Integrated lighting housing units or GU10s

[Mr_T25]

I understand that integrated units cost around £25-£30 each and last for up to 10 years.

What do you guys recommend, go integrated or go for a GU10s for approximately 8 pounds each and replace the bulbs every few years?

 

[Iggifer]

I'm of the opinion of that it's 6 of one, and half a dozen of the other.

The integrated ones can look tidier and come with a good warranty. But, if they fail and the company no longer make that model, you will be sent the nearest looking replacement. This may or may not be close enough to get away with.

Downlights with retrofit GU10s doesn't have this problem, but they're not such a tidy solution. And don't always look as good.

My two recommendations are:

Click Interceptor
Enlite GU10 LED

 

[333rocky333]

Also bare in mind if you want to dim them

 

[flameport]

GU10s, as LED lighting is still evolving and changing. With GU10s you can easily change to different lamps in a year or two.
If integrated, you are stuck with them unless you want to spend non-trivial amounts of money in replacing the entire unit.
Claimed lifespan for both types are similar.

 

[ericmark]

Most the LED lighting has the same life so be it interrogated or replacement bulb it will still be around 10 years before it needs replacing. However bulb life is taken as with a room of 100 bulb time taken before half have failed, it does not mean every bulb will last 10 years. So at some point of unknown time you will need to replace. Since the life is 10 years to keep a spare in stock seems a bit silly. So the point is when it fails can you do without it for a week while you get a replacement fitted, or do you want to be able to visit local supermarket and replace within a few hours?

With a street lamp to change the lamp or complete fitting still needs at least 2 men and a cherry picker to replace so a light which lasts on average 10 years compared with 8 years is a huge saving on man power. But at home we cost in a different way, one street lamp can be out for a month and no real problem unless the next one along goes as well, but top of my stairs I have one 18 watt fluorescent tube last one lasted about 15 years so don't keep one in stock so if it goes I need to replace next day.

So in a kitchen would you fit a 2D 28W fluorescent which when it goes you can replace next day? or a LED fitting that when it goes you have to switch off all lighting power and swap in daylight and it may take a week to get a replacement? Electronic ballast 2D is around 90 lumen per watt and LED is around 100 lumen per watt and 2D likely will last 8 years and LED will last 10 years, when the fluorescent goes likely it will give a warning being hard to start and will need new tube at a few pounds and the LED needs a whole new fitting.

So yes I will use LED bulbs, and yes I have used one LED fluorescent tube replacement because the tubes have been discontinued and I was in a hurry, but I will be getting a HF ballast for the kitchen side of the room and will continue to use fluorescent as it's brighter and cheaper than the LED.

 

[Mr_T25]

Sorry what is 2D and what is HF Ballast?

Thanks for all the feedback. I think I agree with the comments on here and will opt for GU10s as I was favouring in the first place. The idea of changing the whole unit and he quoted life spans of 10Y don't always stack up.

What's wrong with retaining the ideas of these low energy CFL light bulbs which cost as little as £1 and like you say, have lasted us over 8-10 years and still going? Ok they take a few seconds to warm up to full brightness but is this really not the way to go for a new build?

 

[Iggifer]

In my opinion, CFL's have literally no benefits versus LED other than cost. In my view (and maybe others) LEDs are what CFLs were 10 years ago (maybe more). They were the next best thing, and now LEDs are replacing them.

2D is a type of fluorescent lamp. And HF stands for High Frequency, meaning a more efficient type of control gear for fluorescent lighting over the old choke & starter method.

 

[JohnD]

You mention GU10 lamps. Do you mean you are installing spotlights or downlighters? Is it for a kitchen?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I understand that integrated units cost around £25-£30 each and last for up to 10 years.

What do you guys recommend, go integrated or go for a GU10s for approximately 8 pounds each and replace the bulbs every few years?

I recommend not trying to light a room by using 2" diameter torches recessed into the ceiling. They are designed to be no good at that, so you have to use masses of them to try and work round their shortcomings. You end up with perforated ceilings, rooms which look like shops, and still don't get decent lighting.

Have recessed lights by all means -I think they are just the job in kitchens, but not tiny ones.

There are plenty of larger ones around - this is just one maker's range:

http://gb.auroralighting.com/Lighting-Products/Downlighting-by-Lumens-1.aspx

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Most the LED lighting has the same life so be it interrogated or replacement bulb it will still be around 10 years before it needs replacing. However bulb life is taken as with a room of 100 bulb time taken before half have failed, it does not mean every bulb will last 10 years.

Aurora quote 40,000 hours for some of theirs - at an average of 4 hours per day every day of the year that's nearly 30 years.

 

[ericmark]

Fluorescent is quoted as 20,000 hours and using HF ballast it says lamps last 50% longer so 30,000 hours, although you may find some one who quotes 40,000 hours this is the point where half the lamps have failed so in both cases it could be longer or shorter. After 30 year there is not guarantee either the LED is still made or the fluorescent tube. I know my fat fluorescent tube I used in kitchen in no longer made, however I was still able to replace it with an LED tube.

I bought 16 globe 8W Philips bulbs with a life of 10,000 hours in my living room at 4 hours per night that should have been 4.5 years, however one year down the line and the bulbs had started to fail, and 2 years latter I had just 8 still working and moved to LED bulbs. So one has to expect that 40,000 hours is really 20,000 hours so really looking at a 10 year life.

 

[ericmark]

The 2D fluorescent lamp is the nearest unit to compare with the LED lamp being round or square

typical lamp type shown so reasonable comparison with LED. They were used in the accommodation post war in the Falklands so were around back in the 1980's so quite old technology which has stud the test of time. Although technically still a folded tube the life is far better than the replacement light bulb type of folded fluorescent tube know as CFL. They also have the option of using LED replacement units

so you can have a lamp which has a replaceable lamp inside although the LED replacement costs around £15 not £5 required for a fluorescent tube.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

http://luxreview.com/review/2015/08/led-gu10-lamps

 

[ban-all-sheds]

If you could find a way to mount them in a plasterboard ceiling I could see this type of lighting working in a kitchen.

http://luxreview.com/review/2015/06/600-x-600mm-led-ceiling-panels

 

[Iggifer]

If you could find a way to mount them in a plasterboard ceiling I could see this type of lighting working in a kitchen.

http://luxreview.com/review/2015/06/600-x-600mm-led-ceiling-panels

Not sure which brands do, but they do make surface mount kits for 600x600 modulars