When buying LED lights for your home or business, there are many factors that are worth considering before selecting a bulb. LED lights come in a variety of colors and brightnesses and each type of bulb has a different setting that it is best suited for.
Buying LED lights: What are you hoping to achieve with LED lights?
LED lights have given consumers greater flexibility and functionality with their lighting options that were previously unavailable to them. Beautiful lighting displays are now achievable and affordable for homeowners and businesses.
When selecting the right LED light for you, keep in mind what that light will be used for. For example, if you are illuminating a large wall, a 4w LED bulb probably won’t do the job, and you’ll probably need something more powerful like a 20w LED light. You’ll also want to consideration if that light will be exposed to outdoor elements and select a water/weather proof LED if necessary.
Buying LED lights: What is your output or lumen needs?
When many people think about lighting output, they tend to think in terms of wattage or the amount of power used, but since LEDs use significantly less energy, wattage isn’t a reliable way of selecting the correct light. Instead, LED lights are often classified by lumens. Lumens are the measurement of the total amount of light that is emitted from a light source. There is also variation within the lighting industry when it comes to LED light wattage as it relates to lumens. A 10 watt LED light from five different manufacturers may all have different light outputs.
If you are looking for lighting for a home or office setting, 300 to 480 lumens is a good place to start.
Buying LED lights: What color do you prefer?
One of the most exciting benefits of LED lights is the variations in color temperatures or the color of the light on the white color spectrum, which is measured in Kelvin. Within lighting, the spectrum ranges from 2700k to 7000k or warm white to super daylight.
3000k – Warm white – halogen bulbs are this color
4000k – Cool white – once this was the only color you could get fluorescent in
5000k – Natural white – this is a good working color which is specified in hospitals
6000k – Daylight – Also known as pure white or cool daylight
6500k – Super daylight – People went crazy over this color when it came out in fluorescent
Many people have strong opinions about which type of light they prefer for their homes or office settings. Ultimately, it’s best to choose a light color that is comfortable for you and that works in your setting.
