If we’ve heard it once, we’ve heard it so many times we’ve lost count. If your landscape lighting is as blue as a beautiful sky, we definitely need to talk.

Don’t Be Blue Over Your Landscape Lighting. See The Light – The Right Light – With Carolina Landscape Lighting

So, folks here’s the good news. Not all LED landscape lights are blue. Many, many years ago, when they first hit the market, that was the case on occasion.

In fact, today LED landscape lighting comes in cool, daylight, warm and even colors. So, we can customize your design to incorporate the HUE that best suits YOU. After all, if you’re not happy with the illumination results, then we most certainly won’t be happy.

Truth Be Told, It’s All About Kelvin – Not Calvin

It’s not the Calvin you went to school with, it’s Kelvin that you need to know about, and color temperature.

Color temperature is a way to describe the light appearance provided by an LED landscape light bulb. It is measured in degrees of Kelvin (K) on a scale from 1,000 to 10,000.

Typically, Kelvin temperatures for residential outdoor landscape lighting applications fall somewhere on a scale from 2000K to 6500K.

A light bulb’s color temperature lets us know what the look and feel of the light produced will be. The color temperature of a light bulb is assigned using the basis of correlated color temperature (CCT), so allow us to explain.

If you heat up a metal object, the object appears to glow. Depending on the Kelvin temperature that the metal object is being heated at, the glow will be various colors, such as orange, yellow or blue. The color temperature of light bulbs is meant to replicate the Kelvin temperature of the metal object. So far, so good? Let’s continue.

Who invented Kelvin?

Glad you asked. William Thomson, known as Lord Kelvin, was one of the most eminent scientists of the 19^th century and is best known for inventing the color/light temperature system that bears his name.

What Landscape Lighting Color Temperature Is Right For Me?

Here is an easy guide to understanding Kelvin (K) temperature…

Warm White Landscape Lighting: At 2700K, your light appearance will be warm white with a cozy, inviting glow.

Warm Welcoming Landscape Lighting: At 3000K, your light appearance will be a tad brighter with a glow of warm welcoming illumination.

Cool Crisp Landscape Lighting: At 5000 K, this is where the BLUE comes into the picture. The broadcast of light is crisp and invigorating, like daylight.

What Kelvin Color Temperatures Should I Use For My Landscape Lighting?

First of all, if you’re not a fan of blue – and we assume you’re not – then we strongly advise against using colder light temperatures, such as 4600K-6500K, because this creates the effect you are not enjoying

For outdoor living lighting, you’ll want your leisure and entertainment areas to bring out a sense of calming relaxation so that your guests can just enjoy the space. Warm lights, such as 2000K-3000K, tend to work best for these purposes. They are not too harsh on the eyes but still give enough light for everyone to be able to move around safely and see what is around them. If you are wondering what this would look like, just imagine sitting next to the glow of a firepit. That warm glow is exactly what you are going to get from a warm temperature light.

To highlight outdoor statues, stonework, fountains, or other outdoor features, we recommend sticking within the 2000K-3000K range. While most warm light temperatures tend to work best in entertainment areas, there is a feeling of calmness when combined with the cooler look of stone.

To showcase the textures and colors in your landscape gardens, you will want white LED garden lighting inside the range of 3000K-4000K. This neutral white gives a more natural garden light, highlighting the gorgeous natural vibrant colors of your garden.

So for a brief review, the primary Kelvin range used in residential landscape lighting is between 2500k-4000k. As a rule of thumb, warmer color temperatures are used on architectural elements (between 2500k-2700k) and slightly cooler temperatures are used on plant material in a landscape (generally 3000k-4000k).

What Kelvin Temperature Is Best For My Pathlights In My Landscape Lighting Plan?

The easy answer is to opt for lighting with a very warm color temperature: 2700K LED is ideal, and 3000K is okay, too. After your complimentary design consultation, our professional landscape lighting experts will advise you on how we can achieve the best temperatures to give you the effect you’re looking for while enhancing foot traffic safety to, from, and around your home exterior.

How Can I Eliminate The Guesswork When It Comes To Landscape Lighting Kelvin Temperature?

Folks, that’s the easiest question of all to answer for homeowners in the Carolinas, especially Charleston and Charlotte.

Let’s meet for a complimentary landscape lighting design consultation.