Guide to light sources
It is important to choose the right lightbulb for your new designer lamp and it can be difficult, in a world of unknown concepts and technical language.
We have made a short and easy-to-understand guide, so you can be sure to choose the right lightbulb for your new favorite lamp. Below, you can learn more about the things you need to be aware of when choosing a lightbulb. You can also learn more about what to look for when purchasing a lamp with an integrated LED.
The guide is created in collaboration with lighting expert Peter Manscher, the lighting expert at Muuto, with more than 15 years of experience in the development of lights and lamps. Peter has previously worked for Danish Lightyears and in this connection has helped to develop the popular series Caravaggio and Orient. Here you can meet Peter Manscher himself, telling you all about what to look for when choosing a lightbulb:
Light quality
Color temperature
When choosing the light temperature for your bulb, it is important that you pay attention to Kelvin degrees. The Kelvin degrees determine how hot or cold a light the bulb produces.
As a starting point, most people use bulbs of 2700 Kelvin for their home. This is categorized as warm white light and is used by most people for pendants, floor lamps and dining table lamps .
If you need a whiter light, for example for the office, you can choose a bulb of 3000 Kelvin, which issues a whiter and more refreshing light.
Andlight recommends:
2700 Kelvin (Warm white light): The living room, the dining table, the hallway, the kitchen, the bathroom
3000 Kelvin (White light): Offices with limited light and bathrooms
Color consistency
The quality of the LED light is determined by a so-called CRI or Color Rendering Index. This describes how well the bulb will reproduce colors.
CRI is measured on a scale from 0-100, with 100 being a perfect color consistency.
Color rendering is very important in terms of the quality of your light. If you choose a light bulb with a low CRI index, it might have a blueish hue that can be disturbing for your eyes and the object affected by the light.
Of course, it is always preferable that the bulb has a high CRI score and when you've bought a beautiful designer lamp, it's a shame to compromise on the quality of the light.
All of our bulbs at Andlight are 80+ CRI, meaning that you will always have a good CRI score, when purchasing bulbs from our website.
Andlight recommends:
Always use lightbulbs with a CRI score of 80 or above. It's especially recommended to use bulbs with a high CRI score, when choosing bulbs for desk lamps and floor lamps.
Lifespan
Naturally, the lifespan of an LED bulb is crucial when choosing a bulb for your new designer lamp. Here, price and quality are related. Below you can see what you need to be aware of when dealing with longevity.
Replaceable LED bulbs
If you have a lamp with a socket, you need a replaceable LED bulb. The service life of these is most often noted on the product.
A service life is stated in "switched-on hours" and this describes the expected service life of the bulb. This does not mean that your bulb will necessarily die after this time, but that the bulb may lose intensity after the specified hours have been used.
An LED lightbulb will typically have a lifespan somewhere between 10,000-30,000 active hours. After this, it is possible that the bulb loses intensity, but it will usually last longer than the specified time.
Built-in LED light sources
Built-in LED light sources have gradually become more popular to produce, as the technology finally allows the lamp to last for many years without having to replace the lightbulb.
Here, the same rules apply as with the LED bulbs. The light source has an expected lifetime and after the limit of this time, the light source will still be working. However, it will slowly lose some intensity, over time.
An LED lightsource will typically have a lifespan somewhere between 10,000-30,000 active hours.
The vast majority of our products with built-in LEDs have a lifespan of 30,000 hours. This corresponds to approximately 3.5 years of uninterrupted use. After this, the intensity of the lamp will gradually decrease. Some of our manufacturers offer paid replacement of the LED the lightbulb, if the warranty has expired.
Andlight recommends:
You can safely buy lamps with integrated LED, as the LED technology is now so highly developed that the module will last for many years and in the worst case, lose intensity over time.
Some of our manufacturers who make lamps with integrated LEDs offer paid repair and replacement of this, should the warranty have expired.
Intensity
Lumen
Lumen describes the amount of light that the lightbulb produces, as well as how far the light will reach. This intensity is measured in Lumen.
LED bulbs have a higher efficiency than the old halogen bulbs. This means that LED bulbs can achieve higher intensity, with a lower Watt power.
Therefore, you can no longer choose the intensity of the light source, by looking at the wattage.
This means that you should choose intensity from looking at Lumen. It can be confusing to translate the old system to the new one, and therefore, we've made this simple table, to help you decide on the intensity quickly.
Andlight recommends:
400-500 Lumen = Desk lamps, wall lights and floor lamps
700-900 Lumen = Dining table pendants, ceiling lights, spots
If you have a dimmable lamp, you can choose a bulb with a high intensity. This way you can choose between intense and dimmed light, as needed.
Want to learn even more about light and integrated LED? Below you can see Peter Manscher explain how an integrated lightbulb works:
.png)
