Light Globes Explained Lumens & Colour Temperature
The light bulb has come a long way. In fact, there are so many different types out there, it can be a little hard to know exactly which one you need.
So we have created a Guide to help you.
Choosing the right lighting
Choosing light Globe replacements for your home can be confusing. You may have noticed that the choices of light bulbs available for your home has expanded and some of the older options you once relied on have disappeared. With lighting taking between 8 to 15 per cent of the average household electricity spend, there are lots of options to reduce the amount of energy used for lighting while still providing the right light for your needs.
The information in this guide will help you choose bulbs that are fit for purpose, last longer and are cheaper to run.
The key things to remember when choosing Globes are:
1. Think lumens(the amount of light output), not watts
2. Consider lifetime costs, not just the purchase price
3. Get the mood of your light right – consider colour temperature
4. Decide what type of light you need – general or task specific.
1. Think lumens, not watts
We used to purchase old-fashioned incandescent bulbs by the amount of power (or watts) they used. With the energy-efficient new technologies now available, light bulbs produce the same amount of light using far less power. It no longer makes sense to shop for watts. Using ‘lumens’ is now the way to choose the light you need.
Lumens give a measure of the amount of light produced by a light bulb. An old-fashioned incandescent light bulb (no longer available) produced 700 lumens and used 60W of power, whereas a new energy-efficient LED uses only 10W. That’s an energy saving of around $16 per year for each bulb (when used 3 hours per day).
While you can source the lumens (light!) you need from a range of technologies, halogen lights will be less efficient and cost more to run than CFL (compact fluorescent lamp) and LED (light emitting diode) equivalent options.
light Globe output is measured in lumens.
The table shows the required lumen output of an LED when used to replace old-style incandescent and halogen light Globes.
Also shown are the typical wattages of Globes.
Get the mood of your light right
CFL and LED light Globes are available in a range of colour temperatures, allowing you to customise the mood of your space.
Warm White is a soft, warm light similar to incandescent and halogen bulbs, suitable for living rooms and bedrooms.
Cool White is a neutral light suited to studies and kitchens, and for task-based applications such as kitchen benches, garages and workshops.
Daylight is a colder light similar to midday daylighting conditions. It can appear harsh, unrelaxed and even sterile, but may be good for bathrooms and laundries.
