Lighting guide
LED bulbs in Kenya: watts, lumens and colour explained
Bulb packaging is written for engineers and priced for shoppers, which is why most people buy on wattage alone and end up with light they dislike. There are only three numbers that matter, and one of them is not watts.
Lumens, not watts
Watts measure how much electricity a bulb consumes. Lumens measure how much light it produces. With old filament bulbs the two moved together, so people learned to shop by watts. LEDs broke that link: a 9 watt LED produces roughly what a 60 watt filament bulb used to.
Rough conversions worth remembering: 400 lumens is about an old 40 watt bulb, 800 lumens about a 60 watt, 1200 lumens about a 75 watt. For a table or bedside lamp, 400 to 800 lumens is the useful range.
Colour temperature, in kelvin
- 2700 K, warm white. Yellowish and soft, like a low filament bulb. The right choice for bedrooms, sitting rooms and any lamp used after dark.
- 4000 K, neutral. A compromise. Fine for a kitchen or bathroom.
- 6500 K, cool daylight. Blue-white and alerting. Correct for a workshop, a kitchen counter or a study desk. Wrong for a room where anyone relaxes.
Most bulbs sold cheaply in Kenyan hardware shops are 6500 K, which is why so many homes feel harsh at night. Check the box; the number is always printed on it.
The fitting
E27 is the large screw fitting and the standard for lamps in Kenya. E14 is the smaller screw, used in some chandeliers and appliance lamps. B22 is the two-pin bayonet still common in older ceiling fittings. Our lamps all take E27, deliberately, because you can buy a replacement E27 bulb in almost any duka in the country.
Avoid lamps with a sealed or integrated LED that cannot be replaced. When the LED fails, and it will, the whole lamp becomes waste.
Dimmable or not
A dimmable LED costs a little more and is worth it in a bedroom or sitting room. But note that dimming needs either a dimmer switch or a lamp with a dimming control built in. Putting a dimmable bulb in a plain lamp does not make it dim, and putting a non-dimmable bulb on a dimmer will flicker or buzz.