Choosing Commercial LED Tube Lights for Your Business

So you’ve made the decision to invest in LED tube lights for your business. The problem is you know very little about this technology and what solution you’re looking for. Working with a professional Australian-based provider will generally mean that you’re getting the right advice given your needs. But as is the case for any retail product, a little bit of knowledge about what you’re buying can put you in a much better position to make a decision and look at your options as objectively and clearly as possible.

This article will take you through some of the things you need to think about when buying LED tube lights to ensure that they fit your illumination needs.

Considering Length

The first thing you need to consider when it comes to tube lighting is the length of the lights. This will depend on the room that you are planning to install them and what their main purpose is. Most tube lights will vary from around 2 - 8 feet or more but this will vary from supplier to supplier.

Measuring Quality

Higher quality LED tube lights like Fortis T8 LED tubes will naturally be more expensive, so if you feel you are paying a little extra and you’re expecting a product that will perform and last, consider the CRI and CCT. These take into account the quality of the light and its temperature, which is a determining factor in a globe’s longevity. This information should be readily available of you take a look at the specs of your LED lights.

Colouring Rendering Index (or CRI) measures light quality, with a higher score indicating a greater spectrum of colours being produced by the light source. Generally speaking, for a casual commercial environment you’ll be looking at CRI of 80 or above, but in cases where high visibility is of great importance, you should consider LED tube lights 82 > CRI for the best results.

Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT) is all about the heat that the light produces and the colour of light it produces; the two are closely tied. One of the defining features of LED lights is the fact that they produce lower levels of heat, utilising more of their energy in producing light rather than heat.

That said, some heat is naturally still produced; LED globes with a higher CCT (usually 5000 kelvin+) will produce a much sharper, cooler white light. For those with a CCT of around 3000k, you’ll be getting a much warmer, comfortable light, possibly suited to a relaxed dining area or living room for example. Most work areas and office buildings ar best served with globes of around 4000k, but consider these factors when thing about the kind of atmosphere you wish to create in your commercial setting.

Light Optics

The optics of an LED globe essentially determine how concentrated or dispersed the light is. Clear optics will allow for a focused beam of light that is stronger but is contained in a smaller space. This is often the preferred option in for industrial applications where high visibility is very important.

For office spaces, you’ll generally be looking for Diffuse optics, which are moderate in terms of light dispersion but allow you to minimise glare and create a comfortable, relaxed working space. Wide beam optics are useful to splash light around a large room; the light is internationally directed upwards into the fixture which enables it to fill a room more easily. This means you have a smoother, well distributed beam of light rather than the ‘cave’ effect’ that can make large rooms quite uncomfortable.

This article has covered the basic considerations you and your supplier need to make when fitting your building for LED lights. Finding the balance is often best left to a professional if you have little experience, so it’s always worth while to chat it through with someone that has worked closely with T8 LED tube lights and is knowledgable about their product. For more information, we’d encourage you to get in touch with the team at littil today to discuss your LED needs or find out more information about the process.