You just told your customer about the illumination options for her new channel letter sign – neon and LED. She immediately asks “which one is better?” What is your fast answer?
Here are a few helpful items. Some of LED illumination’s potential advantages over neon are:
• LED is less fragile. Neon tubes are much more susceptible to breakage both in transit and during installation.
• LED can mean a lower utility bill for your customer. LED is a more efficient light source, and the electrical transformer is smaller.
• LED is a more focused light source. An LED module produces a “cone” of light, where neon illumination is emitted from all sides of the neon tube (this can also be a disadvantage for LED, as noted below.)
• Installation of an LED channel letter sign can be easier, as it does not always require conduit on the secondary side.
• LED is a more environmentally friendly product. Neon tubes often contain mercury.
• LED is safer to install, service and maintain. LED is typically powered by 12 volts DC, where neon is powered by 4,000 – 15,000 volts AC. The high voltages required by neon present a significantly higher electrical hazard potential.
However, with all of these differences, neon still has its place. Here is where neon illumination can be better:
• Neon illumination has a certain warm glow that many think LED has yet to match. This is particularly true for reverse and front/back lit channel letter signs. Neon’s 360 degree illumination is very easy on the eyes when used with front/back lit letters. LED’s focused “light cone” is not as good with these letter types.
• Some custom colors can be better matched with neon. If your client is concerned about a specific color match (such as a logo color), neon may be a better choice.
• Open face channel letter signs still require neon – LED is not yet a viable option.
So, the short answer to “which illumination source is better?” is that it all depends on the project at hand. LED and neon are completely different illumination sources, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. Review your client’s proposed sign project specifications prior to answering that question, keeping the above list in mind.
Neon signs, when made correctly, can last up to 15 years. LED have a life of 50,000 hours.
Finnaly and honest and realistic Neon vs. LED
Well first of all LEDS will never be an option for exposed lighting, unless the characteristics are change dramatically. Second, I believe that in the right applications neon is still a more feasible option. Bet you can’t tell LEDS put a stop to my neon wholesale business………
The main difference between LED and neon is LED’s can be manufactured at slave labor rates over seas and shipped to the US in container ships, thus taking the place of skilled craftsmen who bend neon in the US, supporting US workers and their families. Most if not all LED’s are manufactured outside of the US thus taking away good jobs in our country.
LED powered channel letters can also be bent out of “soda can” thick aluminum thus saving the manufacturer money on materials. Neon has a proven track record and has been in use for over 100 years.
Neon is much more dependable especially in the long run and it deffinantly burns brighter for a longer period of time. Is it not true that the life expectancy of a white LED ( the kind most channel letters use ) is only 10,000 hours before it starts to dim?
The point about LED using less electricity is yet to be proven. And according to NEC code, it does require conduit. as a matter of fact, UL is in the process of requiring manufacturers to supply conduit for all LED wiring within the year.
Also while it is true neon transformers are usually 4,000 to 15,000 volts, the current is only 30 milliamps. That converts to .03 amps.
And yes neon pumped with blue gas does require small amounts of mercury however this only applies to certain colors and neon can be made without mercury. Besides that, what about all the polutants that are dumped in the water and air from the unregulated factories in foreign countries where most LED’s are manufactured.
The bottom line is LED’s make it possible for a manufacturer to build a cheaper product while charging the customer just as much as a good quality set of neon powered channel letters would cost.
I have far more neon illuminated signs out there than LED, yet I have more problems with the LEDS. Other than shipping, and installation advantages, LEDs are not yet what they are cracked up to be. In ten years, a properly made tri-phosphor neon sign will still be burning brightly, and the LED guy will be paying big bucks to have new LEDs put in his sign for the second time.
LED’s are being made at such a fast pace and being toted as a replacement for all types of lighting from incandescent light bulbs to retrofitting light fixtures in an office. With approximately 35 and more growing LED manufactures and only 2 company’s that hold the world wide patents on the heat sinks and design, it is inevitable of LEDS becoming the next failure for lighting. They are being produce cheaper by the months with maybe only a small fraction of the manufacture’s producing a decent LED product. It is getting cheaper in price but also quality is getting poorer. Most sign company’s to make more money will install “cheaper” LEDs to boost their bottom line profit. It is a service end “idea” based on a simple principle that if we “brag-up” its possibilities enough and use the media outlet, a good dose of propaganda, we can sell it to anyone. LED’s have their place but it is not the ultimate replacement for neon or all lighting applications. Efficiency is still a question as well as longevity. In the field we see LED applications 2 years old going out or spotting. Major brand businesses that converted over to LED are now seeing their so called “green” profits go down the drain as some have to replace the LED’s burnt out or come to find that the original LED’s they installed are no longer available for replacement or a “newer version” is not compatible forcing them to retrofit their sign all over again. Google Cito Sign Fenway Park – read article about retrofitting the neon with LED and then the failure of the LED’s causing the sign to have to be re-done..Tell me their savings is going to be re-coup in how many years based on all the electricity their not using?
And to dispelled rumors of neon being a fire hazard or have hazardous material….LED’s are also a fire hazard. Every see a car fire? Same principle with a 12 volt electrical system. LED’s are not 100% recyclable either. LED’s are also produce in coal burning plants that are bad for the environment but labeled as a “green product.” Point is, there is good and bad with any lighting but to listen to all the claims about LED’s and the bad about NEON is non-sense. There are comparison that have been done as well. The NEON group has videos as well as EGL having information on field test of LED and NEON. Or, go out and look yourself. We send our customers out to see for themselves the comparison of LED and NEON. Not all buy NEON but most do not buy LED’s after they see for themselves. Sure it looks great brand new but in the long run it is not a good lighting source that last with minimal maintenance needed or replacement. Our Neon signs have been running 10 years plus with little or no maintenance and that is proven on record! We offer LED’s and have used them in applications that require it and only LED. From experience we learn to utilize the right product for the right application and not just a quick fix to “sell” a customer.
We\’ve found you get what you pay for. When we purchased cheap LEDs or power supplies, we got less than desired results. When we buy product manufactured by people like GE, Sloan, or US-LED we have tremendous success. The previous comments about ease of installation are true, and we never have a problem with breakage!
Let\’s face it, there are more neon installations out there than LED; nevertheless the overall positives will eventually outweigh the negatives and as time goes on and sign contractors and LED manufactures get their acts together, LED is going to eventually triumph in the marketplace.
One last comment about the 50,000 hours; that\’s the half-life guarantee concerning brightness. If the LEDs are at least 2000mcd and the string is being pushed by power supplies that are running at about 70%, your customer is going to have a good experience for a long long time. And don\’t forget that the warm colors (red, orange, amber, etc.) have a 100,000 hour half life.
Neon has proven to be so labor intensive to install, we sell LED almost exclusively these days. Especially with LED pricing coming down, and energy prices going up, it is no longer a tough sell.
Great write up. Thanks guys! I really get benefit from this blog. Keep it up.
I was glad to read all the views about LED vs Neon. We had our sign with channle letters that had LED behind about a year ago. The sign is so dim now we have no choice other than replace it. We were told GE brand is better than cheap chinese manufactured brands. Can someone tell me if we should go with Neon instead of LED since we have to replace this anyway?
Thanks,
Sue