How Does Switching On My LED Lights Warm The Room?
At about 17:30 with the lights off in my living room the temperature was 25.5°C with a humidity of 41%. I switched on the LED lights and by 19:00 the temperature has risen to 25.8°C with a humidity of 42%.
I thought it might have been some external factor, like the weather.
So I then switched the lights off and now the temperature has dropped to 25.3°C with a humidity of 42%.
I suspect Jerry used drivers that are little better than radiant heaters.
Lights, Fun, Action At Kings Cross
I heard of this art installation in the Standard, so I went to Kings Cross station to have a look.
It’s certainly fun! It’s part of the arts program at Kings Cross and is called Identified Flying Object. This page gives more details.
It should win an award for the most innovative use of LED ropelights.
However, I do feel there is a case for someone to be on the swing in the middle covered in a few more ropelights or perhaps some photo-luminescent paint.
The possibilities are endless!
A Glow In The Dark Road
I found this story on the BBC web site. It describes how photo-luminescence is going to be used in The Netherlands to make a road safer. It follows a similar idea in a park in Hammersmith that I reported here.
I backed a guy, who was doing something similar thirty years ago, but nothing came of it, I probably wasted a grand, so it wasn’t something I couldn’t affoprd.
I have only seen one successful application of the technology and that was in the Hotel Windsor in Nice to create a ceiling of stars, that dimmed as you went to sleep.
It was very romantic and I wonder if the hotel still has the same ceiling.
But whatever happens to the road in The Netherlands, I believe it is a technology that has lots of applications and we’ll see a lot of it in the future.
Lighting The Way Affordably
I have dabbled in the past with photoluminescence and C and myself were once enchanted by the starry ceilings of the Hotel Windsor in Nice, but up to now most of the applications have been small.
So I commend Hammersmith and Fulham Council’s plans to use the phenomenon to light up the path in William Parnell Park, as is reported here in the Evening Standard.
There are lots of places, where the proiperty of photoluminesence can be successfully used, although safety applications as detailed here predominate.
We may giggle at the idea now, but in a few years time, this type of lighting, will be used all over the place.
If you’d like to put stars on a child’s bedroom or something similar, there is this UK manufacturer in Bury.
Clerkenwell Design Week
This week is Clerkenwell Design Week.
There’s still two more days if you want to have a look.
And Now The Plastic Light Bulb!
Well not quite yet, but this report is encouraging.
Thinking how far lighting has come in the last ten years, what will be using in 2022?
And what will all this do for our electricity bills?
LED Street Lights In Sheffield
BBC Breakfast is covering this story in detail.
All street lights in the city are being converted to LED ones, that can be centrally controlled according to the conditions.
I can’t find the story anywhere on the web.
Does it show how low green issues sit in the minds of the average journalist?
Having used LED lights for years, I can’t understand this indifference to a technology that should be rolled out across the country.
An example was given, where Sheffield say they will change the light levels around evening football matches. Bright as they arrive and leave and low during the match.
How for instance are sensible lighting levels going to help in the fight against crime?
Pay-As-You-Go Solar Electricity
This system from Eight19, got a big plug in the Sunday Times today.
I think the company has got something here, as it can provide low-cost lighting to all of those places in the world that are off-grid.
The article shows how in places like Kenya it can be used to provide lighting and mobile-phone charging at a very affordable cost, by combining good solar technology with simple systems based on scratch cards and mobile phones.
But I think it has other applications,where you need a small amount of power in a difficult to get to place. Remember that even in the UK, we have a surprising amount of sunlight most of the time. But of course not now!
Coping With Solar Gain
I’ve now found out why it is that my health has got worse since I moved into my new house. The picture shows my south-facing windows.
My South-Facing Windows
The house is probably highly insulated, has under-floor central heating and I suspect that the floor slab between the two floors is fairly immense and thus takes not only a long time to heat up, but a long time to cool down. At times, when I’ve been away for a couple of days in the cold, it seems that it’s almost taken another few days to get the house warm.
But when it gets hot, it gets very hot, as the light coming through the windows warms the house by the same principle used in somewhere like the Palm House at Kew Gardens. I have measured a temperature of 30 degrees.
To make matters worse, I also have a roof light.
My Substantial Roof Light
Not only does the house get hot, but also the air inside gets very dry. This means that my throat, ears, eyes and skin are all very dry. This article on Dry Skin and Winter Itch led me in the direction I have gone. Firstly, I installed this simple meter on the wall.
Combined Barometer, Thermometer and Hygrometer
So that I could measure everything properly.
I also purchased a humidifier from John Lewis to try to get the humidity between 50 and 55%.
Bionaire BU7000 Humidifier
I then turned the heating down as low as it would go and still maintain a temperature of about 22-23 degrees and used the humidifier to adjust the humidity to a comfortable level.
Then I did the difficult bit and decided to have a lukewarm bath every other day to moisturise my skin. My ears and eyes have definitely got better, but my throat has only marginally improved. That could be because of the cold outside, as it’s very dry there.
I’m now trying to see if I can cut the solar gain in the room, by some simple passive method like the right blinds. This article has been a help.
So what am I going to do first.
If you read the article, it indicates that one of the best systems is to use a blind or curtain, with a pelmet and a vent. I’ve tried a simple John Lewis blind to see that it looks like.
a Test Blind
Four of these cut to fit two to each window might be a good start.Note that the opening top windows can be used as the vent. And of course the blinds can be adjusted up and down for light control and visual security. For the pelmet, I might seriously consider a U-shaped one, that also acted as a shade for an LED ropelight to downlight the windows internally at night.
I Want One
When I first saw a giant Anglepoise lamp, I knew that I wanted one.
However, I want one in a brass colour to go with my decor.
I think the best bet is to buy one second-hand and get it plated.
But it won’t be cheap.
The Anonymous Widower 