LEDs to light City of Darlington City offices
By Samantha Lyles, Staff Writer, slyles@newsandpress.net
The City of Darlington will soon outfit six municipal buildings with new LED lighting, a project that could save the city $48,000 in annual energy costs.
For a total cost of $275,420, vendor Green Bulb Lighting of Columbia will replace existing metal halide, fluorescent, and incandescent lighting in the Arthur W. Stanley Gymnasium, City Hall (including the Fire Station, Police Station, and Council Chamber), the Council on Aging, Recreation Center, Carnegie Library, and Sanitation Department / Garage Building.
Duke Energy is helping the city pay for these lighting upgrades by providing approximately $50,000 in rebates.
Michael McClain of Green Bulb Lighting adds that the city will also save on maintenance costs (labor to change bulbs and ballasts), replacement costs (buying new bulbs and ballasts), and recycling costs (charges for disposing of fluorescent bulbs, ballasts, and metal halide lighting components).
The LED fixtures to be used are rated for 50,000 to 60,000 burn hours; McClain says the average fluorescent tube yields only about 3,000 burn hours. He adds that LEDs are cleaner and better for the environment since fluorescent tubes contain mercury vapor which can be harmful if inhaled or left on the skin.
For large-scale usage – such as lighting the Stanley Gym – McLain says the LEDs offer “instant strike” convenience, providing full lighting as soon as the switch is thrown, while many older metal halide fixtures take up to 30 minutes to reach full brightness.
“LED is the closest you can get to natural sunlight, and studies have shown that LEDs are better for learning environments and offices,” says McClain, noting that the humming of fluorescent light ballasts can be a distraction – especially for younger people who retain their full range of hearing.
The city also expects savings on their summer cooling bills as well, since the LEDs will reduce the amount of heat radiating from light fixtures.
“Fluorescents give off heat, therefore your cooling bills are going to be lower. That’s another advantage LEDs will bring to you. And, as you know, it can get pretty hot here in the Pee Dee in the summertime,” McClain says.
This project only involves office and workspace lighting, not streetlamps or walkway lights.
“We’re not doing the exterior lights in their parks, we’re only doing the interior of the buildings,” says McClain.
The City of Darlington has secured a 10-year loan (at 1.50 percent interest) to pay for this project, with a principal of $275,420, total interest of $23,229, and an annual payment of $29,864.
The lighting replacement project is scheduled to start in about three weeks and should take 40 to 60 days to complete.