How Heat Affects LED Lights

Did you know that high temperatures affect the life cycle and brightness of LEDs? Heat sinks can help keep your lights from getting too hot. Too hot means that the allowable ambient temperature of the LED is exceeded. LED lights naturally have a cooler ambient temperature, and the longer the LED runs efficiently, the longer its estimated lifespan will be, saving you money, time, and energy.

In the world of LEDs, there are two forms of heat sinks, passive and active. Passive heat sinks are larger and the concept is that the large heat sink draws heat away from the face of the LED and allows it to operate at optimum temperature. Some brands of heat sinks contain one or more fans for use in very hot areas. They both work fine. Energetic heat dinks allow for a smaller footprint. Also, they work quite efficiently inside a closed fixture, drawing air away from the face of the LED to the outside fixture, which brings the heat sink up in scale.

Heat is the worst enemy of all electronics, and the LED is no exception to this. Some products, such as LED retrofit kits, use a large fan and thermocouples mounted on the face of the driven head to mitigate heat. If the thermocouple detects heat above the desired stage, it will automatically begin dimming the LED head until the temperature drops. It will then raise brightness levels to normal ranges as soon as hot conditions are resolved. So not only can you remedy heat problems with good heat sink design, but you can also use electronics and logic to observe and protect LEDs from the damaging nature of heat.

The mechanical effects of manufacturing on LEDs

Mechanical stiffness during manufacturing, assembly, or simply handling of the LED affects the operational lifespan and worse, can destroy the LED. Beware of ESD (electrostatic discharge) which causes a short but excessive pulse to be present. ESDs can break LEDs as well as the LED driver with a couple of volts. To avoid such problems, make sure you work with a reputable company that tests all of their products for at least 24 hours. Any negative issues that occur during manufacturing should be caught during the testing period, although some manufacturers may skip this step. It is pertinent to stay away from very low cost LEDs because of this.