Because architectural LED lighting is becoming more and more mainstream, the availablility is increasing, and the prices are decreasing.
Many compelling reasons to consider LED lighting.
One of my favorite attributes of architectural LED lighting, is that you don't require huge, unwieldy, unsightly fixtures, when employing LEDs.
Instead, you can light your space - whether with task-lighting, wall-washers, way-finding, down-lighting, uplighting, etc., with tiny points of LED light, becoming a beautiful stylistic element. When off, however, the tiny fixtures are virtually invisible, as pictured here, courtesy of
http://www.neo-neon.com/
I've included a comparison, lifted from a few sites, of LED, CFL, and incandescent, so you can be the judge.
LEDs' are the superior choice over incandescent and Compact Fluorescent, for a multitude of reasons.
LED's use very little energy, often far less than the compact fluorescent bulbs that are currently being marketed as 'energy saving'. This translates to significant savings on your power bill.
LED's last a staggering 50 000hrs+ which means they will last 10 years even with heavy usage. This makes them much cheaper than other bulbs in the long term but also saves the time and inconvenience of having to change bulbs regularly, particularly in hard to reach places.
LED's emit no UV light and are safe for people with health problems that are affected by fluorescent lights.
LED's produce very little heat, greatly reducing the strain on air conditioning systems and therefore further reducing energy comsumption
LED's can be retro fitted into most standard lighting fixtures.
LED's emit no audible buzz that can make fluorescent bulbs very annoying and interfere with radio frequencies.
LED's are mercury free, unlike compact fluorescent, and they pose no immediate threat if they are broken and they do not require hazardous waste disposal. Compact fluorescents are highly toxic if broken and do require hazardous waste disposal.
LED's come in a huge range of styles and colours to suit any application.
LED's are shock and vibration resistant, there are no fragile filaments that can be easily damaged.
Long-lasting - LED bulbs last up to 10 times as long as compact fluorescents, and far longer than typical incandescents.
Durable - since LEDs do not have a filament, they are not damaged under circumstances when a regular incandescent bulb would be broken. Because they are solid, LED bulbs hold up well to jarring and bumping.
Cool - these bulbs do not cause heat build-up; LEDs produce 3.4 btu's/hour, compared to 85 for incandescent bulbs. This helps reduce the heat island effect.Mercury-free - no mercury is used in the manufacturing of LEDs.
More efficient - LED light bulbs use only 2-10 watts of electricity (1/3rd to 1/30th of Incandescent or CFL) Small LED flashlight bulbs will extend battery life 10 to 15 times longer than with incandescent bulbs.
Also, because these bulbs last for years, energy is saved in maintenance and replacement costs. For example, many cities in the US are replacing their incandescent traffic lights with LED arrays because the electricity costs can be reduced by 80% or more.
Cost-effective - although LEDs are more expensive than incandescent or CFLs, the cost is recouped over time due to dramatically lower power consumption
Light for remote areas - because of the low power requirement for LEDs, using solar panels becomes more practical and less expensive than running an electric line or using a generator for lighting.
Some of the better pricing I've seen on LED bulbs that work with normal household fixtures (i.e.: GU10, MR16, JDR (Screw-in) are found at:
