If you haven't started using all LEDs in your indicator panels by now, here's a sign you need to make the switch once and for all. Incandescent bulbs may offer users a nostalgic and comforting feel, but the fact of the matter is, companies need to look for energy efficiency in every place they can. Bulbs, even small ones used in indicator panels, are an easy switch. And red emergency lights, especially, need to be switched over to LED as soon as you can. This is one light where a burn-out is not just inconvenient—it can be dangerous.

This Is Not a Bulb You Want Burning Out

It's not good when any indicator panel light burns out, of course. But for red lights, it's worse because those are the emergency lights, the ones that let you know something is wrong. If the bulb lights up but immediately burns out in a flash, as incandescents do when they reach the end of their life span, then you only know something is wrong if you saw the initial light-up. If you missed that, you missed the message.

Unfortunately, incandescent bulbs don't last that long. The risk of burn-out and subsequent missed messages is high. An LED bulb lasts a much longer time, and you have a much better chance of actually seeing that emergency light should it go on because it has a better chance of staying lit.

All that being said, LED bulbs aren't immortal; they do burn out eventually. You may want to create a policy of replacing red emergency indicator light bulbs every few years even if they still appear to work. That ensures you have an always-working light (barring defective bulbs, which are rare but not unheard of).

Red Lights Need to Be Bright

Another issue is that while incandescent bulbs can be very bright, LEDs are more efficient and can pack more brightness into smaller bulbs. They don't always because the manufacturers decide to make them meet a certain amount of lumens (lumens are the measure of brightness for LEDs, not watts) that may not reach the level of brightness you want. But you can find LED bulbs that do have the lumens you want, and that's important. That lets you make indicator panel lights be much brighter and more visible than you could when you used incandescent lights.

Red lights mean an emergency or urgent situation is taking place, and you need to see those lights. That means any bulb you use needs to be as bright as possible. For a small bulb, like one used for an indicator panel light, an LED offers brightness and longevity that is ideal.

Contact a supplier to learn more about LED products like the YuCo YC-22R-3.