Cold Weather Operation of Mr Beams Wireless LED Lights

Every winter, we get a few questions about how well Mr Beams Wireless LED Lights will work in very cold environments. One attribute of LEDs that makes them ideal for outdoor applications is their extended temperature range. LED lights can be very durable in cold environments however every component that makes up the LED battery powered light needs to have an extended temperature range.

Taking this into consideration, Mr Beams Wireless LED lights have an operating temperature range of -4 degrees F to 140 degrees F at a relative humidity of 90% (-20 degrees C to 60 degrees C at a relative humidity of 90%). We do this by selecting every component in our products to meet or exceed this temperature range.

To make sure a product can operate over the extreme temperature range, only batteries with an extended temperature range can be used. Energizer, Duracell, Panasonic and other battery manufacturers offer an industrial temperature range battery. Let's take the example of an Energizer Industrial D Size Alkaline battery. The datasheet for this battery on the Energizer website is http://data.energizer.com/PDFs/EN95.pdf. It has a temperature range of 0 degrees F to 130 degrees F (-18 degrees C to 55 degrees C). The specification for the battery sets the operating temperature of the Mr Beams MB360 Battery Powered LED Security Spotlight with this battery installed. That is still a pretty good operating temperature.

One important point though is that light output will decrease at the very low temperatures. Why? The efficiency of the LED actually improves at colder temperatures (ie more light is generated for the amount of power consumed from the battery) so that cannot be the reason. It turns out that the battery performance is considerably reduced at the lower temperatures. Looking at this technical bulletin on the Energizer website at http://data.energizer.com/PDFs/BatteryIR.pdf, you can see in Figure 2 that the internal resistance of the battery increases at the lower temperature. The higher internal resistance of the battery hurts the battery performance. It impacts the performance of the light to more than offset the increase in LED performance therefore overall the light output is decreased. We estimate that the lumen output of any wireless LED light at lower temperatures may drop as much as 20% based on the degradation in performance of the battery in cold weather.

The bottom line is that Mr Beams Wireless LED lights have been installed and working at low temperatures for years. They are a great solution for outdoor lighting in cold weather environments. If you have a cold weather lighting application, we hope you will consider the Mr Beams LED lights. For more information on why Mr Beams Wireless LED lights are well designed for outdoor lighting applications, please visit our blog entry "How to Choose the Best Outdoor Lighting" or visit our website at www.mrbeams.com.

Battery Powered Lighting Improvements from Advances in Battery Technology

More wireless lighting solutions are now available - made possible by advances in LED technology and advances in battery technology. The two areas are converging to allow battery powered LED lights to find their way into applications where they have previously not been able to provide enough light or provide enough lighting solutions.

LEDs are inherently DC powered devices. Batteries for wireless lights provide DC power. As of just a three years ago, white LEDs were not efficient enough to provide enough light to be considered good off-grid lighting. By efficiency, I mean the lumens of light generated per watt of power consumed was not good enough to build a quality battery light. Over the last few years, advances in LED technology have found their way onto the market. These are not gimmicks - the light output, light color and usefulness of LED products meets or exceeds what incandescent or fluorescent / cfl lights can achieve. LEDs that can exceed 200 lumens per watt are finding their way into the R&D laboratories of the better LED component manufacturers. By comparison, incandescent lights provide just 10 lumens per watt and fluorescent bulbs provide just 45 lumens per watt.

Battery technology is advancing rapidly also. Electric cars, cell phones, smart phones, laptops, portable electronics and other battery powered devices are forcing battery companies to produce higher capacity, better performing batteries. Whether they are non-rechargeable alkaline batteries, rechargeable Li-Ion, NiMH or even more advanced battery chemistries that are finding their way into products and into the R&D laboratories of the better battery manufacturers, you can be pretty sure that the impact will be seen over the coming years.

So combine LED lighting and batteries two years from now with the type of intelligent functions that Mr Beams is integrating into its products. What kinds of products do you think will result from these two rapidly progressing technologies? We think there will be some amazing off grid lighting products, LED lighting products, intelligent LED lights, wireless lights and solar powered LED lights (yes, solar powered lights with rechargeable batteries will only get better as solar cell technology is also advancing rapidly) that are coming. We want to be the company providing the best battery LED lights on the market. Stay tuned.

What is Your Home Security Worth?

What is your home security worth? Most of us have made that decision by how much we invested in alarm systems and lighting around our house. I have the conversation with customers every day. They want lighting around their home – maybe it’s an under-lit back door or a dark corner of the house or a backyard where the dog disappears into the night. I ask them if the problem is worth $300 to solve – the cost of getting an electrician to install a new light fixture on their house. Often times the answer is no - $300 is too much to pay to add a light.

At Mr. Beams we also believe that $300 is too much to solve this problem. So we designed our Mr. Beams battery powered lights to solve this problem for under $40. In fact, for $300 we can brightly light up 2 doorways, 2 corners on your house, your shed, your walkway and the edge of your backyard! And we can do it without using any electricity, with motion sensors to turn the lights on when needed and off when not needed, and with the flexibility so you can move the lights whenever you need to.

So here is our list for brightly lighting up the outside of your house for less than the cost of installing one light with an electrician:
1. Mr. Beams Ceiling Light to light up your front porch and your back door. You stopped lighting up your porch and doorway because of the cost of electricity. In fact, leaving a 75W bulb on all night will cost you $35.50 each year at $0.13 per kWh! In addition, your bulbs burn out every 3 months (another $24 for a total of $59.50 a year per door - $119.00 total for two doorways). The battery powered Mr. Beams Ceiling Light will use less than $1 per year to operate. It will turn on whenever someone approaches because it has a motion sensor. It is a bright LED light that will light up your porch and front entrance. Total cost: $79.98 for 2 Mr. Beams lights.
2. Mr. Beams battery-operated LED Motion Sensor Security Spotlights on the corners of your house. We all have dark corners on the lesser-used sides of our house. The Mr. Beams LED Motion Sensor Security Spotlights will detect for motion all night. When an animal or a person is detected, the bright LED will turn on until the motion goes away. Because they are battery powered, they need no wires and you can install them anywhere in 5 minutes or less. 2 Mr. Beams lights for $79.98.
3. Your shed is dark. It creates a big hazard for you when you run in to grab a tool. Put a Mr. Beams battery powered LED Ceiling Light in the shed and never have to worry about darkness, spiders, sharp objects or rakes on the ground. The Mr. Beams Motion Sensor LED Ceiling Light installs in minutes. It will stay off until it detects the door opening. Then it will shine its bright LED to light up your shed. Once you leave, the Mr. Beams LED Ceiling Light’s motion sensor will tell the battery-powered light to shut off. $39.99.
4. Walkways are tripping hazards – especially in the winter. The Mr. Beams Path Lights are bright LED lights on stakes. They have motion sensors to light up brightly when they detect motion, then auto shut-off after 60 seconds. They are much brighter than solar path lights. And because they are battery powered, they don’t need access to the sun to work. They also have a unique remote control to turn them on and off. 2 for $59.99.
5. Light up the back of your backyard with the Mr. Beams LED Motion Sensor Security Spotlight. We attached a Mr. Beams battery powered LED Spotlight to a tree out back in one minute using one screw. When our dog goes out at night we worry about coyotes and skunks. Once she got skunked and it was a 3-day nightmare. The Mr. Beams Spotlight detects motion and shines a bright LED light to show us if any animals are around. It also lights up when our dog passes it and we can see where she is. The batteries power the LED motion sensor security Spotlight for more than 18 months and survive the northern winters. $39.99.

So I just showed you how to add security and safety to your home by lighting up all of the dark spaces with the Mr. Beams battery powered LED lights with motion sensors. If you do the math, this entire package of lights will cost $299.93 – the same as hiring an electrician to install just one light. In addition, you can save more than $200 per year in electricity by using battery operated lights that are off the grid. For reading this blog I will offer another 20% off so this entire package of lights will cost just $239.94. Please enter the coupon code “20percent” at check-out to get 20% off any Mr. Beams battery operated LED lights at www.mrbeams.com.

How Bill Uses Mr. Beams LED Lights

My friend Bill called again this week. Bill is one of our favorite customers. He has installed Mr. Beams lights throughout his home and property and keeps adding more of our bright LED lights. Here are a few of the locations that Bill installed Mr. Beams motion sensor LED lights:

Barn – There is no lighting in a detached barn on Bill’s property. So Bill installed two Mr. Beams motion sensor Spotlights that turn on as soon as they detect motion. The installation took just minutes and the light is bright enough for safety in the barn.

Porch – Bill’s favorite application for lighting up dark spaces is a Mr. Beams Ceiling Light on the ceiling of his porch. When he approaches it lights up so he can see his keys, lights up the steps so he does not fall, and turns off automatically after 30 seconds.

Deck – Bill attached four Mr. Beams motion sensor Stair Lights to his deck posts. These bright LED lights glow once it gets dark and then light up bright when they detect motion. Compared to wiring lights on a deck, Bill saved about $600 and was able to install all four in under 30 minutes.

The very positive feedback from our customers has been the most rewarding part of running Wireless Environment. Our customers are the best advertising – so many of them buy additional lights and tell their friends about the lights that can be installed anywhere in minutes, use bright LEDs and the best motion sensors available, light up brightly when they detect motion and turn off when they are not needed. We hope that you will try our Mr. Beams lights to drive away the darkness and add safety and security to your home. Start living off the grid.

Living Off the Grid in Nigeria

CNN reports today on the problems with the electrical supply in Nigeria. There is a story about a hospital that was constantly suffering from the effects of power outages. One night 12 accident victims came in and nobody could treat them because there wasn't any light to see their wounds.

According to Amara Nwankpa in the CNN story, “Less than half the population has access to grid electricity and those who do typically have power for nine or 10 hours a day, but sometimes go for three or four days with no power at all."

Wireless Environment is focused on improving the quality of lighting in off-grid situations. We help countries like Nigeria by providing lighting that runs without wires, and a hybrid version of lights that tap into the electrical grid when it is working and then switch to battery power when it is advantageous.

Our Mr. Beams line of products helps residents of Nigeria operate during power outages and rolling blackouts. For interiors, the Ceiling Light can light up an entire room with enough bright light to read by. It is battery-operated so power outages do not affect it. It turns on with motion and stays on as it detects motion. The Mr. Beams Stair Light can provide safety lighting to prevent falls in the home. It also is battery operated and turns on when it detects motion.

For outside, the Mr. Beams Spotlight can provide security lighting to protect a house. It turns on a bright LED when it detects motion. Like all other Mr. Beams lights, it is weather-resistant and can survive extreme environmental conditions. And because it is battery-operated it works off the grid in countries like Nigeria.

Wireless Environment is also developing battery systems that are contained inside light fixtures. These batteries store electricity when it is available and then discharge power when grid power is not available.

Prepare Your Home to Go Off-Grid

Glenn from Australia called me this week. He wants to introduce the Mr. Beams line of wireless LED lighting to his country. I assumed it was because Australians are more likely to spend time outdoors and they need lighting that can operate without electricity and be installed anywhere. That is partially true, but the real reason is to save money.

Electricity was deregulated in Australia and rates have risen more than 17.5% in 2010. According to Glenn, the average household in Australia is paying $200 to $300 more per year for electricity than they did last year.

Australians are looking at their electricity consumption and figuring out where they can go off-grid. People in China and India are constantly focused on shifting off-grid. It is only a matter of time before people living in other developed countries will need to analyze their electricity consumption and shift off-grid as well.

Look at the statistics in the U.S. In order for electricity production to keep up with expected demand in 2035, the U.S. will have to create 250 gigawatts of new generating capacity*. At an average of 750 megawatts per plant, that means the U.S. needs to build 330 plants over the next 25 years, which is almost impossible. This means we can expect many more black-outs, rolling outages and a general inability to rely on the grid to provide power.

Mr. Beams’ parent company - Wireless Environment - is working on solutions for the future electricity shortage by developing quality off-grid solutions for lighting and other appliances. Currently, Mr. Beams offers six products to help you start shifting off the electrical grid. All use LEDs and motion sensors and can be installed by you in under 5 minutes. These LED lighting products are designed to help you go off the grid by lighting the following dark areas:

Outdoor Security Lighting – with batteries, a motion sensor and LEDs, you can install a weatherproof Mr. Beams wireless motion-sensor spotlight all by yourself for under $40. It will activate when it senses motion – people, vehicles or critters – an shine a bright light until the motion stops. $3 of batteries will give you at least one year worth of light. Security lighting even during power outages.

Shed Lighting – Install a light in your shed for under $40. The weatherproof Mr. Beams Ceiling Light provides bright enough light for illuminate a 15’ x 10’ shed. The Ceiling Light detects motion and keeps the light on until there is no motion, then turns off automatically. $4 of batteries should last more than 2 years.

Garage Lighting – Instead of using fragile light bulbs to light up your garage, install a Mr. Beams Motion-Sensor Spotlight for under $40. The Motion-Sensor Spotlight will provide the light you need and will turn on automatically once someone enters the garage. It will survive vibration and temperature extremes and still provide 120 lumens of bright light. It will never stay on all night and burn out. You can install it anywhere in less than 5 minutes and aim it in any direction that fits your needs.

Closet Lighting – Stop worrying about leaving your closet light on all day. The Mr. Beams Ceiling Light is a bright closet light that can provide the equivalent of a 40W light bulb. It will turn on as soon as it detects motion in the closet. It will stay on until 30 seconds after you leave the closet. $4 of batteries should provide at least 2 years of closet lighting.

Attic Lighting – Our attic light has never lasted more than 2 weeks. Someone always accidentally turns on the light and we never know it is on. The Mr. Beams Ceiling Light installs to a rafter or wall in 2 minutes. No electrician needed. Install 4 C batteries and this light will provide you with 5 years between battery changes with typical use. Bright light that goes on even during power outages.

Path Lighting – Solar Lights introduced the world to off-grid lighting, but they have serious issues. Switch the solar cell with batteries and you have the perfect off-grid solution for path lights. Indoor or outdoor, path lights with batteries work even after cloudy days in the winter. They go on much brighter than solar lights once they detect motion. The Mr. Beams Stair Lights and Remote Control Path Lights are bright, off-grid lights to provide safety for those walking in and around your home.

* DOE – U.S. Energy Information Administration

What Is Off-Grid Lighting?

What Does Off-Grid Lighting Mean?

Wireless Environment has observed and classified three major reasons for taking lighting off-grid. Our vision is to become the leader in shifting lighting off-grid for maximum efficiency, utility and value.

The three reasons to go off the grid with you lighting are:
1. No Access to Electricity
2. Power Outage / Rolling Blackout
3. Economic Gain

Here is how we define the three categories of off-grid lighting:

1. No Access to Electricity
The majority of locations in the world are off-grid. In remote locations there are often no electrical wires. But even in your own home, there is are many areas where you want light and have no wires. Think about your driveway, your backyard, the corner of your house and many of your closets. For all of these areas that need light, battery-powered or solar-powered lighting is the best option. Battery-powered lights can provide brighter light without wires.

Products like the Mr. Beams Spotlight can attach to a tree anywhere. When it detects movement through its motion sensor, a powerful LED lights up a driveway, walkway, backyard, porch. There is also a remote control Spotlight that can be activated by the remote control or turn on with its motion sensor. For detached sheds and detached garages, the Mr. Beams Ceiling Light can provide bright light. It is weatherproof, like all Mr. Beams wireless lights, and has a sensitive motion detector. Once someone enters the garage, shed, gazebo or closet, the Mr. Beams Ceiling Light emits a bright white light until the auto shut-off turns it off. Other Mr. Beams lights include the Stick Anywhere Night Light and the Stair Light. Both lights have daylight sensors to keep the lights off during the day and conserve battery life. They also are weatherproof and have motion sensors. They provide lighting where there is no electricity, and can significantly help reduce the number of falls.

2. Power Outage / Rolling Blackout
I recently blogged about the increase in the number of blackouts in the U.S. As the grid becomes more strained, we will experience more power outages. For this reason Mr. Beams is developing a line of batteries that can be installed inside light fixtures. These batteries will detect a power outage and then provide enough back-up power to allow for safe exit. Technology will also help extend the battery life and thus the useful light for exit or other operation.

3. Economic Gain
In the future world of increased demand on the electrical grid, there will be a strong incentive to reduce electricity use during certain times. Currently the peak demand times are between 2pm and 5pm during the business week – especially during hot days. Electric companies are paying facilities to go off the grid at these times. With the Wireless Environment battery technology, a facility can transfer its lighting to battery power during these peak times. The facility can collect a fee for going off the electrical grid, and take advantage of lower electricity costs by re-charging the back-up batteries for the lighting during an off-peak time. In some areas of the country, the spread in the cost between peak-demand electricity and off-peak electricity can be significant. With LED light fixtures and the Wireless Environment battery technology, lights can shift off-grid and still operate at the same lumen level.

In our future, we will all face the need to go off-grid more often. Products are being developed to help manage lighting off of the grid. We will continue to update the progress of developing off-grid lighting products and components.

Off-Grid Lighting With Battery Powered "BEAMS"

I know, I know...everyone wants to advertise that they subscribe to "green". We've all been suckered into buying more bags rather than reusing the recyclable plastic bags that were the norm for so many years (true, the ones you buy are sturdier with handles), everyone has reusable water bottles, and we all talk a good game about buying local. Talk is cheap! I do those things, too, but I still love a good deal on bottled water (even though tap water is free--we have a well, even) and will compromise my family's health for produce shipped from South America over local peppers if it means saving a buck. Did you languish in the heat this summer rather than conserve energy by cutting back on the AC? We didn't. So what are some other things that we could be doing to promote a healthy planet without sacrificing convenience? (Now you know this is going to involve wireless lights.)

We're constantly touting Mr Beams products as reliable and cost-effective. The battery operated lights manufactured by Wireless Environment allow anyone the luxury of light wherever you need it--the products install in minutes, no wires, and are extremely low maintenance. With the exception of changing the batteries, you really don't need to do a thing. Guess what? There's an off-grid lighting solution. Two things to support that claim: the first is that you are not drawing from an electric grid. All Mr Beams products are battery operated and last 1-2 years under most conditions. (Mr Beams lights are IP44 rated, which means you can use them inside and outdoors. True, they're not immersible, but were you going to put them in your bathtub or pool anyway?) Second, the lights activate only when they sense motion. So it gets dark. Lights stay dark. You walk near the light (most models sense light from up to 18' away) and the light turns on, stays on until motion ceases, then shuts off automatically. Light only when you need it. No wasting electricity when you wander into the bathroom at night--the Stick Anywhere Night Light gives you just enough light to get the job done.

Here's a great place for a Mr Beams light for our family (and I'm guessing we're not alone). We have a freezer downstairs. At least one ingredient, usually meat, comes out of that freezer for our dinner, which means a minimum of one trip a day to the basement to retrieve something from the freezer. I snap the light on at the top of the stairs automatically before heading down. When I get downstairs, I turn on one, maybe two lights on the way to the freezer. I'm in the freezer for approximately ten seconds while I grab the roast of choice (or chunk of frozen hamburger), then retrace my steps--light two=off; light one=off; then it's up the stairs before turning the stairway light off. Entire transaction takes maybe thirty seconds. Now--doesn't it make a lot more sense to install a couple of Mr Beams lights along that path rather than flipping currents on and off along the way? With a Ceiling Light in the stairway I can make my way up and down the steps safely--even with my hands full, since I don't need to turn any lights on or off. With a couple of Stick Anywheres on the wall, I can find the freezer, get what I need, and hike back up to the kitchen--all without turning on or off any lights. Truthfully, I can make that trip with my eyes closed, but what a great message to send to the kids--"light only when you need it."

I can think of dozens of other places where I waste electricity, bags, water. I am going to try to do a better job at managing my resources. We say we are, we say we try...let's do more.

How do you make a difference? Tell us your story at info@mrbeams.com.

Going Green

Reduce, reuse, recycle. There's even a song about it by Jack Johnson that kids sing enthusiastically. But what does it mean? We all know that the green and blue trash bins in the park, mall, and school are where you put your cans and bottles. The rest of our garbage goes in the "other ones". We've retrained ourselves to conserve water when brushing our teeth and not to worry so much about the lawn--after all, that's just cultivating vanity, right? Don't forget to turn off the lights when we don't need them. Or better yet, install off grid lighting which will work only when you need it. Here's how:

Pick up some wireless Mr Beams lights. There are six models from which to choose. They vary in style, brightness and color, but essentially, all of the lights work on the same principle--when it's dark and the lights detect motion, they activate. As long as there's motion, the lights remain on. After a period of time (you can adjust the amount of time a light stays on), the light shuts off. Think about the practicality of this lighting solution: at your front door, over your garage, near your shed, in your basement stairs--anywhere you might have to manually flip a switch for light, you can place a Mr Beams fixture which will give you the benefit of light without taxing your meter.

No plugs, wires, cords make it easy and affordable to install. Additional benefits are measures of security and safety--if you've never had a motion detection lighting system on your property, you'll quickly appreciate the peace of mind when you pull into your driveway and the lights go on and stay on until you and your family are safely indoors.

"Off-grid" doesn't just mean solar panels and wind turbines. Battery operated lights may not be as big or fancy, but they're certainly accessible and give everyone the opportunity to participate in sustainability. Batteries can be recycled, LED lights last a lifetime--as we get smarter about green choices, they'll be more adaptable for everyone.

Click here to learn more about green lighting and visit www.mrbeams.com to check out the Mr Beams lights.