When the sun decides to retire for the day, and ushers in the darkness that comes with the nighttime, familiar areas get covered in shadow, and once effortless activities require additional planning and caution. Floodlights can help mitigate all of the above mentioned problems by illuminating outdoor spaces and transforming nighttime operations into well-lit endeavors.
Floodlights are powerful light fixtures that double as versatile tools that play an important role in the security, safety, and functionality of a variety of environmental settings.
In this article, we discuss the role of floodlights, how to choose the right one for your setup, advanced features, and other considerations when using one.
What Are Floodlights?
Floodlights are also called LED floodlights, and they are basically high-intensity lighting fixtures specially designed to shine a wide beam of light across a large area. While spotlights are designed to focus on a narrow zone, floodlights are designed to provide a wider illumination pattern in an area, making them ideal for applications where broad coverage is essential.
These lights are typically used in parking lots, patios, fields, curbs, yards, and other places that require a wide light coverage.
The Benefits of Using Floodlights in Various Applications
Let us jump straight to discussing the key benefits of installing floodlights:
Enhanced Security
The function of floodlights, in most cases, is to act as a deterrent against criminal activity since brightly lit areas are less likely to be appealing to trespassers, and sudden illumination triggered by motion sensors can startle or disorient intruders.
This visual deterrent is likely to improve the security of homes, businesses, and public spaces.
Improved Safety
Adequately lighting up a space with floodlights can help minimize the risks of accidents and injuries at night. Floodlights can help illuminate parking lots, walkways, and work areas, allowing people to navigate these areas safely and potentially avoid hazards when they appear.
Increased Visibility
For construction workers who tend to perform nighttime operations, floodlights can help provide the much-needed illumination required to see clearly in low-light conditions.
Whether it’s security personnel patrolling a property, construction workers working on a site, or emergency responders arriving at an incident scene, floodlights ensure clear visibility and can improve situational awareness in some cases.
Versatility for Various Applications
Floodlights have a wide range of applications that extend beyond security and safety. They can be used to illuminate outdoor sporting events, construction sites, loading docks, parking lots, building facades, and lighting up the backyard of a home for nighttime entertainment.
How to Choose the Right Flood Light for the Job
Due to the numerous types of floodlight configurations available on the market, choosing the right one with the appropriate features for your specific needs can sometimes be difficult.
Here are a few features to look out for when buying floodlights:
Light Source: Traditional floodlights are used to utilize halogen bulbs, but LED floodlights have become the preferred choice due to their superior energy efficiency, longer lifespan, lower operating costs, and safer usage.
Power: Floodlights are available in a varying range of wattages, a feature that tends to affect their overall brightness. Higher-wattage lights are typically suitable for large spaces or areas requiring intense illumination, while low-wattage options work well for smaller spaces. However, as LEDs become more efficient, it makes sense to focus more on the lumen output of your flood light than the wattage. Floodlights can range from 12,000 lumens to 36,000 lumens in lumen output, depending on the amount of lighting power you need.
Color Temperature: Color temperature basically means the “whiteness” of the light emitted. Warmer color temperatures hover around 3000 Kelvin, and these tend to provide a more yellowish tint or hue. Warmer-colored floodlights are used to create a welcoming ambiance in residential settings.
Cooler color temperatures hover around 5000 Kelvin, and they emit whiter light, which is ideal for security applications where maximum visual acuity is critical.
Beam Angle: The beam angle is the feature that determines how the light from a flood light spreads. Wide beam angles up to 120 degrees are great for lighting up large areas, and narrow beam angles like 30-degree floodlights provide a more focused light pattern in designated areas.
Motion Detection: Some floodlights have built-in motion sensors that help to automatically activate them when motion is detected, therefore providing you with both its intended security benefit and extra energy savings.
Durability: Since most floodlights are created for outdoor use unless you are using a portable floodlight like the Streamlight Knucklehead Work Light, then the floodlight you choose must be weatherproof and constructed from durable materials designed to withstand harsh weather conditions like rain, snow, and other extreme temperatures.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is safe to say floodlights have become indispensable for a wide range of applications, including everything ranging from residential security to commercial operations.
Understanding the different types of floodlights that you can use for your facility, including their features and how to choose the appropriate one, can help you select the ideal solution for your specific needs, therefore enhancing the functionality and safety of your outdoor spaces.
At All Security Equipment, we understand the importance of using high-quality, premium floodlights for your property, and this is why we only source our floodlights from globally tested and trusted brands that specialize in making some of the best floodlights in the world.
Check out our collection of portable Streamlight floodlights to select the best one for your outdoor and indoor emergency lighting needs. These portable floodlights are great for lighting up fairly large areas without the need for a standard floodlight installation.
Contact our team of expert installers and customer care representatives for answers to any questions you may have.