I moved last weekend into a duplex, and because the turnover was so quick, the landlords only had time to shampoo the the carpets (and clean the stove). One of the casualties of the move was the fact that about half the lights in the place were burned out. In the course of purchasing replacements for stove lights and flood lights, I can across an oddly shaped LED bulb. Draws 8w and puts out 40w, and they were $1.97 at Home Depot. They come in 'daylight' and 'soft white' varieties. I grabbed the 'soft white' ones. Specifically, Phillips SlimStyle LED 40w equivalent. http://m.homedepot.com/p/Philips-Sl...-A19-Dimmable-LED-Light-Bulb-433201/205128420 They show up on the website as $8.97 each, so I don't know if they are federally or state subsidized to drop the price down to $1.97 in store. Not being a fan of the CFL's (compact fluorescent lights) and looking for a good replacement for incandescents, I figured I would give them a try. I was so impressed I went back to Home Depot and picked up enough to replace every normal bulb in the place (which were a mix of incandescents and CFLs), plus a few spares. They might look goofy, but they put out light that looks just like an incandescent bulb. I highly recommend these LEDs for your lighting needs (if you can pick them up at the same kind of price ). Here's a pretty decent picture of one lit up. Edit: the package claims a lifespan of 22.8 years based off of 3 hours of use per day, 7 days a week.
My bathroom has one of those lightbars that take those nice big clear exposed incandescent globes. I kept those in. I would have switched them out if it had been a covered fixture. I did switch out the 18 other regular lights and two outdoor floods to LED though. Edit: that being said, I think they would be fine for use while shaving. They put out a nice light.
I have used LED lights in my old apartment but I used a different brand. I like the light they put out in every room. I couldn't afford them for my current apartment because of court costs in the custody fight between me and my exwife.
Ouch. I saved the old bulbs. I plan to take the LEDs with me when I move and I'll put the old bulbs back in. I doubt I'll be here for 22.8 years. Custody battles are nasty things. I hope I never have to deal with something like that.
I've read that these are silent, but will hum when used with a low quality dimmer switch. A high quality dimmer apparently does not cause them to hum. I'm hearing impaired, so I'm not a good candidate to be asking that question, and I don't have any dimmer switches. I'm seriously considering getting a few of those though. They don't seem to bother the dog, if that helps?
I wasn't able to get the bulbs out since my old apartment is now my exwife's. I only have about half my stuff now. When I bought led bulbs last they were $7 each so replacing all the lights in the house cost me more then a little bit. 18 bulbs in the apartment I'm in now. @Sara-s some brands hum but I've only run into it once and I haven't found that brand anywhere in at least a year.
At $7 each, I would have passed on them. At under $2 each, much more affordable, and I should recoup the purchase price in a couple months with the energy savings.
I'm doing a gradual transition to LED by replacing burnt outs as they occur. While the cost is coming down, my analog brain can't wrap itself around the concept of a $10 (or more) light bulb.
It was worth it. My daily power cost went down from $6 a day to $1.75 a day just by switching them out. Made it worth it very quickly. I have 2 kids that just don't know that switches also can be turned off. Now my girlfriend has 3 kids that are just the same and I'm trying to get my 2 back so I might need to save up and buy them again.
You can find those LED globe bulbs if they're the same kind I've got. I've been gradually replacing burned out incandescents and CFLs with LEDs for a little while and I do like the LEDs better. I'm gonna go see if Home Depot has them for $2 here. That's a great deal.
Currently building a new house, and it will be all LED. The new soft white versions impress me with the quality of the light. Costco has a 60w equivalent bulb for about $3/each. I'm pretty impressed!
My main reason is they take a little time (like a minute maybe?) to come up to full brightness. They're very close to LED in energy efficiency though so I was using them. Since LED prices are closer to CFL prices now, I like LED better. LEDs should last longer too and I like that, especially for those hard to reach bulbs.
I'm probably heading that way at some point too. But, I'm wondering if they (LEDs) work in 3-way lamp sockets like a normal bulb. Or, do I have to pick one "wattage" and stick with it.
I like CFLs. Almost every bulb in my house has CFLs and they have made a big difference on the electric bill.