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American The textile industry History Vi...

Lighting — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 04:13:50 +0200

The textile industry was brought to America in the 19th century from England. But the apparel industry is an American creation at the turn of the 20th century in the Greater Boston area by Jewish tailors, who engineered dressmaker patterns into patterns for mass production . Prior to their efforts, in the 19th century, garments were made individually for each woman by dressmakers who went to each woman’s home. These Jewish tailors became aware of some commonalty in the shaping, fitting and making of garments, and production pattern making was born, one pattern to fit more than one woman. They developed a mathematical sizing system to accommodate most women with very few patterns. As businessmen, interested in lowering costs, they continued developing these patterns to become paper “information systems” engineered to control quantities of exact reproductions in cutting and stitching clothing in mass production systems.

The apparel industry grew from these tailors/businessmen, as they built manufacturing factories for production, which pattern engineering accommodated. The chart above was drawn for my National Science Foundation grant report, 1991, “A 3D-4D Computerized Model for Human-Machine Integration in Apparel Manufacturing Engineering”, to show the “Fragmentation of Designer and Maker Skills, Distancing Them Further and Further from the Consumer”. Pattern engineering grew a great industry in the early and mid-20th century. But, by the end of the century, our great American apparel manufacturing industry began to fade. My personal belief is that it was much less, going south and then overseas for production, and rather these “old hat” manufacturers inability to change. They were stuck on both style and production sameness, the foundation of mass production, in order to keep costs low. As a result, they never knew, nor listened to consumers for any of their needs, and consumers are less satisfied. My grants researched ways to do “mass-produced” custom (and later “mass-customization”), computer technologies that could make consumers an integral part of a “future fashion apparel industry system”. Unfortunately, I was ahead of my time in the early 90s, and even the apparel industry’s CAD-CAM vendors, took parts of my ideas, but they too, were unwilling to change. (Perhaps I will tell some interesting stories about these vendors, later.)

Pattern making was first taught to “apprentices” who were called “designers” in the Boston area. Creative designers of styles in America didn’t exist in the early 20th century. Americans were “copyists” or interpreters of the creative ideas coming from Paris ever since the 18th century. Later some designers created booklets for teaching these systems mathematically – that came to be called “pattern drafting”. In the 1940s, when 16, I was old enough to work in these factories as a stitcher on sportswear, and met some of these pattern designers, whose information was passed to them by the old apprenticeship system. I also learned first hand about mass production systems that made America, and Boston area specifically, so famous for quality/quantity production – a system that in the second half of the century we taught to the rest of the world. (Another story later of my experiences in the 1960s that validates this.)

It was in the 1950’s, graduating from college and working in the design rooms of New York, that I learned a sad truth about fashion schools and colleges. Teachers were primarily “dressmakers” and emulated the Paris couture system – and they taught this to other teachers, becoming a narrowing circle of knowledge and experience. So, an even more extreme distancing from the consumer was taking place in the education of young designers for the industry. All workers hired in design rooms were taught in these schools, not as an apprentice in manufacturing, experience that taught critical production knowledge. I easily excelled way beyond them with a technical pattern expertise learned from my own experiments as a teenager coupled with the knowledge of stitching in production. Creators of high fashion styles today make “First Patterns”, which they spend endless time redoing for quality, but never preparing for production. While creating high fashion styles my First Patterns were “Engineered Patterns” to immediately reproduce creations into ready made garments for cost-effective manufacturing. A positive effect from these fashion schools is that America began producing more creative designers, but the negative effect is an ever widening gap between creative design and pattern engineering. (Click the “Wall Between Design and Manufacturing”) By combining great creativity with unequaled technical expertise, I became extremely successful as a designer and manufacturer of high quality designer clothing at low cost, selling nationally to all the top retailers from the 1960s to the early 1980s. . One driving point I continue to make in my grants and to students is that decisions of marketing and production, costs and quality must be made at the “Point of Design”

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Western Apparel

Lighting — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 04:11:01 +0200

Western wear has undergone many changes since the days of the open range, cattle drives, and outlaws. The apparel of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and the James Brothers is drastically different than most of today’s western fashions, but led the way to the western apparel we know today. The cowboy way reigned supreme throughout America until the early 1900s. The west was settled, the population booming, and Americans were looking for new fashion choices as they adapted to new ways of life.

Western apparel got its start as did the cowboys after the American Civil War. Texas ranchers had to find a market for their large excess of beef cattle. Meanwhile, on the east coast beef was in short supply. Thus, the ranchers drove their cattle north to the nearest railroads in Kansas. Mexican vaqueros and American men fleeing the law also made up a large number of cowboys roaming the untamed west.

The attire of these early cowboys was usually very plain and simple. Full length canvas trousers were tucked inside of cowboy boots, allowing the cowboy to ride several rough trails before his jeans wore out. Shirts of the early cowboy were usually cotton or wool, sometimes with simple pin striping, and had no collar. These shirts pull-overs with buttons running only partly down the front of the shirt. A bandana was used to protect the cowboy’s neck and from the elements while riding the trail. A cowboy’s hat was used for everything from protecting him from the sun, to providing him with something to drink out of.

The early days of Hollywood revived the old west spirit, the cowboy way of life, and sparked new interest in western wear across the nation. Gene Autry, John Wayne, and Roy Rogers lit up movie screens and television sets everywhere dressed in western apparel. Western wear was prominent in American pop culture until its decline in the 1970s. Western apparel popularized by this era included ten-gallon hats, fashionable cowboy boots and jeans, as well as collared shirts featuring designs and patterns.

Nashville’s country music has kept the nation’s interest in the western way of life, and its artists have heavily influenced the western wear of today. Sand-blasted jeans, distressed leather, and ultra-casual dress have become the frontier in modern western apparel; however, classic western wear is still commonplace in American culture.

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Short History of Ready-Made Clothing

Lighting — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 04:07:42 +0200

Before the American Civil War, ready-made (also called ready-to-wear) apparel existed but its variety was limited. Mainly coats and jackets (known as outerwear) and undergarments were purchased using predetermined sizes. Most clothing was made by tailors or by individuals or their family members at home.

The Civil War was a pivotal event in the historical development of men's ready-made clothing. At the outset of the Civil War, most uniforms were custom-made in workers' homes under government contract. As the war continued, however, manufacturers started to build factories that could quickly and efficiently meet the growing demands of the military. Mass production of uniforms necessitated the development of standard sizes. Measurements taken of the soldiers revealed that certain sets of measurements tended to recur with predictable regularity. After the war, these military measurements were used to create the first commercial sizing scales for men.

The mass production of women's clothing developed more slowly. Women's outfits generally continued to be custom-made well into the 1920s. In that decade, factors such as the development of industrial production techniques, the rise of the advertising industry, the growth of an urban professional class, and the development of national markets accessed through chain stores and mail order catalogs, contributed to the success of the women's ready-made apparel industry. Ready-made articles of clothing were portrayed as modern and fashionable during a time when the new consumer industries were rapidly redefining the way Americans viewed mass-manufactured goods. Instead of seeing the purchase of mass-produced clothing as entailing a loss of individuality, American women began to accept the pieces of ready-made merchandise as convenient, affordable, and up-to-date fashion items that could be replaced easily as styles changed.

Mary Schenck Woolman, Clothing: Choice, Care, Cost (Philadelphia,
London, etc.: J.B. Lippincott, 1920).

However, the new ready-made clothing often fit poorly. Each manufacturer created its own unique and sometimes arbitrary sizing system based on inaccurate body data or no body data at all. Garments of widely different dimensions were frequently labeled the same size by different manufacturers. This situation resulted in additional costs for alterations and large volumes of returned merchandise. This, in turn, increased costs for the consumer of ready-to-wear clothing.

In 1937, the U.S. Department of Agriculture prepared to conduct a study of women's body measurements for the purpose of creating a sizing system which the entire industry could follow.
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Human cloth history

Lighting — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 04:03:54 +0200

Clothing (also called clothes, accoutrements, accouterments, or habiliments) protects the human body from extreme weather and other features of the environment. It is worn for safety, comfort,modesty and to reflect religious, cultural and social meaning.

The practical function of clothing is to protect the human body from dangers in the environment: weather (strong sunlight, extreme heat or cold, and precipitation, for example), insects, noxious chemicals, weapons, and contact with abrasive substances, and other hazards. Clothing can protect against many things that might injure the naked human body. In some cases clothing protects the environment from the clothing wearer as well (example: medical scrubs).

Humans have shown extreme inventiveness in devising clothing solutions to practical problems and the distinction between clothing and other protective equipment is not always clear-cut; examples include space suit, air conditioned clothing, armour, diving suit, swimsuit, bee-keeper's costume, motorcycle leathers, high-visibility clothing, and protective clothing.

People also decorate their bodies with makeup or cosmetics, scented perfume, and other ornamentation; they also cut, dye, and arrange the hair on their heads, faces, and bodies (see hairstyle), and sometimes also mark their skin (by tattoos, scarifications, and piercings). All these decorations contribute to the overall effect and message of clothing, but do not constitute clothing.

Articles carried rather than worn (such as purses, canes, and umbrellas) are normally counted as fashion accessories rather than as clothing, but hats and small dress sweaters can be called clothing or accessories. Jewellery and eyeglasses are usually counted as accessories as well, even though in common speech these particular items are described as being worn rather than carried.

In history there have been many societies where it was considered socially acceptable to be naked. In the modern world most cultures find it socially unacceptable to walk around in public without clothes.

Contents [hide]
1 Origin and history of clothing
2 Social status
3 Marital status
4 Religious habits and special religious clothing
5 Sport and activity
6 Clothing materials
7 Clothing maintenance
7.1 Laundry, ironing, storage
7.2 Mending
8 The life cycle of clothing
9 Early 21st-century clothing styles
9.1 Regional styles
10 Political issues
10.1 Working conditions
10.2 Fur
11 See also
12 References
13 External links

Origin and history of clothing
Main article: History of clothing

A Neanderthal clothed in fur
A rave style, 2007According to archaeologists and anthropologists, the earliest clothing probably consisted of fur, leather, leaves or grass, draped, wrapped or tied about the body for protection from the elements. Knowledge of such clothing remains inferential, since clothing materials deteriorate quickly compared to stone, bone, shell and metal artifacts. Archeologists have identified very early sewing needles of bone and ivory from about 30,000 BC, found near Kostenki, Russia in 1988.

Ralf Kittler, Manfred Kayser and Mark Stoneking, anthropologists at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, have conducted a genetic analysis of human body lice that indicates that they originated about 107,000 years ago. Since most humans have very sparse body hair, body lice require clothing to survive, so this suggests a surprisingly recent date for the invention of clothing. Its invention may have coincided with the spread of modern Homo sapiens from the warm climate of Africa, thought to have begun between 50,000 and 100,000 years ago. However, a second group of researchers used similar genetic methods to estimate that body lice originated about 540,000 years ago (Reed et al. 2004. PLoS Biology 2(11): e340). For now, the date of the origin of clothing remains unresolved.

Some human cultures, such as the various peoples of the Arctic Circle, until recently made their clothing entirely of furs and skins, cutting clothing to fit and decorating lavishly.

Other cultures have supplemented or replaced leather and skins with cloth: woven, knitted, or twined from various animal and vegetable fibres.

See also: weaving, knitting, and twining
Although modern consumers take clothing for granted, making the fabrics that go into clothing is not easy. One sign of this is that the textile industry was the first to be mechanized during the Industrial Revolution; before the invention of the powered loom, textile production was a tedious and labor-intensive process. Therefore, methods were developed for making most efficient use of textiles.

One approach simply involves draping the cloth. Many peoples wore, and still wear, garments consisting of rectangles of cloth wrapped to fit — for example, the dhoti for men and the saree for women in the Indian subcontinent, the Scottish kilt or the Javanese sarong. The clothes may simply be tied up, as is the case of the first two garments; or pins or belts hold the garments in place, as in the case of the latter two. The precious cloth remains uncut, and people of various sizes or the same person at different sizes can wear the garment.

Another approach involves cutting and sewing the cloth, but using every bit of the cloth rectangle in constructing the clothing. The tailor may cut triangular pieces from one corner of the cloth, and then add them elsewhere as gussets. Traditional European patterns for men's shirts and women's chemises take this approach.

Modern European fashion treats cloth much more prodigally, typically cutting in such a way as to leave various odd-shaped cloth remnants. Industrial sewing operations sell these as waste; home sewers may turn them into quilts.

In the thousands of years that humans have spent constructing clothing, they have created an astonishing array of styles, many of which we can reconstruct from surviving garments, photos, paintings, mosaics, etc., as well as from written descriptions. Costume history serves as a source of inspiration to current fashion designers, as well as a topic of professional interest to costumers constructing for plays, films, television, and historical reenactment.

See also: History of Western fashion and :Category:History of clothing

Social status

Alim Khan's bemedaled robe is a social messageIn many societies, people of high rank reserve special items of clothing or decoration for themselves as symbols of their social status. In ancient times, only Roman senators could wear garments dyed with Tyrian purple; only high-ranking Hawaiian chiefs could wear feather cloaks and palaoa or carved whale teeth. Under the Travancore kingdom of Kerala (India), lower caste women had to pay a tax for the right to cover their upper body. In China before the establishment of the republic, only the emperor could wear yellow. In many cases throughout history, there have been elaborate systems of sumptuary laws regulating who could wear what. In other societies (including most modern societies) no laws prohibit lower-status people wearing high status garments, but the high cost of status garments effectively limits their purchase and display. In current Western society, only the rich can afford haute couture. The threat of social ostracism may also limit garment choice. If one is not wearing a specific brand or style of clothing one's social status may fall.

Marital status
See also: Visual markers of marital status
Traditionally Hindu women, once married, would wear sindoor, a red powder, in the parting of their hair. If widowed, they would abandon sindoor and jewelry and wear simple white clothing. Men and women of the Western world may wear wedding rings to indicate their marital status. Also women in the United States, depending on their heritage and/or religion, will usually wear a simple or extravagant white gown, although some movie stars have been known to wear a black party dress for their wedding.

Religious habits and special religious clothing
Religious clothing might be considered a special case of occupational clothing. Sometimes it is worn only during the performance of religious ceremonies. However, it may also be worn everyday as a marker for special religious status.

For example, Jains wear unstitched cloth pieces when performing religious ceremonies. The unstitched cloth signifies unified and complete devotion to the task at hand, with no digression.

The cleanliness of religious dresses in Eastern Religions like Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism is of paramount importance, which indicates purity.

Clothing figures in prominently in the Bible where it appears in numerous contexts, the more prominent ones being: the story of Adam and Eve, Joseph's cloak, Judah and Tamar, Mordechai and Esther. Furthermore the priests officiating in the Temple had very specific garments, the lack of which would make one liable to death.

Jewish ritual also requires rending of one's upper garment as a sign of mourning. This practice is found in the Bible when Jacob hears of the apparent death of his son Joseph.[1]

A Brief History of Tennis Apparel at Wim...

Lighting — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 03:59:41 +0200

In the 127-year history of Wimbledon, the tennis apparel worn by tennis players has changed drastically. The first women to play in the tournament wore full-length dresses as their tennis apparel.

The men's fashion included full-length pants until 1946. Now, players like Serena Williams are making fashion statement everytime they step on to the court with tight-fitting body suits or exotic colored two-piece outfits as their signature tennis apparel.

Women’s designer tennis apparel is now commonplace, especially at Wimbledon, which has been the stage for tennis fashion for longer than realized by most people. Women first began to play tennis in the 1860s. At that time, a heavy material, like flannel or serge, was deemed suitable to wear on the courts. Their tennis apparel included a bustle and sometimes a fur. But that was all changed. In 1884, when Maud Watson won the first Wimbledon Ladies' Championship, white tennis apparel had become the most popular. Why? It was simple - sweat. When the trussed-up ladies of the 1890s played in earnest, they wore white because colors revealed sweat stains. This was the start of the tennis whites, which prevailed as acceptable tennis apparel for many decades.

Although white at that time was still confined to constricting bustled two-piece tennis apparel, many times with a male straw boater. When Lottie Dod won Wimbledon, she wore calf-length skirts. But she only got away with it because they were part of her school uniform.

May Sutton, in 1905 won at Wimbledon wearing one of her father's shirts. She claimed it provided extra freedom of movement. Imagine the stir she caused by revealing her wrists after rolling back the cuffs. She had complained that the sleeves on her dress were “too long and too hot.”

Between 1903 and 1914, women's tennis apparel eliminated the scene hats and bustles. Dorothea Lambert Chambers, Wimbledon’s seven times champion during this time wore two or three stiff petticoats, as well as corsets with her tennis apparel.

In 1919, the first Wimbledon to be staged after the First World War, tennis apparel was changed by Suzanne Lenglen. She wore a flimsy and revealing calf-length cotton frock with short sleeves and delivered women from the corsets on the court. Ms. Lenglen changed her tennis apparel even more. She added several yards of colored silk chiffon, shiny white stockings that were rolled to her knees, and a headband. She created quite a stir on the court with her new tennis apparel.

The next woman to dominate Wimbledon for 14 years before the Second World II was Helen Wills Moody. She made the golf-style eyeshade a fashionable addition to tennis apparel and also wore the familiar school-type white blouse and pleated skirt. On cool days, she stopped her tennis apparel with a lambswool cardigan.

The late 1930s brought the end of the stockings. Tennis apparel became more masculine with the change to tailored flannel shorts and crewneck T-shirts. The men at this time made a change to their own tennis outfits by eliminating their flannels in favor of shorts.

The postwar Wimbledon years began with women wearing sensible clothing which made playing tennis easier. The tennis apparel became a combination of short-sleeved shirts, skirts or shorts and topped by jockey caps. Nothing created more of a stir than when Gertrude Moran played in the 1949 Championships. She wore a regulation white dress trimmed with white satin. Beneath this was a pair of lace trimmed panties. This was the start of the daring fashion statements of tennis apparel that have graced Wimbledon since that time.

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More important of Green Apparel

Lighting — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 03:56:00 +0200

Two thousand seven was a banner year for the green apparel industry, according to a new report from Packaged Facts, International Market for Sustainable Appare. Green apparel represents only $3 billion, a small portion of the overall $450 billion global market, but is expected to grow significantly in coming years.
Growth in this market will partly be contingent on responsible supply management for organic cotton and other fibers.
Organic cotton is the most established and widely used material in the category and accounts for about two-thirds of sales. Wal-Mart/Sam's Club is the world's largest purchaser of organic cotton fiber and is therefore a significant player in the sustainable apparel market. Many new sustainable fabrics are being introduced as designers experiment with organic wool, organic linen, bamboo, some types of silk and synthetics made from soy, corn, and recycled plastics.
"The organic apparel trend can clearly be seen at the consumer and retail level in the growing number of designers, manufacturers, and marketers making sustainable claims," notes Elaine Lipson, industry expert and author of the report. "New sustainable apparel programs are being introduced from major brands, such as Banana Republic and GUESS. Also, JCPenney has instituted a program of several degrees of sustainable labeling for a number of its private brand products, including clothing."

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Fuel lanterns and lamps come in all shap...

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:12:22 +0200

Fuel lanterns and lamps come in all shapes and sizes and can range from around 15 to

hundreds of dollars. There are lanterns that run on propane gas, unleaded petrol, paraffin

and lamp oils, kerosene and camping fuels such as Shelite and Coleman Fuels. Be sure to

always carry enough fuels and also the right tools and spares for your type of lantern,

which may include: spare mantles, wicks, cleaning equipment and tools to clear the jets for

gas appliances.
Wick Lamps
Also known as an ‘oil lamp’ is a simple type of kerosene lamp which works in much the same

way as a candle. The wick, which is normally made of cotton, absorbs the kerosene and when

lit, burns and produces a yellowy flame. As the kerosene is burnt, capillary action inside

the wick draws more kerosene up from the fuel tank to be burnt. These traditional lanterns

are commonly made of wrought iron or bamboo and are usually found in hardware stores.

Pure Paraffin Oil
This oil is known to be the cleanest burning fuel suitable for wick lamps. Unfortunately for

the consumer, due to additional refining, this fuel proves to be one of the most expensive.

The flame produced by this odourless fuel is not as bright as with other fuels and may

damage some lamps due to the ignition temperature being higher than other lamp oils such as

kerosene.

Generic Lamp Oil
This can be found in supermarkets or hardware shops and it costs less than pure paraffin

oil. Although lamp oil may cost more than kerosene, this oil burns much cleaner and emits

fewer odours.

Kerosene
Kero is a much cheaper alternative, especially when it is bought in bulk. This fuel contains

more impurities such as sulphur and aromatic hydrocarbons than lamp oil and the odours

produced by burning kerosene in wick lamps can be quite objectionable indoors.

HID Lights known as High Intensity Disch...

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:08:38 +0200

These lights, also known as High Intensity Discharge lights are typically used for lighting

outdoor spaces such as sporting grounds and streets. The technology replaces the filament of

an ordinary light bulb with a metal vapour gas. The light is emitted from an arc discharge

between two closely spaced electrodes, which is sealed inside a quartz glass tube. The light

produced is greater than a standard halogen bulb, while consuming less power, and more

closely approximating the colour temperature of natural daylight. While the exterior of

these lamps are quite rugged, the HID bulb itself is quite fragile and can be expensive to

replace.

A 10 watt HID torch can beam an impressive 450 lumens, which is about as bright as a 50 watt

Halogen bulb. It also emits a lot of Ultra Violet light so it would be a word of warning not

to look at the beam. With variations of these torches commonly used in diving, you will find

they are generally quite expensive and consequently not yet commonly used in camping

products.

Halogen spotlights have very long, brigh...

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:05:04 +0200

Halogen lights are similar to an incandescent bulb, except the tungsten filament is sealed

into a small envelope filled with a halogen gas such as iodine or bromine. The problem with

ordinary incandescent filaments was its relatively short life. This early failure was due to

the tungsten filament burning hotter and thus decaying faster at the thinnest areas. In

Halogen bulbs, the lamp creates a recycling action in which the decaying and evaporating

tungsten redeposits back onto these hotter and thinner spots. Halogen lights can therefore

last up to two to three times longer than ordinary incandescent bulbs and they can also run

at much higher temperatures. Halogen worklights and torches give off a brilliant white light

and are often waterproof and dustproof. A halogen bulb is often 10 to 20 percent more

efficient than an ordinary incandescent bulb of similar voltage, wattage, and life

expectancy. This will allow a 60 watt bulb to provide nearly as much light as a non-halogen

100 watt bulb.

Good quality, high intensity spotlights typically use halogen globes and are ideal for

wildlife spotting. Halogen spotlights have very long, bright beams due to the light being

backed up by large silver mirrored reflectors.

LED Lights is very useful in camping

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:00:19 +0200

An LED, which stands for Light Emitting Diode, appears to be a tiny ordinary light bulb, but

in fact it’s not at all. They are tiny semiconductors encapsulated in plastic and when

power is applied, are stimulated by the movement of electrons. This in turn creates photons

which is the light that’s visible to humans. LEDs are much brighter and are claimed to have

a lifespan of over 10 years of continuous use. LED lights such as LED torches are generally

made up of a cluster of LEDs that help focus the light in a narrow beam.
Some torches can have more than 100 LEDs and can run off 4 AA batteries. A typical LED light

delivers less light than a CFL, however they draw considerably less power. With

technological advances, LED lights are now becoming brighter and much more affordable. The

great thing about LEDs is that they are geared for harsh environments. They can adequately

function from -40 degrees to 82 degrees Celcius and there is no delay or ‘warm up’ time.

Another advantage, especially when you’re out in the bush is that most insects are not

attracted to LEDs. This is because most insects and bugs cannot see the spectrum of light

that LEDs produce. The latest in high-powered LED torches use between 1 watt and 5 watt

single Luxeon LEDs and are up to a staggering 60 times brighter then standard LEDs. These

white LEDs have a rated life of around 500 hours (i.e. they will have a light output of 90%

of original after 500 hours, depending on their operating temperature) and are aimed at the

portable and emergency lighting market.

All in all, LED lights are great for camping as they do not consume much energy. Using solar

powered LED torches and head lamps are a very cheap, effective and popular solution among

campers. They provide adequate lighting to do most tasks at night and are also great for

kids.

how to buy Compact Fluorescent Lights

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:48:22 +0200

Compact Fluorescent Lights, also known as CFLs are great for lighting a large area and they

use less energy than incandescent lights. The reason is because CFLs do not waste energy on

heat such as incandescent bulbs and therefore lasts much longer. For example, a typical 15

watt bulb is 4 to 6 times more efficient and produces the same amount of light as a 60 watt

incandescent bulb. CFLs have U-shaped or spiral tubes and plug in like a standard lamp.
They are easier to pack and are less likely to be broken because they are a lot smaller than

the older style long-tube fluorescent lights and much stronger than incandescent lights. The

newer CFLs give a warm, inviting light instead of the ‘cool light’ light of the older

fluorescents and the new electronically ballasted CFLs don’t flicker or hum.

240 volt AC CFLs can be used up to 45 watts, when powered by a generator or an inverter

running off the car or trailer battery.

12 volt DC CFLs are available up to 20 watts. A 10 watt CFL can last up to four hours when

vehicle mounted battery. Obviously running this light off the vehicle battery may drain your

starting battery, so either fit a second auxiliary battery or use a 12 volt remote portable

power unit.

Some CFL lanterns are rechargeable and some are available with dual-mode, 12 volt / 240 volt

settings, which can be very practical for campers. They also don't attract insects and bugs,

which make them a great cooking lantern or table light at mealtimes.

how to use Incandescent Lights

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:44:11 +0200

A normal incandescent light contains a double-wound tungsten filament inside a gas-filled

glass bulb. Tungsten wire is used because it tolerates these enormous temperatures without

melting or losing atoms from its surface. The problem with these lights is around 90% of the

energy that is consumed is released in the form of heat while only 10% is converted to

visible light. Therefore, these lights run hotter, burn out faster, and use much more

electricity for the same brightness. Apart from being very uneconomical, the heat released

will add another sense of discomfort in the hotter climates. The only advantages these

lights have today is they are extremely cheap and create a softer light, which makes them a

popular choice for home lighting. These lights are rarely used for camp lights as they

consume too much energy and also being fragile, are easily broken.

Camping Lights Overview--outdoor life

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:39:46 +0200

Camping Lights Overview Technology has come a long way since the days of old, when the only lighting choices you had, were using either candles or hurricane lamps. These days, the choices are broad, giving you lighting that is; brighter, windproof, waterproof, safer, cooler and using a variety of power systems such as renewable energy. When it comes to camping, a well planned lighting system will not only improve the quality and comfort for campers, it will also make the campsite much safer. The first step is to look at your own setup and the setup of others going on the trip. Consider the areas that may need light, such as around a caravan or camper trailer, around communal areas, tents and tables. Consider the lights that may be needed for personal or work use and think of the power that will be required. A good lighting plan beforehand will ensure a very enjoyable camping experience for everyone.

A Montreal couple struck by lightning wh...

Lighting — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:19:18 +0200

A Montreal couple struck by lightning while camping on a remote Quebec island are lucky to be alive, a leading climatologist says.

'There was a crack in my head, and the light, white blue orange, it was everywhere.'
— Kim McNairnKim McNairn and Les Perreaux were on day four of a six-day kayaking trip on the Cabonga Reservoir in Quebec last week when a thunderstorm rolled through the area and lighting struck the tiny island where they'd pitched a tent for the night.

Perreaux — a newspaper reporter who has worked as a war correspondent — said his experience in Afghanistan pales in comparison to the adrenaline shot he got that night.

"I've had bombs fall not too far away, and I've had bullets whistle over my head, and this was scarier," he said.

The lightning burned a 10-metre furrow from the tent. (Les Perreaux/Kim McNairn)The evening in La Vérendrye Provincial Park started calmly with a beautiful sunset, but the couple was awoken around 2 a.m. by thunder in the distance.

"Kim was counting, and I ducked outside, and I could smell electricity," said Perreaux, 37.

"Then it was like we were in the middle of a bomb, like a bomb went off right near our tent," said McNairn, 32, a CBC journalist in Montreal.

"Like there was a crack in my head, and the light, white blue orange, it was everywhere."

"It didn't matter if your eyes were open or closed; the light was in your head. It was that intense," Perreaux said.

McNairn said the light was followed by tingling that coursed through her body for several minutes before fading.

"I was feeling a tingling sensation through my arms and legs. I felt I'd been shocked and it wasn't painful, but it was a sensation that I have felt something," she said.

A nearby tree was scorched in the storm. (Les Perreaux/Kim McNairn)"Then it started to get scary," McNairn said. "I'm screaming and you can smell burned hair. You think, I'm so close, I'm smelling this, this is it, this is it."

The two lay in their tent, worrying about another strike, the condition of their hearts, and whether the campsite was going to burn.

They got up to check outside the tent and huddled inside until the sun came up.

That's when they found evidence of the lighting's path — the base of a nearby tree blown out by the impact, disturbed soil at the base of one of their tent poles, a burned-out furrow running from the tent pole to the forest, and scorch marks on the tent's frame.

The couple's tent was hit directly, or indirectly by a ground current, and they're lucky to have emerged unscathed because a lightning bolt can carry a charge of 100 million volts, said Dave Phillips, a senior climatologist with Environment Canada.

"My sense is that it could very well have hit the tree and came down," he told McNairn after she asked about her experience.

The lightning left burn marks on the tent poles. (Les Perreaux/Kim McNairn)"The tent peg is so low, that's the other thing; I think it took the ground current. It can travel dozens, 50, 100 metres across that route."

"It was luck" more than anything else that they weren't injured, Phillips said. Every year about a dozen people are killed by lightning in Canada, and more than 70 are seriously injured.

McNairn and Perreaux's thin mattress probably provided some insulation, he said.

Perreaux and McNairn, nature enthusiasts who have gone on countless camping trips, plan more.

"I hope I don't change too much and get nervous about going outside," McNairn said. "But it sure is humbling to feel the force of nature like that, and I hope that's what I take away, is [respecting] it, and wow, man, we're lucky."

"I think it's easier to chalk it up to good luck," Perreaux said.