to give up nothing in terms of lighting quality, convenience, and versatility. The only thing they really require people to do is decide about the kind of lamp they want to use and how much money they want to save. That’s not a bad thing.”
Sidebar 2:
Controls Compatibility
Lighting controls in the home — from dimmers and vacancy sensors for a single room to sophisticated whole-house control systems — can add energy savings while enhancing lifestyle, according to Craig DiLouie, education director for the Lighting Controls Association, which, administered by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), is dedicated to educating the professional building design, construction, and management communities about the benefits and operation of automatic switching and dimming controls. Dimmers, for example, have been demonstrated to generate an average 20% energy savings. Dimming — with the ultimate option being preset scene control with multiple layers of lighting — can be used to achieve a variety of scenes and moods with the push of a button. The Department of Energy estimates that 12% of all lamps in residences are controlled by a dimmer.
Under the new lamp standards, the safest bet for consumers is to replace incandescent lamps with energy-saving halogen lamps, says DiLouie, as these products dim reliably on the same control devices. If choosing compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) or LED lamps to fill a socket controlled by a line-voltage, forward-phase control (typical incandescent) dimmer, consumers need to be aware of potential compatibility issues.
“Consumers are accustomed to matching an incandescent lamp with a dimmer and having clear expectations and then have those expectations met,” says DiLouie. “With new lamps, careful selection is required.”
First, the lamp must be designed and rated as dimmable; consumers should never try to dim a non-dimmable lamp on a dimming circuit, or risk damaging components. Second, consumers should be aware of how the technology behaves while dimmed — for example, typically, CFLs visually get a little cooler (bluer) at low dim levels, while incandescent lamps become visually even warmer (red-orangish) — so they have clear expectations on what they are going to get. Third, some compact fluorescent and LED lamps may exhibit poor performance such as flicker on incandescent dimmers, or suffer damage if there is incompatibility.
To support compatibility between selected lamps and dimmers, NEMA recently introduced two major standards. The first, LSD-56-2011, defines compatibility between compact fluorescent lamps and forward phase-control dimmers commonly used to dim incandescent lamps. The dimmer must provide a certain waveform, and the lamp must accept it. The dimmer must provide a minimum voltage at the lowest dim setting, while the lamp must operate at that setting without any major visual instabilities, such as flicker. If the dimmer uses a microprocessor requiring a small amount of current during the OFF state, the lamp must be able to shunt it without flashing.
The second standard, SSL-2010, was produced by NEMA to address compatibility between dimmers and integrated LED replacement lamps. The requirements address dimming of these lamps and the interaction between the dimmer and the lamp, ensuring good dimming performance and preventing damage to either component.
Does swapping to LEDs reduce my carbon footprint?
Yes in short.
To find out more …( Click Here! )
If you also combine LED Lighting with other green energy products like Solar Panels or Wind Power, you can make even more money and produce even less carbon emissions. ( Click Here! )
There are other energy efficiencies you could be making also …( Click Here! )
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I have a large order?
For construction companies, wholesalers and orders over 1000 units we suggest you call us so we can provide a more personalised service.
This includes a free, no obligation lighting consultation and energy savings audit, either via the phone or through a visit from one of our energy consultants! We will also provide you a tracked service and delivery.
All products are available on the website, however production and delivery times will apply. We may also be able to source you specific LED’s not currently advertised on this site please contact us with the current bulb specifications and we will get back to you with our best price.
Dependent on order quantity discounts are also available, so don’t hesitate to get in touch with us!
For retailers interested in stocking our products we also have a secure retail credit scheme.
Please contact Customer Services on – 0800 0988 704
Do I need to change my fittings?
No is the short answer – SEIBU UK LED’s are made to replace all existing light bulbs in circulation using existing fittings. If you view our product pages you will see all fitting types currently available for each product type. The replacement series encompasses most standard bulb fitting types however if you request a specific fitting type not displayed in our shop then please contact us at customerservices@seibulighting.com and we will do our up most to supply you with the product and fitting you request**.
The 4 main bulb fittings for UK home users are:
E27 – screw base.
MR16 – Two downward pointing thin pins.
GU10 – Two downward pointing thick headed pins.
B22 – Two short thin sideways facing pins.
**terms and conditions apply (price will be quoted once calculated, minimum order size, and increased delivery time will apply especially if one off production is required)..
What Beam Angle?
Beam angle dictates the area of illumination produced by a bulb.
For example, spot lights being used to illuminate small areas such as a shop display, would require a low beam angle, so as to strongly illuminate a small area. Whereas a higher beam angle would be required when used for illuminating a large space, the light emitted in this scenario would be less concentrated, and spread over the larger space.
For even light distribution when using down lighting within a space, the beams of the lighting fixtures should cross at roughly a 1.1m above the floor.
The higher the ceiling the narrower the beam angle necessary to illuminate the space, for lower ceilings a higher beam angle is recommended..
Do LED Lights burn out?
Our LED’s last a minimum of 30,000 hours this is 30 times longer than the majority of Halogen light bulbs (at 1,000hr life). If used for 12 hours a day all year our LED bulbs will last a minimum of 6 and ¾ years, whilst most halogen bulbs will last less than ½ a year. This means for every 13 halogen bulbs purchased you will only need one SEIBU UK LED, therefore reducing expenditure on bulbs, and maintenance, as well as giving you one less thing to worry about in your busy day! SEIBU LED bulbs are normally made up of a number of small LED’s, which have a minimum lifespan of 30,000 hours each, therefore LED’s do burn out but they normally dim over time (after the 30,000 hour period) rather than abruptly failing like traditional bulb types (mainly filament, halogen and incandescent), so they potentially can last for years after the expected minimum lifespan! But don’t take just our word for it…
Here is the answer from Green Energy Efficient Homes
“LED lights do burn out, but at least in theory they should last far longer than incandescent or fluorescent lights. All lights are rated in terms of the average hours they can be left on before the bulb burns out. While the cheapest incandescent bulbs are rated around 500 hours, and better ones around 800-1,000 hours, fluorescent lights are typically rated at 8,000 hours or ten times longer. LED house lights meanwhile are supposed to last up to 100,000 hours, although the claims on product packaging are typically much lower, in the 25,000 to 50,000 range. I’m not sure if that is because manufacturers are hedging their bets, or if it’s that there are major quality problems that are bringing down the average, but still, even assuming a typical life of 25,000 hours, your LED lights would last you about 34 years if you use them an average of 2 hours a day. Even if you leave them on 24 hours a day, they should in theory last you almost three years! One other consideration when considering how fast LED lights burn out replica breitling is that an LED light bulb is made up of a number of individual Light Emitting Diodes. An individual LED may well last 100,000 hours, but it only takes one of those diodes failing before the bulb can be considered to no longer be working properly. Compact fluorescent lights are typically rated at 8,000 hours but I have seen CFLs burn out much faster than that. One factor that leads to faster burnout of CFLs is their use in ceiling fixtures. CFLs are not ideally suited to ceiling fixtures, and tend to burn out faster there, for two reasons. First, they are meant to be positioned vertically, with the screw-on base either directly below or above the spiral coils of the bulb. In most ceiling fixtures they are positioned horizontally. Second,their life is shorted by heat, and an enclosed ceiling fixture will allow the heat to build up faster. The other thing I have noticed recently is that as prices have fallen in the last couple of yeras, we have seen a decrease in quality – you get what you pay for. I encourage you to always keep the receipts for any lights you buy cartier replica – whether fluorescent, LED, or incandescent. If your incandescent or CFL or LED lights burn out well before their expected lifetime, you should take them back and demand a refund. The quality of newer bulb technologies will only improve if people fight back against cheap but poor quality products. LED lights do burn out, but as I explain in my main LED house lights article, they typically start to fade long before that. In fact LED lights can dip down to less than 80% of their original brightness within 20,000 hours; the drop-off rate may be part of the reason manufacturers are toning down their claims of bulb life. I would submit that in almost every application, LED lights will fade to the point that they are no longer suited to their lighting task, and will be replaced for that reason before the burn out. One bright point here is that LED lights are much less prone to wear and tear from frequent switching on and off, than are fluorescent lights, so if you do turn off lights whenever you leave a room (even if you might return very soon after), you’ll save energy while not damaging the lights.”.
Npower and British Gas raise energy prices
Npower has joined rival British Gas in announcing it is increasing gas and electricity prices in the UK.
Npower will increase the price of gas by an average of 8.8% and electricity by 9.1% from 26 November.
Earlier, British Gas, the UK’s biggest energy supplier, raised its charges for both types of fuel by an average of 6%, adding £80 a year to the average dual fuel bill.
The firms both blamed the government’s policies as well as wholesale prices.
“There is never a good time to increase energy bills, particularly when so many people are working hard to make ends meet,” Npower’s chief commercial officer Paul Massara said.
“But the costs of new statutory schemes, increases in distribution charges and the price of gas for the coming winter are all being driven up by external factors, for example government policy.”
British Gas recognised that its increase, which will take effect from 16 November, would be “unwelcome” and warned that the rising cost of government energy policies was likely to add even more to household bills next year.
SSE – which trades as Scottish Hydro, Swalec and Southern Electric – has already said it will raise its prices by an average of 9% from Monday.
Rising costs
Case study
British Gas customers Heather and Gabriel Manzolini are a retired couple from Romford.
We’re already paying £1,750 for council tax while our home fuel bill is nearly £1,200 a year and now it’s just going to go up.
We only renewed our contract with British Gas two weeks ago so we’re not happy at all.
We’ve tried to make our house as energy efficient as possible – there’s nothing more we can do.
We need heat. I am recovering from cancer [and] my husband Gabriel had a stroke.
Gabriel was given a heating allowance aged 60 when he didn’t need it; he was ashamed as he was in a full-time job. But now when we need it, it has halved – everything goes up day-by-day while our pension goes down.
We’ll have to cut back on everything and turn the heating down as low as possible. We’ll have to wear a lot of wool, too, and cut down on our other costs – such as spending on food.
Speaking to the BBC, Richard Lloyd of consumer group Which? criticised the opacity and lack of competition in the energy market.
“What we need to see is action from the government and more pressure on… these very big lazy companies who think it’s OK to clobber people with above-inflation price rises at the very time when they can least afford it,” he said.
“Everybody knows that this is a market that is not competitive, not properly working for consumers.There is very little pressure on British gas to be efficient and to keep these price rises to a minimum.”
Over six million households in England already plan to cut back on their heating this winter because they are worried about affording their bills, according to Audrey Gallagher of the government-sponsored watchdog Consumer Focus.
“Today’s price rise will leave customers even more worried about the cost of heating their homes,” she said.
British Gas last raised its tariffs in August 2011, when gas prices went up by 18% and electricity prices by 16%.
Then in January 2012, it cut its electricity prices by 5%.
The British Gas boss claimed that 85% of the price it charges customers is outside its control, including wholesale gas prices and the cost of government policies to try to reduce emissions and help the poorest households.
“Britain’s North Sea gas supplies are running out and British Gas has to pay the going rate for gas in a competitive global marketplace,” said Mr Bentley.
“Furthermore, the investment needed to maintain and upgrade the national grid to deliver energy to our customers’ homes, and the costs of the government’s policies for a clean, energy-efficient Britain, are all going up.”
The cost of government policies and the national grid upgrade added £50 to the average household bill this year, and is expected to add another £60 next year, British Gas said.
It said that winter wholesale prices it pays were proving to be some 13% higher this year.
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Bentley pointed out that although wholesale prices are actually currently lower than a year ago, British Gas, like most utilities, fixes the price at which it buys gas well in advance, and these fixed prices had risen.
The company reported £345m profit in the first half of the year, but the chief executive said that he expected profits to be down in the second half.
“Our margins are 5p in the pound,” he told the BBC. “That 5p is going into jobs for Britain, investments in new wind farms, investments in new gasfields.”
Reference – ” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19927350 “.
What are Light Temperatures?
This is how we grade the Light temperatures based on the Lumens and Total Light emitted. Light temperature is measured according to Kelvin (K) ratings.
This image shows the variance of colour temperatures
This image shows the different ranges in colour temperatures. Starting with Yellow Light at 2700k, Warm White at 3300k, Neutral White at 4200k and Cool White 6200k, these temperatures are available for each lighting product from SEIBU UK.
When you purchase our products you will be required to select the specific light colour you require as per our diagram.
Yellow is seen as “Normal” as in the light provided by a 60w Bayonet Bulb.
White light at 6200k is much brighter than the older style of lighting. The whiter lights have become desirable in many homes, offices, hotels, commercial buildings and outdoor lighting areas. It is proven to benefit productivity and learning capability in schools and offices.
N.B light temperature does not effect SEIBU’s bulb price..