From Gas Lamps to LEDs: How Lighting Evolved
Walk into any warehouse, job site, or church today, and the lighting feels obvious — flip the switch, and it works. But it hasn’t always been that way. For electricians, contractors, and maintenance crews, lighting technology has changed more in the past century than in all of human history before it.
And each step shaped the work: what tools were needed, how long a job took, and even how reliable a fixture was once it went up.
So, let’s take a walk through time and see how we got here — and why Daystar Distributing is proud to offer the newest chapter in the story.
Firelight & Flame: The Original “Bulbs”
For most of human history, the job of “lighting” meant managing flame. Torches, oil lamps, and candles were the tools of the trade. The “maintenance task” here? Trimming wicks, refilling oil, and praying you didn’t burn the place down.
Candles (dating back thousands of years) used tallow or beeswax, producing dim, smoky light.
Oil lamps (clay, bronze, or glass) gave longer burn times but needed constant tending.
Gas lamps (1800s) were brighter, but also dangerous — requiring piped-in fuel and plenty of ventilation.
For early cities, installing street lamps wasn’t about wiring — it was about gas lines and lamp lighters walking around at dusk.
Edison’s Breakthrough: Incandescent Bulbs
When Thomas Edison and Joseph Swan brought practical incandescent bulbs to the market in the late 1800s, everything changed. Suddenly, “electricians” had an entirely new trade to master.
How it worked: Electricity heated a thin filament until it glowed. The first filaments were carbon, later tungsten.
The job: Running wiring, installing sockets, troubleshooting blown fuses. Crews had to figure out how to safely bring electricity into buildings that had never seen it before.
The catch: They were inefficient — only about 5% of the energy made light. The rest? Heat. Lots of it.
But despite the inefficiency, incandescents ruled the world for nearly a century.
Fluorescents & Tubes: The Workhorse of the 20th Century
By the 1930s and ’40s, fluorescent lighting hit the scene — and for contractors, this meant new ballasts, new fixtures, and a lot of ladder time.
How it worked: A gas (usually mercury vapor) excited by electricity produced ultraviolet light, which hit a phosphor coating inside the tube and glowed.
Why it mattered: Fluorescents lasted longer, produced less heat, and were much more efficient than incandescents.
The catch: Flicker, hum, ballast issues, and disposal problems with mercury.
Still, they became the backbone of commercial and industrial lighting — classrooms, factories, offices, and warehouses all depended on fluorescent tubes.
The Compact Fluorescent Craze (CFLs)
In the 1980s and ’90s, compact fluorescents promised to replace the old incandescent bulbs in homes and businesses alike. They were pitched as futuristic, efficient, and eco-friendly.
But contractors remember the headaches:
unusual sockets, slow warm-ups, ugly color temperatures, and short lifespans if paired with the wrong ballast. The industry wanted something better.
LEDs: The Revolution We’re Living In
Enter LEDs — Light Emitting Diodes — which started small (literally, as indicator lights in electronics) but have become the most important lighting shift of our time.
How it works: A semiconductor chip converts electrical energy directly into light, no filament, no gas.
The benefits: High efficiency, incredible longevity, instant-on performance, no flicker, no ballast hum.
For the trade: Easier retrofits, fewer replacements, and lower energy costs for every client.
LEDs are the new standard for warehouses, churches, parking lots, and homes alike. From UFO high bays to tubes to specialized fixtures, they’re versatile, powerful, and cost-effective.
Looking Ahead: Smarter, Safer, Brighter
What’s next? Smart controls, color-tunable fixtures, and integrated systems that do more than light a room — they save energy, adjust mood, and improve safety.
And just like the electricians of the past adapted from flame to filament to fluorescents, today’s professionals are mastering LEDs and smart systems.
At Daystar, we’re passionate about this story because we’ve seen how far lighting has come — and we know where it’s headed.
We don’t just sell bulbs and fixtures. We provide:
Proven products — UFO LED high bays, LED tubes, CFL ballasts, and more.
Knowledgeable support — professionals who understand what contractors and maintenance crews need.
Affordable solutions — because upgrading shouldn’t break the budget.
From warehouses to churches, schools to shops, we’re here to make sure your next project is lit with the best technology available — and with the confidence that comes from working with a distributor you can trust.
Lighting has come a long way — and so have we. Daystar Distributing is proud to power the next chapter with high-quality LEDs, fixtures, and expert support.
Ready to upgrade your space? Let’s light the future together.
📞 Call (417) 865-9200
📍 Visit us at 1723 S. West Bypass
Springfield, MO
