|
|
|
|
To the casual observer, picking home lighting may seem like a hopelessly boring endeavor. I mean, c'mon, it's just lighting. All lighting does is serve as a way for you and your family to see what you're doing when it dark, right? How different and exciting can that really be? Strangely, picking the correct lighting can be a lot more exciting and creative then you might think. All light is not created equal, just as all lighting fixtures are not cut from the same cloth. Besides a wide variety of wattage and bulb designs, there is style and elegance to decide, as even the type of light switches you have can change the way your room feels. There is a big difference between what dimmer and traditional switches can do for your living room or bedroom. When considering lighting for your house, there is one simple question you must ask yourself first: what are you looking to get out of your lights? Are you merely looking for a way to light your place, or is this about giving your room a certain feeling or mood? Some people might look towards simple lamps for their tables so that they can read when the sun goes down, or maybe some larger floor lighting fixtures to light up the room. Others might be thinking a little bigger with hanging light fixtures on the ceiling, or even bringing in someone to install new lighting into their ceiling. That kind of thing can change the entire feeling of a room. Another key thing to think about when considering what kind of lighting to bring to your home is finding a fixture that will match your surrounding design and themes. For example, most people wouldn't put a giant brown light fixture into an all white room, or old style Victorian lamp into an ultra modern designed room. Same goes for installing lights into a ceiling as both design and wattage can redefine your room. Shadow's can either appear or disappear quickly thanks to the angles at which these lights are installed. Installing a dimmer switch could turn your living room from a dimly lit romance den for date night, into a bright and accessible area for a Monday Night football party the next. Regardless of your wants and needs, picking home lighting designs and fixtures are a much more personal endeavor then one might originally think. The key is to just to take it slow and to think through it. Don't be afraid to try designs and bulbs out and be willing to change it if needed. That way you'll be happy with your final product. About the Author:Author Kimberly Green has experience with interior decorating and specializes in residential home lighting.
Lighting is one of the true unsung heroes of any concert performance. Just like commercial lighting, concert lighting can take many forms and can be used to bring out subtleties on stage. It's not just about the spotlights anymore; lighting has taken a big step forward in the concert industry in recent years. There are two concerts in recent years where lighting has stuck out to me. The first was Nine Inch Nails in 1999. While supporting their double album "The Fragile", Nine Inch Nails took off for a North American tour visiting, in their words, "hockey arenas". What made the lighting on this show so incredible was the fact that the band utilized LCD screens for their main lighting. These large screens were attached to machinery that allowed them to shift during the concert and take their place either above or behind the band. These screens could show either images or just color, which made them the primary lighting source for the band. This was the first time a major band had utilized LCD screens for their key lighting on tour, something that has been copied in recent years by some of the biggest bands in the world like U2 and Radiohead. The second concert that stuck out in my mind in regards to lighting was a 2003 performance by a Long Island band named Brand New. What made this concert stand out was the fact that the band was entirely back lit for their performance. I had never seen a band do this before. Frankly, it was eye opening. There were no lights either above or in front of the band, just behind it. Because Brand New's music is moody and, at points, intense, this lighting set up was perfect for the band and thoroughly enhanced their performance. I actually recently saw Brand New again recently and they had an entirely new set up featuring bright white lights were used in conjunction with black and white video. I consider myself a bit of a concert nut. As someone who attends concerts as much as once a week, you tend to notice concert lighting a bit more than the average concert goer. You realize how lighting can really accent a bands performance. On two opposing ends of the spectrum are bands like U2 and a southern Florida band named Against Me! U2 has been crafting giant stage setups for 20 years and always find new and ingenious ways to light their performance may it be car headlights or giant spaceship like stages. On the other hand you have Brand New who have a tendency to have one lighting set up per show without ever changing it. I once saw a performance where the lighting guy went to his controls and brought up these intense bright white lights which never dimmed at all during the performance. It was intense, but matched the performance perfectly. That's all you can ask for in a live show. Author Kimberly Green has always gotten the best deals on commerical lighting @ Accessdiscounts.com
The most important set up tip you can get is to gain as much information as you can concerning the proper PH levels for marine salt-water aquariums. No matter how pretty your set up is, if your water levels are out of control your marine life will not be alive for long. In general the larger the tank the less likely you are to have spikes in PH levels. The minimum suggested size for a marine tank is 30 gallons and preferably higher. Anything less than 30 gallons and you’ll spend as much time checking water quality as you do watching your fish. Maintaining proper salt levels will help to ensure you maintain a healthy environment for your under water world.
Lighting is also a major key in maintaining a healthy living environment for your marine life. Most people who want a well-balanced salt-water tank want some level of a coral reef. This is needed to sustain that balance. If you don’t want a reef then lighting is not as essential but if you do, then going with high bay lights as the systems will help you maintain the correct levels of UV for your aquarium. You can buy commercial hoods complete with lower quality ballasts and brackets or you can buy lighting systems designed to light! Most experienced reef owners will tell you that sit on top hoods pale in comparison to open tanks with high bay lighting that is suspended above the tank. It causes less heating issues and also acts more like the sun (in the fact that it’s farther above the water, not right on top of it.) Most suppliers can also help you with setting up daytime lighting and nighttime lighting. It’s been proven that marine life get just as much benefit from moonlight as they do sunlight. For some reefs, moonlight is even more important than sunlight.
Once you have your reef, lighting and PH in place you’ll need to focus on filtering. Freshwater aquariums require much less filtration than well balanced marine set ups need. Bacteria tanks are often employed to ensure the fish are getting the right amounts of bacteria. Skimmer filters and salt filters are also commonly used to ensure the conditions in the water are properly balanced. This is one of the largest costs of owning a salt-water set up and will also be one of the most labor-intensive projects for your tank. However as tedious as it may seem, proper filtration of the water is key to success.
Maintaining a marine tank will always be more labor intensive then a fresh water tank but you’ll rarely see anything in fresh water nature that compares to the majestic flow of marine life and coral reefs. The benefits out weigh the work involved in maintaining a reef tank.
About the Author: K. Green has much experience with fish tanks and using high baby lights to maintain a healthy living environment for all her marine life.
When you want the job done right wouldn't it make sense to have the right equipment? For example, starting a greenhouse or indoor garden would mean obtaining grow lights, soil, seeds, etc. So, I would suggest picking out the right kind of equipment before you start on your project. You can find top quality, lowest prices on all growing needs, whether it's residential or commercial at great prices with Accessdiscounts.com!
If you have tried growing any kind of indoor plant or flowers, you probably already know how difficult it can be! The trick can be found in the right amount of water, fertilizer and light! If you get your self the right kind of grow light systems, you are set! Grow light systems are great and easy to use. Accessdiscounts.com carries the best deals on residential and commercial lighting anywhere in the industry and we are always happy to answer any questions you may have!
If growing plants indoors is something that interests you, then you'll most likely need grow lights to help accomplish the job. A grow light provides the special lighting and light spectrum that plants need to grow and thrive, and there are two types of lights that accomplish this: high intensity discharge lights, and fluorescent lights. High intensity discharge grow lights come in two varieties -- the metal halide grow light (often referred to as MH), and the high pressure sodium grow light (often referred to as HPS). The metal halide light is designed to nurture plants during their growing cycle. The growing cycle applies to pants that are non-fruiting and/or non-blooming. The high pressure sodium lights are designed for those plants that are in the fruiting or blooming processes. The HPS grow lights come enhanced with the blue spectrum (this is used for vegetative growth) or the red spectrum (this is used for the flowering growth). The nice thing about these types of grow lights is that they can be used throughout the entire growing, fruiting and blooming process for most plants. Fluorescent grow lights do not emit as much light as the other types of grow lights that are available on the market, and so they are not intended to be used during the plant cycle, since the lack of a bright light will yield only small growth results. Instead, fluorescent grow lights should have its softer and gentler light used to help seedlings and cuttings begin to generate growth. Fluorescent lighting is best used to help nurture young plants and blooms. No matter what type of grow light you have, it will use some kind of ballast system which enables the bulb or tube to generate enough energy to strike and give off light. Typically, metal halide grow lights and HPS grow lights run from remote ballasts. A remote ballast is a special configuration in which external boxes contain the electronics and wiring needed to pre-heat the lamp, and then keep it running. Why should you use grow lights? Well, look at a plant as if it is a factory that manufactures goods from raw materials and products. Factors need energy to run, and so do plans. The energy source that enables them to grow comes from grow lights (hence the name). Usually, it is natural sunlight that is used to feed plants with the energy they need, but grow lights can be a reliable and suitable substitution. About the Author: Kimberly Green is a girl with a green thumb, sharing her insight to the wide world of grow lights and grow light systems.
No one ever really thinks about it when they walk into a store and they encounter a brightly lit environment that invites shoppers to look closely at each product for endless hours but the thought that went into lighting a super store is a painstaking process and a strategic process that ensures shoppers stay in the store and don’t experience shopper’s fatigue. Any person in charge of designing a store, warehouse, office or any other environment where people will congregate should pay special attention to the lighting needs that will help to ensure the proper atmosphere for productivity, visual stimulation and regulatory needs. This can be a daunting process but there are numerous reasons why proper commercial lighting is a must. An improperly lit environment can cause health issues to workers like headaches, migraines and mental fatigue. Not only will this hinder productivity it can have a dramatic increase on absence rates and even attrition rates. When a workspace is properly lit it allows a worker to focus clearly, be more productive and even work longer periods before rest is needed. This can have a very large affect on employee morale, production output and it can help maintain long-term employment. The end result is a slightly increased cost in lighting that is counter balanced by higher profits and employees with tenured skills and higher job satisfaction. A second factor in the importance of proper commercial lighting is customer driven. If a customer patrons a store that has poorly lit overhead and display lighting it will make it hard to read product details listed on packaging and it will cause shopper’s fatigue. When they happens sales will decrease and that customer is likely to seek out a better retail experience. This is compounded by the fact that many products have package designed that work with lighting to enhance their attractiveness to consumers. Poor lighting will make packaging look dull and uninviting thus also driving down sales. If you have proper lighting there will be a larger sense of excitement from customer’s and product sales will be higher and more consistent. It’s also very important to meet City, state, local and OSHA regulations. In most cases these regulations are a minimum guideline that ensure a poor lighting does not damage employee or customer’s eyes. All regulations should be met because poor lighting that does not meet regulation can put a business in a situation to suffer several fines by regulatory agencies. It can also put a business at risk of litigation from employees negatively affected by lighting conditions. In worse case it can also force a closure of a business due to failure to comply. Maintaining the proper lighting will avid these pit falls. With the proper lighting employees are given an advantage that will open doors to improved productivity, accuracy and employee satisfaction. Customers will be ready to spend money because a properly lit environment will enhance their shopping experience.
About the Author:
Kimberly Green has experience buying commercial lighting for some businesses.
Not every tomato enthusiast lives in Oklahoma with perfect tomato growing soil and beautiful sunlight able to grow tomatoes weighing in at seven pounds and twelve ounces (the current world record holder) so it's as important to set yourself for success if you wish to try your hand at in-door growing! Whether you plan on growing enough tomatoes to supply you through the winter months or you are in need of adequate lighting in a mid-sized green house, many urbanites are turning to artificial light sources designed specifically for growing plant life. The days of trying to position your plant racks on a windowsill in a futile attempt to catch light between the twenty-story buildings that have been strategically positioned to block all viable sunlight from your window are gone. With a small investment you'll be set up to grow tomatoes in any room in your home. And you'll be successful at it! Lighting that's suited for professional results usually comes in several pieces that require a small amount of assembly and its done that way so a grower can fit the right pieces together to suit their needs. First you need a lighting fixture. They come in a large array of sizes ranging from 2 up to and surpassing 5. Once you find a size that fits your needs you can tackle the ballast, which have an equally large amount of options for that custom growing experience. You can then cap everything off with a nice reflector to direct all that new light where it is needed the most; on your tomatoes. If you are starting to feel a bit overwhelmed fear not: you can simply order up a grow light kit that fits your needs. These kits are offered mainly for those people who have less demanding needs and you'll find them to be professionally built and more than adequate for the needs of the average grower. As with the individual parts that can be purchased, the kits have a very wide range of sizes and wattage to fit any application that you could possibly dream up! With the lighting possibilities that exist today just about any produce or plant that requires large amounts of sunlight to grow can be successfully grown in-doors and with great success. After all, the largest tomato plant in the world currently grows in doors at Epcot Center In Disney World and has produced a record-breaking harvest of over 32,000 tomatoes.
About the Author: Kimberly Green is a girl with a green thumb, sharing her insight to the wide world of grow lights and grow light systems.
Do you notice that the lights in your grow light system are starting to flicker? Perhaps they take a few minutes to turn on our illuminate fully. It may be time to replace your ballast for your grow light system. Even the highest quality ballast will, over time, need to be replaced. The ballasts work hard and produce a lot of heat just like a car engine and over time, that heats reduces the ballast ability to produce correctly. When you notice the above behaviors, that may be a sign of an ageing ballast, but always make sure to check the bulbs first and you'll be keeping your grow light system in peak condition
 Just last weekend, a "freak" snow storm hit the Rockies and parts of the great plains dropping anywhere from 1-5' of snow in certain areas. I think this brings up a great example of how maintaining a small grow light system can provide security to bring in valuable flowers or other plants during a late frost or storm. AccessDiscounts has a multitude of grow light systems for every budget so you're not left out in the cold again.
Need to prolong your grow light system? Make sure you stalk up on all your grow light accessories to properly maintain your grow light system and keep it at it's optimal performance. AccessDiscounts offers a large assortment of grow light accessories, everything from spare fans to pumps to timers.
One suggestion we can make to maximize the grow lights you are using is to invest in a high quality grow light reflector. These function by taking the normally wasted emitted light from the back and sides of the bulbs and reflects the light downward towards the plants growing beneath. This is an excellent way to get the most bang for your dollar as opposed to wasting light. We highly suggest the following grow light reflectors.
We know a considerable amount of people use grow light systems to start off plants to then transfer outdoors for landscaping. Landscaping is nearly all about the plants you utilize along with their locations. Just moving plants around or utilizing shrubs v. tree's can provide a multitude of effects to the look and shape of your home and/or garden. Did you know that lighting can do the same and when coupled with landscaping, can provide dramatic effects especially at night. Consider adding some residential outdoor lighting to provide additional depth and beauty at night.
 We found a neat link to a Planting Table for 2009 for outdoor plants as the season is coming up in just a month and a half. Then again, if you can't wait or want to get an early start, you may want to consider utilizing a grow light system to help you gain that little extra edge.
Spring has come and a new growing season is upon us. Please remember that even though many areas of the country will experience frost killing nights still, you can always get a head start on preparing for the growing season by starting your seedlings off indoors. The best option would be any type of grow light system as these would give your seedlings a great head start.
|
|
|
|
Subscribe in a reader
