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Is anyone else learning yet about LEDs' "dirty little secret?"
I have 75W halogens in cans in our kitchen; those lights are on a lot and require a 10-foot ladder to replace. I generally swap in two or three new bulbs every year. Naturally I'm anxious to find a good alternative, but CFLs that fit the cans don't make enough light and LEDs have the same problem. Finally, finally! a 1150 lumen LED bulb is introduced, 4300K color which is very nice. I immediately buy one and start rooting for the halogens to pop so I can put it up there. It does, I do, and I'm thrilled at the fact that I can't tell it apart from the halogens. Same lumens, same color, w00t! My wishes have been answered.
A few months pass. Two more LEDs go in. I start thinking to myself "is it me, or is that part of the kitchen with the LEDs not as bright as elsewhere?" So I get a freebie light meter app for my 'droid and take some readings. Sure enough the LED-lit area is significantly dimmer than the halogen-lit area.
And therein lies the "dirty little secret"; LEDs may last a long while but they "burn out" by losing light output over time. In the case of my once-1150-lumen bulbs I'd say they're down to about 900 lumens after less than a year. That amount of loss may not matter in a lot of situations but unfortunately for me it leaves us with too little light in that area.
My search for a viable halogen replacement continues.
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