Practical advice on commercial lighting from LED retrofits to lighting design.

Earlier this year, the Department of Energy published a report on LED failure that, among other things, found the lifetime claims for more than half of LED products to be inaccurate, or miscalculated.

Why is there so much bad information out there? Are manufacturers just fudging their claims, or are there other pieces to the puzzle?

Well, though we frequently stress the importance of vetting manufacturers, and manufacturer reps, a lot of this bad information just comes down to the industry adjusting to a new, still emerging and evolving lighting technology. That said, we're not here to make excuses for misleading or inaccurate lifetime claims. We're here to make the technicalities behind these inaccuracies understandable, so that you can effectively avoid the risk of getting left high-and-dry with early failures or poor light quality from LEDs.

What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear "LED lighting"? If you're like most people, you probably think of long life ratings or extreme energy efficiency.

But the excitement around LED has actually caused some confusion in many circles. Claims that some products will last seven years or more, for example, make things pretty muddy, especially when those same products fail at the three-year mark.

In fact, the primary frustration I hear from my customers is related to this very topic.

Warranties are almost always an important consideration in the buying process. Whether you're buying a new car, new tires, or a new stereo, smart buying is knowing what kind of protection you have on your purchase should the product prematurely malfunction. 

Buying lighting is no different, especially these days when more and more buildings are switching to long-life lighting. When you make that purchase, you want to know for sure that your lighting will last as long as the manufacturer says it will. 

But malfunctions happen from time to time. So how can you find that security?