Switch From Fluorescent To LED Lighting
Everywhere around us we are surrounded by light. Both natural and artificial lighting impact our health on a daily basis. Our eyes are closely attuned to the light output of the sun, but not all artificial lighting is the same.
If you are familiar with term CRI (Color rendering index), then you will know that natural sunlight is defined as having a CRI of 100. This means that we can see all colors clearly and accurately by its light
But for those of us who work in an office or other building environment, we are constantly being saturated in fluorescent light. We have been conditioned to perform under fluorescent lighting with little regards to how it is affecting our health. Our schools, offices and wherever commercial lighting is prevalent, humans are exposed to this type of light.
However, fluorescent lighting was never meant for mainstream. They were designed for use during WW II as an inexpensive alternative to keep the wartime factories churning 24 hours per day, 7 days a week.
It is now common knowledge that these lamps contain harmful levels of mercury and disposal of these products has become an environmental issue. Gone are the days when a fluorescent tube could be tossed out in the day’s trash. Today, fluorescent tubes are considered hazardous material and must be disposed off under strict guidelines.
Adults and children performing tasks under fluorescent lighting usually experience headache, eyestrain and memory loss from continued exposure to this type of artificial lighting.
Even worse, as fluorescent products near the end of their useful life, the gaseous mercury can leak out and escape in to the building envelope from the degrading weld points on the ends of the tubes. Have you ever seen the ends of a fluorescent tube turn black?
Recently the most common fluorescent tube, the T12 4’ tube, has been placed on the government’s restricted list for a variety of reasons including energy inefficiency.
The safe, smart alternative for indoor applications is LED lighting. Whether in the form of a direct tube replacement or an entire LED fixture, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends the removal of older fluorescents from schools.
A recent study found that students in schools with natural light, instead of fluorescent, had a 10% to 21% higher learning rate and higher test scores. Since LEDs are as similar to natural light as any technology currently available on the market, they are considered a full spectrum light source, thus making it a perfect alternative source to fluorescent lighting.
To learn more, contact Your LED Lighting Experts™ at LED Source.