What is a Lumen and What Does It Do?

Written byMarc Dal Cin
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Most people have heard of watts, but what about lumens? A lumen (lm) is a unit of measure for the amount of light emitted by a light source such as an LED or lamp. To put it simply, lumens are a way to figure out how bright a light is.

What is the Difference Between Lumens, Watts and Lux?

Lumens, watts, and lux are all measures of light. Lumens measure the total amount of light or how bright a light is, watts measure the power used to create light, and lux measures how intense light is or the amount of illumination in a particular space. While they all measure different things, they are all important when it comes to lighting.

How Many Lumens Do I Need?

If you’re in the market for a new light bulb, you may be wondering how many lumens you need. The higher the lumen count, the brighter the light.There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. It depends on what you plan to use the light for and how much light you need.If you’re looking for a bright light in your bathroom or kitchen, you’ll need something with a higher lumen count than if you’re just looking for a source of ambient light. You may also want to consider whether you want a warm or cool light which is called the colour temperature. If you’re unsure, a licensed electrician can help you choose the right lighting setup for each room.

Some example ranges of Lumens in a typical house:

Hallway – 200-400
Living room – 600-1000
Bedroom – 400-700
Dining room – 500-800
Kitchen general – 800-1500
Bathroom – 1000-1500

In conclusion, lumens are important because they measure the amount of light that is being emitted from a bulb. This is important to consider when purchasing a bulb, as you want to make sure you are getting the most light for your money. Additionally, lumens are important for general lighting purposes, such as in a home or office. When choosing a light fixture, make sure to look for one with a high lumen rating.While wattage is still an important factor to consider, lumens should be your main focus when choosing a light bulb. This is because wattage measures how much energy a bulb uses, not how much light it emits. So, even if two bulbs have the same wattage, they may not produce the same amount of light.

Calibre Connect is Sydney’s expert when it comes to all types of lighting installation such as LEDs, Outdoor Lights, and Chandeliers. Give us a call at (02) 8898 0200 and one of our friendly electricians will be happy to assist you with your lighting needs.

FAQs

The lumen measures perceived brightness by quantifying luminous flux, which weights the power of emitted light according to the sensitivity of the human eye at each wavelength. This weighting, based on the luminosity function, reflects how bright different wavelengths appear to us, producing a value that correlates with human vision rather than raw energy output.

Luminous flux is weighted by human eye sensitivity because our eyes respond unevenly to different wavelengths of visible light, being most sensitive near 555 nm (green-yellow). Weighting by this sensitivity ensures that lumen values represent how humans actually perceive brightness, providing meaningful measures for lighting design and human comfort.

Lumens measure total luminous flux emitted by a light source in all directions, reflecting the total perceived light output. Lux, however, measures illuminance — the luminous flux incident per unit area (lumens per square metre). Essentially, lumens quantify total light emitted, while lux quantifies light received on a surface.

A candela measures luminous intensity in a particular direction (lumens per steradian). Total luminous flux in lumens is the integral of luminous intensity (candelas) over a solid angle. One lumen equals the luminous flux from one candela projected over one steradian of solid angle.

LED bulbs generate more lumens per watt by converting electrical energy more efficiently into visible light with less heat loss, using semiconductor technology that emits light through electroluminescence. Their spectral output aligns better with human eye sensitivity, enhancing luminous efficacy compared to inefficient incandescent bulbs producing more infrared radiation.

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