LED Outdoor Lighting: Choosing the Right Color Temperature
Outdoor lighting choices are essential for two reasons — security and safety. Outdoor illumination measurement began in the late 1800s when William Kelvin experimented with heat and a block of carbon. Color temperature is an aesthetic choice and depends on the landscape of the given area. Before lighting, let’s understand color temperature.
What is color temperature?
Color temperature is measured in Kelvins, and it starts from absolute zero. There are two ends of a scale, cool and warm lighting. Warm lighting is lower on the scale and appears more orange and yellow. Cool lighting appears on the higher part of the scale and appears bluish in tone.
Temperature — Type of Lighting
2000K-3000K — Warm white light
3100K- 4500K — Cool white light
4600K-6500K — Daylight/moonlight
How to decide?
People require fewer lights for outdoors as they do indoors. If someone needs to highlight stonework or designer statues in the outdoor area, warm white light (2000K-3000K) is a favorable option. For your garden, the temperature range between (3000K-4000K) is perfect for visibility.
As we can see, the higher the Kelvin, the brighter is the lighting. Color temperatures between 4600K-6500K are mainly used as security lights. LED parking lot lights provide better illumination and ensure safety and security for the visitors/residents of that area.
To achieve the best outdoor illumination, seek a professional’s help and understand the nature of light and effects. Dimmers and other control come in handy for adequate outdoor lighting. Some LED pole lights come with sensors that can automatically turn off and on according to natural light. Dimmers allow you to create the brightness as per your requirement. Sensors save outdoor LED lights from excess power consumption and increase the life span of these lights.
According to the US Department of Energy, LED technology is more efficient than incandescent ones and saves energy 80% more than the traditional lights. LED lights use less wattage and generally have a lifespan of more than 50,000 hours. You should now have a general idea of color temperature, so explore your design potentials and create astonishing outdoors with creative lighting.