To achieve Title 24 compliance, regulations to practically all mechanical, electrical, and architectural aspects of residential and non-residential building must be met.
Lighting is no exception. In fact, construction – whether it’s for new structure or to retrofit existing ones – are required to include energy-efficient lighting.
In this issue, the MEP consulting engineers at K2D will discuss what is needed to be in compliance with lighting systems.
How Much Lighting Can I have?
The short answer is that it depends upon the type of structure and space you’re talking about.
If the structure is more than 10,000-square-feet, you’ll need lighting controls that decrease the energy needed by at least 15%.
What Lighting Controls are Required to be Title 24 compliant?
For areas that have ceiling-high partitions- manual on/off switches are required to be in the same room.
For non-residential structures, occupancy sensors – or motion detectors that activate lighting when someone is present in the room – are required. The sensors are required to be automatic and programmable so that the lighting load is adjustable.
What about Outdoor Lighting?
Under Title 24, all lighting that is attached to a structure must have ON and OFF control switches. These can be augmented by motion sensors, automatic controls that turn off after a certain amount of time, or an automatic controller that turns the light off once daylight hours begin.
A key factor to remember is that the ON/OFF switches cannot override any of the automatic sensors.
Does this Really Conserve Energy?
It sure does. It conserves energy and saves Californians money.
In fact, the California Energy Commission states that the energy efficiency standards have “saved Californians in excess of $74 billion since 1977 in reduced power bills”.
For Further Information about Becoming Title 24 compliant, contact the Professionals at K2D
The professional mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineers at K2D provide energy conservation services to California, Arizona, Washington, Colorado, and Nevada.
We’ve got answers to all of your Title 24 compliance questions. For further information or to schedule a consultation please call K2D at 310.935.3773 or get in touch with us via email.