LED clearance sale

[Cajonpassfan]

Our local big box T****t is running a clearance sale on LED's. I bought a bunch of PAR 38, 3,000K, 1,400 Lumens bulbs and got rid of all my HOT halogens. These are supposed to last 22 years and draw about 16 Watts...impressive, at the price. So now my trainroom is bright and cool and I thought I should share the joy (and bargain info) with all my Railwire friends
Otto K. [ Guests cannot view attachments ]

[tchrisk]

I'd call that a bullseye!

[DKS]

These are supposed to last 22 years...

Based on experience, I recommend buying several spares. Lifetime is based on MTTF (mean time to failure), which is calculated statistically. It's not any sort of guarantee a product will last that long. I've had quite a few LED lamps fail within a few months of installing them, while others of the same type (purchased at the same time) have yet to fail. YMMV

[peteski]

Based on experience, I recommend buying several spares. Lifetime is based on MTTF (mean time to failure), which is calculated statistically. It's not any sort of guarantee a product will last that long. I've had quite a few LED lamps fail within a few months of installing them, while others of the same type (purchased at the same time) have yet to fail. YMMV

^^THIS^^
There is phenomenon called "infant mortality" that electronic devices can experience. Especially ones which are mass produced using inexpensive components, and not given a burn-in at the factory (which is what most consumer electronics are, and especially the really inexpensive stuff).  LED lamps have a relatively complex switching power supply in them, required to power the LEDs from 120V AC.  Usually it is something in the power supply (not the LEDs themselves) that fails early on.

[jdcolombo]

Agree about spares.

I converted all my halogen lights to LEDs two years ago.  I've replaced 4 out of the 20 PAR20's (7-watt, for my track lights) during that time, and 2 out of 8 PAR30's (9 watt, general room lighting).  While all the replaced bulbs had a warranty, it's just too much hassle to box up the offending bulb, send it back (to the manufacturer) and wait (forever, probably).  So get a few extra.

On the plus side, the LEDs consume a LOT less electricity and generate a LOT less heat (note that they still generate SOME heat - the LED's base, where the electronics are, still gets very warm).  And if they don't fail relatively quickly, they will indeed last a very long time.  I've got a PAR30 in an overhead can light in my stairwell that's going on five years with no signs of deterioration.  Except for a few floor lamps and some 4' flourescent tubes in the garage, my house is now fully LED, and when the floor lamp bulbs go, they will get LED's, too.

John C.

[Smike]

Been looking to add track lighting, my previous experiments with LED strips proved to be a bit too weak and not enough directional lighting effect for my taste.

These type of blubs seem to be a good option, anyone know what the cheapest way is for track lighting mounts?  Cheapest I’ve found was around $30 for a 3 light setup (minus blubs)  I don’t care about the look.

Ty

[JoeD]

Here in Oregon, the regional utility has a plan called "Blue Sky" that promotes conservation, which is novel considering they are working against their bottom line    Anyway they came through our development and changed out all our regular lighting, at no cost, with LED's and all new energy efficient power strips...including all the bulb lighting I had over my layout.  I had to look close considering I have a few structures with grain of wheat bulbs and wanted to see just how far this program went...lol   I gotta admit the difference was remarkable and with my savings I am able to buy new loco's about every 4 months.  Gotta love the West Coast.

Joe

[DKS]

Been looking to add track lighting, my previous experiments with LED strips proved to be a bit too weak and not enough directional lighting effect for my taste.

These type of blubs seem to be a good option, anyone know what the cheapest way is for track lighting mounts?  Cheapest I’ve found was around $30 for a 3 light setup (minus blubs)  I don’t care about the look.

Ty

Take a stroll through Lowe's. You can buy the individual components for a DIY track lighting system. They have some nice LED spot heads for around $20 each.

[peteski]

Here in Oregon, the regional utility has a plan called "Blue Sky" that promotes conservation, which is novel considering they are working against their bottom line    

It is a conspiracy - you didn't know that?  It started back when the energy-saving Compact Fluorescent bulbs were brought on the market, and now it continues with the slightly more efficient LED lighting. Trust me, their bottom line is not affected at all!

The electric company starts offering rebates on the energy-efficient products  (not just bulbs, but other items like fridges, etc.). They appear to be very "green" companies, caring about the environmebt ad saving customer's money on electric bills. But once the giveaway os well underway and many consumers adopt those energy efficient products, the electric rates slowly clmb up, and not just with direct relation to the fossil fuels prices.

I have lived in the same house, with the same average kW usage, since before the CF and LED bulbs (and before the electric company rebates/giveaways of those products) were introduced to the market. I have adopted this technology and my average kW usage has gone down quite a bit since the days of all-incandescent bulbs and my old inefficient fridge and freezer).  Yet, now my electric bill is even higher than back when I my house was not energy-efficient.   

While I'm half joking about the conspiracy part, the fact is that the cost per kW or energy has risen quite a bit, and the savings are not what they were cracked up to be.  I realize that if I didn't upgrade to the energy-efficient products in my house my electric bill would be even higher, but this "you are saving money by not paying lots and lots more now than you did in the past) is not much of a consolation to me.    It's a conspiracy I tell you!   

[jdcolombo]

Been looking to add track lighting, my previous experiments with LED strips proved to be a bit too weak and not enough directional lighting effect for my taste.

These type of blubs seem to be a good option, anyone know what the cheapest way is for track lighting mounts?  Cheapest I’ve found was around $30 for a 3 light setup (minus blubs)  I don’t care about the look.

Ty

I bought Nora Lighting track and heads for my track lighting. 

http://www.noralighting.com/Category.aspx?cid=364

Various e-tailers sell the stuff at a discount.  I got the standard  step-back swivel head for a PAR20 bulb  (NTH 103) and put in 7-watt 4000K LED bulbs.  Works great for my setup.

John C.

[Point353]

The "22 years" of life for that GE bulb is based upon usage of 3 hours/day.
https://www.gelighting.com/led-bulbs/e26/ge-led-bright-white-120w-replacement-par38

[Cajonpassfan]

Frankly, I'm not overly worried about not getting 22 years out of them. It seems I couldn't get one fifth of that out of the halogens they are replacing, and they are so much more efficient and so much cooler, it's not even worth a comparison. And if recent history is any indication, the LED's will continue to get even cheaper as time goes by; a dimable 1,400 Lumen bulb cost close to $50 not too many years ago, and drew more wattage....
And yes, I too use the Nora track system, with four different style heads, including some smallish low voltage/transformer equipped fixtures. LED's are available for those as well.
Otto K.

[Cajonpassfan]

Frankly, I'm not overly worried about not getting 22 years out of them. It seems I couldn't get one fifth of that out of the halogens they are replacing, and they are so much more efficient and so much cooler, it's not even worth a comparison. And if recent history is any indication, the LED's will continue to get even cheaper as time goes by; a dimable 1,400 Lumen bulb cost close to $50 not too many years ago, and drew more wattage....
And yes, I too use the Nora track system, with four different style heads, including some smallish low voltage/transformer equipped fixtures. LED's are available for those as well.
Otto K.

[John]

Well, according to social security website, that LED bulb will outlive me by 2 years

[JMaurer1]

A slight change in topic: Wallies World has 16' of strip tape color changing LED lights with a remote for $18 in the garden center. Pretty bright and you can change the colors to whatever you want (think sundown or night).