Popparotc Loc: Newportnews Va.

Need advice on light bulbs,Are LEDs worth the money ? What is the best Bang for the Buck,for lighting,

Falcon Loc: Abilene, Texas

LEDs are still a bit expensive for general in-home use. If you have a light fixture that is hard to reach an LED might be a good choice as most of them have a "rated" lifetime of 100,000 or so hours. Until just recently, LEDs did not have a true white (or even close) light color. The best white you could get still had a blueish tinge. They are getting closer though. The CRI (color rendition index--the closer it is to 100 the closer the light approximates sunlight) doesn't seem to me to be very high either, but I haven't seen any testing data. In addition, at least in my view, LEDs are still not very effective as area lighting--lighting a room for example. They do a very good job as display case lighting and close spotlighting though.
How were you thinking of using LEDs? If you are thinking of replacing incandescent bulbs in lamps, I suggest compact fluorescents. They are available in a variety of colors (degrees Kelvin) and, although still more expensive than incandescent, last much longer and I expect the cost per hour of operation is much cheaper.

Popparotc Loc: Newportnews Va.

This is what Im workin on trying to stay in Budget and get the Balanced lighting,The hanging Lights are on Dimmers,Thanks for your reply

Falcon Loc: Abilene, Texas

It appears that the recessed lights along the sides where the walls join the ceiling might be fluorescent. If they are T-12 tubes with magnetic ballasts, you can greatly increase efficiency by changing them to T-8 bulbs. You will also need to change the ballasts to electronic ballasts as T-8s will not work with magnetic ballasts. However, T-8 tubes and electronic ballasts are not a great deal more expensive than T-12s and magnetic ballasts. In any case T-12 tubes and magnetic ballasts are no longer being manufactured and soon cannot be sold.
Are the pendant light fixtures over the congregation holding incandescent bulbs at the moment? If so, you can change those for compact fluorescent (CF) bulbs. That will be a direct swap as the screw-in bases are the same. Since compact fluorescent bulbs do not emit as much heat as incandescent bulbs, you can even increase the wattage (and amount of light emitted) when you install CF bulbs. The CF bulbs will be rated on the package something like "28 watts replaces a 150 watt incandescent." Some CF lamps can be dimmed, but you'll have to check the packaging to make sure you get the right ones.
There are LED lamps that will fit in both fixtures, but the long tubes for the recessed fixtures will run about $200 each (or more) and put out less light. and the PAR type lamps will not give you much illumination over the room from that elevation.
Boy, I hope I have helped and not just added to the confusion. If you want, PM me and we'll figure out a way to get together.

Popparotc Loc: Newportnews Va.

Thanks Ill get with you on Pm,

alienmurphy Loc: Alaska

My son-in-law and his family own a bowling center. Two years ago all the center's lighting was switched from t-12s to t-8s. Major difference in electric bill.

Popparotc Loc: Newportnews Va.

Thanks thats wwhat we need to do .

rayford2 Loc: New Bethlehem, PA

I wish this light bulb issue would be a matter of individual choice rather than being "mandated" by idiots in Washington.

Popparotc Loc: Newportnews Va.

Its all about money, in the pocket . I think, On the upside They havent told us how many lights we can have and Hours we can use them,

James56 Loc: Nashville, Tennessee

And to further show how stupid they are...CF bulbs contain Mercury, a highly toxic substance. The small print on the box says evacuate the room if you break one. I can just see the landfills now leaking this toxin into all our lakes and streams. Not only that, they work pourly with dimmers. Mine lasted about 10 seconds on a dimmer then burned out, so I refuse to use CF bulbs anymore...switching to candles.

Caribkid Loc: Atlanta, GA

I use CF's for all my lighting due to energy savings, but as stated, they do not work properly on dimmers.

rayford2 Loc: New Bethlehem, PA

That's right. AND when the time is ripe and CF bulbs have a foothold in our houses, guess what? They will be labeled as hazardous material and will have to be exchanged, one-on-one, or pay a huge "refundable" deposit, just like automotive batteries. Disposal fees will probably be figured into the price of new CF bulbs.

Paranoia? Nope...it's just the way the current government does things.

myts10 Loc: SE Ohio

LED’s are worth it, but you have to do a lot of research to get what you need. That wattage replacement seems to always over rated. Watch the luminous rating it is a better indication of the amount of light. LED's are directional by nature with a few weird looking things are suppose to be omnidirectional, haven't tested any of those yet. So any bulb shining down from those pendent fixtures will work quite well.
Always check how that longevity rating is measured. Some at 50,000 hours are rated at 4 hours per day, anything longer per day will shorten there life a lot. Others are rated at 24 hours per day.
Stick with a CRI rating of 80, that's good enough for most things including photography lighting. Lower is an indication of cheaper manufacturing. Higher CRI is better made, higher price but a lower longevity and less light per watt.
Stick with one color temperature. Say warm white, cool white, daylight or what ever, never mix them. I stick with 5000K. It is a little blue but to me that is better than a little yellow where everybody looks like they have a touch of jaundice.
Check the luminous rating of your current bulb. You will want an LED equal or higher than than that. Don't go lower. Even a few lumen will result in a lot less light at floor level, inverse square law.
Hope this helps. Gary

debbiety

LED light is good value for money :thumbup: :thumbup:

rayford2 Loc: New Bethlehem, PA

Gary hit the nail on the head.
Watts signifies the amount of POWER the light consumes.
LUMENS signifies the amount of light transmitted.

Sometimes these manufacturers lie to you too. On the packaging it might state (example) 20 watts for a 100 watt equivalent bulb, but when you look at the base of the CFC you will see the same listed as Amps.
Multiply these Amps x 120 Volts and it becomes more like 30 watts.
Isn't marketing wonderful?