LED Lamp for Can light housings

BobL43 said:

I don't have a code book, so I wire up everything with knob and tube and zip cord. my ground rods are pointy end up so they can form a nice arc Why am I feeding the troll on this? I, (actually we) all know what you mean Don. I wish I had some more time so I can do some GIF editing too. Need to retire fully again

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Yes, I think that you have been working to much.

Automation techs are in high demand.

Maybe we can move more jobs to the US, And watch the robots do the job.

BobL43 said:

mmmmm, so maybe they are no good after all! One failed last night totally. going to return it or both to HD for a refund, but not sure if I'll re-buy them at the lower price of 25.99 vs the 35.99 I paid in July.

So much for LED longevitynah:

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lucky you I have been seeing people posting in california, florida and new york with those at $25 each. here in michigan they are $39.97/each. online you can find a pack of 4 for 151.88. my local store price matched so i got them for the same price. just ordered 20 of them edison based ones and 3 of the gu24 style. figuring the cost for new trim was at least $200 and these came with trim make me want to look at them closer. By the way, if you have the short cans, like a Halo H27ICAT, you can't use the edison end bulbs (regular lightbulb end) you need to order the GU24 end and they will fit. Here is a Pic of the GU24 End (Require in places like California)



I also tried the commercial electric led light for 5 & 6" cans. The color temp of those are at 3000 and they look like a nice light, just a little bright for me. they do fit in the shallow cans. For closet lighting I winded up getting these because they fit into a 4x4 junction box and will flush mount in a closet very nicely and are 3000K color temp and are pretty bright. 6" Disk Light made by Commercial Electric.

They look nice Chad.

I hope them work longer than the one Bob had burn out.

I can not even imagine changing them out every 4 months, Especially in a high ceiling.

DonL said:

They look nice Chad.

I hope them work longer than the one Bob had burn out.

I can not even imagine changing them out every 4 months, Especially in a high ceiling.

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Man, another R30 CFL bulb in my kitchen ceiling just failed. Worst part of it is that when I tried to unscrew it, as as in the past, the large glass "envelope in the front unscrews from the base of the spiral CFL bulb itself, and then I can't reach in behind it to grab the base of the bulb. I have to pull the eyeball trim down, unclip the bulb socket and feed it out of the eyeball swivel assembly enough to grab the bulb base. That'll be tomorrow.

I don't know how long the bulb's been up there. I write the instaaltion date on each bulb just prior to installing it. Maybe this one made it for one year, I hope. When I take it down, I'm gonna post a picture of it here to see if anyone else is having the problem with the glass seperating like I am.

BobL43 said:

Man, another R30 CFL bulb in my kitchen ceiling just failed. Worst part of it is that when I tried to unscrew it, as as in the past, the large glass "envelope in the front unscrews from the base of the spiral CFL bulb itself, and then I can't reach in behind it to grab the base of the bulb. I have to pull the eyeball trim down, unclip the bulb socket and feed it out of the eyeball swivel assembly enough to grab the bulb base. That'll be tomorrow.

I don't know how long the bulb's been up there. I write the instaaltion date on each bulb just prior to installing it. Maybe this one made it for one year, I hope. When I take it down, I'm gonna post a picture of it here to see if anyone else is having the problem with the glass seperating like I am.

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Do I need to order some extra Real Light Bulbs for You ?

I have been getting 5 years out if them. Real Time...

DonL said:

Do I need to order some extra Real Light Bulbs for You ?

I have been getting 5 years out if them. Real Time...

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Don, I actually have a bunch of real lightbulbs; lots are brand new in the boxes and many are used that I tried to give away to Habitat Re_Store, but they want only new ones, not like new ones. I donate a LOT of stuff to them, but when it comes to light bulbs, that they are fussy with. Our electric rates here on Long Island, NY are probably the highest in the country; its insane with taxes, it works out to about 27 cents a KWHour or more as I remember

Bob you have me worried. I am planning on putting in quite a few 6" cans in the kitchen and living areas and was going to use R30 cfl's. I have R30 incandescents in the hallway but they hardly ever get used. They would give off too much heat for me to use them all of the time in the kitchen, etc.

TJanak said:

Bob you have me worried. I am planning on putting in quite a few 6" cans in the kitchen and living areas and was going to use R30 cfl's. I have R30 incandescents in the hallway but they hardly ever get used. They would give off too much heat for me to use them all of the time in the kitchen, etc.

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Hi Travis, I had R30 Incandescants in my kitchen ceiling since a renovation in 1987. I don't seem to remember being concerned over the heat from the 6 can fixtures they are/were in. Only reason I went over to CFL bulbs about 10 years, ago or whenever they started coming out as I remember, was to cut down my electric bill. The cans I have are not airtight ones, and maybe the heat escapes out the small openings so I did not feel much in the room. Best thing about incandescants is the ease with which they can be dimmed using a normal dimmer. Just make sure the dimmer is rated for the total wattage of lamps it will be controlling if you use dimmers. The CFL's I use now are not dimmable, and I'd be OK with them if they wouild last longer and not come apart almost every time I need to change one of the R30's They do use a lot less power and their price has come down dramatically over the years

WOO Hoo!

BobL43 said:

Don, I actually have a bunch of real lightbulbs; lots are brand new in the boxes and many are used that I tried to give away to Habitat Re_Store, but they want only new ones, not like new ones. I donate a LOT of stuff to them, but when it comes to light bulbs, that they are fussy with. Our electric rates here on Long Island, NY are probably the highest in the country; its insane with taxes, it works out to about 27 cents a KWHour or more as I remember

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as promised, I attached a photo of the bulb as I had to remove it from the can fixture, but LO and BEHOLD, this one was installed over 3 years and 3 months ago. They must have slipped a good one in the batch, or I bought this one as a single bulb, not a multi-pack, but if they were all this good, it would be great! I was also able to reach in through the eyeball socket fixture and grasp the bulbs base itself after the large envelope was unscrewed from it.

Funny how everybody's experiences are different with supposedly the same items. Outside, in front of my house I have 10 post lights, wall brackets, etc. They all have CFL bulbs in them, some are spirals, some are the ones with the little glass covers on them trying to look like real bulbs. These all are installed base down. These last for YEARS, work through Winters fine, are on a photocell that turns them on at dusk, and we turn them off manually at around 11pm every night, and in the morning flip the switch back up so they will come on again at night. I never put an X10 module on this circuit. They are typically on for 7 hours a day this time of year and maybe 4 to 5 hours a day in the other seasons. they last for about 4 or more years outside in the fixtures which protect the bulbs from the weather, but not the temperatures Others say they do't work well in winter at cold temps; I never experienced that problem, although I do understand why they would. They are the 40 watt equivalent bulbs, all mixed manufacturers.

I was going to take my bad ones apart and see what part let go. They look like new. Still in Warranted. As my boy says "Time to Void the Warranty."

My bad ones are 75 and 100W equivalent.

I have a suspicion that the switching device shorts and then that burns out the ballast.

Or blows the internal fuse.

DonL said:

I was going to take my bad ones apart and see what part let go. They look like new. Still in Warranted. As my boy says "Time to Void the Warranty."

My bad ones are 75 and 100W equivalent.

I have a suspicion that the switching device shorts and then that burns out the ballast.

Or blows the internal fuse.

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Years ago my curiosity would probably get me to take one apart too. But these days, not so much. I don't think we could fix it anyway, and it wouldn't pay.

BobL43 said:

Years ago my curiosity would probably get me to take one apart too. But these days, not so much. I don't think we could fix it anyway, and it wouldn't pay.

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I guess that I must be a Cat...

Chad Schloss said:

lucky you I have been seeing people posting in california, florida and new york with those at $25 each. here in michigan they are $39.97/each. online you can find a pack of 4 for 151.88. my local store price matched so i got them for the same price. just ordered 20 of them edison based ones and 3 of the gu24 style. figuring the cost for new trim was at least $200 and these came with trim make me want to look at them closer. By the way, if you have the short cans, like a Halo H27ICAT, you can't use the edison end bulbs (regular lightbulb end) you need to order the GU24 end and they will fit. Here is a Pic of the GU24 End (Require in places like California)

http://www.*********.com/EcoSmart/h...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053 (edits say the big orange store, HD)

I also tried the commercial electric led light for 5 & 6" cans. The color temp of those are at 3000 and they look like a nice light, just a little bright for me. they do fit in the shallow cans. For closet lighting I winded up getting these because they fit into a 4x4 junction box and will flush mount in a closet very nicely and are 3000K color temp and are pretty bright. 6" Disk Light made by Commercial Electric.

http://www.*********.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053 (edits say the big orange store, HD)

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So I installed some can lights earlier last week in my ceiling. Drywall is completely down. I used (3) of the Halo H27ICAT housings in a tight ceiling area. The Cree GU-24 base lamp is supposed to fit. Even if I were to use 5/8" drywall, there would be 1/8" gap with the supplied GU-24 connector. It adds about 3/4" depth to the light. The light is 5 1/2" tall itself, and the can is 5 1/2" deep. I contacted CREE and asked them what I should do. They said that this should not happen. I asked for advice, he just said to use 5/8" drywall. The can's are not adjustable to add depth, they do seem to be able to account for different drywall/ceiling thicknesses but only go as shallow as 1/2". I have thought about drilling the rivets ontop of the cans and making the top a little taller by ovaling out the holes where the rivets were and adding screws, or get a shorter GU-24 connector. So far, I was able to get a shorter connector. It measures 12mm thick, a little shorter than 1/2", not including what space the wires take up. I installed the lamp with this shorter connector and it fit better, as it was about 1/4" difference between the connector they give you with the lamps. I ordered them from here: http://www.greenelectricalsupply.com/ at this link : http://www.greenelectricalsupply.co...t-twin-bayonet-light-socket-snap-bracket.aspx This place is local to me and was shipped quick. The connectors are about $2 each.

It looks like I now can use 1/2" drywall. I took a scrap of 5/8" and it now fits fine with a little room to spare. I may end up drilling the rivets to get the extra clearance to use 1/2" or try to hammer out the top a little with a piece of wood or something. Just thought I would let others know. here is the email I received from CREE:

Hi Chad,

Thanks for the email. We are sorry to hear about your installation problem. That definitely should not be happening. At this point CREE provides two connectors - Edison base and GU24 base. The downlight with GU24 base (CR6-GU24 = 5 1/2 “) is about 1 inch shorter than the one with Edison base (CR6 = 6 1/2 “). The height of H27ICAT is exactly 5 1/2 “ . After you install the housing in the ceiling, it is supposed to sit flush the ceiling (Not the metal can). With the being said, the total height space for CR6 would be 5 1/2 “ ( height of the ceiling) + 5/8” (thickness of the dry wall ceiling) > 6” which should provide enough space for CR6-GU24. Please let us know if the information we provide is able to fix your problem. For threaded hole design, you make some very good points. I will check with our team and follow through on these concerns personally. Thank you again for your suggestions and feedback.

I also noticed on the Gu-24 connector they supply that there is a threaded hole where the wires come out. That seems like a bad idea. If people try to cram the light in a short housing, you could cut through the insulation on the wire and cause a short. I put some heat shrink tubing over the wires on the three I bought just incase.

here are some pics of the supplied connector vs the new one I ordered. notice the bump out in the rear of the supplied connector.

Thanks for the update Chad.

Sounds like you have been doing your homework..

Very Nice Work.

Chad Schloss said:

lucky you I have been seeing people posting in california, florida and new york with those at $25 each. here in michigan they are $39.97/each. online you can find a pack of 4 for 151.88. my local store price matched so i got them for the same price. just ordered 20 of them edison based ones and 3 of the gu24 style. figuring the cost for new trim was at least $200 and these came with trim make me want to look at them closer. By the way, if you have the short cans, like a Halo H27ICAT, you can't use the edison end bulbs (regular lightbulb end) you need to order the GU24 end and they will fit. Here is a Pic of the GU24 End (Require in places like California)

http://www.*********.com/EcoSmart/h...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053 (edits say the big orange store, HD)

I also tried the commercial electric led light for 5 & 6" cans. The color temp of those are at 3000 and they look like a nice light, just a little bright for me. they do fit in the shallow cans. For closet lighting I winded up getting these because they fit into a 4x4 junction box and will flush mount in a closet very nicely and are 3000K color temp and are pretty bright. 6" Disk Light made by Commercial Electric.

http://www.*********.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053 (edits say the big orange store, HD)

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So much for the HD and their pricing on these. I returned them today, and being I bought them in July, they said I had to take a store credit, so I said no problem. she issued me a store credit card for 54 bucks and I said what did you use to come up with that price? she said they are $24.99 each now plus tax. I said look at the receipt I gave you and see what I paid, which was 35 bucks each. I asked for a manager, who OK'd the credit for the price I paid plus tax. As I walked through the store Chad, the bulbs were now priced at $39.99!

I hope the ones you bought work out better than the ones I returned. I'll wait a few more years before I try them again, and by that time I'll be in a rocker with somebody needed to wipe the drool off my chin, or I'll be gone.

Bob,

With the store credit you can buy your wife that gift that she has been wanting...

DonL said:

Bob,

With the store credit you can buy your wife that gift that she has been wanting...

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Yeah, I bought a roll of Schluter's Ditra for the bathroom floor I'm working on and more 7w candelabra base CFL bulbs, a bag of grout and some other stuff adding an equal amount from a credit card. That should make her happy

DonL said:

When will you learn that Theory only works in a vacuum ? lol

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OK, maybe I'm a glutton for punishment, or maybe it's Costco's Pied Piper thing, but my wife and I were in Costco today and they had the R30 LED bulbs. Actually, they are PAR30's, so they can be used in damp locations, out of the rain. They are rated 650 lumens, draw 13.5 watts and emit light at 3000K at only a 38 degree spread.

So at only 15 bucks each this time, (with a 15 dollar instant rebate), I bought 2 of them. I installed them already; they are dimmable, emit decent color light, but the spread angle is a little odd compared with CFLs, and incandescant R30 bulbs, or the previous LED lamps that failed and I returned, that spread out probably 90 degrees due to their reflector.

These LEDs have 6 individual led units in each bulb, and its like stare-ing into the sun. For 30 bucks total, with a 5 year warranty, hey, I'm game again. Hoo Hah!

How can you resist buying anything at Costco? If you enter, your lost, and your wallet is at least 200 bucks lighter; actually 350 bucks today, even with all the coupons and rebates. Buy in bulk and save; who invented that crap?