You must get the right bulbs if you want beautiful ambient lighting for your outdoor area. But looking around at light bulbs and all the different options gets a little confusing.
And you want to know what else?
When it comes to bulbs, there are a few things you’ve got to consider if you want an outdoor area you’ll love the look and feel of.
Some of the things you’ve got to consider are:
- Brightness of the light bulb
- The light colour the bulbs put out
- Watts
- Lumens
- Shape and style of the bulb
- Can you dim the bulb
- Are the bulbs shatterproof or glass
These affect how your outdoor looks and feels when the festoon lights are on.
Confused?
Don’t be.
Because the great news is…
When creating beautiful outdoor areas and working out, which are the best bulbs for you?
Thanks to studying lighting design and layout, working with lighting designers, installing festoon lights, and seeing my festoon lights in hundreds of different settings.
I’ve come up with 6 Easy Steps to help you choose the best bulbs for your festoon lights
Let’s look at how you get the right bulbs for you.
6 Easy Steps To Choosing The Right Bulbs For You
STEP 1: Get The Right Light Colour
If you want beautiful ambient lighting that creates an inviting, relaxing, chilled vibe in your outdoor area, light colour is critical.
Let me explain…
You’ll want to avoid any bulb that puts out a light colour close to orange or cool white.
After observing festoon lights in hundreds of different settings and studying lighting design and layout.
Warm White 2200K is the best light colour for festoon lights.
STEP 2: Choose A Bulb Style & Shape That Suits Your Outdoor Area
Now we’re moving into style, shape, and appearance because the bulbs in festoon lights are a real lighting feature.
LED filament bulbs, modelled on the old-school bulbs from your granddad’s era. These are the best bulbs for festoon lights because they give your lights style, character, and beauty you’ll love.
Below are the beautiful shapes and styles of bulbs we have, and you can get them with our festoon lights.
STEP 3: Get Bulbs You Can Dim
This one’s important; you want bulbs you can dim.
Why?
If you can’t control the level of light in your outdoor area, it’s nearly impossible to get the beautiful lighting you love.
If you can’t dim the bulbs, you’re stuck with lights that are too bright, or worse, not bright enough. Dimmable bulbs give you total control over the light levels in your outdoor area.
I’ve lost count of the customers who’ve told me over the years how much they love their dimmable festoon lights.
STEP 4: Get Bulbs That Best Suit Your Environment: Shatterproof Bulbs Or Glass Bulbs
With low-voltage shatterproof PVC bulbs, they never smash overhead and fall. There is no danger. The weather and wind can bash the shatterproof bulbs, and they stay in one piece.
In residential and commercial settings, shatterproof bulbs create zero danger and zero public liability issues whatsoever for you.
What About Glass Bulbs?
Glass bulbs are great if your outdoor area is fully protected from the weather. You could go glass.
Why Are The 24V Shatterproof LED Bulbs Our Most Popular?
- Because of the safe, low voltage
- Because of the shatterproof PVC LED bulbs
- Because you can dim the bulbs
- Because the bulbs put out a beautiful warm white ambient light
STEP 5: Brightness Of The Bulbs
How bright do your bulbs need to be?
You want bright bulbs so you can see the food on your plate and see what you’re doing. And you want bulbs you can dim.
Understand, festoon lights are mood lights, they don’t require super-bright bulbs.
Here’s A Quick Lesson On Brightness Of Bulbs:
Light brightness is measured in lumens. So when you want to know how bright a bulb is, look for a number with lumens written after it, or lms.
Let me show you:
- Our 24V G45 bulb is1.2Watt and 120 lumens
- Our 24V A60 bulb is 2.4Watt and 235 lumens
- And you can dim all our bulbs
Would 22 bulbs at 1.2 watts and 120 lumens be enough to light an outdoor area 20m long and 6m wide?
Absolutely.
If you’re unsure of what you need for your outdoor area. Call or email me.
Should I Get A Bigger Or Smaller Bulb?
It comes down to personal choice.
Some customers love the look of the bigger bulbs, so that’s the bulb they get. And some customers love the look of the smaller bulbs, so that’s the bulb they go for.
I’ve seen our festoon lights in hundreds of settings, and all our bulbs give plenty of light so you can see the food on your plate. And the bulbs are dimmable, so later in the night, when you want to chill and relax, you can dim them.
If you love the look of one of our smaller bulbs but are concerned, it won’t be bright enough. 99.9% of customers who get the smaller 1.2Watt bulbs get a dimmer and they all use the dimmer because these bulbs are plenty bright enough.
STEP 6: Ease To Replace Bulbs
Can you get replacement bulbs if you need them?
This is important because you don’t want to find out you can’t get bulbs to match the ones you’ve got.
Another thing is…
With some festoon lighting sold, you can’t replace the bulbs because the bulbs don’t come out. If a bulb stops working, you either throw the festoon lighting out. Or you wait for more bulbs to fail before you throw it all out.
We’ve had the same bulb style with our festoon lighting for over six years. If you ever need a replacement bulb, you can get an identical bulb to match what you have.
Transform Your Outdoor Space With Beautiful Lighting
The bulbs are a critical part of lighting your outdoors; as an outdoor lighting specialist, I can’t stress this enough.
I’ve sat in beautiful outdoor areas and restaurants where the wrong bulbs have been used, and ugly bulbs have been used. And I tell you, it drags down the look and appeal of an outdoor area.
Think of each bulb as a little piece of art. And each bulb has an important job to do. And that job is to light your outdoor area and make it beautiful.
If you’d like some expert help and want to chat about the best bulbs for you.
Give me a call at 1300 463 735, or send an email to info@fusionlighting.com.au, and I’ll help you out.