LED Replacements for High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lighting

Which Lighting System is Right for You?

LED lighting systems are changing the way we light our indoor and outdoor spaces. In interior high ceiling applications and exterior areas that traditionally use HID fixtures, LEDs offer significant energy savings and dramatically reduce maintenance costs. LEDs paired with customizable controls can save you substantially more energy than LEDs without controls as the lighting output can be adjusted to meet project requirements. Use the chart below to determine which LED lighting system best fits your HID retrofit needs.

New retrofit without controls

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New LED fixture or retrofit kit without controls

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New LED fixture or retrofit kit with

Comfort
Quality of light	Good	Better	Best
Controls	On/Off	On/Off, Time of Day, Networked control capable ready	On/Off, Dim, Occupancy, Daylight, Color Tuning
Life	20-50K Hours Varies by type	50+K Hours Varies by type	50+K Hours Varies by type
Light Output	Varies greatly as not tuned to the existing fixture	Distribution tuned at the factory to provide good uniformity	Distribution tuned at the factory to provide good uniformity
Glare	Glare likely	Application-specific product reduces chances of glare	Application-specific product reduces chances of glare

Incentives and Savings
Utility incentives (contact your utility for more information)	May be limited or lower than new fixture	Calculated or deemed	Calculated
Energy Savings	Good	Better	Best

Cost
Cost of ownership	Good	Better	Best
Equipment cost
Installation Cost
Maintenance Cost

There are a range of factors to consider when retrofitting an existing fixture. Your results will vary based on location, facility layout and electricity costs, among other things.

Controls

When paired with sensors and controls, LEDs can offer a range of additional capabilities. These features and functions can improve the lighting quality, enhance the occupant experience, decrease operation costs, help your new system meet building code, improve occupant performance and safety, and even help your business run more efficiently. A few of the more common Networked Lighting Controls capabilities include:

Dimming: vary the light output of the fixture, enabling energy savings and greater occupant satisfaction.
Occupancy or Vacancy control: regulate lighting based on presence or absence of people in a space, increasing energy savings and reducing maintenance costs.
Daylight control: regulate the light level in response to changing daylight conditions in the space, increasing energy savings.
High-End trim/Task tuning: adjust the output of individual lights or group of lights to a set lower maximum level, enabling energy savings, greater occupant satisfaction, and lower maintenance costs thanks to longer system life. Over time, as lumen depreciation naturally occurs, the light output can be adjusted to maintain consistent brightness for safety and comfort.
Networking: connect all fixtures as a network, allowing them to exchange information with each other or even integrate with an Energy or Building Management Systems (EMS or BMS). Networked fixtures can be configured and controlled individually or as a group to optimize energy savings; some allow for remote configuration and control. Networking, especially using wireless systems such as LLLC, can provide reduced wiring, maintenance and reconfiguration costs and can promote greater energy savings.
Zoning: ability to configure groups of fixtures to perform the same lighting strategies (same occupancy time-outs, same task tuning, etc.). Zoning often results in reduced cost of wiring, maintenance and reconfiguration and greater energy savings.
Layering: combining controls strategies where applicable (occupancy, daylight sensing, dimming, high-end trim, scheduling) can optimize energy savings far beyond single control strategies.
Color tuning (only available with color-tunable LEDs): ability to adjust the color temperature of the lamp, promoting higher occupant satisfaction and performance.
Automation and tracking: sensors embedded in light fixtures can be used to perform a wide range of functions, from identifying unused meeting rooms, to automating door operation, to tracking products in a warehouse, enabling improved space utilization and business efficiency.

Utilities often offer enhanced incentives for lighting systems that include controls. Contact your local utility to learn about lighting controls incentives available in your area.

Factors to Consider when Embarking on a Lighting Upgrade

There are a range of factors to consider when retrofitting an existing fixtureThe following are important considerations that could influence your decision:

Age and condition of ballast: When retrofitting an existing fixture with direct replacement LED lamps, consider the type and age of the existing ballast. Failure of older existing ballasts before HID-LED end-of-life will defeat the 'reduced maintenance' attractiveness of LED solutions. Some incentive programs restrict use of existing ballasts in lighting upgrades.
Age and condition of sockets: As fixtures age, lamp sockets can become brittle due to the heat and UV exposure they experience over time. Older fixtures may need new sockets to offer best life expectancy.
Net Efficacy: New highly-efficient LED products installed into existing fixtures can experience losses of up to 10 – 15 percent due to inter-reflected light loss – basically, light trapped within the fixture. Addition of a lens will reduce efficiency another 10 – 12 percent, or even more if the lens is old and yellowed. Note that these reductions were present with the existing HID lamps also.
Light Distribution: The way a fixture distributes light is determined by its reflectors and lens, which are designed around the original lamp type. Replacing existing lamps with LEDs will change the distribution characteristics of the fixture, which may cause shadowing or sharp cutoff at walls. A test installation will help determine whether direct one-for-one lamp replacement will give suitable results. Be sure to evaluate the light levels, the lighting distribution and the visual look of the space in the test installation.
Labor costs: Labor costs will depend on the type of LED retrofit planned.
- LED lamps – HID-LED lamp replacement can be as simple as removing the existing HID lamps and plugging in the LED lamp. LED lamps may require incompatible ballasts to be replaced, may require removal of the existing ballast and rewiring of the fixture, or may require replacement of the ballast with a new LED driver. In all cases damaged sockets should be replaced.
- Retrofit kits – Retrofit kits install into the existing housing from below the ceiling and can be an effective alternative to LED lamps or new fixtures. They generally require removal of all internal components of the existing fixture and installation of new internal LED components.
- New Fixtures –With new fixtures the replacements do not need to be on a one-for-one basis or even in the same location, which allows for the lighting layout to be optimized in the space. Replacing or relocating a fixture may require seismic anchor wires (slack wires), which may or may not be present on the existing fixtures.
- Some types of replacements require an electrician. The new fixture, retrofit kit and replacement lamp descriptions in this guide provide additional details regarding which types of retrofits will require an electrician.

Links to a PDF and customizable InDesign files for the LED Replacements for High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lighting Comparison Tool are below.

LED Replacements for High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lighting

Article

Which Lighting System is Right for You?

Comfort

Incentives and Savings

Cost

New LED lamp

New LED Fixture or retrofit kit

New LED fixture or retrofit kit with integrated controls

Quality of light

Controls

Life

Glare Control

Factors to Consider when Embarking on a Lighting Upgrade

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