What are Canopy Lights?
LED canopy lights are an essential choice for enhancing visibility, security, and energy efficiency across a variety of commercial and industrial environments. Designed to deliver powerful, uniform lighting, these fixtures are commonly found in locations like gas stations, parking garages, and public transportation hubs where dependable illumination is crucial.
With robust features tailored for outdoor and covered spaces, including broad beam angles, weather-resistant casings, and versatile mounting options, LED canopy lights offer flexibility and performance in challenging settings.
Uses for LED Canopy Lights
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Gas stations
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Parking garages
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Industrial facilities
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Warehouses
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Tunnels & underpasses
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Outdoor sports facilities
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Public transport centers
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Overhangs & covered walkways


Features of LED Canopy Lights
Canopy lights are specifically designed for mounting on ceilings or the undersides of canopies, making them ideal for covered outdoor spaces such as gas stations, drive-thrus, parking garages, and entryways. These fixtures provide dependable overhead lighting that enhances visibility and security in various settings. Their construction enables easy installation on flat or recessed surfaces, and many models feature rugged, weather-resistant casings to withstand outdoor elements.
With a large beam angle, canopy lights direct light downward to cover a wide area effectively, ensuring consistent and even illumination across large surfaces. This broad light distribution is especially useful for spaces where comprehensive visibility is essential. The wide beam angle minimizes shadowing and enhances safety by eliminating dark spots, making canopy lights an optimal choice for commercial and industrial outdoor applications.
LED canopy lights offer various options, allowing users to tailor them to specific applications. These include selectable wattages and color temperatures (CCT), making it easy to adjust brightness and light color to match different environments.
Additionally, options for dimming controls, motion sensors, and smart control integration enhance energy efficiency and usability. Fixture styles, such as round or square shapes, and finishes like bronze or white, are available. These options make LED canopy lights versatile for various industrial, commercial, and retail applications.
Styles of Canopy Lights
Canopy lights come in various styles, including round and square designs, which offer aesthetic and functional versatility. Bronze and white finishes provide additional customization, allowing these lights to complement both classic and modern architectural themes.
Applications
Canopy lights are available in different designs tailored to specific environments. The two primary types are gas station canopy lights and garage canopy lights. Gas station canopy lights are generally larger and designed to deliver high-output lighting, often featuring higher wattages to cover expansive areas beneath tall canopies. These fixtures need to provide ample brightness for safe refueling and vehicle movement in open spaces, ensuring visibility from a greater height and meeting the safety standards typical for fueling stations.




On the other hand, parking garage canopy lights are designed for enclosed or semi-enclosed spaces like parking garages, where lower mounting heights and compact fixture sizes are preferred. These lights offer ample brightness but with slightly lower wattages, focusing on even, glare-free illumination at closer distances to the floor. This design reduces shadowing and promotes a safer, well-lit environment for vehicles and pedestrians moving through the parking area.
Shapes


Round Canopy Lights
Round Canopy Lights are ideal for spaces where a softer, more dispersed light distribution is needed. Their shape complements areas with curved architecture.


Square Canopy Lights
Square Canopy Lights offer a sleek, modern appearance and provide symmetrical lighting. They are often used in retail or industrial settings with structured layouts.
Mounting Options
LED canopy lighting offers several mounting options to suit different installation needs for both indoor and outdoor applications:
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Pole/Pendant Mount: Suspended from a rod or pipe, used in areas with higher ceilings for more focused lighting.
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Surface Mount: Fixtures attach directly to flat surfaces like ceilings, ideal for easy retrofits.


Light Output Control Options
LED canopy lights offer key control options for flexibility and efficiency. Selectable wattage customizes the light output and energy consumption of a fixture, and selectable CCT adjusts the color temperature. Motion Sensors activate lights with movement, and photocells turn lights on or off based on ambient light. These features enhance adaptability across various environments.


Selectable Wattage
Fixtures with selectable wattage provide flexibility by allowing users to adjust the power output based on the desired brightness or energy usage.


Selectable CCT
With selectable CCT, users can adjust the color of the light (e.g., warm white, neutral, or cool white) to fit different environments.


Photocells
Photocells enable lights to turn on at dusk and off at dawn by sensing ambient light levels. This automation ensures consistent outdoor lighting without the need for manual controls.


Motion Sensors
Motion sensors detect movement and activate the light automatically, conserving energy by turning lights off when the area is unoccupied. This feature enhances security and is well-suited for parking areas, garages, and warehouses.
Lumens & Comparable Wattages
When purchasing LED canopy lights to replace existing fixtures, it is essential to consider lumens and wattage equivalency. The new fixtures must provide sufficient brightness to match or exceed the output of the old lights. Since LEDs are more efficient, the focus should be on lumens, which measure light output, rather than wattage alone. Selecting fixtures with high lumens per watt ensures better energy efficiency without sacrificing performance.
Metal Halide Comparable Wattages
LED canopy lights offer significant energy savings compared to metal halide (MH) lights by delivering similar lumen outputs with lower wattage. For example, a 125W MH light can be replaced with a 20-30W LED, and a 400W MH light can be replaced with a 150W LED.
This efficiency reduces energy costs while maintaining brightness, with LEDs also offering longer lifespans and reduced maintenance.
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125W Metal Halide → 30-40W LED = up to 5,400 lm
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175W Metal Halide → 50-60W LED = 5,200-7,200 lm
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250W Metal Halide → 55-90W LED = 7,700-11,000 lm
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320W Metal Halide →100W LED = 12,000-14,000 lm
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400W Metal Halide → 150W+ LED = 19,000-21,000 lm


Durability & IP Ratings
Durability and Ingress Protection (IP) are critical, especially for outdoor or industrial applications. Fixtures with an IP65 rating or higher offer protection from water and dust, ensuring long-term reliability in harsh environments.
If the location is subject to physical impact or corrosion, choosing fixtures with impact-resistant housings and corrosion-resistant finishes will further maximize the lifespan of the installation. Prioritizing these factors ensures a smooth upgrade to LED lighting with minimal disruptions and long-term performance.
Standards and Certifications
Standards and certifications ensure LED lighting products meet safety, performance, and environmental requirements. Key certifications include UL and ETL, both verifying product safety according to industry standards. DLC Premium ensures high energy efficiency and qualifies products for utility rebates. RoHS compliance guarantees that products are free from hazardous substances, promoting environmental responsibility. These certifications provide reliability, safety, and efficiency, making it easier for customers to trust the product’s quality.


Certified by UL
UL certification ensures that products meet rigorous safety standards for electrical and fire hazards. This mark signifies compliance with U.S. and Canadian safety regulations, providing assurance for customers and installers.


DLC Premium
DLC Premium certification identifies energy-efficient lighting products with superior performance. These products meet stricter efficacy and longevity standards, qualifying for rebates and incentives from utility programs.


ETL Listed
ETL listing indicates that products have been tested and meet applicable safety standards established by OSHA and ANSI. It offers a reliable alternative to UL certification, ensuring safe usage in relevant applications.


RoHS
The RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) compliance ensures that the product is free from harmful materials like lead, mercury, and cadmium, contributing to environmental sustainability and user safety.