As Texas struggles with 2012 predictions of problems reminiscent of last year’s power outages and power grid malfunctions, residents are scrambling to find a Dallas electrician that can provide answers and help them create contingency plans to ensure they are minimally affected. Electric Man, a reputable Dallas electrician provider for over 27 years, provides some insight into the situation facing Texans today and what they can do to avoid costly and inconvenient side effects stemming from such possible scenarios.

A Look Back At 2011

Texas residents suffered damaging and costly electrical problems in 2011. Three major blackout incidents, two of which happened in the winter months of February and December respectively, left residents without heat and without power for hours and, in some cases, days at a time. Equally distressing was the 71-day drought that had Texans begging their local Dallas electrician for relief, as 100-plus degree heat waves weakened the power grid once again and left residents without air conditioning or electricity.

2012: Not Much Better

Unfortunately, 2012 does not seem to be the year for relief. Experts warn that several factors point to an even more severe blackout and power grid problem in the state of Texas for 2012.

 These factors translate into miserable, costly blackouts and power grid failures throughout North Texas.

Dallas Electrician Company Provides Solutions

There are some solutions for customers looking stay ahead of the game when it comes to protecting their home and appliances from the inconvenient and sometimes dangerous conditions that stem from power grid failures. With the help of a knowledgeable electrician, Dallas residents can acquire an indoor generator, which can serve as an effective emergency power source for your home or business in the event of a blackout.

One of the most convenient features of these indoor generators is that there is no need to use electricity to recharge the battery bank that runs the generator. Without the mess of a fuel-powered engine generator, customers can count on reliable and steady power output and a quiet supply of power for your appliances. Furthermore, the convenience of a solar-power or wind-power battery charge ensures that customers need not worry about using electricity to recharge generator batteries.

For over 27 years, Electric Man has been a leading provider of Dallas electrician services for residential and commercial customers. There is no job too big or too small. Call Electric Man today at 972-792-7270 and connect on our social media sites…

LED foyer fixture from Artcraft

Saving on energy costs and outfitting your home or office environment with new lamps and light fixtures should be at the top of your home improvement project list.  Not only do new light sources deliver a superb quality of light, they are the key components in decorative and energy-efficient lighting design.

It is an exciting time in the lighting industry.  New products are being developed every day, and LED (light emitting diode) and SSL (solid-state lighting)*  lamps and light fixtures are at the core of future illumination.

What’s more, the integration of LEDs into building and electronic communication systems is bringing everything together and enabling total control with the ease of a smart phone!

Here are some guidelines to help you answer those questions and invest wisely toward one of the greatest home improvement projects of the decade:

WHAT YOUR LIGHTING DESIGN CAN AND SHOULD DO FOR YOU…

In addition to providing optimum levels of brightness, good lighting design must also…

•Eliminate glare

•Increase comfort

•Provide continuity

•Deliver good color rendering

•Allow for adjustability

•Instantaneously make you ”feel good” with an inviting luminous appeal

Because LED lamps require so little energy to provide a great deal of illumination, the energy consumed by the bulb will not be your main concern; your main concern will be getting the desired level of brightness and light appearance.

*NOTE:  LEDs, also referred to as SSL, provide the most energy-efficient and durable illumination because they are composed of “solid state” semiconductor light emitting diodes.

1.    Familiarize yourself with labels on new bulb cartons.

Brightness (in lumens)

Estimated Yearly Cost (depends on rates and use, $)

Lamp Life (based on 3 hrs/day use, rated in years)

Light Appearance (CCT)  (warm-cool, rated in degrees Kelvin (K))

Energy Used (in watts)

Color Rendering (CRI) (measured on a scale of 0-100)

BRIGHTNESS

Brightness levels are measured in lumens to give the amount of total light created by the light source.  Beyond the lumen count, “useable” light and brightness levels are also affected by fixture housings, lenses, filters and shades.  There are clear standards set to measure the lumen output of each LED chip.  ↓

LIGHT APPEARANCE  

Light appearance or correlated color temperature (CCT) helps determine the quality of illumination.  Designated on the Kelvin (K) scale, CCT for decorative interior spaces should be in the warm white (2700-3000K) range.  Sometimes lighting in the neutral white (3500-4000K) is preferred for certain areas, such as bathrooms and kitchens.

LAMP LIFE AND THE LED

Lamp life refers to how long a light source will last once it is installed and used on a daily basis in a typical application. Lamp life ratings, based on estimates from testing,  convey the time that half the bulbs in a sampling have burnt out or dimmed below fifty percent.

COLOR RENDERING AND THE LED

The color rendering index (CRI) measures the ability of a light source to bring out the true colors in décor, objects and surfaces.  Based on a scale of zero (no color rendering) to 100 (perfect color rendering),  a minimum of 80 CRI is acceptable for interior lighting applications.  A CRI of 90+ is even better.

However, because the standard CRI measurement does not always yield true results for some LED light sources, a new standard measure of color quality is in the works:  The Color Quality Scale (CQS) may soon replace CRI for a truer account of color rendering provided by the LED light source.-www.ledlightingexplained.com, Philips Solid-State Lighting, 2010

2.    Match light fixture to light source to ensure peak performance.

LEDs small size, low-temperature emissions, and focused uni-directional beam patterns make them perfect light sources for undercabinet lighting, track lighting and pendant fixtures.

LED general and flood lighting replacement bulbs are composed of clusters of diodes to provide broader beams of light.  General service LED bulbs that are multi-directional with 360-degree angle capacity are doing an excellent job of replicating the desired illumination of old incandescent bulbs. These LED  lamps include A19, PAR, BR and candelabra light sources that are providing more light with the added benefit of tremendous energy-saving, maintenance-free illumination.

Due to their long life and durability, LEDs are excellent in hard to reach places like foyer, attic and cathedral ceiling fixtures.

*Check for compatibility with all new light sources to make sure lamps, light fixtures, dimmers and automated controls are a suitable match.

3.    Compare “apples to apples”; diodes to diodes to ensure top quality.

 Many factors contribute to the quality of the LED light bulb.   Advancements in diode technology and mass production of LED light sources are bringing costs down to make these bulbs more affordable.  However, be wary of “cheaper” LED light sources.

•COB (chip on board), the diode itself is composed of a chip that largely determines  the quality of the bulb.

Prior to being marketed in appliances, fixtures or light bulbs, LEDs are sorted into bins according to their light output (lumen output) and color temperature.  Due to the process of “binning,” LED chips vary in their quality—especially in relation to their lumen output and color, so it is important to purchase LED light bulbs and LED light fixtures from a reputable dealer.

LEDs chosen from bins with higher lumen output are of better quality.  Color temperature is determined by matching up each LED according to a chromatic line grid for a specific color temperature.   LEDs chosen from larger bins contain more color variation , so they deliver an inferior quality of light.

•LPW (lumen per watt), this measurement helps to determine energy-efficiency and efficacy

•IC (integrated circuit) drivers, the quality of the LED lamp is also dependent on the type of driver installed.  LED bulbs contain “drivers” that can fail just like the ballast of a CFL (compact fluorescent). Better driver components make for a higher quality LED light source.

ENERGY STAR-ratings ensure that the LED has met stringent testing procedures.  ENERGY STAR-rated lamps clearly identify characteristics on LED light sources to guarantee that they consistently and reliably meet the desired brightness (lumens), energy-efficiency (lumens per watt), color temperature (CCT), color rendering (CRI), and dimmability requirements.

New ENERGY STAR Regulations include:

•Consistency Control:  More standardized testing methods to improve consistency.

•Dimmability Ratings:  A lamp is either dimmable or not dimmable.  If a lamp claims to be dimmable, testing is required and it must dim down to at least 20 percent.  If it is not dimmable, it must say so on the package.

•Greater Energy Conservation:  Efficiency requirements have increased for specific lamp wattages and types.

NOTE:  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), along with ENERGY STAR offers rebate programs as an added incentive to help you spring into action and upgrade with LED.  Check out rebate programs in your area or contact an American Lighting Association (ALA)-affiliated showroom for more details.

LED chandelier “Niagara” from Lladro

1800lighting’s Top LED Bulb Pics:

Bulbrite’s  LED  MR16 lamp

Philips medium base LED

Philips dimmable LED

Satco’s PAR38 indoor-outdoor LED lamp

Satco’s Kolour One A19 omni-directional LED lamp delivers 820 lumens and excellent color consistency.

Satco’s Ditto PAR LED lamps are available in 25- and 40-degree beam angles and either 3000K or 4000K.

The MD, DC, and VA area is known for getting slammed with violent and powerful thunderstorms that produce severe lightning. Electrical surges, which are caused by lightning, can wreak havoc on your expensive electronics and appliances.

A lightning strike that hits a power line several miles away from your house can impact all your electronic items. Whole-house surge protection is the best option you have to protect your home electronics and wiring from the damage caused by lightning strikes.

Everyone from the National Fire Protection Association to the Institute for Business and Home Safety recommends the use of whole-house surge protection. As a homeowner, the good news for you is that protection is readily available, and even top-of-the-line solutions are affordable. The gold standard in whole-house surge protection is a two-tiered system—a whole-house surge protective device, or SPD, installed at the circuit breaker box, and plug-in SPDs on individual outlets. A whole-house SPD can protect against up to 40,000 amps of current flowing into your home from the outside; normal household power is between 200 to 300 amps. When an electrical surge occurs as a result of a lightning strike, the device detects the excess current and safely diverts it through the house’s grounding path. Whole-house surge protection provides homeowners in MD, DC, and VA peace of mind when a powerful thunderstorm passes the area.

Whole-house surge protection can typically be installed in a home for around $200—it’s an easy job for a top electrician. The cost of replacing electronic equipment in an average home is a whopping $8,000, and it may be even higher for homes in MD, DC, and VA. Whole-house surge protection is cheap insurance against electrical surges caused by lightning strikes. It provides a layer of protection to all the electronic items in your home.

To ensure complete safety, Kolb Electric recommends that you allow a qualified, experienced electrician to complete the wiring for whole-house surge protection—there are several steps involved that are best left to a professional.

If you require surge protection wiring or want a full whole-house surge protection installation, contact Kolb Electric.

The smart grid can be thought of as national and personal all at once. On a personal level, the smart grid connects all of the electronics in your house, letting them communicate on an internet for electronics. This electronic internet also communicates with you via your smart phone or computer in real time, letting you monitor your electricity usage.

Your appliances will talk to each other and organize times of non-peak electrical usage for them to complete cycles that use a lot of energy. Your home will talk to you, letting you know if you’ve left your television running or if the light in the garage is still on.

On a national level, your home will be tied into the national grid like it is already, but two-way communication will happen with the power plant. If your home has solar panels installed by an electrician, any extra energy you produce will be sold to the power plant. The power company will be able to monitor your electrical usage too. They will use this information to create a picture of your neighborhood. This tells them exactly how much energy needs to be sent in your direction.

This system will be a replacement for our current power grid, and it will allow two-way communication between the power plant and your home. The meters for this system will report themselves. You won’t need a stranger tromping through your yard once a month to read your meter anymore.

This system will create a more efficient use of electricity by sending it where it needs to be. It will also report problems as soon as they happen. Before you could find a flashlight during a blackout, the power company will know exactly what wire went down and why. This will cut repair times. Since everything will operate more efficiently, there will be less cost to keep everything operating, which will translate into cheaper power prices for you.

Maintenance for your home will be easier. Having an electrician wire your house for this system will let you know exactly what your home is doing. If your water heater sees problems that could indicate a breakdown, you will get a text message alert. This will let you drain it before it turns your basement into a hot tub.

While you will need to replace your current electronics with applicances designed for this new grid, the cost will be worth it. The power grid will be more reliable, which means fewer blackouts. Your house can even report suspicious electrical activity to you, creating increased security. You may find yourself pressured to have an electrician install solar panels, but the power company will pay you for the extra energy. It will be an improvement for everyone involved.