Since replacing traditional incandescent bulbs, energy-saving bulbs now come in a choice of compact fluorescent light (CFL – the standard energy-saving type), LED and halogen. In this post, we’ll help you decide which type and wattage of bulb you should use with your lampshades.

CFL bulbs are cheap and widely available and four times more efficient than incandescent bulbs. LED are the most energy efficient type of energy-saving bulb. They are costly, but likely to last around 25 years. Lastly, halogen bulbs are very similar to incandescent bulbs in terms of colour and quality, but are also similar in terms of their energy output, so they are costly to run.

Wattage, or lumens, refers to the brightness of the light. Back when incandescent lights were widely used, brightness was measured in watts. Now that energy-saving bulbs have replaced these older bulbs, bulbs use a lot less power to achieve the same brightness, so this is a less useful measure. Instead, the brightness of the light is now measured in lumens: the higher the number of lumens, the brighter the light.

 

So what wattage should I use?

A good rule of thumb when buying a light bulb for your lampshade is that around 400 lumens would be sufficient for a bedside table. Therefore, you would need a CFL bulb of 9W, a halogen bulb of 28W, or an LED bulb of 6W to achieve a suitable level of brightness.

To illuminate your living room, on the other hand, you might need between 1,500 and 3000 lumens in total, which you could achieve by using more than one bulb. To get a brightness of 1300 lumens or more, you could use a CFL bulb of 20W, a halogen bulb of 70W or an LED bulb of 18W.

To achieve a suitable level of brightness for your living room, for example, you could use two CFL bulbs of 20W. Why not use one 20W bulb in a ceiling light for general lighting, and another 20W bulb for the corner of the room in an ambient table light?

 

Light up your home in style with Premier Lampshades

If you are redesigning your home, Premier Lampshades can help. We have been making and repairing lampshades for over 36 years, and we know how important great, stylish lighting is to a home. We believe in quality too, that’s why we are one of the UK’s leading lampshade manufacturers.

For a closer look at Premier Lampshades, watch this video:

 

 

If you would like to find out more about our lampshades or our lampshade repair service, get in touch today. Simply call 01204 414 366. Alternatively, send an enquiry and we’ll be in touch soon.

 

We hope you enjoyed this blog post.