led lights are coming along nicely!!

lamplight
lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
in Solar Product Reviews & Opinions #1
Hey everybody, we talked here in the past about led lights.. i just picked up a new batch of the latest models out at they have some really nice globe models out. im not sure of the led type inside, but these lights work great although are still expensive.

i put 3 of the globe ones in our overhead fan in he kitchen and they are REALLY BRIGHT, and omnidirectional. not cheap but no mercury and a long life span, and, of course, low power.
i got mine from superbrightleds.com where i bought most all of the various led's i have around the house (AC and DC)
http://superbrightleds.com/edison_globe.html

the first one (the 10 watt) they say is equivalent to a 35-40 watt but id have to really disagree and say its at least equiv to a 60 watt, they are really bright! i did get the bright white which is a little cool and blueish, but a few lumens brighter than the natural light. My wife agrees that they are roughly the equivalent of an incandescent 75w (or at least more than a 60w).

the next one, the 6 watt one is about the brightness of a 40 watt bulb, we have it in the natural color and is great over the kitchen table

the 3 watt is kind of lower output, maybe like a 20 watt bulb. similar light output to a 4w candelabra CFL i have.

i will probably do some photos and post later if anyone's interested, with set camera exposures so you can see the true difference with a couple bulbs. they are not anywhere near cheap but at least they are finally starting to be a real option for general room lighting.
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #2
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    heres a link to the old thread last time i was on here talking about these, with a link in there for the light tests i photographed with my first batch.

    http://forum.solar-electric.com/showthread.php?t=2388&highlight=led+lights

    moderators: sorry i meant to post this in conservation, but i guess it fits here (?)
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  • Brock
    Brock Solar Expert Posts: 639 ✭✭✭✭
    #3
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Do you have some of the 18, 24 or 36 LED ones? I have all of those and some of the ones that look just like a standard white 7w lamp. So far I have had 3 out of about 15 LED lamps burn out. They actually just kept getting more and more dim. At first I thought I was just remembering them brighter, but finally they just went out. I think they are overdriving them without enough heat sinking for them.

    How do the 6w and 10w light up? Are they pretty even lighting, at least at that end? The thing I don't like about the 18, 24 and 36 LED ones is they throw more light out opposite the base. I want more of a 360 or at least 180 degree light. These are about 70 to 90 degrees with the exception of the smaller 7w sized ones, but I think the defusing helps out a lot with them.

    I recently bought some of the $15 three packs from Sam’s. I bought the candelabra base and regular base, 1.5 watts each. I have the candelabra base ones in our hall and they are ok. I would guess each is comparable to a 15-20 watt incandescent. I had 4w CF’s in that fixture but we flip them on and off all the time and they took a minute or so to get up to full brightness and by that time they were off again. The LED’s actually start brighter, but after about 30 seconds the CF’s would become brighter.

    The lamps themselves, made by Lights of America have 21 non-directional LED’s in them. They don’t appear to be overdriven, but time will tell. I have had bad luck with Lights of America in CF’s, I hope these fair better.
    3kw solar PV, 4 LiFePO4 100a, xw 6048, Honda eu2000i, iota DLS-54-13, Tesla 3, Leaf, Volt, 4 ton horizontal geothermal, grid tied - Green Bay, WI
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #4
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Brock,

    these globe models (10w, 6w, and 3w) are 360light, and not too hot on the heatsink. they are bright. it's a huge difference from the more spotlightish ones i posted photos of last year . ill get some new pics posted.. you know i cant even tell how many led's are in them as its a frosted globe. these have really impressed me (as you know ive been buying various models for the last few years)!
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #5
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    here's my little write up (with pics as promised) i'm going to pass on to friends and customers

    http://florenceit.net/files/leds2/leds2.html

    - not that i'm selling them or affiliated , i'm NOT, I just like to pass on good news ;)

    so as i said i don't know how many or what kind of LED's they are but the pictures speak for themselves as to brightness and beam pattern (360deg). Brock if you find out what kind of led's i'd like to know just out of curiosity, and so i can pass the info on.
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #6
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    now i have to say that the kitchen pics show the best comparison and contrast to on/off circumstances as the sun is shining brightly outside. cameras themselves can be slightly deceiving as the sensitivity to certain spectra of light may vary from our own eyes making what you see in the photos not always what you get. i'm impressed with them, but i don't like the amount of blue spectra most leds contain for it gives me headaches. are these outputting lots of the near uv area light or is it nearer a good blend?
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #7
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Hi Niel

    thats definitely an issue, the 3 gloves come in natural, warm, and bright white. the overgheads are bright white (as i wanted every last lumen, since we use these overhead lights infrequently and i dont care about the color of the light. this one has blueish tinge and you probably would not like). the over the table one is either warm or natural, im not really sure (cant remember.. ill lookup the receipt).

    i set the camera to represent what the actual light in the room looked like to my eyes (f/8 1sec exposure) and kept each photo the same exposure to show the relative difference. nice having an all manual camera for things like this. :p
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #8
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    ok matt. i did get some cfls a few years ago and started experimenting with what i'd like in them. i tried the bright whites and took them back to the store. then i tried the natural and it was too much like looking at a regular bulb at say 40w or 60w as it's too much of a dull yellowish glow. then i tried the warms and they too had too much uv area and i found that right in between the warms and naturals is where i like it. of course they didn't carry something there in that range so i had to use both of the 2 types for the light i like. i guess the temp would be about 3400k that i'd like.
    added,
    i see by the temps on the leds that the warm white may best suit me. the warm white cfl i got is actually 2700k with the warm light at 4100k averaging 3400k.
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  • RandomJoe
    RandomJoe Solar Expert Posts: 472 ✭✭✭
    #9
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    So tempting...

    But I'm a bit dismayed at their warnings. They must be joking?!?

    First, the temperature range. Life may be shortened if used above 23C? The inside of my house doesn't get below that except in the middle of winter! It also shoots my initial plan in the foot - I wanted to put them in the outside fixtures to reduce consumption for the all-night lights. And it's definitely warmer than that outside! (Well. Not right now. Wish winter would just go away already! ;) )

    Of course, the second warning shoots my initial plan too. Must be used only with a regular switch? Warranty void if used with relays, etc? Um. What's the difference between a switch and a relay, except the means of operation? I certainly understand not switching it on/off repeatedly in short order, but...

    I'm also not quite happy with the color temps yet. I don't know why, but I *love* that "yellowish" incandescent color! 2900 is a maximum for me, I prefer 2700 or so! I just feel colder with anything above that. (I know it's all psychological, but hey it's the inside of my house!) Can't stand the typical office fluorescents (usually 4100k), and absolutely do NOT understand people who actually like "daylight" bulbs (4900k and up)! :p

    I do have one somewhat-related question - anyone notice if bugs are attracted to LED lights, or even notice them? I ask first because the bulbs I just looked at mention "no UV" (isn't that what most bugs are keyed to?) but also because I've taken some of my (cheap, converted "auto work light") LED lights out back in the past and it seems like few if any bugs show up - certainly far fewer than if I take a fluorescent out and set it in the same place. This would be a major point in favor of using them outside, of course!
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  • n3qik
    n3qik Solar Expert Posts: 741 ✭✭
    #10
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    The cheap white/blue tint 1157 automotive LED bulbs I have in the bow window and garage, keep at least 6-10 spiders well feed all summer long.
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  • RandomJoe
    RandomJoe Solar Expert Posts: 472 ✭✭✭
    #11
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Well, shoot. I figured what I had seen was a fluke! :roll: I was hoping, though...
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #12
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!
    Brock wrote: »
    Do you have some of the 18, 24 or 36 LED ones? I have all of those and some of the ones that look just like a standard white 7w lamp.

    i just noticed the 3w and the 6w use "SSC P4 LED" (1 and 2 respectively). the 10w isnt listed whats in it.. im guessing 3-4 of those.

    re: early failure, the spotlightish models i got last year (in the pictures i linked to) are holding up fine, they are super bright still. they run hot though. these new ones dont. i did have a failure of one of the 12v under cab lights i bought from them (alos pictured in last yrs photos) and they replaced it without trouble under warranty, though they dont make that unit anymore it is holding up great and was the first led fixture i got that you could really use for general lighting.
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  • Brock
    Brock Solar Expert Posts: 639 ✭✭✭✭
    #13
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    I haven't purchased from this place (yet) but came across these 3 watt LED screw in lamps for under $7 each

    http://www.elightbulbs.com/Westinghouse-03466-3G19-LED-70-3W-WHITE-Globe-LED-Light-Bulb

    It was WAY lower than most of the lights listed on their site so in an email I asked them why there were so much cheaper. They said Westinghouse ran to many of these at once and Westinghouse was trying to reduce their inventory. Fine by me :)
    3kw solar PV, 4 LiFePO4 100a, xw 6048, Honda eu2000i, iota DLS-54-13, Tesla 3, Leaf, Volt, 4 ton horizontal geothermal, grid tied - Green Bay, WI
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #14
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    what?!?!? $7.0?!?!?!??!?! damn!
    im there.
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #15
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    i guess we can assume we'll soon have another report on that led?:D
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  • Brock
    Brock Solar Expert Posts: 639 ✭✭✭✭
    #16
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Matt I don't know if you ordered them yet. They are dimmer than the ones at Sam’s ones and have a very blue tint to them. They are almost identical in shape to the Sam’s ones, but have a smoked cover and the blue tint. The Sam’s ones are almost warm in color, leaning towards neutral.
    3kw solar PV, 4 LiFePO4 100a, xw 6048, Honda eu2000i, iota DLS-54-13, Tesla 3, Leaf, Volt, 4 ton horizontal geothermal, grid tied - Green Bay, WI
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  • icarus
    icarus Solar Expert Posts: 5,436 ✭✭✭✭
    #17
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    The following link has the best use of LEDs that I have ever seen.

    Friends in NZ sent this idea to me:
    http://www.youtube.com/swf/l.swf?swf=http%3A//s.ytimg.com/yt/swf/cps-vfl90747.swf&video_id=D2FX9rviEhw&rel=1&eurl=&iurl=http%3A//i1.ytimg.com/vi/D2FX9rviEhw/hqdefault.jpg&sk=GjUO9d5gM-n5eNscrJlo1Se9pIdrwvjDC&cr=US&avg_rating=4.90053530461&video_id=D2FX9rviEhw&length_seconds=165&allow_ratings=1&title=Extreme%20Sheep%20LED%20Art
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #18
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    :roll: do ya think they have some extra time on their hands? inventive i'll say. should i ask where the batteries are?:confused::blush:
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #19
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    hi yes, ordered but they didnt come in yet... hmmm..
    well thats a disappointing bit of news but not surprising given the cheap cost. ill find a use for them somewhere (basement, whatever) still very thrilled with the one from superbright. so bright and 360deg light, and color options.. those 10 watters are just something else. hope they last ;)
    Brock wrote: »
    Matt I don't know if you ordered them yet. They are dimmer than the ones at Sam’s ones and have a very blue tint to them. They are almost identical in shape to the Sam’s ones, but have a smoked cover and the blue tint. The Sam’s ones are almost warm in color, leaning towards neutral.
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  • Brock
    Brock Solar Expert Posts: 639 ✭✭✭✭
    #20
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    They are not terrible and I will certainly use them somewhere as well, just not where I had originally intended to. The good thing is you can let me know how they compare to the superbright ones ;)
    3kw solar PV, 4 LiFePO4 100a, xw 6048, Honda eu2000i, iota DLS-54-13, Tesla 3, Leaf, Volt, 4 ton horizontal geothermal, grid tied - Green Bay, WI
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  • lamplight
    lamplight Solar Expert Posts: 368 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #21
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Hi
    yea theyre dimmer and cold blue light, will use in basement or some other place where i like to see what my skin will look like when im dead ;)

    they are nice 360deg light though. but at only 3w not quite so good. the 6w globe i was origianlly talking about is the lowest id go for general purpose, it seems like a 40w equiv roughly. these blue ones half that maybe. would you agree?

    Brock wrote: »
    Matt I don't know if you ordered them yet. They are dimmer than the ones at Sam’s ones and have a very blue tint to them. They are almost identical in shape to the Sam’s ones, but have a smoked cover and the blue tint. The Sam’s ones are almost warm in color, leaning towards neutral.
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  • Brock
    Brock Solar Expert Posts: 639 ✭✭✭✭
    #22
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Yup I would call them 15 to maybe 20 watt equivalent. I tried them in the fridge, they were a bit brighter than the 1 w I had in there, but way to blue, my wife made me put the old ones back in :)

    I have one in the center of the garage ceiling, more than enough light to not trip on something at night.
    3kw solar PV, 4 LiFePO4 100a, xw 6048, Honda eu2000i, iota DLS-54-13, Tesla 3, Leaf, Volt, 4 ton horizontal geothermal, grid tied - Green Bay, WI
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  • Patman3
    Patman3 Solar Expert Posts: 62 ✭✭✭✭
    #23
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    Hi Everybody, it's been a while since I've been here. I had to come ask this question! I to have all the LED bulbs from Sam's Club, I bought many because I was amazed at what little power they use and no heat. I use one in my fridge. Here is the question or observation. THEY NEVER TURN COMPLETLY OFF! If I switch them off (the yellowish globe type) in a dark room they continue to glow for a while, OK I can understand that, but after several hours they are still on kindof like half way. If I unscrew the bulb from the socket it goes off completly. This is just weird, when you turn the light off u expect it to go off!? Is some power being induced or somekind of half wave rectification going on? The same thing happens to my friends but he has them in an X-10 system. They go on but when off they are still partially on. My lights are not on a dimmer or X-10 system but the switch that controls it is a simple SPST but has a neon light in it. Has anyone else experienced these lights not turning off when mostly connected to AC system? You guys are great!
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  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #24
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    i would suspect the switch to possibly be bad or leakage somehow due to the neon light. hmmm, i always thought that type took ac to light them up.
    btw, welcome back. where were you?:confused:
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  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,615 admin
    #25
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    It depends--but you are probably seeing various forms of leakage current.

    The Neon Pilot lite is an easy answer--they are ~1/4 - 1 watt bulbs. So, if you have 3-7 watt LED bulbs--it is very possible that you will see some illumination from the LED's.

    I even had problems with CFL's and the LED lite lamp switches in my in-laws home--They would store up the Neon leakage energy and the CFL"s would "flash" every few seconds as they tried to start.

    Capacitive coupling, inductive coupling, and even leach current through "wet dust" could be enough to slightly power the LED's.

    There should be no issues or damage caused by this (other than in a dark room when you don't want light).

    If you use the LED's on a MSW (Modified Square/Sine Wave) Inverter--it is possible that the LED's/ballast circuit may not last long / overheat (it all depends--as usual).

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
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  • Brock
    Brock Solar Expert Posts: 639 ✭✭✭✭
    #26
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    On a straight spst light switch I don't see any "leaking" so to speak with my lights. But on a dimmer they do glow really faint, even when clicked in the off position. They glow quite a bit when used with x-10 switches as well as when I had some on a timer that was supposed to be a mechanical switch.

    Do they continue to glow when partially unscrewed? That is with the base of the lamp still contacting the screw sides, but not the tip? If so that would be really weird and basically a true spst switch should be doing just that. Unless maybe something else is wired on the same side of the switch and is bleeding a bit of power?
    3kw solar PV, 4 LiFePO4 100a, xw 6048, Honda eu2000i, iota DLS-54-13, Tesla 3, Leaf, Volt, 4 ton horizontal geothermal, grid tied - Green Bay, WI
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  • BillF
    BillF Solar Expert Posts: 48 ✭✭
    #27
    Re: led lights are coming along nicely!!

    My experience with "Lights of America" LEDs from Walmart:

    Family hated the light quality and less than expected output
    All lights (R30, Candellas), six total, lasted two months before they went out.

    Perhaps the power from the SW4048s had something to do with it, I'm not sure, but anyway I will not be getting LoA LED lights anymore. However I have noticed GE has LEDs now at Walmart. Real pricey though.
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