You must have consistently seen many bugs humming around an open-air light. That’s because light sources draw in bugs.
But what particular feature about light attracts them, and how can you fix it?
Even if you use bug zappers, sprays, or citronella, it won’t help you keep those bugs away.
But have you ever thought about using LED lights outdoors? Imagine you have that blissful environment without worrying about bugs buzzing around you.
Sounds impressive, right?
Let’s go through some significant facts about how bugs are attracted to LED lights and how you can keep them away.
Will LED Lights Attract Bugs?
LED lights do draw in bugs. Since LED lights are cooler than other lights (which means LED lights don’t get as warm), bugs are not attracted to them overall. But in many cases, numerous LEDs are exceptionally bright. They emit blue or white cool light that bugs desire the most.
Which Type Of LED Lights Attract Bugs?
Here are a few things that bugs desire the most.
·Color Temperature
Color temperaturealso attracts bugs. Mostly, bugs tend to be inactive in the daytime because of too much sunlight and severe heat.
But, they become super active at night. This is because they search for places that give them moderate warmth to get away from the cold during the nighttime.
Consequently, LED lights produce a color temperature ranging from 3,500-4,000 kelvins and have neutral white light. Thus, this type of light acts as an insect or bug attractant.
·Luminance Proportion Factor
LED lights have a luminance proportion of approximately 1,100 lumens.
Such types of LEDs emit light in a warm white color, which does not seem to be neuro-destructive for bugs. Hence, bugs can easily fly or roam around the LED lights and start congesting the light source.
So, you must refrain from using high luminance LED lights.
·Color Rendering Index
The Color Rendering Index (CRI) is a scale that assesses how color appears under various light sources when compared to natural sunlight. The index ranges from 0 to 100, with a perfect 100 indicating that colors under the light source appear identical to those in nature.that is, the degree of color fidelity
Because the higher the degree of reduction of the color rendering, the more true and clear the color of the restored color, and the color will be more attractive to insects.
Hence while lights that have a high color temperature, luminous proportion factor, and CRI will attract more bugs. So make sure you get those lights that have moderate levels to avoid bugs.
Do LED Lights Help Keep Bugs Away?
Bugs are generally attracted to the blue end of any color spectrum. However, incandescent lights produce a broader range of colors which also generates heat. Both of these attract many insects and bugs.
On the other hand, LEDs “don’t yield a lot of UV light.” So exchanging your bulbs may have a positive impact. Because the wavelengths produced by LED lights are generally less appealing to bugs.
In fact, careful research was conducted in 2016, in which scientists looked at different sorts of lights. First, to guarantee nothing else was drawing in the bugs, they gathered them in hand-crafted traps. Then they attempted to track down the most noticeably terrible choice for outside lighting.
After that, they concluded that an incandescent light bulb pulls in most of the bugs.
On the other hand LEDs with their warm white and cool white tones were the most unappealing to bugs.
But, LEDs do come in different types. Is there any specific type of LED that does not attract bugs?
Let’s throw light upon the following text to see if you could actually use such a bulb!
What Type Of LED Lights Does Not Attract Bugs?
During the manufacture of LED lights, the primary concern is to produce excess lumen light emission. And if you really want to prevent bugs, you need to go through its color temperature.
LED lights having the color temperature range of 5,000 kelvins will emit light similar to daylight. It also produces excess blue light in the range of 400-500nm. Therefore, bugs will be attracted to such light tones since they have nocturnal nature.
On the contrary, getting stuck to the warm and amber-colored light tones can reduce the attraction of bugs.
So, it’s evident that having warmer colors can help prevent bugs from being attracted to LED lights. But, on the contrary, if you use LEDs with sharp color tones, it might put you in a difficult position.
Therefore, you need to be very thoughtful while purchasing LED lights. Refrain from choosing sharper tones and stick to the warmer ones.
LED Lights That Can Help To Prevent Bug Attraction
Start using the following LED lights if you really want to illuminate your outdoor environment with fewer bugs distracting your vibe.
- LED bug lights are the type of lights having a yellow coating. This coating helps in decreasing the color temperature of illuminated light.
So, it eventually keeps the bugs away. However, not just yellow-coated bulbs help prevent bugs, but many more perform a similar function. For example, yellow strip lights and gold-tint filament bulbs are excellent for creating an environment. This helps prevent bugs from being attracted to light sources.
Some LED lights emit warm-colored lighting. Thus it has been concluded that LED lights having warmer color temperatures will attract minimal bugs.
But, there are LED lights specifically designed to prevent the attraction of bugs or kill them.
- The LED Z bug bulb is a bug zapper that also acts as an LED bulb. This bulb works to emit ultraviolet light from the caged center and white light from its top part. The ultraviolet light attracts bugs and mosquitoes towards the high voltage electric grid of the bulb. Which instantly kills the bugs on contact.
In this way, instead of using traditional tactics to keep bugs away, you can directly install these types of LED lights.
What Color LED Light Attracts Bugs?
As discussed above, the color emitted from any light source plays a vital role in attracting bugs. Therefore, colors with shorter wavelengths such as blue-green and ultraviolet light are more visible to mosquitoes or bugs.
However, those colors whose wavelengths are comparatively longer, such as yellow, red, and orange light tend to attract fewer bugs.
Fortunately, LED lights produce no ultraviolet emissions, making them quite feasible to use around bugs. But, unfortunately, LED light can sometimes have light with shorter wavelengths, such as bluish or white-colored light. This seems to be a nuisance because it can attract bugs to a large extent.
Therefore, when you browse for LED lights used in outdoor areas, make sure to check their wavelength. It’s essential to choose a bulb that has a wavelength larger than 550n. And, it should have a color range of warm, yellow, or ultra-warm white.
Keeping these colors in mind, you need to purchase the right LED lights that could keep the bugs away and compliment your surroundings.
Alternate Ways To Keep Bugs Away From LED Lights
There are a few other traditional ways of keeping the bugs away from lights. So, let’s go through them briefly:
Switching off excessive LED lights might prompt fewer bugs zooming around. A solitary light will not be the main thing that discourages annoying creepy bugs.
When bugs are prowling close by, particularly around entryways, there’s a possibility they’ll discover their way inside. In that case, you need to be aware of the four primary things that bugs need to survive. These things include food, water, a place to live, and appropriate temperature.
Thus, if you need to ward them off, you additionally need to keep those essential requirements from them.
Consider Practicing These Different Tactics:
- Dispose of standing water. That incorporates ensuring your flower pots have appropriate drainage. You can also move your birdbaths away from home.
- Frequently check on your screens. Bright lights discharged from your home will likewise draw in bugs. You have to make sure that your windows and entryway screens are fit as a fiddle. You’ll also need to keep your unscreened entryways and windows shut.
- Fix entryway seals. A disrupted seal at the lower part of an entryway permits simple passage for bugs. However, it may permit light from inside to enlighten the way for them.
- Keep your open-air space clean. That implies keeping rubbish and food squanderers in covered holders. It’s also possible to keep your trash bins away from your entryways and windows, if conceivable.
- You can also use herbal-infusion sprays which will help in keeping bugs away especially from doors and windows.
- If it’s only your porch that’s enlightened and not your entire property, so one thing you can use is aromatic candles. It’s not necessary to use them everywhere but you can keep them wherever bugs are mostly gathered. They will act as insect repellent. Plus, they are aesthetically pleasing and add more beauty to your porch.
Conclusion
It’s evident from the facts that there aren’t any spectrums that could completely keep the bugs away from lights. Because with every spectrum of color, a bug tends to get attracted.
However, there are some remedies that can ease your trouble with bugs! And provide you with a soothing and peaceful environment.
As you all must be very keen to know if you could completely diminish bugs from your outdoors, LEDs can help to a large extent. You need to start using LED lights with a longer wavelength and color range of warm white to yellow.
So, avail this fantastic opportunity by replacing your old incandescent bulbs with LED bulbs to have a safe atmosphere from bugs.
