Demand for the electric cars has been on upward trend over the last few years. However, manufacturers and car owners still face a challenge due to the limited battery capacity which necessitates the need to keep on recharging after traveling a certain distance.

Despite the benefits of charging the electric cars at home, most residential installations, especially the older ones, may not support the systems. But the consumers can upgrade these to accommodate the additional load. The upgrade depends on the existing wiring, panel, capacity and charging station power requirements.

electrical wiring and capacity, and the charger voltage and level. The electric car owner must first decide on the preferred type of charger and time, and then compare its power requirements with the existing capacity at home.

Some chargers require 120V while others work on 240V and each takes different times to fully charge the batteries.  Higher voltages will require dedicated circuits and upgraded wiring, breakers, panel and service entrance.

Other upgrades include the price plan, metering, and compatible outlets or provision for hard-wiring. If you are installing a DC charging is very fast; it uses about 400-volt direct current and is capable of reaching full charge in about 15 minutes. This is a complicated method and may require significant upgrades in the home electrical system. It is also very expensive and rarely used for home charging.

upgrade your wiring or install the product if you system capacity can support it.

It is essential to ensure that the electrical panel and dedicated circuit have the capacity to handle the system. The installation of the charging station is similar to other high power equipment, such as clothes dryer, and should comply with all the electrical codes and requirements.

Each charging station should be on its own dedicated circuit with adequate capacity and protection. However, the it can still be connected to an existing 40 Amp circuit, such as the one for the kitchen, provided that there is a locking mechanism to ensure that only one load is connected at a time.

Charge stations may be hardwired or plug-equipped to connect to the electrical outlet. For the plug type charger, you will need to have an electrician to wire the compatible electrical receptacle according to the codes.

You may add ventilation to improve the cooling of the charge station if it is in a location with poor air circulation.

Charging electric cars at home is the desire of the majority of EV owners. It cuts down on the cost and time to drive and wait at a public charge station. In addition, it does not interfere with the daily activities of the electric car owners since they can charge at night.

Unfortunately, there are several homes without the provision or capacity to support the charging stations. However, the EV owners can consult the car dealers, and then engage qualified electricians in upgrading the existing electrical wiring. This will enable them to conveniently charge at home.

Once someone has discovered retrofitting as a read that by clicking here.

Let’s get started with the first question on the list, and that is what exactly is a retrofit kit?

What is a retrofit kit anyways? Well, we’ve actually reducing your energy consumption even more. Just make sure you are buying a LED retrofit kit that has the option to be dimmable, otherwise you will NOT be able to dim them.

Retrofit vs full replacement, why should you consider retrofitting with LED?

While a full replacement of an entire is fixture is very valid to do especially when they are outdated or literally falling apart; often times you can avoid that by retrofitting your fixtures. With retrofitting you get to keep your old fixture but just replace the light source in it with a new one. This will allow you to reduce the costs associated with the lighting upgrade tremendously, which will allow you to realize a much larger ROI.

Although there are benefits of both, you need to think about your facility or buildings own situation, and go from there. To recap; retrofitting is great if you can keep your old fixtures but if you can’t (due to reasons like outdated or near falling apart), then a full replacement is probably the better option.

For more info, check out this infographic (

Why should I even switch to LED in the first place?

Very good question, and this not only applies to those retrofitting but for any facility that plans to make a lighting system update. LED technology has vast benefits in almost every area of the definition “quality” for commercial lighting purposes. Here are just a few of the major benefits that more often than not win over businesses to commit to the conversion over to LED technology:

As you can see these are all some pretty big benefits, and that’s only the start. These reasons are why many companies are making the conversion over to LED products from other outdated technologies such as metal halide, HPS, and even fluorescent. Why not convert to LED with a retrofit LED kit and realize all of these benefits and more? It just makes sense!

Is it difficult to retrofit an existing light fixture?

Well, that can depend. To someone who has no knowledge about lighting fixtures and electrical wiring, then yes this will seem like an extremely difficult task. On the other hand for someone who is a professional, this isn’t a difficult task at all.

The process, in theory, is simple because all it consists of (for the most part) is a replacement of all the existing lamps, ballasts, sockets, and brackets with new ones to fit your retrofit kits. If you have no experience doing this, and even if you do, it is always recommended to bring in a licensed electrician if you can to ensure it is done right and to safety standards.

Are LED retrofits that are compatible with existing ballasts a good idea?

You need to consider the age of the ballast that is currently installed. In most cases, it will be nearing the end of it’s life and thus it won’t be the most up-to-date ballast that you could have. This adds for an additional point of failure, which could cost you more down the line in maintenance fees to replace them when they die out.

You have to consider that since you are considering the switch over to LEDs through retrofitting, you most likely haven’t recently upgraded you lighting system or replaced much. This means that the ballasts currently installed are most likely, at best, as old as the lights in your fixtures currently. But more often or not, they are even older than that which can definitely mean they are nearing the end of their lifespan.

Taking this all into account, it’s impossible to tell you if using existing ballasts is a contact us. We will gladly answer any question you may have!

National Boss Day was first proposed in 1958 by Patricia Bays Haroski, an employee at State Farm Insurance Company, who registered the holiday with the United States Chamber of Commerce. Haroski chose October 16th, her father’s birthday, as a day to express appreciation for bosses and promote good relationships between employees and supervisors.

Today, National Boss Day is celebrated in the United States and in other countries, including Australia, India, and South Africa.

In honor of National Boss Day, Capitol Lighting is offering promotional pricing home and office lighting.  And, Capitol Lighting’s consultants will provide expert advice to help you design the most efficient and effective work environment with beautiful Hubbardton Forge lighting pieces.

Think about it:  You spend a majority of your waking hours at the office; doesn’t it make sense to invest in a great lighting design to increase job satisfaction and productivity?  More than creating a pleasant atmosphere, top quality office lighting will increase accuracy of performance, minimize fatigue and eye strain, and be both energy-efficient and environmentally friendly.

The key to great office lighting is to provide plentiful illumination, while eliminating glare and shadows.

Capitol Lighting Reveals the Glaring Truth and Offers Tips to Being the Boss of Your Office Lighting Environment

When designing office lighting, you must first understand the glaring truth.

Capitol Lighting’s 5 Keys to Successful Office Lighting Illumination:

Light Up the Boss with Capitol Illumination!

“By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be the boss and work twelve hours a day. – Robert Frost

October 16th is National Boss Day, and Capitol Lighting would like to celebrate the best working relationships with promotional pricing on the latest illuminations.  Show your appreciation and shower your boss with the latest lighting innovations and decorative accessories to add style and sophistication to the workplace.

Enjoy excellent promotional values on famous designer lighting and accessories, including new concepts from Hubbardton Forge lighting:

-The “After Hours” collection: Employing energy-efficient fluorescent illumination, these sconces, wall lights, and mini pendants are available in a choice of finishes with opal or stone glass.

-The “Current” collection:  Simplistic, yet stunningly captivating, this 4-light single tier chandelier is available in 6 different finishes and 4 glass options.

-The “Metamorphic” collection:  Adjustable base table lamps available in 5 finishes.  Complete and customize your design with a variety of outstanding shade options.

-The “Reflections” collection:  Wall sconces available in many finish and glass options to provide beautifying accent illumination.

-The “Rook” collection:  Mirrors, floor lamps and table lamps in a variety of finishes including black, natural iron, burnished steel and mahogany.  Lamps are Energy Smart to provide the most energy-efficient illumination.

-The “Taper” collection-Traditional torchiere lamp bases in choice finishes.  Uniquely designed glass shades are available in an array of colors including topaz, blue haze and amber art.

-The “Down Willow” collection:  Rustic desk and floor lamps featuring a naturally clean design in choice finishes.  Elegant shade options include textures and colors in doeskin, white linen, tea crinkle, black parchment and sage.

Often overlooked and underestimated in its power, superior office lighting creates an optimal work environment. Visit a Capitol Lighting showroom to view the latest innovations for home and office.  Surprise your boss with outstanding illumination.  Desk lamps, floor lamps and mirrors are on sale now, and office lighting experts at Capitol will help custom design the perfect gift!

Where we live, power outages are all too common, and it’s not a problem you should have to just wait out. Many people in our neighborhood have portable generators to keep some parts of the home powered on during a short outage.

However, a portable generator is tedious to refill and hook up. Nothing beats the peace of mind, efficiency, and ease-of-use that comes with owning a whole-house generator. Here’s what you should know about this type of system.

Many homeowners still have portable generators, or else they have generators designed for use with several appliances and systems at once, but without an automatic transfer switch. It’s possible to upgrade many generators to have a transfer switch, and they come standard with an automatic standby generator.

The transfer switch monitors the power in your home. When your home no longer has an electrical current running into it, the transfer switch kicks in within seconds.

Some generators run on diesel or propane, which means you need to refill it from time to time. It could stop working unexpectedly, and the tank for these generators is quite bulky. We always recommend natural gas automatic standby generators, which use the gas lines already on your property.

Finally, you should keep in mind that your generator will not work perfectly forever. Luckily, today’s generators have self-testing features that alert you to problems before you need backup power. Still, it’s important to have regular maintenance to prevent your automatic standby generator from breaking down suddenly in the middle of a winter storm.

Call qualified technicians for routine generator maintenance on a regular schedule. You can work out a plan with your technician to make sure that everything runs as smoothly as possible, even after the lights go out.