I'm Having Problems With LED Light Bulbs

OneEyedDiva

OneEyedDiva

SF VIP
Location
New Jersey
Right now, I'm both annoyed and concerned. I can no longer find regular bulbs or CFL bulbs. I've never had a problem with either of those but the LEDs flicker. I've bought Sylvania bulbs and LEDs from Dollar Tree. Truthfully, the Dollar Tree bulbs are better; the flicker is less noticeable and stops after a couple of minutes. The Sylvania's flicker so much it gives a lit candle affect.

Do you have similar problems with LED bulbs? Can you still find regular and CFL bulbs?
 

I read flourescent bubls can affect your vision and damage the retina PERMENANTLY. LED bubs that flicker would be damaging as well, IMO!
When the incandescent 75 watt bulbs were outlawed, I bought up all that was left in the hardware store to put in storage.
They give a soft, romantic glow. I don't like being told what we are allowed to buy and not buy.
There is a bulb you can buy called "Day-Glo", I think. It simulates the rays of the Sun. I think you canstill get those.
 
Ok I thought it was just me. I also prefer incandescent lights. They do offer a softer glow that isn’t as irritating as led or fluorescent but I’m not sure they even make them any more.
 

Some LED bulbs do flicker. I put some in the fixture over my kitchen table and they drove me crazy. They were the type shaped like little candles. I had to go back to regular bulbs there. I also have 2 boxes full of light bulbs since there are so many different types.
 
Can anyone suggest a brand of LED bulb that lasts more than 6 months? Since many claims as to longevity are made on the package I wrote down the date on the base when i replaced the bulb. I've been getting about 6 months each.

RE: flickering. I've had some flicker intermittently and then work , some would do it then die soon after, none of which have dimmer switches on the circuit.
 
I've been getting LED lights from Ebay for years, most of which have been fine.
Some have lasted fine, some haven't, but over time the lights have been getting much better.
There was never much issue with flickering. I never use fluorescent or incandescent lights any more.

I usually get 0.3 watt bulbs for night lights, and 3 (dim) or 6 watt 5000k light bulbs for rooms.
Recently I got a box of 8x 6 watt Torchstar A19 5000k LED lights (470 lumens) from Ebay that so far have been fine.

Some people prefer 9 watt bulbs but they're extremely bright.
The 6 watt bulbs are plenty of light for me, and I usually prefer indirect lighting.
 
Seems light bulbs will never be the same. I don't know why they had to change them to all these fancy schmanzy rather crappy bulbs. The ones I buy don't last very long and then get darker when they need replacing.
 
Oris Borloff said:
Can anyone suggest a brand of LED bulb that lasts more than 6 months? Since many claims as to longevity are made on the package I wrote down the date on the base when i replaced the bulb. I've been getting about 6 months each.

RE: flickering. I've had some flicker intermittently and then work , some would do it then die soon after, none of which have dimmer switches on the circuit.
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All my LED's came from either Wally's or Lowes. I knew about the dimmer problem mentioned earlier, and since I had already upgraded the dimmers, I've yet to see any flickering. As for longevity, I have 2 burning 24 hrs a day in my shop and one burning 24 hrs a day in the carport. They have now been in there going on 5 years.
I still have a supply of incandescent bulbs (75w and 100w) to use in my well house.
 
squatting dog said:
All my LED's came from either Wally's or Lowes. I knew about the dimmer problem mentioned earlier, and since I had already upgraded the dimmers, I've yet to see any flickering. As for longevity, I have 2 burning 24 hrs a day in my shop and one burning 24 hrs a day in the carport. They have now been in there going on 5 years.
I still have a supply of incandescent bulbs (75w and 100w) to use in my well house.
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Squatting Dong, thanks for the reply. Have you use LED's anywhere that the lights are turned on and off on a regular basis? I've been curious if the cycling may have more to do with limited life span.
 
Oris Borloff said:
Squatting Dong, thanks for the reply. Have you use LED's anywhere that the lights are turned on and off on a regular basis? I've been curious if the cycling may have more to do with limited life span.
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I use LEDs in my entire house. In the last 5 years I think I have had 2 burn out (although they didn't actually burn out, they just went real dim). Other than that... no problems. The added benefit was the lower monthly cost of electricity. Regular incandescent use way more juice.
On a side note, I use mostly the daylight Bright bulbs. The soft whites are only in the bedroom.
Just took a quick count, I've got 37 bright white bulbs between the house, yard, and porch lights. o_O and 4 soft whites in the bedroom.
 
LED bulbs cost less to operate (leave on) than incandescent bulbs. To illustrate this, let’s compare two bulbs of similar brightness: a 60W incandescent and a 12W LED.
Here’s a breakdown of the math:
The 60W incandescent bulb consumes 60 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity every 1,000 hours.
The 12W LED bulb consumes 12 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity every 1,000 hours.
As of 2019, the residential electricity rates in Virginia average approximately $0.11 per kWh.
At this rate, it would cost $6.60 to operate the incandescent bulb for 1,000 hours.
It would cost $1.32 to operate the LED bulb for the same amount of time
 
A couple of lamps with fluorescent or halogen, but otherwise ALL our lighting - and that's a lot as we have installed track lites throughout both floors - is LED. No flickering.

Not only are LEDs cheaper, but give off much less heat as well.

Estimated lifespan for all bulbs is based on continuous usage, never turning it off. Turning on and off, especially for just a few minutes' of light, shortens their lifespan considerably.
 
Nothing to do with the bulbs, but with the power supply. If you swap mains (240V in Europe) incandescent to mains LED bulbs, they will be OK. If you change 12V halogen bulbs to LED, they will probably flicker. This is because the 'switching' power supply requires a minimum load for stability. You need a power supply specifically for LEDs that work with a low power load.
 
The LED bulbs for home lighting, being relatively new, are probable going through a period of growing pains. Someday they should get it right, but how will they make money if they are perfect and last forever.
 
Lethe200 said:
LED light bulbs have been around since 1962. There is no 'relatively new' about them, after almost 60 yrs.
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I was referring to their use in home lighting and street lighting as energy savers within the last few years. Perhaps that was done on the west coast earlier. I don't know. In my experience, I have only seen them in the past as indicator lights.
 
Lethe200 said:
Estimated lifespan for all bulbs is based on continuous usage, never turning it off. Turning on and off, especially for just a few minutes' of light, shortens their lifespan considerably.
Click to expand...
That seem's to match my experience. Therefore, they are totally unsuitable for most uses in my home. The cost of operation is quite a bit more than incandescent having to factor in the cost of replacing bulbs so often.

Anyone have experience with halogen bulb durability when they need to be turned off at night?
 
I will take a guess and I think you may be using regular leds in enclosed fixtures …any fixture with a glass cover or plastic one needs leds rated for enclosed fixtures. It will say on the box approved for enclosed fixtures
 

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