Difference between landscape lights with bulbs or LED? Which "pops"?
Jeff Smith
3 years ago
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Landscaping Lights - Hadco LED
Comments (1)I purchased a Hadco lighting kit for the RL4 lights. In retrospect I should of gone with the LED because they last 20 years. I went with the 2700k warm hue. This matched my current il6 integral wall lights. I would recommend the 3 watt warm lens. The difference probably will not be major and over all you will save. The warm look is personal preference but its more like other incandescent bulbs out there. I put the link of the Hadco lighting Kit I got Thanks Kevin Here is a link that might be useful: hadco lighting kits...See MoreEcoSmart LED bulbs(Home Depot)
Comments (6)"I've had CFLs burn out way less than 8000 hours." Yep, 8000 hours is an average. That means that the one I have in my music room that's been operating for 3 years now continuously (26,000h+) balances 3 of yours which may have failed the second you turned them on. :) Your LED's 50,000 hours is also an average. LED lamps also have failure-prone components. Some of them will fail in 10h, 100h, 1000h ... and so on. There is no way to predict that a given unit will absolutely, certainly last 50000h. The best you can hope for is free replacement under warranty if it doesn't. (And BTW, the cost of that "free" replacement is built into the price you paid for the unit.) Sorry, you can improve the odds - but nothing will guarantee that you'll never have to climb up there and change a bulb again. That said, there are considerations for this kind of use entirely aside from service life. First, on the plus side: I suspect that for a candelabra retrofit, the size of LEDs is advantageous, even though CFs have really shrunk in recent years. A contraindication: LEDs are inherently directional, rather than having a spherical radiation pattern the way an incandescent filament or a glowing fluorescent envelope has. Thus downlights are a particularly appropriate use of LEDs. (I happen to think that downlights are a less than optimal way to light a room, but that's a totally separate issue.) OK, enough rambling. :)...See MoreDeciding between 4"/5"/6" recessed LED
Comments (6)Yes, I mentioned UCL. I can add those questions here too, if you want them. ;) GC mentioned tape. Another contractor I've had doing some other stuff mentioned pucks. I've become enamored with the Environmental Lights ultra thin system. I have emailed them questions. It's been a couple days, I'll probably call them today. Today, the electrician is prepping for outlets for the UCL in three spots where these wall cabinets will be: --next to fridge --each of the cabinets flanking the range I haven't zero'd in on a system yet, but that seems okay. I am unsure if I'll want lights over the washer and dryer. In the past, that's been a clutter catching area. Of course I'm hoping that it won't be now with better storage, but...we'll see. I think, at least with the EL system I think I understand pretty well. I can run all the lighting on that wall with one power supply and have the wire connectors connecting the different strips, and I don't really need the second outlet on that wall. But if I go with something different, I might need it just for that second wall cabinet by the range OR I might need it for the W/D area. (The wall behind the W/D is masonry, no way I'm having an outlet added there.) A question I've got re: the EL system is if I can have those three outlets on one switch, and have two or three power supplies plugged into them as needed. I think that is fine. The bigger question that I don't think I like the answer to is about dimming. And I think my mindset at this point is to not worry about dimming for the UCL. They make this stuff to be UCL, I'm going to assume it's a good brightness for it's intended purpose. I've never had UCL, so I have no frame of reference. Once I figured out the pieces that I think I need from EL, the price was a bit more than I was thinking of. However, there's the benefit that I understand it. :) I think. I'm open to other, less expensive, good systems. But I need to understand them. As always, thoughts/suggestions welcomed....See Moreled fixtures versus led bulbs
Comments (48)Several comments 1. The typical operating temperature for Led diodes is much wider i.e. most should operate between -40 to +140 degrees celsius. Real example The max junction temperature for a Cree XM-L Led diode is ~ 150 celsius or 50 above the boiling point of water. 2. There is a wide selection of LED diodes on the market with a wide range of color, efficiencies, current drive, voltage, ... 3. A LED lamp's longevity is affected by how the lamp/ fixture designer design decisions for example- i. Over driving the current at the expense of lifespan. ii. Which LED components to use - more efficient vs greater max output vs cheaper (given the anticipated production run), ... iii. The quality of the other necessary components - capacitors, resistors, ... iv. The quality of the manufacturing process. SMT (surface mount technology) consistently beats the quality of manual soldering and individual wires. 4. Active cooling (i.e. - fan) is no longer used - not effective or cost efficient, prone to failure and reduces the overall efficiency. The use of the motherboard as a heat sink/ spreader is preferred. The Switch lightbulb utilizes an inert liquid and convection circulation to sink the heat produced. 5. The pricing will drop more when the the LED diode costs are reduced as well as when lighting device designers figure out how to reduce the BOM (bill of materials) cost and simplify the manufacturing process. FWIW, the L prize bulb is not competitive with the Cree bulb (or even the newer Philips LED bulbs) from both a manufacturing and end user consumer standpoint. 6. From an electrical standpoint, the E26 connector is no less efficient than a GU24/ bi-pin connector / wire nuts. 7. The more advanced LED deployments today are done in aircraft, automotive and custom home designs where cost is less of a concern. 8. For the rest, it will take a while before more and better fixtures/ lamps designed with LEDs in mind appear since most folks are used to the traditional glass forms ( bulb, tubes)....See MoreJeff Smith
3 years agoJeff Smith
3 years agoJeff Smith
3 years agoRL Relocation LLC
3 years agoJeff Smith
3 years agoPatricia Colwell Consulting
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoJeff Smith thanked Patricia Colwell ConsultingRL Relocation LLC
3 years agoJeff Smith
3 years ago
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