Looking At replacing all our bulbs, Tbey must be dimm-able
Any websites should Look at?
Is there anything I should know changing from halogen to Leds?
What do you think the best colour is in LED is? (warm white, pure white ect)
I reckon looking for about 9w-12w, As have high ceilings, Bought one el-cheapo off ebay think was 5 watt, and is terrible, not bright enough, and doesnt dimm,
One thing my dad (a sparkie) gets me to check is whether if you have one of the older transformers which won't support LEDs, so you might need to get the transformer replaced as well. Secondly if you have a dimmer, then get dimmable LEDs (they are marked - I have not found any dimmable LEDs less than 7w), or if you want to have a dimmer installed, ensure you get the right type.
I recently replaced a single dead halogen with a 6.5w non-dimmable (cheaper) LED to check that all the right components are in place, and I thought 6.5w was good (we have 6 down lights in our bedroom). Although it appeared less bright, I thought it was a decent replacement, and I know it will be OK when I get the 7w dimmable ones.
Pax
The transformer issue is one of minimum load. If you have a reasonable number of lights off the one transformer you won't have an issue. If you have a transformer for each light they are unlikely the have the problem.
Really OP needs to provide more information on the existing set up.
That's right. If you have an old iron-core transformers (big and heavy), most of LEDs will work fine.
If you have newer switch-mode transformers (small and light), you may need to hook up 2-3 or more lights to one transformer for them to kick in (depending on LED wattage).
Eg, the very popular and highly recommended Osram Reback needs minimum 20W load. Therefore you would need 3 x 8W LEDs for it to start providing voltage.
In my experience the older transformers (traditional iron core) have no problems supporting LEDs. It is the newer ones that are actually switched mode power supplies with a small light weight high frequency transformer) that may give problems if the LED draws less current than the PS was designed to support.
Check out the Led Benhmark (Australian) site:
Whirlpool:
Led Benchmark
ratsacker
Assuming these are typical 12V MR16 downlights, I can recommend Nichia 8W
I have 8 of these bought from Gadget Box in Sydney.
Same guy on eBay
All of mine are Warm White - some are 2700K and some 3000K. I don't like very white lights, and found that I like 3000K the best. It's bit whiter than my old halogens but it has slightly better light output compared with 2700K. These are also dimmable and work fine with most transformers including the old iron cores (that's what I have). Straight replacement.
Led Benchmark site tested that they flicker. I can't notice this (nor can my wife) but if we record Video (say on the phone) under these lights, you can see it.
Also, these do not interfere with TV reception unlike some other cheap LEDs (eg Click LED from Bunnings that I had to return due to loss of Channel 7 and 9).
In my house these are the same or brighter than old 50W downlights (lower output after 10 years of service) and I would say they are probably equivalent or better than new 35W downlight.
Hope that helps.
Also, these do not interfere with TV reception unlike some other cheap LEDs (eg Click LED from Bunnings that I had to return due to loss of Channel 7 and 9).
These are 12V, so that should never be an issue anyway. Also the flickering will depend on how good your transformer is (the older transformers will actually help here, unless the load is too small).
Go warm white unless you are putting them in a morgue. Did the buy bulbs off eBay etc trick, never found anything suitable. Flickering, uneven colours, dim, etc. Identified all the most used lights and had them replaced with DR700's from Bright Green (http://brightgreen.com/au/led-lights/dr700-retrofit-downligh…). Excellent, excellent lights. With the Victorian VEET scheme they cost $38.50 (each) installed from http://www.ecovantage.com.au/index.php/services/free-energy-…. Not cheap, but work with my horrible cheapo transformers and brightness is definitely '50W halogen equivalent' with our 3m high ceilings.
I've even bought GU10s that don't fit in my light fitting! Having tried various CFL and LED lights from Ebay, I won't buy them off the internet any more, as I need to know I can return them easily if they don't fit.
The LEDs I currently have in the kitchen cause radio interference, though my radio reception is poor here already, so it might not be an issue in stronger signal areas. Dunno about TV, as I rarely have the kitchen lights on when the TV is on.
IP
Check out
http://stores.ebay.com.au/Star-Life-LED/pages/1
Found these guys to be fantastic, have all types of RETRO fit globes
I replaced my Halogen 240v 50w globes through out the house, made a big difference to power bill
Very helpful, you can email them direct and ask for help, just check out the ebay store and you will find the info
good luck
When I recently changed one bulb to LED it started to flicker. I don't know if there are multiple lights per transformer though. Any idea why it would light up but visibly flicker?
Either because the transformer is under loaded, or just bad.
I'd check the compatibility list for the globe if the manufacturer provides it.
I know Philips does as I just found it in http://www.lighting.philips.com.au/pwc_li/au_en/connect/asse….
Alternatively LED Benchmark site might provide some guidance on the matter.
This thread is actually a wealth of information for me, so thanks to all who have contributed.
Pax
Have a look through:
http://www.goodluckbuy.com/car-accessories/car-led-light-bul…
I usually use this site to buy radio control stuff but stumbled across this section the other day.
If anyone is thinking of doing this to their car; make sure if your doing the 2 stage bulbs like brake lights, that they are much brighter when stage 2 comes on, stage 1 should be half the brightness.
The newer cars (mostly european) throw up CEL errors.
just make sure they are SAA approved, bit expensive though, reliably, and wont cause potential fire,
indoor LED light is much harder to dissipate heat than outdoor LED light
they need to show you SAA approval number for their product
this number can be online validated from SAA website
e.g.
http://www.saaapprovals.com.au/client/index.php?approval_num…
search on google and have a look at commercial grade LED product, you will know the difference to those cheap ones
Are these down lights? If so there are generally three possibilities:
1: The globes aren't replaceable and you have to get new fittings.
2: They are MR16 (12V) globes
3: They are MR16 GU10 (230V) globes (often just labeled as 'GU10')
Make sure you get the right globes. If you get 12V LEDs you can't go too far wrong, but pay attention to light levels and light angles. If you get a 230V globe they are 12V with a switch mode power supply included. The power supply on cheap imports usually doesn't comply to Australian standards and is likely to cause reception issues for wifi/tv/radio and may have and audible whine. Hard to know which products are OK and which are not.