So what kind of light bulb is needed for a Chandelier?
Chandeliers have been around a long time before the invention of the light bulb in 1879, in fact they have been used centuries before his birth in 1847! The original chandeliers were wooden and held candles on the ends of the arms . One of the benefits of the chandelier in the times before the electric light bulb was the fact that the chandelier had a multitude of arms and therefore could hold a great number of candles. As the light output, or candle power, as it is sometimes termed is only small for each candle this meant that you could get an acceptable illumination level in the room. The idea of the chandelier lived on and in the in the 18th century when the bohemian glass-makers made their fine chandeliers they still used the candle as the prime illumination source.
The design of traditional chandeliers has not changed much since these days and in fact manufacturers and connoisseurs have taken great steps to preserve its tradition looks and maintain the heritage. Now as the candle complemented the traditional chandeliers so well then the challenge has always been to create an electric light bulb which mimics the effect and aesthetics of the candle as closely as possible.
Looking at different alternatives for the chandelier light bulb.
The light bulb has remained very similar in design over the last century since its invention by Thomas Edison. These light bulbs known as incandescent light bulbs have a tungsten filament which glows white hot when electricity is passed through it, which in tern produces the illumination for the space. Many people did not like the look of the filament in the bulb and therefore pearl or opaque covers were produced but this was not good for chandeliers. It is the concentrated point source source of white light combined with the clear cover for the bulb which allows light rays to pass through the crystals and produce enhanced sparkle. This led us quite naturally into having a light bulb which was well suited to traditional chandelier which was the candle filament light bulb.
The world then got more complicated with the emergence of the energy saving light bulb onto the market. This happened because of the ever increasing need to save electricity and in tern reduce the amount of carbon dioxide let into the atmosphere during the electricity generation process. In fact, things have moved on even further now and government legislation now means that the traditional incandescent light bulb is progressively being banned. This ban has already started with the opaque light bulbs, as they are less efficient, and will progressively be put into effect across the full range of light bulbs over the coming years. The first energy saving light bulbs used the compact fluorescent lamp – CFL technology and although this was very efficient saving upto 80% in electricity costs does produce very bulky light bulbs with poaque covers which are not ideal for traditional chandeliers.
The new dimmable LED Candle Bulb
This LED candle bulb has a single high powered LED and utilises a light pipe and as a consequence produces a light effect which is very similar to the traditional incandescent light bulb. The clear cover then allows the light to radiate from the glass cover and the light beams then catch the crystal to create enhanced sparkle. This chandelier LED candle bulb has the additional advantage of being dimmable which means that the light level can be reduced to create the right mood. This is particularly important with chandeliers with large numbers of bulbs as otherwise the light level can be too intense. So finally we have a dimmable LED candle bulb with aesthetic worthy of the beauty of chandeliers.
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