LED Lighting

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#591873 7-Mar-2012 17:33

Remember that GU 10 incandesents are way worse than actual halogens for efficiancy. There is a reason that they are only put in by cheapass sparkys.

Friend who looked into them said there is no way any GU 10 led replacement would be legit if they were held to the standards of other double insulated appliances. IMO there is no place for them.

Richard rich.ms

timmmay

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#591881 7-Mar-2012 17:59

I just ordered a torch with a Cree bulb that's 800 lumens, and runs off 8AA batteries. It's not exactly cheap, US$120, but i'm surprised the technology hasn't filtered down to home lighting yet.

Niel

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#591999 7-Mar-2012 21:29

Skolink:
Niel: Was going to give details, just did not have time when I posted.

Deal Extreme http://www.dealextreme.com/

Can you please post part numbers. I have spent hours on Deal Extreme in the past looking at LED lamps, and don't want to spend time searching for what you have.

Search for LED plate. The ones that look light yellow are cold white, the ones that look dark yellow are warm white.

The one I have is SKU 42135 (cool white). My down light fitting is SKU 70659 (cool white). SKU 70006 is a warm white down light, but I have not bought it yet.

You can never have enough Volvos!

Jimmy22

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#592155 8-Mar-2012 09:26

richms: Remember that GU 10 incandesents are way worse than actual halogens for efficiancy. There is a reason that they are only put in by cheapass sparkys.

Friend who looked into them said there is no way any GU 10 led replacement would be legit if they were held to the standards of other double insulated appliances. IMO there is no place for them.

ok , no one lick their bulbs any more, tasty as they may be.

LEDs still have a way to go but they will slowly take over and i have never looked back from replacing my halogens. Subjectively i like the LEDs better already despite being the new kids on the block and i am saving a consistent 40 bucks a month thanks to changes like that in my home.

timmmay

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#592167 8-Mar-2012 09:52

You save $40 a month after changing from halogen to LED? How many lights do you have on in your place?!

Jimmy22

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#592190 8-Mar-2012 10:24

"thanks to changes "like" that" ... however i have done every light in the whole house now. Even found some nice 2w leds for over the dining table.

for your interest

I hooked up and ENVIR and put timers on washing machine (as it used 30 w on standby), auto offs on the pc's when on stand by , replaced to an LED TV . Smart power off outlett on home theatre rack . Installed ducting fans to make the dehimidifier redundant.... to be more specific BUT it all adds up and ill be paying back a minimum of 500 bucks a year to myself now !! :) This year im hoping to go under 3000 kw/h for the year . 4 pcs in the house, PVR , and always use home theatre when i watch tv . There you go, LEDs are definately a significant component of my effort though which it is easy to see with the ENVIR installed.

timmmay

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#592193 8-Mar-2012 10:33

Wow, 30W on standby for a washing machine's crazy. My TVs use a bit less than that, but the F&P washing machine and drier use almost nothing. My flatmates room uses enough power that it costs $120/year when the tv, cable box, etc are turned off, and he doesn't want to turn it off at the wall as a cable box takes 5 minutes to start up once it's turned on.

What's a smart power off outlet, got a link? I have to switch mine off manually, but if you can get on as a multibox I could definitely use a couple.

What an ENVIR?

I've concentrated on heat to start with. Good insulation, adding a heat pump, removing downlights which basically destroy the effectiveness of insulation, making sure the house is as airtight as possible around doors and windows, HRV type system to get free heat during the day, exhaust fans in bathroom and kitchen, ducted drier, CF lights. I'd love to replace my year old 55" LCD TV with a 65" LED, but my girlfriend thinks 55" is already excessive, and it won't save any power really.

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

Jimmy22

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#592196 8-Mar-2012 10:36

this is worthy of a good conversation but ill make a new thread called "power saving drive" to save the LED thread .. :)

Jaxson

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#592203 8-Mar-2012 10:50

Jimmy22: this is worthy of a good conversation but ill make a new thread called "power saving drive" to save the LED thread .. :)

Agreed, there's the new Automation thread which is now called Gadgets, robotics, home automation, electronics. Maybe that's the place for energy efficiency conversations? Home workshop doesn't quite seem formal enough? It's a very strong emerging field so it would be good to have a nice home for it. I've contributed discussions like DIY double glazing, thermal imaging, DIY shower dome ideas etc and I think that ended up in the off topic section?

LED wise, I just went to a presentation from Philips on this and saw first hand office/lecture rooms lit entirely by LED units. The technology is there now, and commercial wise at least, the price is not that far off where it needs to be to become financially viable. Floodlights are coming soon as well etc.

My washing machine is basic and has an old school physical on/off switch. We got rid of F&P long ago as their electronics just weren't up to the task long term. My standby current is therefore zero

.

Timmay, you can get power multiboards whereby current detection in one outlet socket controls the others on the board. Turn off the TV etc and every other device loses power. Don't put ya TIVO on that bad boy!

Niel

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#592422 8-Mar-2012 15:50

LEDs use roughly 25% of the power required by a similar halogen, and around half a compact fluorescent (but LEDs have no UV which damages fittings).

By the way, cheap digital timers use 7W... Crappy design. Start a new thread if anyone wants to discuss.

You can never have enough Volvos!

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#592544 8-Mar-2012 21:19

Niel: LEDs use roughly 25% of the power required by a similar halogen, and around half a compact fluorescent (but LEDs have no UV which damages fittings).

I think your claim regarding LED vs CFL efficacy (overall efficiency) is a little exaggerated. CFLs are generally 50-60 lm/W, whereas the efficacy of a really good LED lamp is 70 lm/W (assuming 90% efficiency for power supply).

Having just got an email from Powershop stating that prices are going up 11.8% in April, I'm feeling more motivated to get some LED lamps, esp to replace the 3x60W E14(SES) incandescent spots in the kitchen. I've been looking for ages, but the best E14 replacement I've found on DealExtreme are US$18.90 each. Probably still cheaper than replacing the whole fitting, but they've had no reviews so I'm a bit hesitant.

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#592652 9-Mar-2012 09:12

Replacing CFL with LED bulbs would have a really long payback period, unless they're on a heck of a lot. Replacing halogen with LED would still have a significant payback period, given what LEDs cost.

Niel

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#592667 9-Mar-2012 09:46

Skolink:
Niel: LEDs use roughly 25% of the power required by a similar halogen, and around half a compact fluorescent (but LEDs have no UV which damages fittings).

I think your claim regarding LED vs CFL efficacy (overall efficiency) is a little exaggerated. CFLs are generally 50-60 lm/W, whereas the efficacy of a really good LED lamp is 70 lm/W (assuming 90% efficiency for power supply).

Having just got an email from Powershop stating that prices are going up 11.8% in April, I'm feeling more motivated to get some LED lamps, esp to replace the 3x60W E14(SES) incandescent spots in the kitchen. I've been looking for ages, but the best E14 replacement I've found on DealExtreme are US$18.90 each. Probably still cheaper than replacing the whole fitting, but they've had no reviews so I'm a bit hesitant.

This has a table comparing CFL, incandescent and LED:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_fluorescent_light
It also depends a lot on what type of LED lamp, e.g. the ones with 30 to 60 individual LEDs are not so good, Cree is considered much better, and there are other upcoming ones.

This is the warm white variant with 1 feedback from a customer that thinks he got shipped a normal white instead of warm white:
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/e14-7w-700-lumen-3500k-7-led-warm-white-light-lamp-bulb-ac-85-265v-57080

Note if you use the old Deal Extreme web site instead of the new DX web site you can see the supplier's name at the bottom of the page. There are a number of reports of slow/no shipping/support from Opurstech.

We have over 40 bulbs, all 100W incandescent. Cheap, and it provides a nice distributed heat source in Winter instead of having a heater in the corner of the room. It is only around December/January that the house gets too hot from incandescent bulbs, so for us the payback is like more than 10 years. I'd rather put the money towards an aircon to drop the humidity in the house to make it comfortable. In the mean time if I find the right parts at the right price I'll slowly convert fittings to LEDs starting with the 3m high ceiling in the living room so I do not have to get a ladder to change bulbs.

You can never have enough Volvos!

Skolink

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#593036 9-Mar-2012 22:51

Niel: We have over 40 bulbs, all 100W incandescent. Cheap, and it provides a nice distributed heat source in Winter instead of having a heater in the corner of the room. It is only around December/January that the house gets too hot from incandescent bulbs, so for us the payback is like more than 10 years.

I'm not sure if you're being sarcastic here? Payback on CFLs is only a few months for bulbs used most evenings:
power saving 100W-20W = 80W
cost of power = $0.22/kWh
saving per hour = $0.0167
CFL cost = $6
payback = 359 hours
average 4 hours per evening => 3 months payback

Now you're going to say you don't like the light CFLs produce. Fair enough, if you want to pay the extra for a nice spectrum.

EDIT: just realised your point is that any power saved on the bulbs will instead be used in a heater to keep the house warm. Get a heatpump!

Skolink

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#593046 9-Mar-2012 23:09

Niel: This has a table comparing CFL, incandescent and LED:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_fluorescent_light

You mean the table titled "Electrical power equivalents for differing lamps"? But that backs up my point, that LED lamps are not much more efficient than CFLs.

Niel:
This is the warm white variant with 1 feedback from a customer that thinks he got shipped a normal white instead of warm white:
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/e14-7w-700-lumen-3500k-7-led-warm-white-light-lamp-bulb-ac-85-265v-57080

Note if you use the old Deal Extreme web site instead of the new DX web site you can see the supplier's name at the bottom of the page. There are a number of reports of slow/no shipping/support from Opurstech.

Thanks. I didn't realise that dx.com does not have all the reviews on dealextreme.com. I did notice that my orders are split between the two systems though, confusing.

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