When it comes to evacuation of a building during an emergency, led emergency exit lights play a crucial role.
If a building catches on fire, ed emergency exit lights may help people figure out where they are in the building. It can help them to get out of the building quickly and easily. There are many things, like this, that can help a person when they are in an emergency situation.
In many cases, they can become very confused, especially in a fire when they are not getting enough oxygen because of the smoke that they are inhaling. They need to do whatever it takes to get out of the building. There are many different kinds of signs, but they are not all going to offer the same thing.
When a person cannot see where they are going, they can become confused. Even though they are confused, they will be able to know that there is an exit there when they see an exit sign. This is what makes them so important.
LED exit lights are more energy efficient, they also much brighter than the other kinds of lights. Having these hooked up properly so that they can run off from the battery backup will be extremely important.
LED emergency exit lights have their own battery backup so that they do not need the generator. The size of the sign is important also. Most of them are a standard size and will be placed up above the door.
LED emergency exit lights will have emergency lights affixed to them. It is important for people to be able to see the exit of the building even though they know where it is at. There could be dangers in front of the exit door, and people need to know about them.
It is important to check the battery backups on these emergency lights and exit signs. They are going to help people exit the buildings. Every company should have a plan in place that checks the batteries on a regular basis.
They will be able to charge back up when the electric is on, and when the power goes off, they will have a certain number of hours that they will guarantee lighting for. This is something that is put in factories, office buildings, apartment buildings and more. Not only will it help the residents get out, it will help the firemen get through the building as well.
What are the Different Types of Emergency Lights?
Emergency lights are an important feature for all buildings and businesses. In the event of a sudden power outage or catastrophic event, emergency lights can switch on to provide alternative power, or help guide patrons out of the building to safety. However, there are different types of emergency lights that vary in their power and lighting sources.
Maintained - The luminaire works in exactly the same way as a standard mains version, except when the power fails, it switches to battery powered emergency output.
Non-Maintained - The luminaire only comes on in the event of a power failure as an emergency light source. The continual mains supply is only used to charge the battery.
Central Battery - This is where the battery power for emergency lighting is situated at one, central point and fed to all relevant luminaires in the event of a power failure, whether they are maintained or non-maintained. All emergency luminaires will have a charge healthy LED indicator, which shows that the battery is being charged while there is a mains feed. When the power fails, the LED will switch off and the lamp will be illuminated by the battery.
Sustained - This is where a lamp separate to the main lamp provides the emergency light source. The purpose here is to minimise any possibility of emergency lamp failure, as the ‘sustained’ lamp is only used in emergency mode. This will only be relevant on a maintained emergency luminaire.
How do you test emergency lighting?
To test an emergency lighting system, a mains power failure on the normal lighting circuit / circuits or individual luminaries must be simulated. This will force the emergency lighting system to operate via the battery supply. This test can be carried out manually or automatically.
Manual testing - A simulated mains failure can be achieved by providing a switch to isolate all lighting circuits / individual circuits / individual luminaires. If manual testing is utilised, the following points should be considered:
In a system with a single switch for the whole building or a large circuit, after simulating the mains failure it is necessary for the tester to walk the whole building or circuit, to check all emergency luminaire are operating correctly. After restoring the mains supply, the whole building or circuit must be walked again, to check that the emergency lights are recharging.
If the emergency luminaires are individually switched, only a single walk around the building will be needed. However, the test switches could spoil the decor of the building and they must be of a type that is tamper proof. After the tests, it is recommended that the performance of the system is logged in the fire safety logbook.
Automatic testing - If the costs of an engineer’s time and the disruption caused by manual testing are excessive, self-testing emergency lighting should be considered. Different formats are available to match particular site requirements. However, the results of the monthly and annual tests must still be recorded.
Discharge tests need to be undertaken outside normal working hours. In buildings that are permanently occupied, the test should be phased so only alternate luminaires are tested.
Regular servicing is essential. The occupier / owner of the premises shall appoint a competent person to supervise servicing of the system. This person shall be given sufficient authority to ensure the carrying out of any work necessary to maintain the system in correct operational mode.
Because of the possibility of a failure of the normal lighting supply occurring shortly after a period of testing of the emergency lighting system or during the subsequent recharge period, all full duration tests shall, wherever possible, be undertaken just before a time of low risk to allow for battery recharge. Alternatively, suitable temporary arrangements shall be made until the batteries have been recharged.
