Community Presbyterian Church RETRO-Fusion® Install
Community Presbyterian Church in Celebration, Florida, needed a better sanctuary lighting solution. With more than 800 members, multiple worship services, and a busy event schedule, the existing halogen lamps created maintenance and heat problems.
Carter Wanzek, Technical Director for the church and a former stagehand, explained what they were experiencing:
“The halogen bulbs were getting so hot that they were melting into the sockets, even in the middle of service. We would occasionally hear a ‘pop,’ look over, and the light in that area was gone. The appeal of LED retrofits was a ‘no-brainer’ and drew us to purchasing twenty-three of Canto USA’s RETRO-Fusion® 500s.”
23 RETRO-Fusion Houselights Installed
The church upgraded the sanctuary with 23 Canto USA RETRO-Fusion® 500 units.
The retrofit let the church keep its existing pendant fixtures while moving away from hotter, shorter-lived halogen lamps.
The pendants are mounted roughly 20–25 feet above the floor, so reducing the need for frequent lamp replacement was an important benefit. The new lighting also provided wider, more even coverage across the sanctuary.
Church members and staff quickly noticed the difference in brightness and how much easier it was to see people and activities throughout the room.
For Community Presbyterian Church, the upgrade reduced fixture heat and maintenance while improving overall sanctuary lighting
“The church staff and members are pleased with their new lights.”
Canto USA’s RETRO Series Fully Dimmable LED Retrofit Houselights
Canto USA is proud to present our RETRO series. The RETRO-Fusion® 2.0 and RETRO-Passive® 2.0 are 0-100% phase dimmable (forward and reverse) variable wattage LED 2700K-6500K 80-97 CRI engines. They are designed for older SCR, TRIAC, and IGBT dimmer systems but are compatible with newer dimmer systems. A direct replacement of existing lamps, our LED retrofit can be used in a wide range of applications or even new installations. Custom and standard mounting options are available.
Read more about the RETRO-Fusion® 2.0 updates in our product announcement post.
Results after retrofit
- Clearer, more even illumination across the sanctuary floor — improved sightlines for congregants and staff.
- Fixtures run noticeably cooler; issues with bulbs heating sockets were resolved.
- Reduced maintenance frequency due to longer LED life and reliable operation during services.
If you have an older house-light system or are experiencing fixture heat and frequent lamp failures, a RETRO Series retrofit can provide a safe, dimmable, drop-in solution. Contact Canto USA for application guidance and to view spec sheets for RETRO-Fusion and RETRO-Passive.
