Interior Design
A Lighting Pro’s 5 Tips for Buying LED Bulbs
Make a smarter choice and improve the look of your home after dark with these guidelines from a lighting designer
A flood of new LED products has made choosing a lightbulb more confusing than ever. But don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Simply follow these five steps to select the the right LED bulb for you and get better light in your home.
It makes a big difference where you put a lightbulb, and that impacts brightness or lumen choice as well. In this airy living room built by London Bay Homes, low-lumen bulbs in the chandelier keep glare to a minimum, while higher-lumen bulbs in the ceiling downlights push light where needed.
If a lamp is needed for soft ambiance at night, like the table lamp in this pool house bedroom by TR Building & Remodeling, choose a lower-lumen bulb. Too many lumens in a small fixture can be uncomfortable to the eye, so save the high-brightness bulbs for large fixtures and recessed downlights.
Find lighting experts on Houzz
Find lighting experts on Houzz
2. Choose Your Color Temperature
A bulb’s lighting facts will use the term “colour appearance,” which is another term for “colour temperature.” This helpful metric is measured in degrees Kelvin, with lower colour temperatures being warmer, or amber, and higher colour temperatures being cooler, or blue.
A bulb’s lighting facts will use the term “colour appearance,” which is another term for “colour temperature.” This helpful metric is measured in degrees Kelvin, with lower colour temperatures being warmer, or amber, and higher colour temperatures being cooler, or blue.
I recommend colour temperatures based on two factors: the colours of the space and the time of day the lighting will be most used. Homes with natural warm timbers, stained flooring and wood furnishings look best with best with bulbs that have a colour temperature of 2,700 degrees Kelvin (warm light).
Choosing the Right Colour Temperature of LED Lights
Choosing the Right Colour Temperature of LED Lights
A crisp white colour palette and light-coloured furnishings will keep spaces looking cool and bright. In those spaces, 4,000 degrees Kelvin may look good in the daytime but can have negative effects on sleep patterns if used after dark. I lean toward 3,000 degrees Kelvin, a slightly more neutral white, for this family of colours.
3. Check the Facts
Understanding the lighting facts label that’s present on most LED bulbs is similar to understanding nutrition labels or medication facts. It may not be much fun to decode these facts, but a little knowledge can guide you to a better choice.
Understanding the lighting facts label that’s present on most LED bulbs is similar to understanding nutrition labels or medication facts. It may not be much fun to decode these facts, but a little knowledge can guide you to a better choice.
Typical LED bulbs will state 13.7 years of life, based on three hours of use per day, while a few will list 22 years or more. Longer-life bulbs will require replacement less often, saving you money in the long run.
The estimated yearly energy cost should be low; that of a typical 60-watt equivalent is less than US$1.15. Purchase prices vary widely, but a 60-watt-equivalent basic LED bulb should cost less than US$1.50. Expect to pay more for longer-life bulbs or specialty bulbs.
The estimated yearly energy cost should be low; that of a typical 60-watt equivalent is less than US$1.15. Purchase prices vary widely, but a 60-watt-equivalent basic LED bulb should cost less than US$1.50. Expect to pay more for longer-life bulbs or specialty bulbs.
4. Think Like a Designer
Designers go beyond the lighting facts label and look at colour rendering, dimmability and direction of output, each of which can have a major impact on the quality of light in your home.
Designers go beyond the lighting facts label and look at colour rendering, dimmability and direction of output, each of which can have a major impact on the quality of light in your home.
Colour rendering, or CRI, is a metric that helps reveal how true, or realistic, colours will appear when lit by the bulb. Bulbs that list a high CRI, 90 and above, will be the best of the lot and reveal the beauty of your furnishings, flooring and finishes better than the average LED bulb. Homes with subtle variations in colour and mixtures of natural materials will look best with bulbs that have a CRI of 95 or above.
Direction is not listed on the label, though many manufacturers put tags on the packaging that read “omnidirectional.” Check the shape of the lamp; if it has a solid section for heat sink or electronics, the bulb will push more light in one direction.
Read more stories about lighting
Direction is not listed on the label, though many manufacturers put tags on the packaging that read “omnidirectional.” Check the shape of the lamp; if it has a solid section for heat sink or electronics, the bulb will push more light in one direction.
Read more stories about lighting
“Warm dim,” “warm glow” and “sunset dim” are a few of the names given to bulbs that shift colour temperature when dimmed to mimic incandescent bulbs. This means the bulb can change from 2,700 to 1,800 degrees Kelvin, giving your home a pleasant candlelight-style glow that is perfect after dinner and into the evening.
5. Use Your Eyes
Your eyes are unique, your home is unique and your brain is unique, and with all the LED bulbs on the market, it should be no surprise that personal tastes differ. Once you have completed the steps above, buy a bulb, put it in your lamp and see how it looks. If it does not look good to you, if it puts more light on your ceiling than on your book or if it buzzes in a distracting way, return it to the store and try something else.
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Your eyes are unique, your home is unique and your brain is unique, and with all the LED bulbs on the market, it should be no surprise that personal tastes differ. Once you have completed the steps above, buy a bulb, put it in your lamp and see how it looks. If it does not look good to you, if it puts more light on your ceiling than on your book or if it buzzes in a distracting way, return it to the store and try something else.
Tell us
Did you find this story useful? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to like or save this story. Join the conversation.
Most LED bulbs available to the consumer are labeled with an equivalent incandescent bulb wattage, such as “60-watt equivalent.” This can be quite helpful, as you simply need a higher or lower number for the wattage equivalent if you want more or less light. As a basic guide, a 60-watt-equivalent LED bulb should have about 800 lumens, a technical measurement of the amount of light leaving a bulb. Lumens can be a handy comparison but should not be the sole factor you consider.