How Do You Choose The Right Light Globe?

How Do You Choose The Right Light Globe?

There are many factors to consider when selecting which globe to purchase to suit the application. First of all always choose LED globes, you will save on upto 90% on electricity and will last typically 50 times longer than halogen not only do you get these benefits but they instantly start, have a wider range of colour temperatures and are much more environmentally friendly.

While all these factors are great so who wouldn’t use LED right? Well like anything there is different quality LED’s and they have a very wide range so in this blog we will go over on the points to look for when buying quality over cheap and nasty which will cost you more in the end.

1. Heat Sink - LED’s are fully electronic and the manufacturers who make LED products can turn the wattage right up to get maximum possible brightness but doing this will burn the LED chips out which is why LED products have heat sinks to draw the heat out, most people think LED products don’t get hot, this is not true they in fact do but the heat sinks draw all this heat out and some products will have much better heat sinks then others which will prolong the life of the LED from burning out. So manufacturers will be irresponsible but offering crazy wattage and lumen outputs causing them to get to hot even with a heat sink rather than a smart manufacturer who will turn the wattage down to a level that the heat sink can draw and get the maximum life out of the LED. There are different heat sinks to look for such as a metal heat sink, ceramic heat sink and some being plastic, by far we have the least LED lighting returns which have metal heat sinks this is because they are much more effective. We are finding now all the manufacturers are cutting down costs as much as possible and turning more to plastic heat sinks which is fine is the LED is tuned right down then up but without a doubt since manufacturers have started doing this we are getting many many more returns. So to finish off the heat sink is the most important factor, if you want a quality LED product that will last look to  the back of the LED for a large metal or ceramic heat sink these will cost you more but that’s because they cost more to make and will save you in the long run!
   
   
2. Brand - Always stick to well known brands that have been around for 10 years plus they are the ones who have built the reputation on quality and if they hadn't they wouldn't still be around. The Lighting Outlets favourite brands for LED bulbs are Domus Lighting, Havit Lighting, CLA Lighting, Atom Lighting, Lusion, Azoogi, or Crompton Lighting.
   Quality is key and you will always find a cheaper globe but chances are it will produce poor light and fail within 12 months so do yourself a favour avoiding headaches and purchasing quality over cheap and nasty.
   
   
3. LED Colour Temperature - This ultimately comes down personal preference some people love the traditional warm white whereas some people will think it’s boring. Some applications are better suited for each colour however.
   
   Relaxing Mood Areas eg bedroom, lounge room or a garden will be suited to have a warm white around 3000K which will create ambience and mood, this will be more a of dull yellowish light but I always say less light is always better for mood lighting for example candles.
   
   General areas which could be both relaxing areas but also working areas would suit a 4000K cool white which you can’t really go wrong as it has the best of both worlds, a warmish tinge with a practical whitish colour to see things a bit brighter and clearer. Again if you are unsure which LED globe temperature to pick go with a 4000k it will suit almost every application.
   
   Work areas or ultra modern areas are best with a 5000K+ daylight colour which will give off almost a blue light and is super practical for offices, warehouse, hospitals etc. 5000K can be very harsh when looked at directly and can cause eye strains but does make everything look more fresh and vibrant and for some people this is ideal in all applications.

Below is a chart for you to get a rough idea.

4. 
   Dimmable - The application you are using the LED globe on will decide if you need dimmable and the price can sometimes double being dimmable and it also even more important to buy quality dimmable LED bulbs because cheaper ones will state they dim but will not down very far and a lot of the times flicker.

5. Lumens - This is the true indication on how bright the globe is, most people still look to the wattage which is fine for older incandescent and fluorescent products but for LED this will not help choosing the right brightness you must look to the lumens. If you have the light on a dimmer go overkill with the lumens this way you can’t lose. For garden LED lighting less light is better for creating ambiens and for task lighting brighter is better for working environments. Below is a chart to help you choose the right LED lumen output.

6. CRI - The colour rendering index means how clear objects that lit by the light source are, the higher the CRI the more vibrant and true colours will portray. Most globes will be around a LED CRI of 80> which is fine but if you are after a super high quality LED light and for example if you are doing painting you will want to go a LED CRI of 90> +. Choosing a 5000K + daylight colour will give you the most accurate colours.

7. Beam Angle - Each application will determine which beam angle to select. If you are running globes to light up a wide area such as a oyster light choose a globe with 180+ degree beam angle wider the better this will eliminate shadowing and dark spots in the corners of the room. If you are running a track light which is lighting up a piece of artwork then you want a more concentrated beam of around 15 - 20 degrees. Always think about the application in your head and work out just how wide you need the light, some applications you don’t want to flood the area with wasted light but some you may.