It’s no exaggeration to say that LED technology has revolutionized lighting.
In the past decade or so, as LED has become a mainstay of the lighting world, home and business owners have increasingly turned to LED to illuminate the inside and outside of their properties.
The Gemstone Lights system is completely LED-based. The RGB+W LED strip we use in our system (with a white chip as well as red, green and blue) enables us to deliver comprehensive outdoor lighting solutions to homes and businesses around North America cost-effectively and with stunning results.
As you will see below, there are many good reasons for making the switch to LED and so many different things you can achieve with a lighting system that is so flexible and customizable.
Benefits of outdoor lighting
If you’re reading this, you have probably already decided either to install outside lighting or change your existing setup to a more efficient or cost-effective system.
So, we won’t dwell too long on the many benefits of outdoor lighting other than to say:
- It can beautify your home or business
- It can add curb appeal and style
- It can help you to delight guests on special occasions
- It adds mood, ambience, and personality to your home
- It can accentuate certain features that you want to stand out
- It enhances security
- It can improve safety in dimly lit areas of your property
Why choose smart outdoor LED lights?
LED lighting for your outdoor areas can do all of the things that traditional lighting can do but with lower power consumption, much greater convenience, and far more flexibility.
Some of the great benefits of LED lighting over traditional lighting include:
Flexibility
You can change the colors, patterns, and brightness of your lights easily with an integrated LED system like the customizable Gemstone Lights system.
Energy efficiency
LED lights last up to 50,000 hours longer than traditional light bulbs and they use 80 percent less electricity.
Longevity
Providing you install a reliable system with durable, weatherproof tracks and waterproof covers, your lights will last many years.
Wow factor
LED lights can really create an impact on special occasions, like holidays, parties, barbecues, etc. The array of colors, patterns and animations you can introduce with LED lights is one of their main attractions.
Cost-effectiveness
LED lighting systems should save you money on your monthly electricity bills as they are much cheaper to run than traditional pot lighting systems.
Stability
LED lights are small and steady-state lights, meaning that you won’t have the breaking or recycling issues that are common with traditional lighting.
Safety
This is one of the most important considerations for outside lights. Our system converts your 110v house power to safe 12v power and has been approved by the Canadian Standards Association to be sold and installed in Canada and North America.
Convenience
The best LED lighting systems are extremely convenient and put you in control. Gemstone Lights system uses a proprietary app by which you can control your entire outdoor lighting system from your smartphone - wherever you are and whichever device you’re using.
What styles can you achieve with LED lights?
Following are just a few examples of what you can achieve with the best outdoor LED lights:
- Classy architectural lighting
- Christmas party lighting
- Independence Day lighting
- Halloween lighting
- Birthday party lighting
- Spotlights for extra home or business security
- Mood lighting for a private outdoor party
- Lighting for a barbecue area (decking or patio)
- Feature lighting
- Lighting for pathways and driveways
- Bright lighting for car parks at business premises
Architectural lighting
Christmas party lighting
Independence Day lighting
Halloween lighting
Birthday party lighting
Spotlights for extra security
How to choose the right outdoor lighting option for your home
If you’re thinking about changing your outdoor lighting system to an LED-based system, it’s worth noting what to look for in an LED lighting system.
You should be looking for the following features:
- Good energy efficiency – look for LED lights that use 80 percent less electricity than traditional light bulbs.
- Great durability - make sure that your system is built to withstand heat, cold, sunlight, and, most importantly water damage (ask for outdoor waterproof LED lights).
- Multiple color choices - make sure that you have the choice of warm white, red, blue, green and RGB white options, amongst others.
- App-based control - ensure that your lighting system can be switched on or off remotely using a smartphone app and a cloud-based control system.
- Flexible configuration - ensure that your designs (and even individual light properties) are easy to change to match the season, a festive occasion, or just because you fancy a change!
- Architectural or wide-area options - turn on a few ambient lights to accentuate features of your house or light up an entire outside entertainment area.
- Animation possibilities - you should be able to easily create flowing patterns, fades, jumps, shifts and other fun or elegant movements with your LED lighting system.
Installation tips for LED lights
LED lights should be installed with color-matched tracks. This will provide the best aesthetics as the tracks will then blend into the home and not be sorely visible. These colors are often chosen to match the soffit or fascia color on the roof and tracks can be installed on either wooden or aluminum trim. Tracks should be designed to point the lights downward for the best ambience effect. Each track will overlap the previous track to create a pleasing flow that blends in with the home. Depending on the shape of your house, the tracks will have corners or bends built-in as part of the install. All corners should have tight clean installs that will continue the flow of the track which in turn displays the lights in a pleasing symmetrical flow. Using a custom track system, the LED lighting installation can be adapted for transitioning from a sloped soffit to a flat soffit. As long as the corners are tight and sharp along with the proper angles and depth of the flat and sloped sections, your lights will look fantastic.
How much does an outdoor LED lighting system cost?
Like with all lighting systems, you have the installation and running costs to consider. To arrive at an informed decision about cost-effectiveness, you need to weigh up these costs with how long the system is expected to last.
The best LED light systems like Gemstone Lights are considered “permanent” solutions due to their longevity. They are backed up by “bumper to bumper” warranties.
So, this balanced with the reduced running costs (you should experience up to 80 percent lower electricity bills than with traditional outdoor lighting systems) can offset the installation costs.
LED systems are not the cheapest to install but they do provide an excellent return on investment.
Actual installation costs are heavily dependent on the size of your home and how much track you require.
For the most accurate estimate, contact a Gemstone Lights Authorized Dealer, who can visit your premises, measure up, and provide an indicative quote for your lighting system.
Does it help save my energy costs?
LED lights have different wattages associated with them, depending on their color.
Generally speaking, LED lights are very energy-efficient. As the technology has developed, it has continued to improve.
As a guideline, Gemstone Lights draw anywhere from 0.17 watts to 0.72 watts per light, depending on the color you choose and the intensity you want (this is all controlled from your centralized, cloud-based app)
How to save on electricity fees
Standard LED light configurations are cost-effective to run. However, you can further save on electricity costs by using timers to switch the lights on and off at preset times.
You can also choose configurations that use the least number of bulbs at times when you are not looking to impress the neighbors!
How long do outdoor LED lights last?
According to the US Department of Energy, a good-quality LED light should last between 30,000 and 50,000 hours. Those we use at Gemstone Lights are graded for 50,000 hours though it is not unheard of for some lights to last longer.
Still have questions?
Still don't know which exterior lighting solution is the best for your home? Get in touch with a Gemstone Lights expert in your area today. Our dealers are available to help homeowners across Canada and the USA.