LED bulbs have been around for quite some time now, but some people don’t know much about them. Are you one of them? Do you want to know switch to LEDs but are not sure if that’s a smart or a cost-saving move? Do you get confused when you see terms like CRI or lumens?
If you said yes to any of these, this post is just for you. We’ll be tackling some common questions people grapple with while buying LED bulbs.
- Will switching to LED light help me save money?
Of course, it’ll. That’s the biggest advantage of LED light bulbs. An LED bulb lasts up to 50,000 hours while the average incandescent bulb lasts just 1,200 hours. What’s more, LED bulbs are 80% more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs. In short, in the long run, LED bulbs can help you save a lot of money.
- How to pick the right color temperature of an LED?
Color temperature is measured in Kelvin (K) and it shows the color of white light emitted by a light source. Low color temperature is associated with warm light and high color temperature with cool light.
For example, candlelight with its warm glow has a color temperature of 1800K. At the other end of the spectrum falls sunlight on a snow winter’s day, which has a color temperature of around 6500K.
In case of LEDs, warm white LEDs have a color temperature of around 2700K and extra warm white LEDs of 2200K. On the other hand, if you want natural white LED bulbs (that is, light that mimics the natural daylight as closely as possible), look for a color temperature of around 4000K.
Here’re some tips to help you choose the warm or cool LED lighting depending on your needs
- If you’re at home mostly in the evenings, you’d be better off picking warm white LED bulbs (2700K). More relaxing and less likely to disrupt your sleep, these bulbs provide a glow similar to that of 60W incandescent bulbs.
- If your home is full of natural materials such as cabinet, hardwood floors, woven rugs, or upholstery in tans, brown, oranges, or red, consider warmer white LED bulbs (2700K) for your walls, ceilings, furnishings, and floors. However, if you have colors like blue, black, crisp whites or green consider color temperature (3000K to 4000K).
- Warm white LED bulbs (2700) work best with transitional and traditional homes, since they emit a glow similar to that of firelight or candlelight.
- Last but not the least, you a dimmer switch. It allows you to set the level of brightness of a light fixture according to your needs.
- What is color rending index? What kind of rating denotes high quality?
Color rendering index (CRI) denotes how accurately a light source reproduces the colors of the object it illuminates. It is measured on a scale of 0 to 100. While CRI of 90 and above is considered excellent, that of 80 or below is associated with poor quality light. CRI90+ LED bulbs don’t emit harmful blue light, but the same can’t be said about bulbs with CRI lower than 90. We recommend you should always buy CRI90+ LEDs. At LiquidLEDs, we only sell LED bulbs having a rating of CRI90 and above, because we know what's right for you
- How many lumens would I need?
Lumens denote the amount of visible light you’ll see from a light source, such as an LED bulb. Follow this guide if you’re not sure about how many lumens you require in each room.
- For living room you need 10 to 20 lumens per square foot
- For dining room you require 30 to 40 lumens per square foot
- For laundry room you require 70 to 80 lumens per square foot
- For bathroom room you need 70 to 80 lumens per square foot
- For kitchen (that is, the cooking area) you need 70 to 80 lumens per square foot
- Are LED bulbs environmentally friendly?