Cheap LED bulbs
Posted: Wed May 08, 2019 10:23 am
As you all know I built a new house a couple of years ago, and in the process all my light fixtures are LED. I had also already started using mostly LEDs at my old house, and my rental houses.
I've learned a few things about LEDs. If you want them to last, spend the money on good ones. You really do get what you pay for. Home Depot is full of inexpensive bulbs that don't seem to last - both through my own experience, and experience of others.
Cree and Ecosmart are priced to sell, but as I said you get what you pay for.
The best bulbs I have found so far are made by Satco. They're commercial bulbs. They can be pricey at a lighting store, but you can find them better priced at Amazon. The ones I buy are real glass, not plastic bulbs (I find plastic can discolor and glass radiates heat better), and where the bulb is visible like on a chandelier, I use the newer clear fake-filament versions.
I have heard Phillips and FEIT bulbs are good, but I haven't had much experience with them.
The one thing you should completely ignore is whatever "hours" rating these bulbs have on them. It's bogus. If you do a google search for "longest lasting bulbs" you'll get a lot of ratings from seemingly reputable sites that say Cree bulbs last the longest, but those reviews are strictly based on the number of hours they're rated for, and Cree was sued in a class action last year for over stating the hours.
Your best source is Consumer Reports, as they will actually test the things instead of taking the manufacturer's word on it, but you need to pay for the online account to get the full ratings.
Now Cree does have have a few good bulbs they make according to consumer reports, but you'll notice that those bulbs have large heatsinks on them.
And needless to say, there's variation in quality between different model bulbs even from the same manufacturer.
The biggest problem with LEDs is heat. If the bulb gets too hot to touch, it's not only wasting electricity on waste heat, but the heat will eventually kill the bulb. Some bulbs are specifically designed for enclosed fixtures with little or no ventilation, and most aren't. That's why I like glass bulbs - they seem to radiate heat better.
If you install new light fixtures I would strongly recommend you stick with standard ones that accept normal bulb sockets. I've heard stories from electricians who installed specialty LED ceiling fixtures (like flat panel square ones) that don't take standard bulbs, and once they burn out a few years down the road, you may find that they are no longer manufactured. Stick to standard fixtures that you can put anything in (incandescent, CFL or LED). They even make LED replacements for standard fluorescent tubes, appliance bulbs, and halogen reflectors nowadays.
Even though dimmable and non-dimmable LEDs are priced the same, I would recommend not using a dimmable on a circuit with a switch. Dimmables have more electronics in them and tend to be slightly more prone to failure (more components that can fail), although I've broken that rule myself for convenience.
You also need to make sure you have a dimmer specifically designed for LEDs. Most are nowadays. Cheap dimmers can cause the bulb to flicker. The good universal dimmers that I have (work with any bulb: Halogen, CFL, LED) have a small adjustment trimmer under the plate so you can set the lowest light setting for your specific bulbs. Electricians will just install them and never tell you that you really need to adjust them after you install your bulbs, and re-adjust them if you change the bulbs to a different wattage or brand. The trimmer lets you set the lowest possible brightness without flicker. On my dimmers is a tiny thumb wheel under the cover plate.
I've learned a few things about LEDs. If you want them to last, spend the money on good ones. You really do get what you pay for. Home Depot is full of inexpensive bulbs that don't seem to last - both through my own experience, and experience of others.
Cree and Ecosmart are priced to sell, but as I said you get what you pay for.
The best bulbs I have found so far are made by Satco. They're commercial bulbs. They can be pricey at a lighting store, but you can find them better priced at Amazon. The ones I buy are real glass, not plastic bulbs (I find plastic can discolor and glass radiates heat better), and where the bulb is visible like on a chandelier, I use the newer clear fake-filament versions.
I have heard Phillips and FEIT bulbs are good, but I haven't had much experience with them.
The one thing you should completely ignore is whatever "hours" rating these bulbs have on them. It's bogus. If you do a google search for "longest lasting bulbs" you'll get a lot of ratings from seemingly reputable sites that say Cree bulbs last the longest, but those reviews are strictly based on the number of hours they're rated for, and Cree was sued in a class action last year for over stating the hours.
Your best source is Consumer Reports, as they will actually test the things instead of taking the manufacturer's word on it, but you need to pay for the online account to get the full ratings.
Now Cree does have have a few good bulbs they make according to consumer reports, but you'll notice that those bulbs have large heatsinks on them.
And needless to say, there's variation in quality between different model bulbs even from the same manufacturer.
The biggest problem with LEDs is heat. If the bulb gets too hot to touch, it's not only wasting electricity on waste heat, but the heat will eventually kill the bulb. Some bulbs are specifically designed for enclosed fixtures with little or no ventilation, and most aren't. That's why I like glass bulbs - they seem to radiate heat better.
If you install new light fixtures I would strongly recommend you stick with standard ones that accept normal bulb sockets. I've heard stories from electricians who installed specialty LED ceiling fixtures (like flat panel square ones) that don't take standard bulbs, and once they burn out a few years down the road, you may find that they are no longer manufactured. Stick to standard fixtures that you can put anything in (incandescent, CFL or LED). They even make LED replacements for standard fluorescent tubes, appliance bulbs, and halogen reflectors nowadays.
Even though dimmable and non-dimmable LEDs are priced the same, I would recommend not using a dimmable on a circuit with a switch. Dimmables have more electronics in them and tend to be slightly more prone to failure (more components that can fail), although I've broken that rule myself for convenience.
You also need to make sure you have a dimmer specifically designed for LEDs. Most are nowadays. Cheap dimmers can cause the bulb to flicker. The good universal dimmers that I have (work with any bulb: Halogen, CFL, LED) have a small adjustment trimmer under the plate so you can set the lowest light setting for your specific bulbs. Electricians will just install them and never tell you that you really need to adjust them after you install your bulbs, and re-adjust them if you change the bulbs to a different wattage or brand. The trimmer lets you set the lowest possible brightness without flicker. On my dimmers is a tiny thumb wheel under the cover plate.