How To Buy A Light Bulb (Yes, Seriously!)

Every time I visit a box store I see homeowners wandering the lighting aisle in a daze! Should they pick an incandescent, LED or compact fluorescent bulb? What does color temperature or lumens or CRI mean? Is soft white better than bright white? Will this bulb look too blue? What wattage do you need? It has become very confusing because of changes in regulations and changes in technology. In this video I'll explain what to look for on the packaging and how to avoid the meaningless marketing terms. You can pick the right bulb for your circumstances if you understand the technology and the labels.

[mirandamedina]

This is by far the best video about lightbulbs I've seen on YouTube! Thank you, sir.

[sgoweb]

Wealth of info here, and good scales to match, and finally great breakdown of packaging of actual products. This is a 5-star video guide, thanks!

[colinmlivingspace]

Thanks for breaking this all down in a simple, easy to understand way...and relating it to the old school way of buying bulbs. Now I get it. Great explanation!

[Teaganderry]

Very informative! I understood lumens, color temp, etc, but it was still confusing. Thank you for posting!

[varshavijayan]

Thankyou for saving our time by getting right to the point and giving the most relevant information, unlike other videos that would unnecessarily go into too much depth on only one or two topics. This really is the best video on youtube to learn about lighting.

[stevejensen]

This is a very good video. All I would add is color temp by room. LR, BR, DR, Great room, outdoors - 2700K. Kit, Kit/DR, Bath - 3000K. Gar/Laundry is 5000K. Do not mix color temp in a room. Also, a medium base is E26 (think mm - base diameter). Night light bases are E12. Get dimmable, if possible. Frosted is better unless specialty use. I use 5000K only in lamps meant to balance mid-day sun across from windows.

[tomiv]

I've watched like 20 videos on LED light bulbs past day or so and this is the only video that actually taught me anything useful. Thank you sir 🙏

[DanielBerroteran]

... although today energy efficiency is sought in terms of lighting in the home, many of us still love that technology of incandecent bulbs, that is, from recognized brands and of u quality that can provide us with that type of light quality very pleasant and in turn helps us to heat environments where the climates are very cold.

[ericdelmar]

As a photographer, I appreciate the color temperature discussion. And great point about the fixed color temperature when dimming LEDs. I never knew that. Watched two of your vids and immediately subscribed. Great work and thanks.

[yolannayerex]

Each time I tried to pose this question to Google, I felt more and more stupid! Embarrassed, I Googled "how to buy a lightbulb in 2024". I'm looking for a new lamp, I live in MX and it all seems Greek to me! Thanks for sharing..I haven't even started the video yet, but I know I'm grateful already. I LOVE the title with (Yes, Seriously!). It made me feel not so stoopid!

[susmitaguha-db]

This is the only video that actually taught me anything useful.thank you so much.

[DLK]

Great video I actually had a hard time today at Lowes finding replacement bulbs for my front porch lights. Bought the incorrect size of course. Gotta make another trip back tomorrow.

[stefvi]

Thank you so much for this video! I watched several and yours was the most informative and easiest to understand.

[michaelm]

Great video! To add some more detail, "Edison" specifies the size of the threaded metal base and "A19" is the size and shape of the glass part. Some LED bulbs are a lot bigger than A19 and don't fit within the metal part of a lamp that holds the shade.

[zspacecaptain]

Most incandescent bulbs actually have a CRI of about 99. CFLs and LEDs are both around 80-90

[tuesboomer]

Thank you, John. Great presentation. Buying them has become ridiculously mind bending. It's very helpful to be able to cut to the chase and find the most useful information on the packages. Over the last few years I did finally arrive at being able to decipher lumens and color temperature but it's still like a great scavenger hunt to wade through the massive amount of bulbs that one has to 'face down' in the lighting aisle.

[loveishope]

Incandescent is the way to go (if you can still find them).

[robertbonnette]

I enjoyed your video and I now have enough knowledge to select a bulb for my particular needs. Thanks.

[monogurui]

Thank you for this, my mind was so blown at the efficiency of things, I had to make sure I was reading things right.

[SmiteCraftRo]

thank you very much sir. i have chosen a 10.5W LED, warm white, 2.7k, 1510 lumens. For a 3X3 meters room it does its job pretty well