LED GU10 to replace halogens?

[Seano]

Yet another sale at Led Hut - 20% off if you use the BIG20 code

[london lad]

I replaced every lamp in our barn with leds.

I got 10 different cheap ones first and they were all rubbish, incorrect size, too narrow beam, poor output, too cool colour temp or just flashed and failed.

In the end I used Megaman brand. 6watt GU10 is exactly the same colour temp and brightness as a 50 watt incan. Cost less than £10 for dim-able version.

Zero failures in nearly 200 lamps in the last 8 months.

[london lad]

Long term I would look at Rako lighting control. It's retro fittable will lengthen the bulb life, and you can replace those ugly banks of dimmers which always 'buzz'. You can programme zones and operate it by remote A breeze to fit by a sparky.

Rod

I had dozens of Rakio radio dimmers in our barn when we moved in.

They are the most inefficient things I've ever seen. They draw considerable power when on and even draw power when the lamp is off by 'leaking' current into the lamp. They same almost no power when the lamp is running dimmed.

They are hideously expensive and time consuming to program, unless you buy the expensive radio / usb programmer.

Oh and mine ate 50w GU10s at an alarming rate!

[pstruck]

Some useful information and recommendations in this thread. I need to replace the GU10s in my kitchen (seven of them) which have been blowing with infuriating regularity, so it's time to invest in some LEDs. My kitchen units are gloss white, so I'm keen to go for a fairly warm colour temp, as anything too cool will be too clinical.

[Wolfie]

Useful thread! Just brought some sylvana standard GU10's yesterday and was offered some LED's but wanted to do some research first before buying a load... Mission accomplished! Standard 50w bulbs are doing well to last 6 months in this house... Daft design

[bambam]

Thread resurrection!

We have a load of 12v halogen downlighter with 1 transformer per light. Now that my stock of MR16 bulbs is getting low, I was thinking of replacing some (then eventually all) of them with LED downlighters. We have LED ones in the new parts of the house (kitchen and bedroom) and they have been brilliant and we have yet to change a bulb almost 3 years later.

So, I was going to replace the ones on the first floor first as I can get to the transformers and wiring easily. Is there a good guide that anyone has come across that they can share or even better, actual experience of doing this themselves? I think I might have asked this a while back but can't find the thread.

Really, I'd like to know the best way to swap the transformer wiring for the mains version. Is it as simple as undoing one set and replacing into the new set on a like for like basis?

Thanks

[IAmATeaf]

In essence the transformer will be connected via a terminal block or maybe even a junction box. All you have to do is disconnect the transformer and then wire in the new directly into the terminal and or junction box.

You’ll need to find out if the replacement bulbs will fit into the existing downlighter, if they do the you’ll need to also buy some sort of wire tail to plug into the new bulbs. Or you could what I did and that was to replace the downlighters as well.

Any decent electrical retailer should be able to help/guide you dependant on what you decide to do.

[Rob Leeds]

http://www.anselluk.com/en/product/AORBLED

We have just had some of these fitted in the kitchen and so far are very pleased with them.
The electrician liked them from a fitting point of view and they come with a five year warranty, seven years if registered online.

[bambam]

In essence the transformer will be connected via a terminal block or maybe even a junction box. All you have to do is disconnect the transformer and then wire in the new directly into the terminal and or junction box.

You’ll need to find out if the replacement bulbs will fit into the existing downlighter, if they do the you’ll need to also buy some sort of wire tail to plug into the new bulbs. Or you could what I did and that was to replace the downlighters as well.

Any decent electrical retailer should be able to help/guide you dependant on what you decide to do.

Thanks. There probably is a junction box (or a few of them actually) as most of the 12v transformers have a feed coming in and going out so the feeds must emanate from somewhere. I'll be replacing the downlighters in the upstairs ceilings anyway as most of them are quite old and not fire rated. I think I'll try it with one room first and go from there.

[bambam]

http://www.anselluk.com/en/product/AORBLED

We have just had some of these fitted in the kitchen and so far are very pleased with them.
The electrician liked them from a fitting point of view and they come with a five year warranty, seven years if registered online.

They look quite good. Simpler design than having a separate hood and maybe take up less space. We have some Aurora ones like those in the new bedroom. Will take a proper look and see what the cost will be etc.

[Rob Leeds]

They look quite good. Simpler design than having a separate hood and maybe take up less space. We have some Aurora ones like those in the new bedroom. Will take a proper look and see what the cost will be etc.

I think they were just over £20 in vat and I like the matt white bezel that comes as standard as it goes well with the white ceiling.
You can go mad with lighting and I have seen some fantastic looking spots but when you're trying to replace them all over the house it becomes a small fortune.
The Orbio are IP65 rated and the swivel fitting is a good idea if you're right next to a joist.

[ernestrome]

That sounds very reasonable for dimmable, thanks for the info about the seller :)

I also bought some from ledhut. The surface mount style. Four or five years in I think. I bought a mix of cool and warmer white. Wife prefers the warmer ones.