Today we have three great rules and four excellent ideas from the rfm Group's blog, and an extra fifth tip from the team here at CarbonNow.
The three golden rules for lighting are: Measure – Monitor – Minimise.
No arguing from us there!
And then we have these following four lighting measures which can do wonders to reduce your carbon footprint and save energy at little or no cost:
Daylighting – maximise daylight usage, after all sunlight is free! Open blinds or window shades, use skylights or other natural light sources effectively and switch off lights if you don’t need them to reduce electricity consumption during daytime hours... Use task lighting where possible (point of use direct lighting for specific tasks) instead of illuminating an entire room... [Implement] a regular lighting maintenance plan... Remove unnecessary lamps (de-lamp) in overlit areas.
Daylight, direct lighting, de-lamping... and good maintenance. Easy!
And we'd add PIR.
PIR (Passive Infrared Sensor) lights are great for increasing the efficiency both of outdoor lighting (outdoor flood lights) or in irregularly used hallways, bathrooms, meeting rooms and corridors. You can also save maximum energy if you are using the proper type of bulb such as LEDs.
So, measure, monitor, minimise. You won't be in the dark, and you may save a bit of money along the way!