What is lumens (lm) ?
Lumen is the measurement of brightness as perceived to the human eye. Because of incandescent lighting, we are all accustomed to using watts to measure the brightness of light. Today, we use lumen. Lumen is the most important variable when choosing which LED strip light you need to look at. Make sure you compare lumen output between LED strip lights before determining which one is best for your project.
What is color temperature?
The color of light can be quantified by referring to its color temperature. White light is measured in Kelvins (K). Most white lights fall in a spectrum between 1800K and 6500K. When getting close to 3000K, the light is noticeably warmer. On the other end of the spectrum, the lights have a blue-ish tint and cooler tone when nearing 6500K.
Which color temperature should I choose?
To Choose the correct color temperature lights for your project is very important, and as important as the brightness you choose. Consider the look and feel you want your project to have. What other color lights will be present? What material and color are the materials you wish to light?
What is CRI and why is it important?
Color Rendering Index (CRI) is the measurement of how colors look under a light source when compared with sunlight. Having information on the CRI of a LED strip light is important because you want to make sure that the colors are being accurately represented by the light source.
CRI is measured on a scale from 0-100. A CRI of 80+ is the industry-standard for most applications while a CRI of 90+ tends to be necessary for situations that need color accuracy. Our High CRI Series are used for photography lighting, retail lighting, bathroom or salon lighting, and residential lighting.
What is Binning?
Simply put, binning is the process of grouping LEDs during production so that they matched with LEDs of the same color sector. For example, all 2700K chips are ‘binned’ together and are separated from chips that have a higher/lower color temperature.
What is the difference between IP65, IP67, & IP68?
The differences between commonly sold IP65, IP67, & IP68 strips are slight, but very important. Using the above chart as a guide, we can see that all strips are protected at the highest level from solids and dust. The variations come with the protection against liquids.
IP65 = Water resistant. "Protected against water jets from any angle" *Do NOT submerge IP65 LED lights, these are not waterproof.
IP67 = Water resistant plus. “Protected against the events of temporary submersion (10 minutes)" *Do NOT submerge IP67 LED lights for extended periods, these are not waterproof.
IP68 = Waterproof "Protected against the events of permanent submersion up to 3 meters"
What's the maximum operating temperature of your LED strips? How hot do the strip lights get?
The temperature will vary from strip to strip. Our strips are designed to be under powered at the component levels to keep the strip cooler than its maximum operating thresholds. We measure the strip’s temperature from 28 ºC to 51ºC.
We have designed the LED strips to be able to operate in a temperature range of -30ºC and 70ºC. When the LEDs are ran it higher ambient temperatures above 40ºC, it is recommended to use a heat sink to dissipate the heat away from the LED strip.
How do I choose which power supply I would need for my LED strip?
Firstly, calculate the total watts consumed by the LEDs (Watts per meter) X (number of linear feet used. Then, take that number and add on additional 20%. We add the additional 20% to avoid overloading the power supply. Under-loading the power supply help increase lifespan of the power supply.
How much brightness is lost by using a channel with a frosted cover?
Frosted covers helps diffuse the light and reduce ‘hotspots’ and may typically reduce the brightness up to 30%.
Please feel free to let us know by emails, if you have more questions on LED.
