The Audio Lighting Pages

The topic of lamps is now a major area for technology, and I continue to do measurements and tests on alternatives.  The page discussing CFLs has been pretty popular, and became so large that it's been split into different sections.  Because of the latest advances in LED lamps, they are also covered in their own sections in the pages that follow.

It is becoming very clear that the CFL is not only an interim product, but has many flaws that will severely limit its usefulness in the long term.  Essentially, CFLs have to compete with LED lamps that have much greater life, are now far more efficient, but don't have as many problems.  Recycling is simplified (no mercury), and the ability to operate at very low temperatures with instant full brightness and zero ultra-violet radiation will make LEDs the lamp of choice for many applications where CFLs are simply unsuitable.

The humble incandescent lamp still has its uses though, and hopefully governments the world over will realise that it is impractical (and just plain stupid) to place an arbitrary ban on them just because they are less efficient than other forms of lighting.  In quite a few applications, there are exactly zero alternatives to incandescent lamps, and the sooner this is recognised the better.  It's notable that many of the deadlines set have been and gone, yet there is still a good supply of incandescent lamps in most parts of the world.

In addition, there are minimum energy performance standards being imposed that are of sometimes dubious benefit, and in Australia it was even proposed (by bureaucrats) that some changes required that the laws of physics be rewritten to accommodate their goals.  This is not helpful.

Lamps and Lighting		Update
Incandescent Lamps	The worldwide 'incandescent lamp ban' debate - get some facts before you act!	Jan 13
Compact Fluorescent Lamps	CFLs may not be to everyone's liking, but if used properly they are still a good option	Jan 13
Fluorescent Lamps	Traditional fluorescent tube lamps and their alternatives	Jan 12
Fluorescent Lamps - Part 2	How Fluorescent Lamps Work	Jul 07
LED Lighting	A look at some of the latest applications for LED lighting products	Sep 08
LED Thermal Management	Examination of this most critical area of LED lighting	Sep 13
ESL Lighting	Electron Stimulated Luminescence Lamps - an overview	Mar 12
Sulphur Plasma Lamps	A look at sulphur plasma lamps - the next big thing or continued failure?	Apr 10
Dimmers (Part I)	Dimmer technology, past, present and future	Dec 13
Dimmers (Part II)	The focus is on 3-wire dimmers, why they are better and why 2-wire dimmers should be phased out now	May 15
Dimmers & LEDs	Dimming LEDs continues to cause grief.  Find out why.  (See Dimmers Part II for more information) 0-10V Dimming	Mar 17
Induction Lamps	Induction lighting becomes mainstream.  A look at the technology used	Dec 11
Lumens, Lux & Candelas	An overview of the three ways that describe how much light is provided by a given light source	Dec 13
Luminaires & Temperature	LED and CFL light sources are temperature sensitive because of the electronic power supplies.  High and low temperatures can cause problems	Jan 14
Supplies & Power Measurements		Update
Electronic Transformers	How they work (in detail) and a warning to watch out for some that are very dangerous	Jun 10
External PSUs	Hot on the heels of the CFL fiasco, now the legislators have banned external transformer supplies	May 14
Inrush Current	What it is, what it can do, and how to prevent it from causing problems	Oct 10
Power Factor - Reality	A simplified explanation of power factor (PF) so that the basic concepts are understood before delving deeper	Jul 20
Power Factor Correction	An explanation of how active power factor correction (PFC) circuits work	Jan 12
Power Calculations	How to determine power, VA, RMS voltage and current - Analogue or digital	Jan 17
Reactance	A close look at the effects of capacitance, inductance and non-linear loads on the power grid	Feb 12
Alternative Energy		Update
Power Saver Scam	The fraudsters are still at it - 'power savers' may not be in the news, but they refuse to go away	Jan 12
Power Saver Tests	I ran tests on one of the fraudsters so-called 'products'.  No surprises, it doesn't work!	Sep 13
Wind Turbine Introduction	An introductory look at the economics and social problems of wind turbines	Apr 10
Wind Turbine Noise	Wind turbines may not be the gentle giants they seem.  The introduction to NZ research	Apr 10
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This book is just what's needed for those who are interested in knowing more about lighting in general and the often complex relationship between Lumens, Watts and Lux.  Karen Wardell has done a vast amount of research, and this book is the end result.  It used to be available from her website, but that's now shut down.  Try your local library.  A quote from the back cover ... There are two sides to lighting design - a hard side and a soft side. The hard side refers to the attributes and physical aspects of the design process (the things you cannot change), whereas the soft side (the human side) deals with things you can - such as the quantity of light, its quality and location. This publication is more concerned with the latter, though a general understanding of lighting practice will benefit in the decision-making process.  It also helps to remind us which element we are dealing with regarding the two. Karen's book is available in some libraries, but unfortunately her website no longer exists.