Be it a dining room, the front porch, or the back patio, lighting has a significant impact on the look of a space. The warm look of flame lighting is one way to enhance the curb appeal of a house at night or set the mood for a romantic evening at home. Flame light bulbs use LED technology to create realistic-looking flames. They come in models that fit standard light fixtures and smaller candelabra bulbs. Unlike standard light bulbs, flickering flame bulbs feature multiple light modes for creating different looks.

What to Consider When Choosing the Best Flame Light Bulb

While base size is one of the most important factors to consider when looking for flame light bulbs to replace the standard bulbs in a fixture, other attributes are also crucial, including brightness, lighting mode, and lifespan. Read on to learn more about these factors.

Bulb Size and Shape

Bulb size and shape vary with flame light bulb. The base size determines what fixture the light bulb will fit. Most flickering flame bulbs come in E26 and E12 base sizes. Size E26 bulbs will fit most standard light fixtures, including porch lights, garage lights, and most lamps. Size E12 bulbs are candelabra-base types, which include most chandeliers and some smaller lamps.

The shape and size of the bulb itself also varies. Most bulbs measure between 4 and 6 inches high and about 2.5 inches in diameter. Some bulbs are narrow at just 1.5 inches in diameter, making them suitable for achieving a thinner flame look, ideal in fixtures like a porch lamp. Most flame light bulbs have a cylindrical shape that differs from the bulbous look of a standard incandescent bulb or LED  bulb. This allows the bulb to better create the look of a flame. Light bulbs with an E12 base have glass bulbs with a flame shape, similar to the shape of incandescent E12 bulbs.

FLAME BULB constructure

Brightness 

Although most flickering flame light bulb add to the aesthetics of a room or outdoor space, many still need to provide some level of visibility. Porch lights and garage lights need to produce enough brightness to provide visibility at night while still looking stylish.

Brightness varies with LED bulbs. Most LED bulbs use about 2 watts of energy, which produces about 100 lumens; this is considered bright enough to light a walkway. Some LED bulbs use as much as 6 watts of power and can produce more than 300 lumens. Keep in mind that the more watts the bulb uses, the more impact it will have on a home’s energy bill. Although LED bulbs use a small fraction of the energy a standard 60-watt incandescent bulb uses, they can still impact an electric bill, especially when used in a porch light that may stay lit through the night.

Flame Orientation 

Light fixtures vary in the way they hold a light bulb. While most lamps may hold a bulb vertically with the base at the bottom, most porch lights and garage lights hold a bulb with the base face upward. With this in mind, many flame bulbs have a gravity mode allowing them to produce a flame that burns either upward or downward. These bulbs have sensors that determine the bulb’s orientation and set the flame to burn upward, regardless of whether it’s facing the right side up or upside down. This helps maintain an authentic look for the light fixture.

Lighting Modes

In addition to a gravity mode that orients the flame, most flame light bulbs offer different modes to allow the user to customize their look, including breathing, flame emulation, and general light. When in breathing mode, the bulb brightness slowly dims and brightens to simulate the uneven illumination of a live flame, creating a more subtle look of a flame behind the opaque glass. Flame emulation mode mimics the look of a live flame, creating the realistic effect that the bulb is designed to produce. A general light mode emits a glow similar to a standard LED light, making it ideal in situations where maximum visibility is needed.

Lifespan

An LED’s lifespan depends on the amount of heat it creates. Bulbs that run cooler will last longer, while those that run hotter will give out sooner. With that in mind, the more energy an LED flame bulb uses, the hotter it will burn and the shorter its lifespan will be. Higher LED bulbs, putting out 5 or 6 watts, generally last about 30,000 hours. Smaller bulbs that use about 2 watts can last up to 60,000 hours. Keep in mind that environmental factors also impact an LED light’s output. An LED light working in hot outdoor temperatures will degrade more quickly than one working in a cooler environment.