So it sounds like you should be agitating for the GLC to adopt LED to me.Paianni wrote:Glare from a deep bowled luminaire will reduce the ability to see any light dimmer than it in the background. Nothing to do with skyglow though, and the reduction in the lumens output of the replacement LEDs was also a factor. Your judgement could have easily been influenced by a confirmation bias.KeithW wrote:In my neighbourhood with SOX lights emitting in all directions and the orange glow reflecting from clouds I would have rated as an 8. Only the very brightest stars were visible and I could not see any constellations.
With the current LED setup I would rate it at Bortle 4 to 5.
Most of the lights in my county switch off at 12-midnight (except the LED-lit A-roads) and the 'orange glow' doesn't go away, it comes from a range of sources, mainly London.
How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
- Patrick Harper
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
I thought the GLC was abolished in 1986. Now it's a mess of boroughs doing their own thing. All of TfLs routes are now LED-lit though.
Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
Copeland is steadily phasing out SOX lighting and nearly all the street lighting in town centres and on main roads is LED. One cheap way to convert is to retain the original lantern, but replace the bulb.
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
I would prefer retrofitting the original lanterns with LED bulbs where possible. As part of the redevelopment of the old Birmingham New Street Station (now Birmingham Grand Central) WRTL Arcs with LED bulbs were installed at the main entrance opposite the Bull Ring Shopping Centre and they are very attractive.Glenn A wrote:Copeland is steadily phasing out SOX lighting and nearly all the street lighting in town centres and on main roads is LED. One cheap way to convert is to retain the original lantern, but replace the bulb.
- Patrick Harper
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
They're probably using Indo's gear tray kits: http://indolighting.com/geartrays/Robert Kilcoyne wrote:I would prefer retrofitting the original lanterns with LED bulbs where possible. As part of the redevelopment of the old Birmingham New Street Station (now Birmingham Grand Central) WRTL Arcs with LED bulbs were installed at the main entrance opposite the Bull Ring Shopping Centre and they are very attractive.Glenn A wrote:Copeland is steadily phasing out SOX lighting and nearly all the street lighting in town centres and on main roads is LED. One cheap way to convert is to retain the original lantern, but replace the bulb.
Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
Very nice, as it would be sad to see the meat pie lanterns in places like Cockermouth go.Paianni wrote:They're probably using Indo's gear tray kits: http://indolighting.com/geartrays/Robert Kilcoyne wrote:I would prefer retrofitting the original lanterns with LED bulbs where possible. As part of the redevelopment of the old Birmingham New Street Station (now Birmingham Grand Central) WRTL Arcs with LED bulbs were installed at the main entrance opposite the Bull Ring Shopping Centre and they are very attractive.Glenn A wrote:Copeland is steadily phasing out SOX lighting and nearly all the street lighting in town centres and on main roads is LED. One cheap way to convert is to retain the original lantern, but replace the bulb.
- Patrick Harper
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
Meat pie lanterns? Haha. There's a reason brand new lanterns are often opted for however, older lanterns lose their water ingress protection as their materials start to break apart and/or degrade, reducing the lifetime of the electronics within. With an LED-specific lantern the manufacturer can not only maximise heat dissipation but they can also design a more structurally sound chassis than would be possible with an HID/SOX lantern.
I for one have no problem with the new designs as they are far less aesthetically intrusive. But I lament the loss of the most efficient lamps with some of the best characteristics for light pollution minimisation; the LED equivalents are nowhere near as efficient. I hope that some day a product will come to market with the best of both worlds.
I for one have no problem with the new designs as they are far less aesthetically intrusive. But I lament the loss of the most efficient lamps with some of the best characteristics for light pollution minimisation; the LED equivalents are nowhere near as efficient. I hope that some day a product will come to market with the best of both worlds.
- sotonsteve
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
It has... LED.
To say LED is not as efficient as HID at lighting is nonsense. If you're blindly counting the lumens then perhaps, but lighting is more than just being about the quantity of lumens. No HID is a match for LED now.
To say LED is not as efficient as HID at lighting is nonsense. If you're blindly counting the lumens then perhaps, but lighting is more than just being about the quantity of lumens. No HID is a match for LED now.
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
You missed the second part of the sentence. Amber NBA-LEDs are far less efficient than SOX.sotonsteve wrote:It has... LED.
To say LED is not as efficient as HID at lighting is nonsense. If you're blindly counting the lumens then perhaps, but lighting is more than just being about the quantity of lumens. No HID is a match for LED now.
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
They have done this on the M6 Toll, retained the original fightings and put LED in. I quite like the idea on some more retro fittings but stuff circa 2000, they look ugly anyway!Robert Kilcoyne wrote:I would prefer retrofitting the original lanterns with LED bulbs where possible. As part of the redevelopment of the old Birmingham New Street Station (now Birmingham Grand Central) WRTL Arcs with LED bulbs were installed at the main entrance opposite the Bull Ring Shopping Centre and they are very attractive.Glenn A wrote:Copeland is steadily phasing out SOX lighting and nearly all the street lighting in town centres and on main roads is LED. One cheap way to convert is to retain the original lantern, but replace the bulb.
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
I assume that the LED lanterns have been fitted to the flat glass Vectras. I can say that I have seen many more aesthetically pleasing lanterns than the Vectra.brummie_rob wrote:They have done this on the M6 Toll, retained the original fightings and put LED in. I quite like the idea on some more retro fittings but stuff circa 2000, they look ugly anyway!Robert Kilcoyne wrote:I would prefer retrofitting the original lanterns with LED bulbs where possible. As part of the redevelopment of the old Birmingham New Street Station (now Birmingham Grand Central) WRTL Arcs with LED bulbs were installed at the main entrance opposite the Bull Ring Shopping Centre and they are very attractive.Glenn A wrote:Copeland is steadily phasing out SOX lighting and nearly all the street lighting in town centres and on main roads is LED. One cheap way to convert is to retain the original lantern, but replace the bulb.
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
That is the one, couldn't think of the name. I really hate them, but at least the LED at night means you don't see the tops really! They have left the M6 mainline (about 8 lamps worth) SON for now despite them being fitted at the same time. I presume the company who owns the M6 Toll refused to pay for LED on the other lamps maybe?Robert Kilcoyne wrote:I assume that the LED lanterns have been fitted to the flat glass Vectras. I can say that I have seen many more aesthetically pleasing lanterns than the Vectra.brummie_rob wrote:They have done this on the M6 Toll, retained the original fightings and put LED in. I quite like the idea on some more retro fittings but stuff circa 2000, they look ugly anyway!Robert Kilcoyne wrote:
I would prefer retrofitting the original lanterns with LED bulbs where possible. As part of the redevelopment of the old Birmingham New Street Station (now Birmingham Grand Central) WRTL Arcs with LED bulbs were installed at the main entrance opposite the Bull Ring Shopping Centre and they are very attractive.
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
So much for the long life of LED lanterns...this one has failed alreadymartinyoung91 wrote:The mish-mash of SOX, SON & LED at Cairnshill Roundabout.Jonathan24 wrote:Interestingly, the Cairnshill road is now even more of a mess as, not content with randomly replacing SOX with SON (but relamping other SOX), some SOX is now being replaced with LED (but not consistently, as SON is still being fitted too!)martinyoung91 wrote:
Interesting, I walked past the one in Windermere on Sunday and it wasn't done then. Post tops are a certainly rareity in South Belfast. And the Cairnshill Road is just a mess, as is the Saintfield Road, with a mish-mash of SOX and SON.
I was astonished to see a complete new installation of SOX lanterns as late as November 2015 here:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@54.43655 ... 312!8i6656
So it's now SOX, SON and LED all on the same short stretch of road...it's quite distracting seeing all the different colours.
Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@55.81832 ... 6656?hl=en
Passed these today , still going strong , in Glasgow boundary so may be LED soon . Anyone know the age of these ? Thorn Alphas
Passed these today , still going strong , in Glasgow boundary so may be LED soon . Anyone know the age of these ? Thorn Alphas
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
It might just be the photocell, or the mains connection has failed. Don't make assumptions.Jonathan24 wrote:So much for the long life of LED lanterns...this one has failed alreadymartinyoung91 wrote:The mish-mash of SOX, SON & LED at Cairnshill Roundabout.Jonathan24 wrote:
Interestingly, the Cairnshill road is now even more of a mess as, not content with randomly replacing SOX with SON (but relamping other SOX), some SOX is now being replaced with LED (but not consistently, as SON is still being fitted too!)
So it's now SOX, SON and LED all on the same short stretch of road...it's quite distracting seeing all the different colours.
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
Stoke Council seem to be replacing all the heads to LED from any lighting last updated in the PFI in 2006-2009 but leaving older lighting as it is. Seems odd, some of it looks like it doesn't require much work to replace the heads on the older SON lamps but any remaining SOX doesn't look like being replaced (some lighting was missed last time around).
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
An bit of an ironic (and rude) response...Paianni wrote:It might just be the photocell, or the mains connection has failed. Don't make assumptions.Jonathan24 wrote:So much for the long life of LED lanterns...this one has failed alreadymartinyoung91 wrote:
The mish-mash of SOX, SON & LED at Cairnshill Roundabout.
It doesn't have a photocell, as it is group switched and the photocell is not on this lantern, so your assumption there is wrong.
It's also statistically much more likely that the lantern has failed rather than the power supply and there have been a surprising (in my view) number of LED failures, even amongst brand new columns, cabling and lanterns, some of which have only worked for a matter of weeks. The fact that some LED lanterns have since been replaced with SON, tells me the failure is with the lantern and not the power supply.
I'm not saying that LED isn't the way forward (I am keen on seeing it develop and am replacing all my household bulbs with LED) but just saying that the reliability might not offer the cost and maintenance savings which are being held out by the manufacturers.
- Patrick Harper
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Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
The price of having pictures disabled in my browser...Jonathan24 wrote:An bit of an ironic (and rude) response...Paianni wrote:It might just be the photocell, or the mains connection has failed. Don't make assumptions.Jonathan24 wrote:
So much for the long life of LED lanterns...this one has failed already
It doesn't have a photocell, as it is group switched and the photocell is not on this lantern, so your assumption there is wrong.
It's also statistically much more likely that the lantern has failed rather than the power supply and there have been a surprising (in my view) number of LED failures, even amongst brand new columns, cabling and lanterns, some of which have only worked for a matter of weeks. The fact that some LED lanterns have since been replaced with SON, tells me the failure is with the lantern and not the power supply.
I'm not saying that LED isn't the way forward (I am keen on seeing it develop and am replacing all my household bulbs with LED) but just saying that the reliability might not offer the cost and maintenance savings which are being held out by the manufacturers.
LED lanterns being replaced with SON? That's a first. Are the contractors for casual replacements not expecting to have to refit a lantern in an LED area and therefore only have SON equipment in their inventory?
Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
Here in Paphos, Cyprus I've not seen any LED lighting. Most is of what I call the, "Salmon Pink" variety as frequently encountered in the '90s.
The rest are rather period looking "hooks" with standard energy saving light bulbs fitted attached to wooden poles.
The rest are rather period looking "hooks" with standard energy saving light bulbs fitted attached to wooden poles.
Last edited by Focus 2 on Fri Nov 10, 2017 12:50, edited 1 time in total.
Re: How long before all streetlights in most areas are LED?
The streetlight opposite my house has just been replaced with an LED lamp. The road is now clearly lit, but nothing else is. The illumination is very tightly focused on the road and the pavement, with no bleeding either side. This now means that I have to walk up my short garden path and try to connect key to keyhole with pretty much no help from the streetlight, whereas before it was clearly lit and a lot easier and safer, but without being so bright as to be an annoyance. To me, that makes the LED lights a retrograde step.