Low energy GU10 bulbs

[David Hearn]

Has anyone tried out the low energy GU10 bulbs you can buy now? Look at:

(3rd+4th down)

Any comment regarding the compact fluorescent and cold cathode reflector lamp? Both are GU10, both are low energy. What's the difference?

We have a 4x 50W GU10 spot light in our kitchen (with under cupboard low energy lighting too). The lamps are enclosed within the fitting, so the low energy versions cannot extend any longer than a standard GU10 lamp. (Similar to

- has parallel sides, but the lip at the front is wider, meaning the bulb cannot extend forward)

Being able to reduce the usage from 200W to just 36W would be excellent (4x 9W) - a saving of 164W. Of course, it'll cost around £8 per bulb + delivery, so around £35-£40, at roughly 8p per kW, we'll need to save

440kW before we break even. At 0.164kW per hour saving, that'll be around 2700 hours. We estimate through the day we have the lights on for around 3 hours a day (mostly don't use them during the day, tend to turn them off when not used, and use downlighters when unattended etc). So that'll be around 900 days (2.5 years) to break even.

Life seems to be quoted around 8,000+ hours - which would be about 7 years with our usage.

Assuming it doesn't fail early, or go dull (which some energy saving bulbs I've seen have done as they get older), then we should make a grand saving of £69 (£10 per year).

Hmm, so I need to spend close to £40 up front, to save £10 per year - assuming the bulbs last over 7 years. If any last less than 2.5 years, I've made a loss.

Not quite so clear cut I feel.

D

[Ian Stirling]

If on average they last less than 2.5 years. If one fails after 7 months, and the replacement lasts 7 years, it's still a significant win. Alternatively. You can buy one at a time. I think I'd try the bltdirect ones - as they are 9W vs 7W, and see if it suits.

[Steven Briggs]

In message , David Hearn writes

Before you buy, just compare

;-)

[alspix]

I put a couple of these (the 7W CF types) in our hall about three years ago. We're very pleased with them in this application, they're fairly low powered but at 7W each they are efficent for lights that tend to get left on all/every evening. However, they do take a considerable time to warm up to full brightness, and to start with can be pretty dim - not sure how suitable they would be in a kitchen. Even when warmed up, they are no where near as bright as the 12V 50W wide angle halogens I also fitted, probably more like a 20W equivalent.

[pmlavers]

I'm waiting delivery on 10 GU10s @ 11watts from here:

http://www.ebulbsh> I put a couple of these (the 7W CF types) in our hall about three years a= go.

[John Stumbles]

I tried one of each (along with one 50W halogen) in my new kitchen light. The cold cathode one wouldn't physically fit in the holder until I removed a decorative ground-glass skirt from the fitting. The fluorescents fitted OK though they project from the front of the fitting (whereas the halogen is flush). The cold cathode and the cool white fluoro are blue-ish and the warm fluoro and halogen yellow-ish when run alongside each other. The halogen has a narrower beam so appears brighter in the area it illuminates. It probably is brighter anyway, but I prefer the wider beam of the fluoro for lighting the area without dim patches. I bought 3 more of the warm white fluoros and that's what I'm using now. It's OK. I'd really like to put in a 58W HF fluorescent strip but The Powers That Be (SWMBO) would mutiny over that. Why can't anyone make attractive fittings for them?