Can anyone point me in the right direction across this minefield? I have a commercial premises with a lot of 50w GU10 halogen lights and I thought it might be a bit more economical/socially responsible to replace them with LED versions.

Are there any that will replicate or exceed the brightness of the 50w halogens and give a warm, pleasant light?

Looking for real-world recommendations as there are plenty of websites making claims but I’m not sure I’d trust them as much as you guys!

G

It is a minefield.

We bought some cheapo LEDs to replace our halogens, they were described as “warm” but had a horrible pinkish hue so we sent them back. Since then our sparkie has shown us some better quality LEDs that seem to have a more halogen-like colour but since we’re strapped for cash we have asked him to mention it again next year. So you might get on better with good quality LEDs.

bought mine from LED hut. went for the 5w warm lumi lifes LEDS

perfectly happy with them in the house.

for a long time i was running 3 LEDS and 2 Halogens in one room and you couldnt tell the difference.

Far far better than the CFL energy saving bulbs you get for pendants these days.

fitted a couple of their 10watt LED offerings outside the house – now those are clinical/blue and cold…..

We have GU10s in our kitchen that are warm and fine. Can’t remember the make though sorry 🙂

I bought one osram bulb from B&Q (IIRC) to test out as a replacement for a load of 50w GU10s. It’s actually brighter than the existing ones and the colour is good too (warm white).

I haven’t got round to buying more though as I got a load of very cheap GU10s (£1 for a pack of 10!) a while back and I haven’t used them all up yet.

Thanks for the pointers so far – I’d looked at the LED hut ones but I’ll have a look at the Osram ones too…

G

I think this is the one but they’re not cheap! (I paid £8 IIRC)

http://www.dusklights.co.uk/light-bulbs/led-gu10-bulbs/osram-gu10-7.5-watt-led-non-dimmable-warm-white-lamp.html

Picked up some Ikea ones last night out of pure impulse – £4 a piece – fitted last night and can’t notice the difference to the halogens they are replacing. Hopefully my bill will.

Interesting – I’d wondered about the Ikea ones.

+1 for the £4 ikea ones. Near enough perfect replacement for halogens. Miles better than the Phillips ones i paid nearly £15 for.

I’ve tried the Ikea ones and like it says on the pack they’re ok-ish as a 25W replacement but nowhere near a 50W. I bought a bunch of TCP branded ones from Homebase on a 2 for 1 offer that I think are rated at 5.8W and they’ve been fine.

I’ve just replaced all of the ones on the ground floor of my house with these. They’re a Which Magazine ‘Best Buy’and I’ve found them to be perfect. I’d say they’re brighter than the 50w halogens that they replaced and have a nicer tone of light too.

http://theledspecialist.co.uk/index.php/integral-led-gu10-5-5w-non-dimmable-3000k.html

Crikey, those look good value… Thanks for the link!

G

I’m using the Integral ones in my kitchen and bathroom, and am impressed. They’re not much dearer than the Ikea ones, but are 5W instead of 4W for the Ikea LEDs.

I’ve got the Homebase ones and the LEDHut 4W ones. I was very happy with the Homebase ones, but the LEDHut ones are far far brighter for a little extra.

So bright in fact I’ve been informed I need to replace them with dimmable variants 😕

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/191150488213?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&var=490315086803&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I have about 15 of these (cool white) in my house (3*12w rest are 9w…) fantastic, and cheap… Not so sure about the warm and pleasant light but, but you get used to it very quickly…
good spread as well.

Should have mentioned that I previously went down the ebay route and bought very cheap – around £3 each. Great initially but they lasted for a shorter time than the halogens so false economy in the end.

I was very happy with the Homebase ones, but the LEDHut ones are far far brighter for a little extra.

Can you remember which LEDHut ones you got Brassneck?

G

I’ve tried quite a few different ones, and have come to the conclusion that some people are much more fussy about the colour of the light than others. For example, I tried some £4 LAP ones from Screwfix, based on reviews saying that they were a “perfect” replacement for halogens, but to my eyes they were a horrid yellow colour, and they went straight back.

My current favourite is Philips LEDspot MV Value 5.3W – £8.50 from http://www.energybulbs.co.uk/ and you can get 10% of with code AUT10 for the next few days.

I’ve also tried the Philips 5.5W Master bulbs, which look a bit smarter, but as far as I can tell give the same light for a bit more money.

The 6W Megaman dimmables are also a very close match for halogens, but the colour is very slightly colder/greener than the Philips, and I’ve had a few failures.

If you actually want dimmable bulbs, then none of the above look anything like halogens when dimmed. The colour temperature of halogens drops to a very warm orange/red colour when they’re dimmed, whereas the colour of LEDs stays the same, making them appear very cold. The only LEDs that I can find that get close are the Philips Dimtone ones. I’ve got a handful of these in my living room, but they’re nearly £20 a pop.

I’ve also got some much older Philips LED ones – the current range is much better in terms of both colour and brightness.

Another vote for IKEA ones. I can’t remember how much light they output the colour is good.

Got LED bulbs at home after we fitted them at work,lovely blue/white bright lights use a lot less power. I would not go back now.

bought mine from LED hut. went for the 5w warm lumi lifes LEDS

I’ve fitted about 50 of these now and after 12 months with them I couldn’t be happier. Pricey but I think you get what you pay for.

I asked this a while ago on here:

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/talk-to-me-about-led-lamps-for-the-house

I got LEDhut ones as suggested, very happy with the bulbs. Less happy with LEDhut’s security or lack thereof….

Ive got Megaman 6w. They weren’t cheap 3 years ago, about £10 but still going strong. Dimmable too.

I would say they are a nice crisp warm white, much nicer than I have seen in some homes

Edit 5 year guarantee too

As a commercial electrical contractor, we use Osram Parathom, you can get them in Very warm white(2700k) or,

Warm white(3000k)

If you are looking to replicate 50Watt halogens, then choose very warm white.

Another alternative is from Megaman. A bit more expensive, in warm white, but throws out more lumens than the osram’s.

I would never use anything from LedHut.

Some of mine are now 6 years old and no failures (one lidl was dud out of the box and replaced on the next shop). They’ve got cheaper and brighter over the years. I reckon the 3.8W ones from Lidl and the French equivalent to B&Q are equivalent to 40W halogen and a pleasant colour. I’ve only got one 50W equivalent, I don’t notice it’s brighter but do notice it’s directional.

As for the colour, indoor photos are less orange than before which suggests that the LEDs are closer to natural light even if they seem a bit too white initially.

I would never use anything from LedHut.

Then you’re not in a very good position to comment on them are you?

They seem to have a large number of happy customers including me and others on here – and 916 ratings for their 5w LED is fairly impressive. I can barely tell the difference between the [warm white] 5w LED and the 50w halogens they replaced – if anything I think it looks better (but I’m just a mere end user).
I’ve used their warranty service for a dimmable LED that buzzed when dimmed and they replaced it without needing the faulty one back.

Other suppliers of LED bulbs are available.

I bought from energy saving led as mentioned on this thread. All the replacements are great for colour (which we found was unsuitable with the originals) and have proven reliable so far!

Then you’re not in a very good position to comment on them are you?

Why not? Why would I comment on them? Think really hard.

I tried the LED hut ones, but everything had this sickly green glow. The then missus banned them. Apparently I look bad enough normally….

Banned her instead, then tried again with Ikea ones in the kitchen which are great, can’t tell the difference. Still trying to find some decent MR11’s for the lounge though, not succeeded there yet.

Done the whole lot at work in LED, mainly Kosnic and Osram bulbs & strip and it’s really good. If you’ve got an office full of 50w halogens i’d sack off any social responsibility and get em changed for the sake of your wallet!

The Osram LED lamps in Tesco (of all places) go warmer when dimmed. About £5-7 depending on wattage. They do shimmer slightly though even when used with a specialised LED dimmer.

bought mine from LED hut. went for the 5w warm lumi lifes LEDS

Same here – warm ones in the kitchen, cool ones in both bathrooms.

Absolutely perfectly happy with them and the scary thing is I will probably be dead before they start to fail if they last as long as claimed.

And LED Hut give you free Haribo.

I’ve got the Diall (B&Q) 4.5W ones throughout my house. I think they’re great. Brighter than the halogens they replaced and I’m happy with the colour of the light.

Just bought some LAP bulbs from Screwfix to see if they’re any good, haven’t tried them yet.

Replaced nearly all our house lights with bulbs from LED Hut and not been disappointed yet. In all cases they’ve been at least a match if not brighter than the originals.

Might be slightly more expensive but if they last as long as predicted the overall savings will be well worth it.

Not GU10 I know, but I’ve just found some LED spots (R63) which are so close to incandescent, you can barely tell them apart. NB They LED-Hut ones were horrible and weren’t even the same size, protruding from the reflector by about 1cm.

These ones are the best I’ve found so far…

http://www.homewatt.co.uk/led-and-low-energy-reflectors/193-r63-led-reflector-bulb-e27-warm-white-5060283472616.html