On Friday, January 19, 2018 at 10:41:21 PM UTC-6, mike wrote:
On 1/19/2018 5:27 PM, Uncle Monster wrote:
On Friday, January 19, 2018 at 6:47:52 PM UTC-6, wrote:
On Fri, 19 Jan 2018 14:42:42 -0800 (PST), Uncle Monster
wrote:
I did have some wall mount emergency lights that came out of an office building where I was doing some work. The units used incandescent bulbs but could easily have been converted to LED lamps. I think all the new emergency lights have LED lamps in them now and are quite inexpensive. Heck, I installed some 2x4 fluorescent fixtures for a customer that had a special ballast and battery pack that would keep a pair of tubes lit when the power failed. Now the dang 2x4 fixtures have LED tubes in them and battery packs. I never got a chance to install any of them before I had to retire. I'm astonished at all the LED lighting that's available now. I remember being amazed at the dim little red LED lights that showed up on the market all those years ago and when the surplus electronic suppliers started selling them so I bought a bagful for all my electronic projects. I was so excited when LED's showed up in different colors and remember how manufacturers were having such a problem develop
ing
a
blue LED. Now a lot of the electronic gear I have uses a blue LED as a power indicator. My darn LED flashlights are so incredibly bright it makes me wonder how I got by with incandescent bulb flashlights. ^_^
I just threw a couple of those away. I found out in Irma that the
batteries were toast and it was not worth buying new ones. I do think
I will get some LED lights tho. I am just going to plug them into a
UPS somewhere.
If you're referring to the wall mount emergency lights, I happened to do a search and discovered that the new LED versions are incredibly inexpensive. I was quite surprised. I think the emergency lights must meet a 90-minute requirement by code(correct me if I'm wrong) and it seems to me that it's a lot easier to attain that goal with LED lights due to smaller less expensive batteries. I may have to get some when I return home. I can put a cord on them and plug them into a wall outlet. ^_^
https://www.amazon.com/Emergency-Lig.../dp/B00EKYQ2FY
[8~{} Uncle Lighted Monster
There are many types of motion sensing lights that run on 3-4 AA cells.
The bright ones don't run very long, but if you pick a single led that's
just bright enough to let you get safely down the hall, they last a long
time.
The one I have draws 18mA when it's on, so it will run a long time
if it only runs when you pass it.
I put a 18650 battery in one, but it's more hassle to charge than
swapping 3 eneloops. I just use it during an outage...almost never.
There are LED lights in MR16 format designed for track lighting on
12VAC. They have internal regulators and run just fine on DC.
One I have runs fine from about 8VDC to 21VDC. I was a little worried
about the high end, but it's been running fine as a replacement
lamp in a Ryobi light with Ryobi one+ 18V 10-cell lithium battery.
The math suggests that it should run about 20 hours and is bright
enough to light up a room. The swivel head lets you point it almost
anywhere. Of course, this only makes sense if
you already have lithium tool batteries sitting around doing nothing.
Might as well store them on a light. NiMH is a bad choice because
it will always be dead when you need it...unless it's LSD and hasn't
been abused by a cordless power tool.
I find that two strategically placed battery powered motion
sensor lights will allow me to get anywhere in the house to pick up
a flashlight to use during a power outage. The places I most want
an emergency light don't have convenient access to AC power.
Older UPS backup systems waste a LOT of energy 24-7 sitting there
doing basically nothing. Last one I measured was 10W. Worth it on a
computer for short power outages,
but a waste on emergency lighting that you rarely use. Better to use
12V lights and switch them manually.
Many of the older motion sensors won't work with LED lights.
If you put a 4W incandescent night light in parallel, many will work
just fine.
It raises the energy consumption 40% when it's on, but overall
consumes a lot less averaged over time. Don't forget that the mere
presence of some automated light switch can waste a watt or more 24-7.
I have the lights at home because I'm wheelchair bound and it's difficult for me to reach anything because of my wrecked shoulders so I have lights in several rooms of the house that stay on regardless. I have some lamps that stay on which have CFL bulbs in them. In the office, an LED desk lamp stays on and it's plugged into the UPS for the computers. There's a 7w candelabra base incandescent bulb in a small table lamp in the living room. A 12w CFL in a lamp on a shelf in the kitchen. I've got a 4' fluorescent fixture over the kitchen sink that I left on but the tube is shot so there's the small lamp on the shelf. I have a candelabra base LED bulb in a night light in the bedroom that's plugged into the UPS for the computers in there. I have enough light so I can get around safely but I do always have a flashlight handy that I use to better see something I'm tinkering with. I like light. ^_^
[8~{} Uncle Actinic Monster