LED light for extreme low temperatures

by Deborah
(North West Territories, Canada)

In the north, outdoor lights need to function at temperatures of -40. I am putting up 4 motion sensitive outdoor spotlights and I would like to purchase the most energy efficient that can withstand the cold.

I'd love to go LED lighting, but they are only rated to -20C I believe (it might be F). I know the motion sensors can reduce the amount of energy use, however, I'd still like to purchase the most energy efficient type of spot rated for cold weather.

Answer from Green Energy Efficient Homes

The US Energy Star program requires LED light bulbs to meet certain specifications in order to qualify for the Energy Star logo. Since most people want to buy LED lights to get their improved energy efficiency, it makes sense for manufacturers or resellers to try to get this logo on their product as it will help with sales. One of the Energy Star requirements for LED lights is that they must have an operating temperature of -20C or below.

I am guessing that manufacturers therefore tend to test LED lights to ensure they conform to the range listed by the US Department of Energy, which runs the Energy Star program. This might explain why you only see LED lights rated as low as -20C. There may not be that big a market for LED lights rated as low as -40C (certainly not that big a market in the US, which is where many manufacturers target their goods) and it simply may not have occurred to manufacturers to test their LED lights at these much colder temperatures.

In your position I would be reluctant to spend a lot of money on LED lights that aren't specifically rated for extreme low temperatures, but it might be of interest to buy one such light and see how it fares compared with an incandescent light. (A fluorescent light is definitely not an option at those temperatures - even in balmy Toronto where I live, fluorescent lights have trouble lighting up when it gets below about -10C!)

Sorry I can't offer a pointer to the lights you're looking for - but if you do find such a light, or decide to experiment on your own, please let us know by commenting back to this page!

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