By John Whitcraft, P.E. | Whitcraft Engineering Solutions, Inc.
With summer approaching, many Californians will be enjoying late-night parties. For the safety of their guests, the party hosts need to keep their outdoor lights on while still respecting their neighbors’ need for minimizing glare. If these party-loving hosts live in a rural area such as Borrego Springs, they might be subjected to Dark Sky Laws, which are aimed at reducing light pollution (or in other words, minimizing glare) into the night sky. Lights that are dark-sky compliant have positive features like being fully shielded at the top so the light is directed downward.
The Dark Sky regulation was established to preserve the natural ambiance of the night sky, maximizing navigation or “wandering” safety, and reducing the adverse effect bluish LED light can have on wildlife behavior and reproduction. If homeowners want to find out if their home’s outdoor lighting needs to be dark-sky compliant, they should check with their city or county. Even if no such laws are officially on the books, however, environmentally oriented property owners who care deeply about the natural ecosystem, will probably install dark-sky lighting products anyway.
“The distinction is not all about having the darkest skies, it’s about what you’re doing in the long term to preserve the dark skies you have,” said Bill Haddon, president of the Friends of Taylor Observatory in Kelseyville, a Northern California community near Eureka. Haddon’s comments appeared in a January 17, 2019 article in the Lake County Bee. Haddon added that “the most basic thing is to have the light pointing downward, not upward.”
Meeting this downward-pointing feature is easy to implement. In fact, two light fixtures that I recently specified to my architectural clients meet this goal. The D-Series LED Wall Luminaire from Acuity Brands Lighting and the Midland 9-inch high dusk-to-dawn LED motion sensor light by John Timberland, which is available on Amazon for less than $100.00. I especially like their dusk-to-dawn operation and motion sensing features. These units detect natural light and turn on the lights after sunset. They also shut everything down when the sun rises, so nothing burns power during the day. The motion sensors detect changes in movement. Their sensitive detection quality and wide detection range make them ideal for security functions and larger spaces. I also like each of these luminaires because the downward light opening is flat and the lamp does not extend below that flat opening. A homeowner could use these fixtures in a very rural setting and not violate dark-sky rules or annoy their neighbors.
While dark-sky laws may not be enforced everywhere in California, Title 24 requirements are. California’s new residential Building Energy Efficiency Standards take effect on January 1, 2020. Known as “California CEC Title 24,” this building standard is meant to significantly reduce energy use by enforcing cost-effective criteria that sets a minimum level of efficiency. It not only affects lighting, but other parts of construction like appliances, windows and doors, and insulation. The CEC estimates that current Title 24 standards will reduce lighting energy use in new California homes and multi-family dwellings by 50 percent! For details on the new standards for residential lighting, architects and others may review the requirements at the UC Davis California Lighting Technology Center or download the official publication at https://bit.ly/2YOw6ST. For non-residential lighting, they can read about the new law at https://bit.ly/EjZnhw.
Whitcraft Engineering Solutions, Inc., is a California-based electrical engineering firm specializing in the design of electrical systems, including lighting, wireless telecomm and energy harvesting. The company was formed in 2012 after completing several design projects for other firms.
For a professional consult, contact John Whitcraft, P.E., at (858-229-8722) or visit Whitcraft Engineering Solutions, Inc.
Articles from Electrical Engineer, John Whitcraft, P.E.
