What Is Color Temperature and How Can it Transform Your Home’s Look?

When you think about all of the things your lighting control system can do, you probably think about centralized controls, energy savings and enhanced security.

But light is an essential part of making a house a home. It’s something that affects every aspect of your lifestyle.

And the best part of installing a smart lighting system in your home is that your integrated fixtures work to increase comfort throughout your day.

In fact, many systems allow you to adjust the color temperature and automatically adjust based on natural, circadian rhythms.

What does that mean for you? Find out below.

 

See Also: WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH HOME AUTOMATION?

 

What Is Color Temperature?

You already know how colors can affect the look of a room. In fact, LED lighting offers plenty of capabilities to change the hue in a room. One space can be blue, while another is red and others remain lit with a soft, natural white light.

But have you ever noticed that even when you’re experiencing “white” light, the color seems to range in tone slightly from yellowish to blueish?

That’s called “color temperature,” and it’s directly linked to how hot the bulb is burning. Fluorescent bulbs burn very hot, making them appear a little blue. Incandescent bulbs burn cooler, so the light tends to be a little yellow.

The different temperatures can have a big impact on how you experience a room. Hotter light will keep you more alert and aware – that’s part of the reason you see a lot of fluorescent fixtures in offices and other working spaces.

Incandescent bulbs help you relax, so they’re perfect for your living room and bedroom.

LEDs operate differently that either of the others, and you can adjust their temperature to meet your needs. When you’re ready for bed, lower the color temperature gradually. As you wake up in the morning, make sure the color temperature rises with you.

 

How Circadian Rhythms Affect You

What are circadian rhythms? It’s how your body responds to the subtle changes in light throughout the day.

Simply put, people tend to wake up in the morning and sleep at night. That’s no fluke – you’re designed to be most active when the sun is out and rest when it’s gone.

But because much of the lighting that we experience during our day-to-day isn’t natural sunlight, but instead illumination from artificial lighting fixtures, our rhythms tend to get thrown off.

However, some lighting control systems are taking this into account. They allow you to set parameters to automatically adjust according to circadian rhythms throughout the day.

That means the color temperature, brightness, and even arrangement of your lights can imperceptibly adjust throughout the day to ensure you’re getting the best experience you can from your system.

 

Want to learn more about how home lighting control can work with your lifestyle? Just click here.