Flood Lights

How to Choose the Right Outdoor LED Floodlights

Flood lights, which are also known as security lights, are strategically placed to provide high quality lighting for areas such as over-head highway sign lighting, billboard lighting, building facades, and other similar applications. Targeting the correct flood light for different applications can be challenging due to the number of options available for these light fixtures. Here are some features to consider when deciding which outdoor LED Floodlights are right for you.

Lumens

With new light bulbs, shopping by lumens is more important than shopping by watts when choosing which energy-efficient bulb to purchase. While wattage measures the amount of energy required to light products, lumens measure the amount of light produced. This means that the more lumens the product has, the brighter the light source is. Instead of buying products based on how much energy they consume (watts), consumers should consider how much light they give us (lumens).

Wattage

Wattage is the measure of the bulb's energy consumption - not how much light it puts out. Energy-efficient bulbs use fewer watts to give off the same amount of brightness (lumens). Because of this, LEDs (which have typically low wattages when compared with lumens) not only help reduce energy usage but also lower electric bills.

Color Temperature

Color temperature refers to the color appearance of the light that comes from a light source. It's an important performance characteristic to asses when evaluating bulbs because the color temperature creates the mood of the space you are lighting and can thus influence buying behavior or work performance. The apparent color of a light source is measured in Kelvin. The higher the Kelvin temperature, the whiter the light.

DLC Listed

When a fixture is DLC Listed (stands for Design Light Consortium) it may qualify for energy rebates by your local utility which can significantly reduce the cost of ownership. The qualified products list is a resource for program administrators, to help them decide which solid state lighting products to include in their energy efficiency promotions.

 

Why are LED Lights Great for Outdoor Use?

Let’s take a look at some specific reasons why LED Flood Lights are ideal outdoor lights:

1. Bright, Clear Light

Many legacy outdoor lighting fixtures use metal-halide or mercury vapor lamps. Those bulbs start out creating a clear, white light, but over time, they can burn down to a visible orange or even pink color.

LEDs, on the other hand, produce a consistent, clear, white light (depending on the CCT). As long as the diode is receiving electricity, it creates strong light.

Some LEDs even allow you to manually adjust the color temperature of the light, creating warmer mood lighting or brighter safety lighting as needed.

2. Energy Efficiency

Outdoor incandescent or metal-halide lamps burn hot (you know that if you’ve ever tried to change a bulb too fast), and heat is the enemy of efficacy. Hot lights put additional strain on wiring and circuits which burns out the filaments, creating unnecessary replacement costs and wasted energy.

LED technology transforms electricity directly into light using a semiconductor, which means there’s no waste heat created and nearly every watt of energy you put into that lamp is being used to create light.

3. Reduced Cost of Ownership

LED efficacy means you can create the same number of lumens (light) using much less wattage (drawn energy). That directly translates to savings on your monthly utility bill.

As we’ve said, LEDs run cool, so they don’t “burn” themselves out, which means you’ll significantly reduce the frequency of maintenance and replacement by switching to LEDs.

4. Variety of Styles

LEDs are increasingly available in a variety of different shapes and forms to meet both practical and decorative outdoor lightning needs.

 

What Wattage for Outdoor Flood Lights is best? 

Low Wattage Flood Lights 

For the most part, all lights under 40 watts are considered to be low-wattage ones. These types of lights are really good for those who are looking to consume fewer amps of electricity. There are plenty of people who opt for multiple low-wattage lights and arrange them so that the edge of the light radius overlaps, in order to ensure that they have full coverage, as needed.

However, considering the fact that these lights aren’t as strong as others, there are situations where they will serve you well, and others in which they might be a bit frustrating to have. For example, low-wattage lights like this are useful for illuminating doorways, shed entrances, or can be used as accent lights to showcase your flower beds. If you want to illuminate the back yard so that you can barbecue with your friends or family past dusk, low-wattage lights will annoy you.

Medium Wattage Flood Lights 

What is considered a medium-wattage light fixture is one that can accommodate lightbulbs with a wattage between 40 and 80 watts. You will actually find a wide variety of floodlights that accommodate this range. Plenty of people choose lights within this range for their outdoor lighting needs and they choose to attach them to extended arms or mount them on posts so they can get better coverage.

While these are not the most powerful lights out there, you still want to avoid installing them close to one of your home windows as they might disrupt your sleep.

High Wattage Flood Lights

People who want really powerful lights, then you can choose fixtures with wattage greater than 80. These lights are most suitable for pedestrian areas, especially those that exceed 100 watts. In fact, the most common situations where you’ll encounter fixtures these powerful in parking lots, roadways, or next to public institutions.

In certain locations, there are roadside lights that can reach up to 400 watts. These lights are generally suspended high above the ground and directed at the ground, so they don’t disturb pedestrians and cars driving by. The angle is adjusted so that cars won’t be blinded because of the powerful light.

 

Top-Rated LED Flood Light Distributor & Supplier

Lightingandsupplies.com is a lighting distributor of Indoor & Outdoor Commercial and Residential light fixtures and light bulbs. Based in the US, we carry the top LED lighting brands like EiKO, RAB Lighting, MaxLite, naturaLED, Westgate Lighting and more of the Top Lighting Manufacturers in the United States. We also carry a wide variety of Horticulture products by Hydrofarm, along with ceiling fans by RP Lighting+Fans. Lightingandsupplies.com also provides rebate programs, expert lighting design advice, and lighting audits for large projects. As a wholesaler, authorized dealer and bulk distributor of lighting products, we take pride in our customer-focused 100% satisfaction guarantee and return policy. 

For more information, call 888-325-4448 or email: [email protected].