undefined | Better HN

0 pointstimw4mail2y ago0 comments

Not to mention space constraints for power supplies, and cooling the LEDs enough.

For all the benefits of LED lights, incandescent bulbs are infinitely simpler.

0 comments

Simpler and better light, but bad energy efficiency.

Although, as was pointed out to me at some point, because LEDs are more efficient, people feel less guilty about having more of them; replacing 1x40 watt bulb with 8x5 watt LEDs means the net result is the same. I've got like 7 cute LED spotlights in my TV closet for example, I wouldn't have had that setup if I was forced to use incandescent lamps.

sgregnt2y ago

Energy efficiency wise, in cold weather it warms the apartment which is desirable in my case.

tshaddox2y ago

Little downside if you have electric heating, but if you have natural gas heating the electric heating is probably more expensive.

saulpw2y ago

Jevons Paradox in action.

galleywest2002y ago

> cooling the LEDs enough

Maybe I am missing something from this conversation, but all of my LED bulbs produce far _less_ heat than incandescent bulbs. The lamp in my bedroom no longer keeps me warm!

weberer2y ago

Yes, but incandescent bulbs don't need to be cooled at all because they're just tungsten and glass. High powered LEDs require a heat sink to not damage the diode.

orev2y ago

By cooling the issue is that LEDs and the driving electronics will become damaged with heat, while an incandescent has simple parts which can easily survive inside an oven. This matters when used in fixtures like recessed ceiling cans where there’s no ventilation. The LEDs just cook themselves while incandescents don’t care.

organsnyder2y ago

When my garage+office was built a few years ago, the electrician used a bunch of faux-recessed LED fixtures (the brand name is "I Can't Believe It's Not Recessed!", which is certainly memorable). They surface-mount over standard ceiling junction boxes, but appear similar to recessed lights once installed. We have ~20 of these fixtures, both interior and exterior. They're quiet, flicker-free, and have a great dimming curve (with the standard Z-wave dimmers I've used). We've had no failures so far after almost four years, so they've passed the leading edge of the bathtub curve.

I think it's much easier to design entire fixtures than retrofit bulbs, as there's much more control over heat dissipation and so on. Finding trusted manufacturers (and supply chains that resist counterfeits) is also extremely important.

1 more reply

rini172y ago

But LEDs are very sensitive to heat, so even the small amount of heat will cause gradual dimming.

1980phipsi2y ago

You will find that you will need to search a bit harder to find an LED light that is rated to work with enclosed fixtures. Enclosed fixtures don't allow the same amount of cooling as a normal lamp.

willis9362y ago

I've moved three times with one set of cheap LED bulbs without having to replace a single one. I'd have gone thorough dozens of incandescent bulbs in the same time period. I'd have also burned my hand on a few.

LEDs are definitely simpler than incandescent from a user perspective.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse