• We will be performing upgrades on the forums and server over the weekend. The forums may be unavailable multiple times for up to an hour each. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to make the forums even better.

Need an idea.

Status
Not open for further replies.
Dnkldorf

Dnkldorf

Senior Member
I am looking for a highly reflective material to use in retrofiting some street and post lights.

Anyone have any experience with using Mylar?

Is it rigid enough to bend and stay?
 
Dnkldorf

Dnkldorf

Senior Member
Colonial 17" Salem

These are the fixtures I am playing with.

I gutted the HPS ballast and top reflector and socket. Built a bracket and a "make shift" top and bottom reflector for Induction.

I am looking for something highly reflective for a pyramid reflector for the bottom, to reflect more light to the sides, and one for the top where the polished aluminum reflector was I gutted.
 
ultramegabob

ultramegabob

Senior Member
Location
Indiana
I am having a hard time picturing how you would make somthing for the bottom. how about buying some chrome paint and just painting the inside of the fixture?
 
Dnkldorf

Dnkldorf

Senior Member
Everything has to stay black.

Picture a 4 sided "pyramid" reflector. The bulbs I am using are mounted vertically, upside down, from the top.
This reflector would shoot the light out the sides better, and reduce light being directed upwards into the night.
 
weressl

weressl

Esteemed Member
Location
Texas by the Gulf, geat crab, great shrimp
Dnkldorf said:
No temp problem.

Taking out MH and HPS and installing LED/Induction.
Click to expand...

LED is highly directional. Properly placed should have no need for reflector. All LED's should point straigth down. Look for the SMD construction. LED drivers are also sensitive to heat dissipation and plain LED lamps applied in streetlights have known to be buring out way before their expected lifetime. Higher average ambinet and this problem gets worse.

Induction does generate some heat.

Search for specular reflectors on the net. You may be able to find small companies offering retrofit.

Al foil 'wallpapered" onto the inside of the fixture. Shiney side out :D
 
G

gndrod

Senior Member
Location
Ca and Wa
Dnkldorf said:
I am looking for a highly reflective material to use in retrofiting some street and post lights.

Anyone have any experience with using Mylar?

Is it rigid enough to bend and stay?
Click to expand...

I believe you are thinking about using Metalized Mylar (aka Polyester) for regflective properties. I remember Metalized Mylar sheets are available at plastic wholesalers in 1 through 15 mil thicknesses. A 10 mil holds its form and is flexible, but will deform under high temperatures. Metalized mylar was used on spacecraft as reflective foils to reduce thermal levels on sensitive electronics hardware. (1960's)

Laszlo mentioned the LED direct point lighting dispersion characteristics. The most common being used vary from 10 to 40 deg beam angles. Ergo, directional pointing is more effective. rbj
 
Dnkldorf

Dnkldorf

Senior Member
gndrod said:
Laszlo mentioned the LED direct point lighting dispersion characteristics. The most common being used vary from 10 to 40 deg beam angles. Ergo, directional pointing is more effective. rbj
Click to expand...


LED light (directional) is annoying to my eyes.
 
G

gndrod

Senior Member
Location
Ca and Wa
Dnkldorf said:
LED light (directional) is annoying to my eyes.
Click to expand...

An obscure or Fresnel lens can reduce the extremely direct single LED. There are different color temp ranges that can soften the LED 6500 Kelvin harshness from what the latest LED flash lights can blind the eyes. rbj
 
G

gndrod

Senior Member
Location
Ca and Wa
PCN said:
Not trying be wet blanket or anything here but how do you maintain a UL listing after altering the fixture?
Click to expand...

Good question...and not so wet. As an example, a Fresnel or prismatic lens would stand alone in T-bar lighting. I agree a single fixture entity such as an multiple LED lamp in an H7 would be interchangeable in an Edison socket, but the H7 trim would modify the recessed lamp. The trim would require compatible listing to the H7 housing. As far as individual source lighting from an LED would be dependent upon selection of a specific LED in itself. Google up the Cree Inc internet site to see the Solid State Lighting components available for manufacturers to make luminaires. This is what I was essentially thinking-referring to. rbj
 
Dnkldorf

Dnkldorf

Senior Member
If the fixture is rated 150W HPS max, and I put in a 100W HPS, do I violate the UL listing?

I am thinking as long as whatever I do, doesn't come close to the 150W rating, I'm cool....
 
P

paulmonti

Member
Take some reflective thin steel of the type already used in other fixtures, cut it to size and send it through some pinch rollers and you,ll have a piece that will look as though it were factory made.
 
7

72gs455

Member
Location
Minnesota
hey, I was looking to do this in some globe post lights in a mall area. These globes line a sidewalk as pedsetrian lighting. I had brang this to the attention of our electric shop supervisor. If we install LED lamps in a medium base socket. A socket wich was previously fed by a core and coil 70 watt HPS ballast. 120volt source. Will this void the UL listing and should it really matter?
Sorry for being long winded but...

Thanks
 
Dnkldorf

Dnkldorf

Senior Member
mivey said:
Can you salvage the ones out of an old fixture?
Click to expand...

Sure, but the orientation of the bulb changes, and renders it useless.

In this fixture, the HPS bulb is mounted horizontally, and tucked inside the reflector inside the top of the fixture.

This has to be removed, and a new one made.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top