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I can't find a Which? report on LED bulbs. Are there any standout brands, either to avoid or to go for? A few years back I bought a couple from B&Q which turned out to be real duds, failing in short order but I can't remember the brand name.
In reply to Rog Wilko:
They have generally got better and reliable, just don’t get the cheapest. I would imagine any Which report will soon be out of date.
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In reply to kevin stephens:
Mine are mostly Philips and now about 10 years old with only a couple of failures, if that's any help. Don't buy the cheapest of the cheap, if anything they pulse at 50Hz and so flicker horribly. The Ikea ones for example (of which I have a few) are fine.
Post edited at 12:17
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In reply to kevin stephens:
These do look remarkably cheap, but I think Sylvania is an established company, isn't it?
https://www.screwfix.com/p/sylvania-toledo-bc-gls-led-light-bulb-1521lm-13w...
In reply to Rog Wilko:
Honestly, I just go with the Amazon lottery and have never had any issues. I got some G10's recently which were shockingly bright for 5W (I checked and they do pull just 5W). If you're after any pointers let me know what fitting you need and I can recommend, I've got a bit of an LED obsession so have bought a fair few recently
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In reply to Rog Wilko:
I've mostly got Screwfix 'LAP' branded bulbs because I bought a bulk box, they're ok when new but don't last, they end up dropping out for a few mSec (super annoying) here and there or strobing after a year or three. Also they don't dim very far/well, they eventually just strobe at low power.
Phillips LED stuff always seems to get good reviews.
jk
Post edited at 12:53
In reply to Rog Wilko:
On the same lines, can anyone recommend some good quality dimmable LED bulbs and also suitable dimmer switches? (I’ve had problems with both.)
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In reply to Rog Wilko:
> These do look remarkably cheap, but I think Sylvania is an established company, isn't it?
What are you comparing them to? If it's historic prices then your not comparing apples and oranges, as prices had dropped dramatically over the years.
Yes Sylvania is an established company
In reply to Mark Kemball:
Ikea do some, they do the job though you can't use a normal domestic dimmer switch, it requires their remote control.
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In reply to thread:
If you want to spend some serious wedge, have a look at Soraa bulbs. I've just done an install with them (client specified them) and they are very nice, not sure they're £20 nice though.
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In reply to TechnoJim:
What a lot of replies! Thanks to all.
Cobra head - I was comparing to some I bought a few (2 or 3) years ago when IIRC I was paying well over £10 each for 13 watts lamps. I think I might go ahead with the Sylvania.
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In reply to Rog Wilko:
> What a lot of replies! Thanks to all.
> Cobra head - I was comparing to some I bought a few (2 or 3) years ago when IIRC I was paying well over £10 each for 13 watts lamps. I think I might go ahead with the Sylvania.
yes they've dropped a lot in that time. They pay for themselves much quicker now.
I've only just swapped our 24VDC halogens for some 5w LEDs, they're very bright!!
I got theses, they're 110 degree so a good spread of light.
In reply to Rog Wilko:
I think the LED bulbs we're being sold are all designed to fail. The actual LED part would survive for ages, but what seems to go is the driving electronics - and I assume that that is because the entire assembly gets too hot.
I am sure that all of this could be designed better - but, obviously, the companies involved have the reverse incentive.
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In reply to Rog Wilko:
My local Saintsbury's is selling 60 W eq bayonet LED bulbs at two for £2.50. Can't comment on the life, but they're a good warm white.
In reply to captain paranoia:
I’ve had a number of Sainsbury’s bulbs fail on me, hence my question above.
In reply to Rob Parsons:
> I think the LED bulbs we're being sold are all designed to fail. The actual LED part would survive for ages, but what seems to go is the driving electronics - and I assume that that is because the entire assembly gets too hot.
> I am sure that all of this could be designed better - but, obviously, the companies involved have the reverse incentive.
Maybe it’s just the (cheap?) ones YOU’RE being sold. The ones we have lasted for years (so far) without any problems. A key justification of LED replacements are extremely long life compared to tungsten filament or compact florescent
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In reply to kevin stephens:
> Maybe it’s just the (cheap?) ones YOU’RE being sold.
No. I've had Osram ones do it. I'm sure it's a deliberate design effect.
In reply to Rob Parsons:
You can be quite sure nobody designs electronics to fail. It is a very difficult problem to which solutions are evolving. The designer is limited by the components available, and so could probably not design better.
In reply to David Riley:
> You can be quite sure nobody designs electronics to fail. It is a very difficult problem to which solutions are evolving.
What's the problem in this case - heat sinking?
It would be interesting to get a statement from the manufacturers of expected LED-life vs expected driver-life.
In reply to Rob Parsons:
The original designs were simple and inefficient. So they got hot. Now they are much more complex integrated power converters. Cause of death would probably be voltage spikes, random and unpredictable. The cheapest could be old designs being sold off, or they could be the most recent and best, since they are now cheaper to produce.
In reply to Rog Wilko:
Sylvania have been supplying military parts at least since WW2 judging by the number of valves I've had through my hands over the decades
A lot of the wireless sets in British and American tanks on D-Day will have gone ashore with Sylvania valves in them
Post edited at 16:26
In reply to Rob Parsons:
We have had a number of mains voltage LED bulbs fail and I think this may in part be because they are overheating in enclosed spaces in silly ceiling fittings. Mains incandescent bulbs failed in these fittings too.
I have never had a 12v LED unit fail and we run ours on mains independent 24v DC as they are specified as AC/DC and being capable of operating at that voltage.
In reply to Rob Parsons:
The make that failed most was Ever-Ready
In reply to wercat:
> We have had a number of mains voltage LED bulbs fail and I think this may in part be because they are overheating in enclosed spaces in silly ceiling fittings. Mains incandescent bulbs failed in these fittings too.
> I have never had a 12v LED unit fail and we run ours on mains independent 24v DC as they are specified as AC/DC and being capable of operating at that voltage.
All of my above comments about failures refer to 240V bulbs. It is definitely the driver which fails, not the actual LED.
The particular ones I have had problems with are 'candle' bulbs. I am sure the problem is caused by overheating. In fairness to the designers, good heat-sinking presents an obvious problem since the overall form-factor of the bulbs is (necessarily) identical to their incandescent equivalents. If you were starting from a completely fresh slate, you could design bulbs with better heat sinks.
In reply to Rob Parsons:
> I think the LED bulbs we're being sold are all designed to fail.
There's some teardowns of some pretty horrendous designs of LED bulbs on YouTube!
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In reply to owlart:
Yeah. I bought some cheap MR16 bulbs, and they failed. Pulled them apart to see why, and it was due to failure of the 'solder' holding some capacitors to the little PCB. The way the PCB was connected to the pins of the lamp housing was "interesting", too...
In reply to Mark Kemball:
> I’ve had a number of Sainsbury’s bulbs fail on me,
Maybe that's why they're clearing them...
In reply to Rob Parsons:
> The particular ones I have had problems with are 'candle' bulbs. I am sure the problem is caused by overheating. In fairness to the designers, good heat-sinking presents an obvious problem since the overall form-factor of the bulbs is (necessarily) identical to their incandescent equivalents. If you were starting from a completely fresh slate, you could design bulbs with better heat sinks.
There’s your problem. An LED lamp trying to imitate a tungsten filament bulb trying to imitate a candle flame: Bonkers! A (failed) triumph of form over function. Are you using then in a mock Tudor candelabra? Treat yourself to some light fittings designed to accommodate the benefits and ascetics of LED technology
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In reply to kevin stephens:
> There’s your problem. An LED lamp trying to imitate a tungsten filament bulb trying to imitate a candle flame:
No - it's just a small form-factor bulb. Not everything is a standard GLS bulb - there have been variations in shapes and sizes for the past century or so.
> Are you using then in a mock Tudor candelabra?
Sorry to disappoint you, Kevin. But no.
> ... the benefits and ascetics of LED technology ...
Unless you are wearing a hair-shirt, I assume you mean 'aesthetics.' But tell me - what exactly are the 'aesthetics of LED technology'?
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In reply to captain paranoia:
Yes, maybe not specifically designed to fail, but definitely designed to be as cheap as possible to make with little to no consideration given to things like longevity or, indeed, safety.
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In reply to owlart: I think its more trying to cram components into an unrealistically small form factor to try and imitate outmoded technology. Whereas LEDs give designers much more freedom to create a wide range of lighting options. You are wrong re “no consideration to safety” regarding lamps manufactured to meet the requirements of CE marking
Post edited at 18:23
In reply to Rob Parsons:
I only buy lamps from reputable manufacturers like Osram and Philips, and I've still had quite a few fail. I really don't think it's deliberate, it's just poor design. I've taken a few apart, and the failures have mostly been an actual LED. I think they just don't have sufficient heat sinking. In cheap no-name lamps driver failures are more common.
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