As energy becomes a hot commodity, low-voltage LEDs get better and better.

Roger Maurice can’t wait to offer low-voltage LED landscape lighting for the first time this spring. After the success of his LED holiday lighting services, he’s sure this new niche will be a hit. “I’m excited about it,” says the owner of Maurice’s Lawn, Landscape & Lighting Services in Menomonee Falls, Wis. “My LED holiday lighting services increased 30 percent last year, and I expect my LED landscape lighting services to do the same this year.”
 
LEDs, or light emitting diodes, are expected to be the next big thing in low-voltage landscape lighting. Growing in popularity as a result of the recent green movement, LEDs use less energy while emitting quality lighting homeowners have come to expect. Because they last longer than standard incandescent or halogen bulbs, less maintenance is required to keep LED systems up and running, saving contractors time and homeowners money.
 
While LED landscape lighting is on the rise, many agree all of the kinks have yet to be worked out. In addition, a surge in recent advancements has left many obsolete components on the market, so contractors should do their homework before jumping into the service. “The LED market has changed so much in the past few years, and many manufacturing companies jumped on the bandwagon too soon,” says Bruce Dennis, division president and director of sales and marketing, Advantage Light Source, Chatsworth, Calif. “All of the obsolete products on the market could easily give LED a bad name. At this point, it’s really buyer beware.”

MARKET WATCH. Low-voltage products have come in vogue as the green movement gains momentum and legislation mandates more efficient electricity use. In fact, the market for packaged high-brightness LEDs is set to grow 12 percent this year to exceed $11 billion, according to a report presented at the 2008 Strategies in Light conference in Santa Clara, Calif. Last winter, LEDs gained national attention as the Christmas lights of choice for New York City’s Rockefeller Center as well as the White House. “We haven’t seen this kind of paradigm shift in a long time,” Dennis says. “LEDs took hold really overnight.”
 
OFFERING LEDS. Maurice started working with LED holiday lighting about five years ago, and last year 80 percent of his Christmas light installations were LEDs. They use 50 to 75 percent less energy than standard lights and last three to five times longer – information he makes sure to pass along to his clients. After being introduced to LED landscape lighting at a recent trade show, Maurice was hooked. Twenty percent of his lighting inventory for 2008 will be LED products. 
 
Maurice predicts his first LED landscape lighting clients will be those familiar with the benefits of LED holiday lights and clients who have eight- to 10-year-old landscape lighting systems and are sensitive to escalating energy costs.
 
“People love their night lighting systems and don’t want to give them up just because they’re more expensive to run,” he says. “If they can operate them for the same amount of time for less money, they’re going to jump on that chance.”
 
The transition to LED landscape lighting is smooth since installation and maintenance are similar to that of standard systems, Maurice says. However, he plans to take advantage of additional training and education offered by manufacturers and distributors as it becomes available.
 
“Once manufacturers have their distributors trained, that education is just going to go down the chain of command to the contractors,” he says.

SYSTEM SAVINGS. To kick start his LED services this spring, Maurice mailed a letter to his existing lighting clients advertising the availability of LED and explaining its benefits. While the cost savings is the biggest selling point, the letter also highlighted price comparisons of a traditional low-voltage system vs. an LED system. While LED bulbs are about three times more expensive than incandescents, customers will find savings in the smaller transformer (150 watts vs. 600 to 900 watts), smaller cable (16-2 vs. 12-10), system longevity and reduced energy use. “By the third or fourth year, an LED system will pay for itself,” he says.
 
A Kichler Lighting study showed the electricity requirements of a lighting system for a 2,200-squre-foot home decreased from 340 watts of incandescent lighting to 82 watts of LED lighting, for a savings in excess of $2,200 over the system’s lifespan (based on no change in the average cost of electricity). “It’s important for contractors to sell the life cost of the installation,” says Jeffery Dross, product manager, Kichler Lighting, Cleveland. “Always balance the more expensive cost of the fixtures with the need for smaller transformers, smaller wire, less maintenance and virtually no fixture replacements.”
  
LED DIFFICULTIES. One disputed aspect of LEDs is how long the bulbs actually last. “LEDs last longer than incandescent bulbs, but manufacturer promises vary,” Dross says. In a controlled lab environment, LEDs have been known to last up to 100,000 hours. But the outdoor environment presents challenges like heat variations, moisture and physical abuse that can put sensitive electronic components at risk, significantly reducing this lifespan.
 
LEDs are also prone to lumen degradation. Unlike incandescent bulbs which maintain fairly uniform brightness until they burn out, LED’s brightness gradually diminishes as they age.

This gradual brightness degradation may present challenges for lighting contractors, as their systems’ designs and functions may be compromised as light levels drop, says Steve Parrot, media and marketing director, CAST Lighting, Hawthorne, N.J. Homeowners will also face the challenge of determining when to replace LED fixtures. “When one LED fixture in a project is replaced it will be considerably brighter than the others,” Parrot says. “This is an adverse effect that will certainly be noticed.”
 
Like with other segments of the landscape industry, manufacturers and contractors agree increased environmental consciousness and product improvements will determine the success of LEDs down the road. “LED has a bright future,” Dross says. “Performance continues to increase with no real end in sight. All of this indicates that LED is going to change the way we light our living environments over the next decade.” LL