LED Lighting is Green
In this day and age everyone is trying to do their part and go green to save what’s left of our planet. In many cases, going green ends up being more expensive than sticking with the norm.
Does the higher initial cost of green or energy efficient products outweigh the potential savings and peace of mind down the road?
In the sign industry there are multiple initiatives underway to be green or recyclable; most notably the conversion to the use of LED lighting versus neon. The pros and cons when weighing LED and neon or even standard incandescents are very one sided: up front expenses. What should be looked at is the fact that in most cases, LED lighting is much more energy efficient and uses nearly half of the energy that standard neon or incandescent lamps do.
In the sign industry, there are old neon signs refurbished and retrofitted with new LED lights every day. Most notably, the classic Genesee Beer sign in upstate New York was recently given a new life with flexible LED tubing that closely resembled the look of the original neon tubing. It is best to mention that the sign had remained dark for nearly 30 years because the costs of upkeep and replacement of the neon was just too great.
Also, in the consumer world the idea of LED Christmas lights is a crawling debate. The lights were introduced in the late 90s, but haven’t been fully adopted by the public because of their higher initial costs. The fact that the LED lights have a longer life and consume less than half the electricity doesn’t seem to sway general consumers. However, the White House and Rockafeller Center have made the transition to LEDs for their large scale Christmas decorations, and it has made a world of difference. The Rockafeller Center display was able to cut its energy useage by 63% by switching to LEDs.
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