Wallbox dimmers are the basic building blocks of modern day light controls.
Wallbox dimmers by Lutron can be installed to replace standard light switches in every room of the house. This will place total control of lighting and power levels directly into the hands of the individual, and it will allow the homeowner to immediately begin saving money on electrical costs without having to replace every light in the home. This is important, because every homeowner only has two choices: retrofit the lights themselves with led or fluorescent fixtures now, or install wallbox dimmers and a lighting control system that will make incandescent lights less expensive to use and generate a return on investment that can be reinvested in new lighting fixtures when the new ban on incandescent lighting takes effect in 2010.
With the growing popularity of fluorescent lights as energy saving alternatives to incandescents, many people will opt to take the easy path of simply replacing their light bulbs rather than first considering the advantages of a Lutron wall box or Lutron Radio Ra light dimmers can offer them as the first step toward a whole new level of light. ILD encourages you to consider these options before spending money on new bulbs. It is important to realize that truly livable and enjoyable home environments depend greatly on aesthetics. While it is an established fact that one 13watt fluorescent bulb will give you the same amount of light as one 60-watt incandescent light, it is also a fact that standard fluorescent recessed lights are not compatible with dimmer switches or low voltage wallbox dimmer control units. The cause of this incompatibility lies within the design of a fluorescent bulb itself.
A fluorescent bulb requires less energy than an incandescent bulb because a magnetic ballast controls the flow of current that powers the bulb. This ballast allows the bulb to produce more light with less electricity, making it a very cost effective alternative to incandescent. Beyond cost benefits, though, fluorescent bulbs are limited in a number of ways. As we have stated, standard ballast technology is incompatible with wall box dimmers and therefore prohibits direct control of lighting levels. This is why fluorescent lights are mostly used in utility rooms and commercial buildings where decorative effects are not needed and a fixed level of functional light is all the facility requires. However, even in some commercial lighting projects, fluorescent lights have their limitations. They are not appropriate for green retrofit options, and they offer little aesthetic to homeowners unless fitted with very expensive dimming ballasts and matching fluorescent dimmers to make them work in tandem with wallbox dimmers.
Fluorescent lights add little or no aesthetic to home lighting design unless they fitted with very expensive color correcting lamps. Again, such exorbitant expenses are better spent on a lighting control system and Lutron wallbox dimmers that can reduce your power bills today now and still be compatible to any new lamps, fixtures, bulbs, or lighting control system software upgrades you invest in over the next two years.
Line voltage dimmers will make incandescent bulbs more energy efficient by performing a very similar function to that of fluorescent ballasts. At the same time, they enable you to turn existing home lights into an aesthetically pleasing lighting control and home automation system that will give you the ability to manually adjust the light to whatever levels he or she desires.
When the ban on incandescent lights becomes effective in 2010, all house lighting fixtures based on incandescent technology must be replaced with either LED and hybrid fluorescent equivalents. By that time, hybrid technology will probably have developed to a point that any Lutron wallbox dimmer can easily manipulate whatever type of light bulb retrofit you install in your home. However, the timing of multiple investments should always be considered, especially in today’s recession. Wallbox dimmers installed now will save you money on power both now and in the future. They will also increase the decorative appeal of your home by making it possible to create a more warm, ambient, and entertaining environment for children, relatives, and friends. When you do replace your existing bulbs in the future, you will be adding them to a home that is already optimized for function, aesthetic, and control with a Lutron Grafik Eye lighting control installation by experts.
Why not call a lighting control specialist at ILD to discuss the cost saving benefits of a Lutron wallbox dimmer versus an arbitrary retrofit of all the lights in your house? Get the aesthetic right and the lay the foundation for a whole new type and quality of lighting, and then let alternative technologies catch up with lighting design and control systems for a more robust, user friendly, and multi-dimensional lighting system come New Years Day of 2010.
Illuminations Lighting Design is a full service design build firm specializing in residential and commercial indoor lighting and outdoor lighting, electrical service and maintenance as well as home automation, home theaters, emergency generators, surge protection systems, phone systems and lighting control systems.
We are located in Houston Texas but provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Call us today at 800-863-1184, visit our lighting blog or request a consultation online using our contact us form.Labels: Energy Saving Switches, Houston Lighting Controls, Lighting Dimmers, Lutron Dimmer Switches, Lutron Electronics, Lutron lighting controls, Wallbox Lutron Dimmers
Vantage Lighting Control Systems introduces the all new INFUSION SYSTEM. The Vantage InFusion Controller is unlike any other controller on the market today, opening the door to simple lighting control, as well as all aspects of automation. It boasts a built-in Ethernet jack, dramatically faster processor, six times more memory and a built-in USB port. The InFusion Controller is the most powerful automation controller on the market, featuring a dramatically faster processor, 80 times more memory, a built-in Ethernet jack and a USB port. It more than double's the capacity of Vantage's Q Controller, allowing for 120 available wired stations.
Vantage Lighting has long been a leader in lighting automation systems and innovation. Vantage has always found new ways to improve lighting control, and now with the InFusion controller, touch screens, the InFusion software and InFusion integration, Vantage is simplifying the entire automation experience like never before.
Check out these new InFusion features:
- Ethernet Enabled
- Built-in USB port
- 5 RS-232 ports
- D Memory Card
- 120 low voltage stations
- 300 available wireless stations
TouchPoint Touch Screens
Vantage's TouchPoint family - the TouchPoint 550, the TouchPoint 890HD and the TouchPoint 1210HD - are designed to simplify today's complicated control and automation applications. The TouchPoint touch screens put the finishing touches on any Vantage job.Vantage's TouchPoint family eliminates the need for outdated, wall-cluttering light switches and endless stacks of remote controls. They provide a simple, impressive way to control your automated home, office or building.
TouchPoint 550
The TouchPoint 550 is a color, active matrix LCD touch screen keypad with a backlit display. The quarter VGA LCD 5.5 inch diagonal display is small enough to keep the area from feeling cluttered but versatile enough to fulfill the needs of almost any application. It is available in handheld and in-wall versions.
TouchPoint 890HD and 1210HD
The TouchPoint family welcomed two new additions recently; the TouchPoint 890HD and the TouchPoint 1210HD. The new touch screens give users complete control of lights, audio and video, temperature and even offer Internet capabilities, while supporting streaming media and Web browsing, and are another control point when using the Lifeware solution family.
Check out these touch screen features:
- HDTV support
- 16:9 Widescreen format
- Stereo speakers and condenser microphone
- Automatic Touch-to-Wake power save mode for increased efficiency and energy savings
- Ambient light sensor automatically adjusts screen brightness acoording to room lighting
- Ultra-quiet, fan-driven flow through ventilation
A custom-designed touch overlay allows the maximum amount of the LCD's light image to pass through with reduced diffraction, making thse touch screens brighter than any competing LCD touch screens currently available.
InFusion Integration
Envision a home a home that automatically anticipates all of your needs. Just before going to bed, you roll over and touch the "Good Night" button, which turns on the motion activated outdoor lights, arms the security system, closes all the blinds and shades and gently fades off all the lights in the house. A networked home, office, boardroom or classroom can have a variety of subsystems, including window treatments, distributed audio and video, security, heating and air conditioning and lighting. InFusion brings them together in harmony, offering a third-party device library with easy drag-and-drop components, making integration of third-party solutions so much easier.
Distributed Audio
With InFusion you can control your personal music collection in every room of your home with nothing more than an elegant touch screen. Your music can also be effortlessly controlled through a handheld remote or wall-mounted control keypad.
Theater Control
Sitting in your home theater, you lightly press the button labeled "Movie" and the shades are drawn, the lights are dimmed, the projection system turns on along with the surround-sound system and the movie starts. InFusion manages all of today's technology and provides complete control to every system in your house.
Climate Control
InFusion integrates seamlessly with temperature controls as well. Always keep your home at your personal comfortable level. Set the house to start warming up just before you have to wake up, or automatically set temperatures back during the nighttime to save on your utility bill. You can even use outside weather information to control aspects of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning inside.
Security
Feel safe and protected in your house or office building by integrating a security system with InFusion. Security cameras can be simply integrated into a Vantage system with InFusion, making it easy for you to monitor your front door or driveway and know who's coming to your house. Incorporating a security system into your Vantage system has never been easier.
Window Treatments
InFusion can manage natural light. Motorized blinds, drapes, shades, shutters, awnings and even windows themselves, can be controlled with a touch of a button. Vantage systems have astronomical time clocks that track sunrise and sunset, so your environment can respond to sunlight year round. Now protect your sun-sensitive carpets, fabrics and artwork, plus maintain privacy and security, while continuing to enjoy the light and view when appropriate.
Illuminations Lighting Design is a full service design build firm specializing in residential and commercial indoor lighting and outdoor lighting installation, service and maintenance as well as home automation, home theaters and VANTAGE LIGHTING CONTROLS. Contact us at 800-863-1184 or on the web at
http://www.illuminationslighting.com/ for more information for lighting design and lighting control services.
Labels: Austin Lighting Control Systems, Houston Lighting Controls, Lutron Homeworks Lighting Controls, Vantage lighting controls