LED Bulbs

[Capt Worley PE]

Anyone tried these yet?

It doesn't look like there is a good 100W equivalent bulb yet, and after the CFL debacle, I'd be leery of such claims from the manufacturer anyway.

 

[Chucktown PE]

Well timed topic Cap'n. I was wondering about this just this past week. At Costco this week I noticed they had 75 watt equivalents that would fit in our recessed canned lights in our house. They use about 13 watts of power. They sold for $28.99 and the utility (SCE&G where I live) was offering an instant $10 rebate. I pay $.123 per kw-hr. So assuming I would use the light 4 hours a day, the payback period is a little under two years.

 

[snickerd3]

I have bought LED night light sized light bulbs...yeah not so happy with them. It is very directional...as in the light only shines down/up depending on orientation of bulb...it doesn't radiate out like incandecent.

 

[wilheldp_PE]

Also, the LED would last for 10,000 hour with continuous power. Under normal circumstances (i.e., turning the light on and off several times a day), the longevity plummets. I'm not sure if anyone has completed real world MTBF data for LED bulbs yet.

Snick nailed it though...the real problem with LEDs is directional light. They haven't really figured out a good lens to get good coverage out of an LED bulb yet. Most of them get around this by adding more LEDs pointing in different directions. That reduces the efficiency of the bulb (sucking more power for not much more usable light) and reduces the life of the LEDs due to added heat.

 

[Supe]

Are any of the LED's that are direct replacements able to work with a dimmer switch? My understanding is that they don't, and that rules them out for me.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

So they are basically a fail like the CFL lights, but more expensive.

Grand.

I love my government.

 

[snickerd3]

^yep...unless you have a light that will stay on for extended epriods of time and don't care how wide the band of light emitted is.

 

[OSUguy98]

an LED bulb like this solves most of your directional issues... we have a couple nightlight bulbs that are decent enough for what they do... we have 3 or 4 LED bulbs similar to the one I linked, we've had one fail, can't remember which fixture it was in.... I don't have many complaints, except cost

 

[Capt Worley PE]

an LED bulb like this solves most of your directional issues...

But not the intensity issues. I need a 100W equivalent.

 

[goodal]

$25 for one freakin bulb? insane.

 

[Master slacker]

^^^ win.

 

[Dleg]

You guys are spoiled by cheap power. Out here, we're paying in the $0.40 per kWh range (diesel-fired power plant). At those prices, CFLs save you real money. I could care less about the drawbacks - I used to carelessly use 2500 kWh per month when power was cheap. I switched over to CFLs and got my usage down to around 2000. Reduced the airconditioning use to get it down to ~1600. Got rid of the hot water heater and got it down to ~1300. Most recently, switched our main TV to an LED flat screen (from a CRT rear projection) and got down to ~1000 kWh (yes, I am currently paying around $400 a month just for power, nevermind water...). And I will buy the LED lights as my CFLs fail - it just makes good economic sense. (and by the way, some of the CFLs have been in use since I first bought them in 2005).

Some day, your power rates are going to go up, too...

 

[snickerd3]

until they do they will likely break before hitting the break in point on some things...I still have the same plain vanilla light bulb one of my lamps that I used in college and come monday it will be 10 yrs on the job so the bulb is about 12 yr old...not bad for <$1

 

[mudpuppy]

2500 kWh/mo? That's crazy! I start to get agitated when I get over 1000.

 

[Dleg]

What can I say, it's hot and humid here, and I can't live like that. But still, 2500 down to 1000 , and still using the aircon - not too shabby.

 

[Chucktown PE]

During June, July, August, and September we go from using about 1200 kw-hrs per month to 2800 kw-hrs per month. That's with the thermostats set on 75. It takes a lot to cool a house in a tropical or a subtropical environment.

 

[Master slacker]

Now I'm curious on our useage per month. We're basically in a spa (hot / humid) environment, living in a house with no insulation in the walls.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

All I know is that last year was the hottest summer on record for the area, and the AC literally did not turn off at all May-August and half of September. Four months of $400 power bills are not a happy thing.

 

[goodal]

I've got a 2000ft earth berm, garage, shop and small pool in Kentucky. Our bill on the low side is $150 and usually maxes out in August at $280. Last year went to $350. This year looks to be even worse. I've got a portable AC upstairs for the boys and don't usually have to start using it until June. It has already been running the entire month of May.

 

[snickerd3]

I think the highest bill we have paid here is about $275-$290 during the first summer we had the house when we thought using the whole house fan in the attic would save money vs running the ac....big mistake. Get took the attic fan out (more for the sake of my allergies) and the power bills droped dramatically. During the summer We can keep the main level of the house around 78 with the AC, run ceiling rans and have the pool filter on for 8-10 hrs a day and the power bills have been floating around $180-$195.