Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com - View Single Post - LED lighting goes mainstream! It's at Wal-Mart!

dcwp · 01-15-2009, 02:32 PM

I know it's been a while since this thread was active, but I finally got around to trying out one of the relatively cheap Wal-Mart LED spotlights. $13 per bulb is kind of pricey for me, but I bought one for a self Christmas present and may go to more if it works out.

What I bought is a 1Watt multi-LED spotlight with the two-prong connection that you see in standard mini-halogens. I put it in a four-bulb fixture in my bedroom that is attached to a dimmer.

The first thing I notice with the LED bulb is that it is not nearly as bright as the others. This will probably be fine since there is another fixture in the room and this one is mostly to help me find clothes in the closet, but it looks like it will be just barely bright enough to do that job. I wouldn't mind about 50% more candlepower to be really satisfied.

Next the color of the LED is way different than the mini-halogens (or whatever they are) that I replaced. I actually prefer the slightly blue light of the LED over the yellow of the old one, but for now it's a misfit since there are still three old-style bulbs.

Third, the dimmer does not work with the LEDs. It wasn't supposed to, and previous posters had warned about this, but now I can confirm that the LED bulbs are either on or off, no dimming. Not a big problem, especially since it's already a dim light, but my wife loves this dimmer. Actually if the colors matched, this might be an ideal solution since two bulbs point into the closet and need to be bright, but two point into the room and sometimes need to be dim.

Finally, and possibly most imoprtantly, the label on this bulb lists it as 1 watt and the old one said 50 watt. Assuming those are both accurate consumption numbers (i don't really know how that works), I have just reduced the consumption of that bulb by 98% and the overall fixture by nearly 25%. Cool!

Now the remaining question is lifespan. If the bulb lasts long enough I would consider switching all of the spotlights in the house over. But there are a total of 11 of this type of bulb in my house. That would cost $143 so I can't do it right away, but at 98% energy savings it could be worthwhile.

That's all for now. Hopefully I don't have the reliability issues that others are reporting here.

01-15-2009, 02:32 PM	#47 (permalink)
dcwp EcoModding Lurker Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Michigan Posts: 13 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I know it's been a while since this thread was active, but I finally got around to trying out one of the relatively cheap Wal-Mart LED spotlights. $13 per bulb is kind of pricey for me, but I bought one for a self Christmas present and may go to more if it works out. What I bought is a 1Watt multi-LED spotlight with the two-prong connection that you see in standard mini-halogens. I put it in a four-bulb fixture in my bedroom that is attached to a dimmer. The first thing I notice with the LED bulb is that it is not nearly as bright as the others. This will probably be fine since there is another fixture in the room and this one is mostly to help me find clothes in the closet, but it looks like it will be just barely bright enough to do that job. I wouldn't mind about 50% more candlepower to be really satisfied. Next the color of the LED is way different than the mini-halogens (or whatever they are) that I replaced. I actually prefer the slightly blue light of the LED over the yellow of the old one, but for now it's a misfit since there are still three old-style bulbs. Third, the dimmer does not work with the LEDs. It wasn't supposed to, and previous posters had warned about this, but now I can confirm that the LED bulbs are either on or off, no dimming. Not a big problem, especially since it's already a dim light, but my wife loves this dimmer. Actually if the colors matched, this might be an ideal solution since two bulbs point into the closet and need to be bright, but two point into the room and sometimes need to be dim. Finally, and possibly most imoprtantly, the label on this bulb lists it as 1 watt and the old one said 50 watt. Assuming those are both accurate consumption numbers (i don't really know how that works), I have just reduced the consumption of that bulb by 98% and the overall fixture by nearly 25%. Cool! Now the remaining question is lifespan. If the bulb lasts long enough I would consider switching all of the spotlights in the house over. But there are a total of 11 of this type of bulb in my house. That would cost $143 so I can't do it right away, but at 98% energy savings it could be worthwhile. That's all for now. Hopefully I don't have the reliability issues that others are reporting here.