Spring18Generator

HOWELLS
Streetlights
converted to LEDs
There were some nice, sunny days in December
and Josh Siebrandt made sure to take advantage of
them.
Siebrandt, a Local Superintendent for Loup
Power District, had a big project to complete in
Howells — replacing 181 high pressure sodium
(HPS) streetlight heads with LEDs.
Each replacement took about 20 minutes and he
completed the project mostly on his own over the
course of about four weeks.
“I really noticed a lot of weight off the poles,”
Siebrandt said. “The new ones are really light.”
The lighter weight is just one of the benefits of
the new fixtures.
One of the biggest draws to LED (light-emitting
diode) lights is their efficiency.
In the first month following the conversion,
Howells’ electricity payment to Loup for the new
streetlights was nearly 45 percent less than the
previous month.
The LED streetlights also require less
maintenance.
Siebrandt said he replaces at
least one HPS light every month.
Some months, he’s replaced
four that have damaged bulbs,
photocells, or starter boards.
Ron Ziola, Vice President of
Engineering, said the HPS
lights lasted about 10,000
hours, or 2.5 years.
The manufacturer
guarantees the
LED lights for
10 years and
expects them
to last up to
25 years.
“It
almost
eliminates
our
streetlight
maintenance
costs,” Ziola said.
The conversion came after years of research and
planning.
About three years ago, the District received LED
streetlight samples and installed them near the
General Office to analyze how they worked and how
the light looked.
LED lights were added by Columbus Community
Hospital, the new Columbus High School and a
subdivision.
The District converted existing lights along 33rd
Avenue from 38th Street to Lost Creek Parkway.
Ziola said after seeing how well the lights
worked in these areas, he knew they would work in
other areas around the District.
A consultant assisted the District in determining
how to move forward with the Howells
conversion. The company offered insight on the
type of LED fixture, proper mounting height, and
required lumens for each area of town to ensure
the light would be adequate for the roadway.
HPS lights have an orange color and the
open globe refractor spread the light in all
directions.
The LED streetlights have a cooler, white
light that makes it easier to see true colors.
The 4,000K color is similar to daylight or
moonlight.
The LEDs are directional so they create a
more even pool of light across the ground or
road. Almost no light goes up, decreasing the
amount of light pollution.
“A lot of people like the clearness of the
light,” Siebrandt said. “They’re a lot
brighter.”
12 GENERATOR
LED streetlight fixtures are more efficient than traditional High Pressure
Sodium lights. They are also much smaller and lighter as demonstrated by
Clarkson Local Superintendent Josh Siebrandt. He’s holding a HPS lamp at
left and an LED light in the photo above.