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How bright is 120 lumens? Just what is that level of light good for? We give you real life applications and comparisons to help you understand what levels of brightness certain quantities of lumens will deliver.
Table of Contents
A Lumen is a measure of the total amount of light emitted from a source.
120 lumens means the light has the intensity of 120 lumens of light.
When you are looking for how bright a certain light bulb or lighting product is, the number of lumens is what you need to use as your comparison.
Lumens is the unit measurement of brightness, with 1 lumen equalling the brightness of 1 candle, so 120 lumens has the brightness of 120 candles.
120 Lumens is generally regarded as a low level of light for LED, CFL or incandescent lighting. It’s suitable for gentle accent illumination and close up task lighting for reading.
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Many LED solar lights have a brightness in the region of 120 lumens. However, it is important to keep in mind that the greater the brightness, the more power is needed from the batteries. These batteries need to be able to hold enough charge for these lights to work for an extended period of time.
An EDC flashlight will have around 100 lumens and used for close up activities it will seem bright enough, so 120 at lumens you can see it will have enough brightness to carry out a wide variety of tasks
Torch
The brightness of an 120 lumen torch (UK for flashlight) is the power of light of 120 candles. This level is regarded as a very bright level of torch suitable for most outdoor tasks.
As the lumen measurement of brightness is still relatively new on product packaging, there is an unfamiliarity with what an impressive lumen count is.
Compared with an incandescent standard 40-watt (470 lumen) incandescent bulb, 120 lumens is the equivalent of having that bulb dimmed by 75%, leaving it at 25% of its original output.
To compare how much light you get with different lumens levels, imagine a one by one meter room. If the room has an incandescent bulb which emits 120 lumens then it can illuminate that area to roughly 12 lux (depending on the reflectivity of surfaces in the room).
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120 lumens of LED light can feel brighter than other technologies as it is directional and very efficiently delivers light compared to most other light sources. This amount of light is distributed with minimal wastage and therefore generally creates a brighter intensity on a surface than compared to other technologies.
The visual impression of brightness will differ in looks according to its color temperature, using the same amount of light.
LED light with a cool white color temperature of between 4000K to 7000K will feel brighter when compared to the warmer yellowish tones of warm white and soft white between 3500K and 2700K.
If you are considering what is enough light to read by, the answer depends on how close the light is to the page and the surrounding ambient lighting levels.
As a close source at approx 12″ away, 120 lumens is bright enough to read by as long as the beam of light is angled direct onto the page.
For general reading purposes a light of around 250-300 lumens will be enough to read by – but if looking at more decorative lighting effects with less of a direct beam of light, such as table lamps or decorative torches, then light losses through shades and diffuser’s needs to be considered and sometimes a higher lumen level of 470 lm would be better.
It really depends on the conditions. If it’s pitch black then you might want to go for a brighter light, but if there’s some ambient light then 120 lm should be bright enough to light your footsteps and be seen by others.
Most lights on the market will give you a choice of different brightness modes, so you can conserve battery life when needed, with this output regarded as a lower more efficient lighting level.
A solar light with an output of 120 lumens will be bright enough for most general uses such as accent lighting or close up task lighting. In very dark environments outdoors, it will be bright enough to light up the objects it is illuminating.
A 120 lumen head torch is acceptable for outdoor activities such as camping and hiking, suitable for most close up and general applications.
A 120 lumen puck light is bright enough for under cabinet lighting and other general applications.
Battery powered closet light with 120 lumens output is good for general applications such as finding clothes in a closet. It is not going to be very bright and only suitable for small to medium sized closets.
A 120 lumen solar spotlight is not going to be very bright and only suitable for accent lighting. It is an entry level low brightness for most solar powered rechargeable spotlights models on the market.
You should look for between 350 lumens and 800 lumens per solar spotlight for a strong illumination of trees and planting.
A 120 lumen solar pathway light is good for waymarking across paths and driveways, when each solor light is spaced approximately 5ft apart.
A 120 lumen LED bulb is less than a G9 or G4 micro lamp, and not a typical output for LED bulbs.
120 lumens from 1.2W LED light is approximately equal to a 10W of incandescent light.
When comparing lumens to watts you need to consider the type of light source being used as the greater the efficiency the higher the lumen level created per watt of power used.
Although wattages are often used when describing how bright a bulb is, lumens are a better measurement.
Useful comparative measurements often asked:
Lux can only be measured by knowing the distance and the area the lumens have to travel to.
120 lumens is 120 candles.
A degree of kelvin is the unit of measurement for color temperature, therefore there is no direct comparison with kelvin to lumen. However, an impression of brightness will increase with a high degree of kelvin as the light seems colder and brighter to the viewer.
Lumens and Candela. Lumens is the total amount of light from a fixture. Candela is how much of that light from a fixture shines in one direction. So 120 lm would be less than 120 candela with the candela only quantified if the angle of beam width is known.
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