In the past decade, light emitting diodes, or LED bulb, have replaced incandescent bulbs as the lighting source of choice in many homes around the world. With their long lifespan and energy efficiency, they’re proving to be an excellent investment over time. Unfortunately, not all LED spotlights are created equally and finding the right bulb to replace your old one isn’t as simple as you may think. Follow these guidelines to choosing the right LED bulb replacement for each fixture in your home.
Why Should I Replace Incandescent Bulbs?
If you’re still using incandescent bulbs in your home, it’s probably time to upgrade. By switching over to LED lighting, you could save a substantial amount of money every year. According to our research, a typical household could expect a $77 energy bill reduction each month. That adds up to $912 per year savings! On top of that, many local governments are offering significant incentives for new homeowners that install energy-efficient lightbulbs and appliances. In fact, in some places, we’ve seen rebates reach as high as $40 for each bulb switched out—more than enough reason for homeowners and renters everywhere to make the switch from incandescent bulbs!
The Characteristics of LED Light Sources
When it comes to light sources, there’s a lot of geeky science that goes into everything from Kelvin temperature values to CRI (Color Rendering Index). For most people, though, it’s easiest simply think of three specific characteristics when choosing an LED replacement bulb. They are brightness (or lumens), color quality and beam angle. To be clear, these characteristics aren’t exclusive — in fact most bulbs will have all three — but they can help you narrow down your options if you don’t want or need a range of features.
What Lamp Fittings Can Be Replaced?
Replacing an old incandescent light bulb is almost as easy as screwing in a new one. Choosing an appropriate replacement LED bulb is often much more difficult, however. Commonly used lamp fittings include spotlight bulbs, track lights, under-cabinet lighting, downlights, high bay lights and floodlights. It’s important that your new light bulbs match up with your specific fitting. For example, if you have a spotlight (usually small with a cone-shaped shade), you’ll need spotlights as replacements. If you have downlights (downward-facing ceiling lights), look for downlight replacements; most commonly called can lights or bullet lights due to their shape and size respectively.
LED Light Sources and Their Properties
The first step in picking out an LED light bulb replacement is understanding how a spotlight works. Spotlights, unlike general lighting, illuminate specific things and do so without much spread. A spotlight for a shower or garage door will have a different purpose than one for reading or atmosphere, but all are dependent on light sources. There are many different types of light sources—incandescent, fluorescent and halogen being three of them. While they seem similar at first glance, incandescent spotlight garageport—the classic filament type we think of when it comes to light—don’t work well in spotlights because they produce quite a bit of heat.
The Advantages of Using LED Light Sources
High-power light emitting diode (LED) lighting is growing in popularity because it has several advantages over other kinds of light sources, including a high ratio of output to power and greater energy efficiency.
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