As there is some confusion when replacing golf ball bulbs for low energy versions, so we have put together a guide of the most commonly chosen options to make it much simpler to make your lighting low energy and save you money on your electricity bill.  It is called the Simple Energy Saving Guide to replacing common household bulbs – why not download it now.

Your current bulb may be using a lot of electricity unnecessarily – you can now easily switch to an LED bulb, which will not only save you money and electricity but as it is instant start and very bright you won’t even realise you’ve switched!  As the chart above shows, the most common chosen replacement for a large screw-in bulb is a 4w LED golf ball with bayonet cap.  These LED golf ball bulbs use only 4w of electricity, they are instant start – there is no warm up time at all – and are the same shape as the bulbs they replace.

Need Dimmable?

If you have a dimmer switch, you need to use a low energy bulb that says it is dimmable.  Not a problem, we have a dimmable golf ball bulbs such as the 6.5w dimmable golf ball with bayonet cap.

More light?

If you want more light than the 4w version will give you, there is also a 6.7w LED golf ball bulb, which is just slightly taller than its baby brother.

Bayonet Cap

The standard bayonet cap. which is a very common light bulb cap in the UK can also be known or described as ‘BC’ (bayonet cap), or B22.  This is because they are 22mm in diameter across the base (not including the pins, which would make them roughly 27mm).  For the full range of bayonet bulbs available, please see the Replacement Bayonet Bulbs category.

Download now

For a complete and simple answer to replacing your common household bulbs, why not download our guide now »

To order, or to discuss alternatives, please contact us or visit our website: www.mygreenlighting.co.uk

The post Replacing bayonet golf ball bulbs first appeared on .

As there is a huge choice when replacing candle bulbs for low energy versions, so we have put together a guide of the most commonly chosen options to make it much simpler to make your lighting low energy and save you money on your electricity bill.  It is called the Simple Energy Saving Guide to replacing common household bulbs – why not download it now.

Your current bulb may be using a lot of electricity unnecessarily – you can now easily switch to an LED bulb, which will not only save you money and electricity but as it is instant start and very bright you won’t even realise you’ve switched!  As the chart above shows, the most common chosen replacement for a small screw-in bulb is a 3w LED candle with small screw cap.  These LED candle bulbs use only 3w of electricity, they are instant start – there is no warm up time at all – and are the same shape as the bulbs they replace.  If you prefer to completely hide your energy saving credentials, we have a 2.9w Omni LED candle, which has a much smaller white base and looks so much like the candle you are replacing, you won’t remember they are low energy until you see how low your electricity bill has become.

Need Dimmable?

If you have a dimmer switch, you need to use a low energy bulb that says it is dimmable.  Not a problem, we have a dimmable candle bulbs such as the 28w dimmable halogen candle with small screw cap.

More light?

If you want more light, maybe to replace a 60w or higher incandescent candle bulb then we recommend an  11w CFL candle bulb with small screw cap. This is because they produce the most amount of light whilst still being a good energy saving alternative – CFL (compact fluorescent) bulbs are a tried and tested low energy technology.  If you want a lot of light and have a dimmer switch on the circuit then you have two options.  The first is to replace the dimmer switch for a standard switch – if you want a lot of light then you may not really use the dimmer switch anyway.  The second option is to use a 42w halogen candle with small screw cap. These halogen bulbs save 30% energy versus the 60w bulb it replaces and they are completely dimmable, just like an incandescent bulb.

Sparkles

If you prefer a sparkly candle bulb instead of a white finish then that is also available in the most energy saving option – LED.   The 5.5w dimmable candle bulb is a great all-rounder for compatibility with dimmers and switches and is a very bright, powerful option.  Please be aware of the physical size though as they are slightly larger in diameter compared to some other bulbs.  See the full range of candle bulbs here »

Small Screw Cap

The small screw cap is very common in the UK.  The small screw cap is also known or described as SES (Small Edison Screw), or E14 as it is 14mm in diameter across the screw thread.  If you aren’t sure if your bulb is large or small screw thread then compare against your fingers – if it is more like the width of your little finger, it’s probably a small screw thread.  If it is more like the width of your thumb, it’s a large screw thread.  For more information on screw thread sizes, please see our earlier blog post – E12, E14, SES, E17 – all fingers and thumbs.  For a full range of small screw SES / E14 bulbs, please see our Replacement SES / E14 bulbs category.

Download now

For a complete and simple answer to replacing your common household bulbs, why not download our guide now »

To order, or to discuss alternatives, please contact us or visit our website: www.mygreenlighting.co.uk

The post Replacing small screw candle bulbs first appeared on .

As there is a huge choice when replacing candle bulbs for low energy versions, so we have put together a guide of the most commonly chosen options to make it much simpler to make your lighting low energy and save you money on your electricity bill.  It is called the Simple Energy Saving Guide to replacing common household bulbs – why not download it now.

Your current bulb may be using a lot of electricity unnecessarily – you can now easily switch to an LED bulb, which will not only save you money and electricity but as it is instant start and very bright you won’t even realise you’ve switched!  As the chart above shows, the most common chosen replacement for a large screw-in bulb is a 3w LED candle with bayonet cap.  These LED candle bulbs use only 3w of electricity, they are instant start – there is no warm up time at all – and are the same shape as the bulbs they replace.  If you prefer to completely hide your energy saving credentials, we have a 2.9w Omni LED candle, which has a much smaller white base and looks so much like the candle you are replacing, you won’t remember they are low energy until you see how low your electricity bill has become.

Need Dimmable?

If you have a dimmer switch, you need to use a low energy bulb that says it is dimmable.  Not a problem, we have a dimmable candle bulbs such as the 28w dimmable halogen candle with bayonet cap.

More light?

If you want more light, maybe to replace a 60w or higher incandescent candle bulb then we recommend an  11w CFL candle bulb with bayonet cap. This is because they produce the most amount of light whilst still being a good energy saving alternative – CFL (compact fluorescent) bulbs are a tried and tested low energy technology.  If you want a lot of light and have a dimmer switch on the circuit then you have two options.  The first is to replace the dimmer switch for a standard switch – if you want a lot of light then you may not really use the dimmer switch anyway.  The second option is to use a 42w halogen candle with bayonet cap. These halogen bulbs save 30% energy versus the 60w bulb it replaces and they are completely dimmable, just like an incandescent bulb.

Sparkles

If you prefer a sparkly candle bulb instead of a white finish then that is also available in the most energy saving option – LED.   The 5.5w dimmable candle bulb is a great all-rounder for compatibility with dimmers and switches and is a very bright, powerful option.  Please be aware of the physical size though as they are slightly larger in diameter compared to some other bulbs.  See the full range of candle bulbs here »

Bayonet Cap

The standard bayonet cap. which is a very common light bulb cap in the UK can also be known or described as ‘BC’ (bayonet cap), or B22.  This is because they are 22mm in diameter across the base (not including the pins, which would make them roughly 27mm).  For the full range of bayonet bulbs available, please see the Replacement Bayonet Bulbs category.

Download now

For a complete and simple answer to replacing your common household bulbs, why not download our guide now »

To order, or to discuss alternatives, please contact us or visit our website: www.mygreenlighting.co.uk

The post Replacing bayonet candle bulbs first appeared on .

As there is a huge choice when replacing a standard light bulb, we have put together a guide of the most commonly chosen options to make it much simpler to make your lighting low energy and save you money on your electricity bill.  It is called the Simple Energy Saving Guide to replacing common household bulbs – why not download it now.

Your current bulb may be using a lot of electricity unnecessarily – you can now easily switch to an LED bulb, which will not only save you money and electricity but as it is instant start and very bright you won’t even realise you’ve switched!  As the chart above shows, the most common chosen replacement for a large screw-in bulb is a 4.6w Omni LED GLS with large screw cap.  The 4.6w omni LED bulbs use less than 5w of electricity, they are instant start – there is no warm up time at all – and they look just like the bulbs they replace.  You won’t remember they are low energy until you see how low your electricity bill has become.

Need Dimmable?

If you have a dimmer switch, you need to use a low energy bulb that says it is dimmable.  Not a problem, we have a dimmable version also available in LED – the 6.6w dimmable GLS LED with large screw cap.

Prefer Daylight white?

If you prefer daylight white (for more information, see below) we currently recommend a 20w T2 daylight spiral with screw cap. This option is slightly smaller than an incandescent bulb so will fit most light fittings, but they are also available in smaller and larger sizes.

More light?

If you want more light, maybe to replace a 100w or higher incandescent bulb then we recommend a 30w spiral bulb with screw cap. This is because they produce the most amount of light whilst still being a good energy saving alternative – in fact the 30w bulb has the same light output as a 150w incandescent bulb.  If you want a lot of light and have a dimmer switch on the circuit then you have two options.  The first is to replace the dimmer switch for a standard switch – if you want a lot of light then you may not really use the dimmer switch anyway.  The second option is to use a 70w halogen GLS with screw cap. These halogen bulbs save 30% energy versus the 100w bulb it replaces and they are completely dimmable, just like an incandescent bulb.

What is a daylight bulb?

Standard household bulbs (and old incandescent bulbs) have a colour temperature of 2700 – 3000K.  This is a yellowish light that is most commonly used in most rooms of your house such as your living rooms and bedrooms.

Daylight bulbs have a colour temperature of 6500K and are visibly very white.  They are ideal task lights, and used to combat seasonal affective disorder (SAD) where people prefer natural bright white daylight colour in their homes.  We have a full range of daylight bulbs available in the Replacement Daylight Bulbs category – why not check them out now »

GLS shape

“GLS?” I hear you say – “what’s that?”

‘GLS’ stands for General Lighting Standard and is simply a way of describing the shape of a bulb – the standard light bulb shape instead of e.g. a candle shaped bulb. For the full range of round bulbs of all types, check out the Replacement Round Bulbs category.

Large Screw Cap

The large screw cap is more common in Europe than in the UK, but as manufacturer make more light fittings for both markets you may find more of these bulbs.  The same large screw cap is used on large reflector spot bulbs such as R63 and R80.  (For low energy replacement options, download the simple guide below.)  The large screw cap is also known or described as ES (Edison Screw), or E27 as it is 27mm in diameter across the screw thread.  If you aren’t sure if your bulb is large or small screw thread then compare against your fingers – if it is more like the width of your little finger, it’s probably a small screw thread.  If it is more like the width of your thumb, it’s a large screw thread.  For more information on screw thread sizes, please see our earlier blog post – E12, E14, SES, E17 – all fingers and thumbs.  For a full range of large screw ES / E27 bulbs, please see our Replacement ES / E27 bulbs category.

Download now

For a complete and simple answer to replacing your common household bulbs, why not download our guide now »

To order, or to discuss alternatives, please contact us or visit our website: www.mygreenlighting.co.uk

The post Replacing large screw GLS bulbs first appeared on .

As there is a huge choice when replacing a standard light bulb, we have put together a guide of the most commonly chosen options to make it much simpler to make your lighting low energy and save you money on your electricity bill.  It is called the Simple Energy Saving Guide to replacing common household bulbs – why not download it now.

Your current bulb may be using a lot of electricity unnecessarily – you can now easily switch to an LED bulb, which will not only save you money and electricity but as it is instant start and very bright you won’t even realise you’ve switched!  As the chart above shows, the most common chosen replacement for a bayonet bulb is (drum-roll please) a 4.6w Omni LED GLS with bayonet cap.  The 4.6w omni LED bulbs use less than 5w of electricity, they are instant start – there is no warm up time at all – and they look just like the bulbs they replace.  You won’t remember they are low energy until you see how low your electricity bill has become.

Need Dimmable?

If you have a dimmer switch, you need to use a low energy bulb that says it is dimmable.  Not a problem, we have a dimmable version also available in LED – the 6.6w dimmable GLS LED with bayonet cap.

Prefer Daylight white?

If you prefer daylight white (for more information, see below) we currently recommend a 20w T2 daylight spiral with bayonet cap. This option is slightly smaller than an incandescent bulb so will fit most light fittings, but they are also available in smaller and larger sizes.

More light?

If you want more light, maybe to replace a 100w or higher incandescent bulb then we recommend a 30w spiral bulb with bayonet cap. This is because they produce the most amount of light whilst still being a good energy saving alternative – in fact the 30w bulb has the same light output as a 150w incandescent bulb.  If you want a lot of light and have a dimmer switch on the circuit then you have two options.  The first is to replace the dimmer switch for a standard switch – if you want a lot of light then you may not really use the dimmer switch anyway.  The second option is to use a 70w halogen GLS with bayonet cap. These halogen bulbs save 30% energy versus the 100w bulb it replaces and they are completely dimmable, just like an incandescent bulb.

What is a daylight bulb?

Standard household bulbs (and old incandescent bulbs) have a colour temperature of 2700 – 3000K.  This is a yellowish light that is most commonly used in most rooms of your house such as your living rooms and bedrooms.

Daylight bulbs have a colour temperature of 6500K and are visibly very white.  They are ideal task lights, and used to combat seasonal affective disorder (SAD) where people prefer natural bright white daylight colour in their homes.  We have a full range of daylight bulbs available in the Replacement Daylight Bulbs category – why not check them out now »

GLS shape

“GLS?” I hear you say – what’s that?  ‘GLS’ stands for General Lighting Standard and is simply a way of describing the shape of a bulb – the standard light bulb shape instead of e.g. a candle shaped bulb.   For the full range of round bulbs of all types, check out the Replacement Round Bulbs category.

Bayonet cap

The standard bayonet cap. which is a very common light bulb cap in the UK can also be known or described as ‘BC’ (bayonet cap), or B22.  This is because they are 22mm in diameter across the base (not including the pins, which would make them roughly 27mm).  For the full range of bayonet bulbs available, please see the Replacement Bayonet Bulbs category.

Download now

For a complete and simple answer to replacing your common household bulbs, why not download our guide now »

To order, or to discuss alternatives, please contact us or visit our website: www.mygreenlighting.co.uk

The post Replacing bayonet GLS bulbs first appeared on .

Actually, ‘shaping up’ is a good phrase to start with as one of the biggest changes so far are new energy saving LED bulbs which are almost indistinguishable from the incandescent bulbs they replace.  We’d go as far to say that if you know somebody who doesn’t like the look of low energy bulbs, you could replace the bulbs in their house with these and they wouldn’t even notice – apart from in the amount that their electricity bulb reduces!

‘Omni’ LED Bulbs – Looks like a standard bulb!

These new bulbs are LED bulbs which use very little power and are brighter than the incandescent bulbs they replace.  Of course, LED bulbs also start-up instantly (there is no warm-up time with an LED bulb) and they are also a warm white colour (not a blue-white associated with LEDs a number of years ago) – what’s not to like!

These ‘omni’ lamps (the name given to them by the manufacturer, Integral) are available in bayonet (BC) or edison screw (ES) cap in standard GLS / round / light bulb shape and also in a candle shape (bayonet and small screw caps).

The current full omni range:

• GLS Bayonet (BC) 4.6w LED Omni – £9.99
• GLS Screw (ES) 4.6w LED Omni – £9.99
• Candle Bayonet (BC) 2.9w LED Omni – £8.99
• Candle Small Screw (SES) 2.9w LED Omni – £8.99

Great for:

• same appearance, size, feel and similar weight of a traditional light bulb without the heat!
• round bulbs suitable for lamp shades which clip on to the round bulb shape
• super-wide 330 degree beam angle
• warm white
• non-dimmable
• A++ Energy rating

For more details and current prices, please visit the product page for these bulbs but in our calculations you could be saving up to £10 per year per bulb that you change to LED – see our energy saving calculator for more details of the savings you can make.

Other great-looking alternatives:

• 6.2w Classic Standard LED GLS – £7.99
• 6.6w Dimmable Classic Standard LED GLS – £8.99 – dimmable version!
• 9.5w Classic Standard LED GLS – £10.99 – at least 60w equivalent!

LED G4 & G9 replacement capsules

Halogen G4 (low voltage, 12v) and G9 (mains voltage, 230v) capsules get very hot – that is why they don’t have a long life-span.  A large amount of heat in a small area means that they need replacing often.  Replacing them can also be fiddly as you can’t touch a halogen capsule when installing it – the natural oils from your fingers would create a hot-spot on the bulb making it die even quicker.

We are therefore very pleased by the new LED G4 and G9 capsules.  These silicon-coated capsules can be touched when you install them – and if you drop one they even bounce!  They are much smaller than many other LED versions you may have seen – in fact they are now the same size as the halogens they replace.

At only 1.5w (G4) or 3w (G9) they use much less electricity, don’t get as burning-hot and the much longer life (~30,000 hours) means you won’t have to fiddle around changing them as often.

Current range LED G4 12v:

• 1.5w 12v G4 LED capsule (white, silicon outer) – only £3.66

Alternatives:

• 1w 12v G4 LED (frosted, warm white) – £6.34
• G4 LED disc (warm white) – £6.43, also available in cool white, or blue LED

Current range LED G9 230v:

• 3w G9 LED (3500K, white, silicone outer) – only £4.87
• 3w G9 LED (3000K, warm white, silicone outer) – £8.99
• 3w G9 LED (6000K, daylight white, silicone outer) – £8.99

(NB: The higher the ‘K’ number, the more sparkly the light e.g. 6000K Daylight.)

LED GU10s – now under £4!

This year we also now have LED GU10 bulbs for under £4.  They are only 4w, have a completely flat front, and wide beam angle – install these in your recessed downlights and I doubt anybody will realise you are using LED bulbs.

GU10 4w LED (warm white, fresnel refractor) – £3.94

There is also a brighter 5.3w version from the same company with an anti-glare lens for £5.24:

GU10 5.3w LED (warm white, anti-glare refractor) – £5.24

These prices are hard to beat – and each bulb you change could save you more than £7 per year!

When only the classic-look will do

If you have a fitting that only looks good when using an old-school filament lamp then we do also have a range of bulbs to make your fittings stand out.  They aren’t low energy, but sometimes its the best option for your decorative lantern.

They are often called Rustika, squirrel cage, imitation carbon amongst other names and they are available in bayonet and screw caps in 40w and 60w.

Current range includes:

• Clear or Gold Rustika (Squirrel Cage) Bulbs in 40w or 60w, bayonet or screw cap
• Imitation Carbon 40 and 60w bulbs in screw cap

Keep up with the latest

If you have any questions about what the best option is for your house, please get in touch and make sure you keep in touch with My Green Lighting on Twitter or Facebook.

The post Can you tell it’s a low energy bulb? first appeared on .

As you may be aware, the 11w Plumen 001 (and 9w Plumen Baby) were made as the world’s first designer low energy light bulb, taking a conventional CFL and radically transforming it into a beautiful, poetic form.  Here are My Green Lighting we have been championing the fact that low energy doesn’t have to mean ugly for a number of years so of course we stock Plumen bulbs and drop caps (white, red, copper, blue & black).

The exciting Plumen news for 2014 is that they have announced what their new 002 will look like and it will hopefully be available this summer!

On their Kickstarter campaign, Plumen have successfully passed their pledge goal so they can start manufacturing their newly designed bulb – so what is it?

Where the Plumen 001 is a great looking alternative for your 60w incandescent bulb in any areas that need to be brightly lit, this doesn’t suit everyone.  In more atmospheric spaces (like coffee shops or your living room), the Plumen 002 will give ‘warmer tones to define texture and softness in the atmosphere’ according to the latest information from the designers.

The Plumen 002 as a sculptural and clearly defined shape which can be hung from a Plumen drop cap but will work equally well in table lights and sconces and in most cases won’t even need a shade.  The design is a mix of Texas-based neon artist Tony Greer with inspiration from scultors such as Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth.

All the manufacturing issues have been overcome over the last two and a half-years of development and so in the summer of 2014 the new Plumen 002 will be available and we can’t wait to try them out!

Technical Info:

The Plumen 002 produces a light output equivalent to a 30W incandescent light bulb, but uses only 25% of the energy

• Wattage: 7W
• Lumen Output: 290 lm
• Lifetime: 8,000 Hours (equivalent to 8 years of normal usage)
• Color Temperature: 2500 – 2700K (very warm white)
• Non-Dimmable
• Dimensions: 165mm x 65mm x 65mm
• Voltage: 230V
• Fittings: Screw (E27) and Bayonet (B22)

In the mean time…

If you want to purchase your Plumen 001 now, we have simplified your choice by making Plumen pendant sets containing a Plumen drop cap with the correct ES / screw bulb.

11w Plumen pendant sets – perfect 60w incandescent replacement in a much funkier, low energy style from only £35.75:

• 11w Plumen 001 Black Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 11w Plumen 001 White Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 11w Plumen 001 Red Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 11w Plumen 001 Pastel Blue Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 11w Plumen 001 Copper Drop Cap Pendant Set

9w Plumen pendant sets – smaller and more atmospheric but with the same funkier style and even less power consumption from only £34.61:

• 9w Plumen 001 Black Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 9w Plumen 001 White Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 9w Plumen 001 Red Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 9w Plumen 001 Pastel Blue Drop Cap Pendant Set
• 9w Plumen 001 Copper Drop Cap Pendant Set

If you are interested in a shade that will add even more colour to a Plumen bulb without hiding the cool factor, check out the Funk shades from Nordlux on My Green Lighting including the clear Funk 27, clear / purple Funk 27, and clear / turquoise Funk 27 shades.

The post Warmer Tones: New Plumen 002 first appeared on .

Historically, many light fittings and shades had a little sticker somewhere on them which said ‘40 max‘ or ‘60w max‘ so that you knew not to exceed that wattage when choosing a light bulb.

But with so many low energy options available, what does that sticker really mean now?

Normally, the reason for saying ‘max 60w’ was that a brighter light bulb would have been 100w. As well as giving more light, a 100w bulb would have been much hotter and more likely to damage a shade or fitting from heat problems.

Fabric / material

Therefore, if your shade is made of fabric / material, an increased amount of light on a regular basis could potentially cause the shade to fade – much the same as any material left in direct sunlight. We would therefore recommend a low energy bulb which gives light output similar to a 60w bulb, for example:

• 9.5w Classic Standard LED GLS
• 6.2w Classic Standard LED GLS
• 11w T2 Helix bulb

(candle, golf ball and other lamp caps also available)

Glass / metal

However, if your shade or fitting is more open, made of materials which won’t fade or warp (such as glass or metal) then a brighter low energy bulb may be suitable as they will generate more light, but won’t generate as much heat.

Therefore, for example you could use:

• 20w T2 Helix (almost as bright as a 100w incandescent bulb)
• 30w T2 Helix (equivalent to a 150w incandescent bulb)

(other bulb shapes, lamp caps and brighter alternatives also available).

Replacement bulbs

Find your replacement low energy bulbs easily with our replacement bulb finder »

The post When the shade says 60w max… first appeared on .

But how many?

What if you don’t currently have any downlights – how many do you need to adequately light a room?

Firstly, particularly in a room such as a kitchen, the location of cupboards, especially wall cupboards needs consideration; it would be pointless to install a downlight over the top of a wall cupboard. Standard kitchen floor cupboards are usually 600mm deep so start at least 600mm from the wall. Then, place the others between 900mm and 1200mm apart.

A rough reckoner says divide the square area of the ceiling (in metres) by 1.9 to calculate the number of downlights required.

So, a room 5m x 3m would work out at 15÷1.9 = 7.894. Rounding up would give 8.

This would space each downlight 1 metre from the walls and also from each other in a 4 x 2 pattern. This arrangement will minimise shadows cast by the floor units. Work surfaces are probably best lit by under shelf strip lights or the popular triangular LED fittings for corners. This type of arrangement makes it easier to see when working as there will be less shadow cast by anyone using the room from the overhead lighting.

The same considerations apply to other rooms where it is advisable to review the furniture arrangement when calculating the location of downlights and working out how many to install. A regular pattern of downlights in the ceiling will look more pleasing to the eye whether it be square or diagonal. It is also advisable to consider installing additional occasional lighting in appropriate areas to create a pleasant ambiance within the room.

So now you know how many you need, why not check out our range of low energy downlights.

The post Downlights (part II) – starting from scratch first appeared on .

The main two options are the Elan dimmable downlights and GU10 dimmable downlight kits, both of white can be seen in our dimmable LED downlights category.

The main obvious difference is the price – the Elans kits are more expensive – but what are the differences between them?

Elan LED Dimmable Downlights

The Elan dimmable LED downlight has an integrated LED module in the fitting.  It is not removable from the main body of the downlight.  The Elan downlight requires less ceiling void space (height) as the dimmable driver (included) is attached by a fly-lead to the main unit and can therefore sit in the roof space next to the downlight.  The Elan’s are IP65 (bathroom-rated) by default and have an interchangeable bezel which is useful either when decorating (just pop the bezel off, paint and then re-attach), or if you change your mind about the look of the downlight surround.  (The tilt version is not IP65 and the bezel cannot be changed.)

The integrated LED module is of ‘COB’ design (chip-on-board) and is designed to look like a halogen spot bulb with the same look reflector surrounding the LED chip – once installed you won’t even notice you are using LED bulbs apart from the saving on your electricity bill!

They also come with a 7 year manufacturer warranty, 30,000 hour life and are the brightest option available with a lumen output listed at 560 lumens per downlight so you can install these and never have to worry about changing them.

So to sum up:

• 7 year warranty
• 560 lumen output
• only 10w per unit
• 30,000 hour life
• 40 degree beam angle
• 90 minute fire-rated
• Ceiling void depth required: 6cm
• Cutout diameter required : 6.9cm

LED GU10 Dimmable Downlight Kits

Our LED GU10 dimmable downlight kits comprise of some of the best options we have but also give you the most flexibility – and at the best price.

The kits comprise of a 90 minute fire-rated downlight ‘can’ which is designed to take a GU10 (mains voltage) spot bulb and we have matched the unit with a 6.8w dimmable GU10 bulb.  The fittings are IP20 rated but if you wish you can pick an IP65 (bathroom rated downlights) or tilt downlight option from our site and then pick the same bulb we use in the kits (6.8w dimmable GU10 led spot bulb).

The fittings are a tried and tested unit (previously used with 50w halogen bulbs) which are wired up to the mains.  The 6.8w dimmable GU10 bulb is the latest option from Ritelite which is a well-built, warm white, 24 degree spot bulb designed to replace 50w halogen bulbs for people who have existing GU10 fittings.

They are also rated at 30,000 hours and at 400 lumen output are a very bright, solid bulb.

That said, one of the advantages of these kits are that if you change you mind in the future regarding colour spectrum (warm, cool, daylight) or beam angle (24, 36, 60, 120 degrees etc) you can simply pop the bulbs out and change them – matching the lighting to your furniture and colour scheme can make a big difference!  We offer quite a range of compatible bulbs, including the new COB GU10 bulbs designed to mimic the ‘look’ of a halogen bulb as used in the Elan downlights – Dimmable 5W COB GU10 LED (2700K).

So to sum up:

• 400 lumen output
• only 6.8w per unit
• 30,000+ hour life (with most LED bulbs)
• beam angle dependent only on the bulb choice
• 90 minute fire-rated
• Ceiling void depth required: 14.5cm
• Cutout diameter required: 7.2cm

Which one is best for you?  That’ll depend on your requirements, but if you have any other questions please let us know!

The post LED Dimmable Downlights – what’s the difference? first appeared on .