Metro Lighting's energy efficient series by Nick Frisella: Lighting Facts Label

Watts are out Lumens are in

 I was racking my brain to find a good analogy about transitioning from one unit of measurement to another.  I failed just like our country’s attempt to convert to the Metric system.  The traditional incandescent light bulb has changed very little over the last 100 years.  It is because of this consumers base light output directly with the amount of Watts a bulb uses.  This association between light output and watts is simply no longer the case.  The problem we face is relearning that light output should be measured in Lumens.  The Federal Trade Commission started the lighting facts label to do just that, to help educate consumers.  Similar to the nutritional facts label the Lighting Facts Label provides you with all of the important information you need to know about the bulb.  This is a giant step in the correct direction.  The next step is to educate the consumer about what all this new information means. 

Today I will walk you through all of the important terms you will need to understand to make an informed decision.  When shopping for new energy efficient light bulbs you will need to think about Lumens, color temperature, and Color Rendering Index (CRI).   An easy way to determine the light appearance of a light bulb is to look for the Lighting Facts Label on the package.  The Lighting Facts Label will give you the all information you'll need to compare different bulbs and started to appear on almost every household light bulb in 2012. 

Please click here to learn more.

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