Ahh, the Light-Emitting Diode…otherwise commonly known as the LED. We’ve all heard of them, but do we actually know how LED light bulbs are different from other bulbs (such as the traditional incandescent light bulb)?  The term “LED” has been getting more and more buzz as we try to move towards a lifestyle of conserving and saving energy. We hear people telling us they’re important to use, but are hesitant to actually buy them because of the price, type, and all of the terminology that comes with it.

Have you seen our cool videos (links are in the next sentence)? We have already debunked the myths and given you some visual comparisons about the LED bulbs.   As I’m sure you’re aware of, there are still many technical terms about them that would be helpful to know when shopping around. These can be hard to understand, but without knowing them, it can make it hard for the common consumer to choose the perfect light for the home. Let’s explore!

The Light-Emitting Diode

First thing’s first: the Light-Emitting Diode – Simply put, like any other light, the LED is a semiconductor device that emits light when an energy current passes through it. Unlike traditional lighting, the LED does not require the heating of a filament to light up. Instead, they use chemical compounds to produce more efficient light. Naturally, the LED is not a white light source, which is why they are they are commonly used for things like street lights, colored holiday lights and digital billboards. To make the light white so we can have normal looking lights on our homes, they use two methods. One is phosphorous conversion, where phosphorous is put onto the diode to it can make white light. The other, known as RGB conversion, is when red, green and blue light is mixed, resulting in white light. LED lights are far more sophisticated than incandescent bulbs, as different types can let off a different shade or color or white light. They can be dimmed and the big benefit is that they produce the same amount of power as the incandescent blubs but use much less energy to do so. It’s a win-win if you know what you’re looking for when you’re at the store.

Color Temperature

Color Temperature is the shade of color that characterizes the how the white light looks. For instance, if the light gives more of a blue color, it would have a “cool” temperature, and if it’s more yellow looking, it would be “warm” in temperature. So, depending on which part of your house you want to put the lights in, paying attention to temperature is helpful. This is mostly visual, so if you have a particular temperature in mind for your home, you should refer to the package to find out exactly what the Kelvin color temperature is.

Kelvin Color Temperature

But, how do we know which kind of light certain Kelvins will put off to choose? Kelvin Color Temperature is the measure of the color of a light source relative to a black body at a particular temperature, which is measured in degrees Kelvin (K). Incandescent lights have a low color temperature (about 2800K) and have a red-yellow tone. Daylight lighting, such as fluorescent lights, has a high color temperature (about 6000K) and looks bluish to the eye. White light is somewhere in between 5000-6000K, LEDs can but LEDs can be found in all of these shades, too. You just have to know a little about Kelvins and you’ll be all set when choosing which light you want! All of that information can be found on the packaging of the product.

Lumens & Watts in LEDs

Lumens

A lumen is the measurement of light that is relevant to humans. The lumen scale indicates the amount of light (brightness) that our eyes can perceive. Simply put, lumens measure the amount of light produced by that particular bulb in which we can see, and is what most people look at when shopping for LED lights. It is important to remember, however, that lumens do not describe the quality of light generated – that would be referred to as color temperature, explained above.

Watts

A watt is a measurement of electric power. Watts refer to the power consumption of that specific product. The higher number the wattage is, the more energy it takes to power that product – whether it’s a light fixture, light bulb, or flashlight – they all require watts to power them. The benefit of higher wattage, though, is that the higher the number, the more light it will produce. If we think of this using a real-world example,

In my opinion, knowing about lumens and watts when choosing which type of light to buy is the most important thing to remember. For example, the average 60-watt incandescent bulb produces 800 lumens, whereas it only takes 4.5 watts to produce 800 lumens using a LED bulb (give or take, depending on the brand and make-up of the bulb). As you can tell, it takes much less energy to power a LED blub, but still has the same brightness that we’re used to seeing with traditional bulbs. Keep this in mind when deciding whether to pay the price for LEDs – they will pay themselves back (and more) over the longer life span of the bulb.

For some reason, LEDs have this notion around them that they are different, do not produce as pretty light as incandescent, and all they do is cost the consumer more. None of those points are true, though. By understanding these common terms, you will now be able to confidently pick out LED bulbs that are sufficient for each area of your home, depending on how you want the color and how much light you want the specific light to let off. At the end of the day, your investment on replacing bulbs now will pay off in the long run, as LED bulbs last much longer than incandescent ones and use less energy, which will save you tons on your electricity bill!