CCT indicates the hue and tone of white light emitted from a specific bulb or fixture. It’s measured in Kelvins (K), which is similar to degrees in Celsius. Different temperatures on the Kelvin scale represent different colors. For example, light at 2000K-3500K looks more orange/yellow and is called ultra warm or warm white, and as temperature increases in Kelvins, color changes to more of a “paper white” known as natural or neutral white (between 3500K and 5100K) and finally into a bluish-white known as cool white (5100K+).

As a light source’s color temperature increases, brightness often increases. While shopping for LED lights, pay close attention to the color temperatures that are available for any one bulb or fixture. Choosing a warm white bulb with a color temperature around 3000K might mean sacrificing some brightness. Whereas, if you choose the natural white version, it’s likely that it will have a higher output.

Any room can benefit from light strip, globe bulb,

In order to understand nanometers, you must first understand the electromagnetic spectrum and wavelengths. The electromagnetic spectrum is the entire range of invisible and visible light, and a wavelength is the distance between peaks of light waves. Wavelengths are measured in nanometers, which are simply units of length that indicate colors of light within the spectrum. Nanometers will tell you how red, green, yellow, purple, etc. a light source really is. These measurements start lower at ultraviolet and increase from green to blue, yellow, orange, and then red. The wavelength of a colored light can be found in the light’s specifications table.

MR16 beam angle in degrees (left to right): 36, 24, 15

Fixtures or bulbs that emit wide beams, such as BR LED bulbs for can lights are great for areas that require a lot of light, such as basements, kitchens, or living rooms. Narrow beam angles like those from can lights with MR LED bulbs are best for highlighting decor or small areas. Globe bulbs, such as G30 LED vanity bulbs, have 360-degree beam angles, which means that they throw light in all directions. Globe bulbs are the perfect choice for centralized light fixtures.

Across Nokesville and the rest of Virginia, parents and their kids anxiously await the arrival of Spring Break. The school year can be particularly stressful for everyone, both parents and kids, so we hope that you and your family are able to take full advantage of your downtime to relax. If you’re planning a getaway for your family, don’t forget to safeguard your home against potential threats. Getting adequate rest during this time is crucial for finishing out the school year strong. The last thing we want is for you to have to cut your vacation short because something went wrong at home. To get the most of your Spring Break holiday, follow these tips on keeping your home safe!

Whether you’re going to be gone for a few nights or the entire week, ask a trusted friend or neighbor to check on your home once or twice a day. Perhaps your neighbor can even keep a car parked there for the time being. You will also want to have your newspaper and mail picked up, as nothing says “I’m not home” like a driveway full of newspapers and a stuffed mailbox.

If you’re leaving pets behind, it’s especially crucial to have someone look after them. It’s always difficult determining just how much food and water your furry friend is going to need. For the safety of your pet – and for your peace of mind – make sure they’re properly taken care of!

Homeowners often make the mistake of leaving certain lights on at all times. While this may seem like an effective deterrent, it actually does quite the opposite. Wouldn’t you find it strange, too, if the same hallway and front room lights in a home were left on for several consecutive days? The goal is to make it appear as if someone is always home, so you want to follow a normal light pattern. You can do this by installing timers so that you can program your lights to turn on and off at designated times.

In addition to gaining control over your lights, by installing smart controls throughout your home, you can check to see if you remembered to lock the front door, close the garage, or turn the heat off. Even if you do have a friend or neighbor watching over your home, you might feel even better knowing that you can check on it too, even while hundreds of miles away.

After the recent long and hot summer, the cool weather of autumn came quite abruptly. It comes as no surprised that homeowners are throwing on additional layers of clothing, and turning up their home thermostats to compensate for the cold temperatures. However, before you touch the thermostat dial, consider the advantages you will have with electrical heating. Higher efficiency, lower maintenance and environmentally friendly – electrical heating is the smart choice for your home, continue reading to find out why.

As there is no need for oil or gas required in electrical heating, there is no combustion, output or waste created when converting electricity to heat. Electricity is 100% renewable so the impact on the environment is much smaller than standard gas or oil heaters. Furthermore, as there is no input in required for electrical heating, the ongoing maintenance is much less. While an electric heater may be a larger initial investment, the cost savings from a reduction in maintenance during the service life is much better.

Electric heating can help you save money every month on your heating costs. In certain situations heating an entire home or building with electricity can cost more as it takes more energy to generate and transmit the heat to the entire building to heat. But where electricity truly shines in focused heating in areas. Rather than heating areas of your home unnecessarily, using smaller electric heaters in the frequented areas of your home leads to much better cost savings.

For example, during the evening you may be spending the majority of your time in the living room and kitchen. Turning up the thermostat would cause your heating system to heat all the rooms of your home that nobody is occupying. Instead, you would turn on your electric baseboard heater in the living room to keep you warm there. You can then turn off the heater when you are leaving the room for bed. This is much more efficient as the heat is targeted to the areas needed most and you are in full control.

Electric Furnaces – An electric furnace would replace your standard gas furnace to heat your entire home. A gas furnace can last 20 – 25 years, while the expected lifespan of an electric furnace is even longer. Because there are more combustible parts in a gas furnace, the maintenance is much higher over the course of its life. This means you will realize more cost savings over the life of an electric furnace.

Electric Baseboard Heaters – Many of you may be familiar with these types of electric heaters. These small boxes are placed just above the floor on the baseboard. They are installed in each room (as desired), and can be controlled individually. When the heat is generated it will rise to the top of the room, in turn the cold air falls and is put through the baseboard heater and the process continues.

If you are looking to make your home more efficient and eco-friendly – electric heating is the right option for you.