More LED bulb options
- Thread starter signal15
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tmbrown97
Senior Member
Also just to add to this thread - I have a couple of the Cree 60W Warm Whites in my office - the other day I was doing some testing with my SA dimmer to see just how well they dim - and sure enough, they dim down to 1% - and more importantly, they come back on at 1% - I don't have to ramp up past 1% - they come on just going from 0 to 1%. Granted - they're a bit brighter than Incandescent even at only 1%...
tmbrown97
Senior Member
Yes - very true. It has caused us to re-think lighting a little bit in our home, dedicating a couple table lamps for the night-light function vs. just dimming super low. In the kids' rooms, we use table lamps with lower brighness bulbs just for that purpose. I also have some rooms like the master bath suite and kitchen where there are a couple circuits - both rooms have a pair of can lights that have fluorescent fixtures - those will soon be converted to LED so I can just dim the middle pair pretty dim and keep the others off. It's not quite the same as the soft orange glow of having an incandescent down to 10% but it's manageable. If I really need mood lighting, there's always candles still!
In the pretty near future, I actually want to change the kids' table lamps to be Philips Hue bulbs - that way I can change colors and simulate sunset and sunrise colors very gradually over time - with HomeSeer integration I think this will be really cool for them - just wish they were a little cheaper, and direct wifi rather than needing a bridge.
In the pretty near future, I actually want to change the kids' table lamps to be Philips Hue bulbs - that way I can change colors and simulate sunset and sunrise colors very gradually over time - with HomeSeer integration I think this will be really cool for them - just wish they were a little cheaper, and direct wifi rather than needing a bridge.
The LIFX bulbs are at Best Buy now for $89 each. Still pretty expensive.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/edison-screw-wi-fi-multicolor-dimmable-led-light-bulb-75w-equivalent/2578019.p?id=1219074365264&skuId=2578019&st=lifx&cp=1&lp=1
I really like mine and they are very bright, but at this point the only way to control them is a pretty basic app. for iPhone or Android, which is pretty limiting. I'll need to be able to control them from CQC before I will say they are very useful. If they can be remotely controlled, that would basically save the cost of having to buy a UPB switch, so the price would be more reasonable. These bulbs are 1000+ lumens, which is much brighter than the ~600 lumen Hue. Also, from the Best Buy web site it says the Hue is only rated for a life of 1500 hours, the LIFX bulb is rated for "up to 40K"
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/edison-screw-wi-fi-multicolor-dimmable-led-light-bulb-75w-equivalent/2578019.p?id=1219074365264&skuId=2578019&st=lifx&cp=1&lp=1
I really like mine and they are very bright, but at this point the only way to control them is a pretty basic app. for iPhone or Android, which is pretty limiting. I'll need to be able to control them from CQC before I will say they are very useful. If they can be remotely controlled, that would basically save the cost of having to buy a UPB switch, so the price would be more reasonable. These bulbs are 1000+ lumens, which is much brighter than the ~600 lumen Hue. Also, from the Best Buy web site it says the Hue is only rated for a life of 1500 hours, the LIFX bulb is rated for "up to 40K"
kwilcox
Active Member
Ok, so the Cree TWs arrived today and I put them right into our Stickley table lamp that previously was running philips LEDs. Fantastic! These things look and throw light just like incandescents. I was blown away by how much richer the oak wood tones in the lamp itself as well as the table it was on looked. I immediately ordered 4 more.
I'm never going to by a LED with a CRI < 90 again.
I'm never going to by a LED with a CRI < 90 again.
tmbrown97
Senior Member
Nice! I have them in a few places - added 4 more 60W TW's last week - they look great. The wattage trade-off is a bit of a bummer still, it's a fraction of the 60W incandescents they replaced. I also found that the hum I was getting can be fixture-specific, and can be eliminated by changing the fixture or going to 60W... either one seems to solve the problem.
What are my options for Torch lamps without spending too much? I have a lamp that has circular florescent bulbs but the ballast has gone out - first one bulb and now the other. This lamb gets left on all the time so LEDs would be nice and I could dim at night. Thought about trying to rip the ballast out and retrofit a standard socket or two. The florescent bulb is 30W.
JimS said:
You could do something like this, but would require replacing the ballast:
http://www.amazon.com/Circline-Replacement-Circular-Fluorescent-Equivalent/dp/B003TL1WRC/ref=pd_sxp_f_pt
Also, if you had torch lamps that took those little halogen tubes, there are LED replacements for those.
http://www.amazon.com/FACTOP-760-780lm-85-265V-replacement-Halogen/dp/B00CFFAULC/ref=sr_1_2?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1391009504&sr=1-2&keywords=halogen+led+replacement+bulb
tmbrown97
Senior Member
Usually with the LED Retrofits for Fluorescent, you have to bypass the ballast anyway so that could be a decent option. Or depending on the fixture, they may have an incandescent equivalent where you could just swap a part or two.
In this house, all 4 bathrooms had the same fan/light combo from Broan which used a 2-pin square fluorescent bulb with a ballast inside the fixture. They flickered horribly and took a second or two to start, and of course weren't dimmable; so I looked up and found the equivalent fan/light combo in the non fluorescent model and it turned out to be an $8 part that was literally a 20-second install per fixture - no wiring, just plugging in the housing - and now all for are regular Edison Incandescent bases running the Cree 60W TW bulbs and my SA switches were reprogrammed with Dimming enabled - much nicer experience.
Or of course, depending on the fixture, it probably wouldn't be that hard to just swap it out with something more efficient.
In this house, all 4 bathrooms had the same fan/light combo from Broan which used a 2-pin square fluorescent bulb with a ballast inside the fixture. They flickered horribly and took a second or two to start, and of course weren't dimmable; so I looked up and found the equivalent fan/light combo in the non fluorescent model and it turned out to be an $8 part that was literally a 20-second install per fixture - no wiring, just plugging in the housing - and now all for are regular Edison Incandescent bases running the Cree 60W TW bulbs and my SA switches were reprogrammed with Dimming enabled - much nicer experience.
Or of course, depending on the fixture, it probably wouldn't be that hard to just swap it out with something more efficient.
