BEHIND THE SCENES

Investigating LED Festoon Light Bulbs

14 October 2021

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Back in 2016, festoon light bulb options were limited. With the bare filament look becoming so popular in the last 2 years there are many more options now… yet we still believe our dimmable, shatter-proof LED Festoon Bulb is one of the best you can buy!

Here, we look back at why and how we tested festoon light bulbs to bring you our timeless essential.

A FRUSTRATING START

We started with two bulb options.

Plastic festoon light bulbs that looked cheap, so didn’t match our clientele. Or beautiful, traditional glass filament bulbs… that were too fragile for regular transport and installation.

Neither would do for the expectations and rigours of the Event and Rental Industry! So in true Event Shed style, we sought a better solution through innovation.

OUR FESTOON LIGHT BULB WISH LIST

Out initial wish list was small.

  • An LED rather than incandescent bulb.
    • With power in such demand at temporary and outdoor events, we wanted to reduce our power draw.
  • The ability to dim the bulb.
    • Event atmosphere relies heavily on lighting so a dimmable bulb was essential for memorable and versatile celebrations.
  • A shatter-proof bulb.
    • For improved safety and to reduce costs in bulb replacements and build time.
  • Must look like a traditional filament bulb.
    • Otherwise clients wouldn’t want it!
TESTING OUR WISH LIST

Evaluating 35 festoon light bulbs to source the best, we soon learned that those wishes had knock-on effects…

LEDs

Traditionally LEDs give off a very cold light. Finding one that gave a warm glow was really important to us for creating atmosphere at temporary events. Colour temperature is measured in Kelvin, the lower the number, the warmer the light. A warm light is considered 2700K, where our LED Festoon Bulb is 2200K… very warm!

The Ability to Dim

Dimmer functionality is not all equal! Some end very abruptly or jump in increments. We chose a festoon light bulb that dims very smoothly and discretely.

Shatter-Proof Plastic

We had fun throwing the bulbs off our mezzanine floor to check they were shatter-proof and still worked afterwards – they did! The shatterproof plastic also had to have great clarity.

We compared sizes, shapes and how close each LED bulb came to mimicking a filament bulb.

TRIED AND TESTED VERSATILE BENEFITS OF AN EVENT SHED FESTOON LIGHT BULB
  • Energy efficiency – LED 2 Watt, equivalent to 20W filament bulb (energy rating A+)
  • G45 (globe shape, 45mm diameter)
  • E27 base (screw fitting, 27mm diameter)
  • Very warm light (2200 Kelvin)
  • Dimmable
  • Shatter-proof, with a long life
  • Suitable for indoor and outdoor use
  • Lightweight, putting minimal strain on electrical connections
  • 27% ROI excluding transport and storage
  • CE marked
  • A year’s warranty on manufacturers defects
Festoon Lighting Strands at an Outdoor Celebration
Festoon Lighting Strands at an Outdoor Celebration
Festoon Lighting Strands within Sperry Tent
Festoon Lighting Strands within a Sperry Tent
BUYING OPTIONS

Our LED Festoon Bulbs are available to buy online and we now sell Festoon Strands and Festoon Starter Cables too. They have been through the same rigorous Event Shed analysis as our bulbs, the perfect combination!

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