Thank you to the locals that stopped by the lighting DIY Workshop that I partnered with the Home Deport on last weekend! I LOVED meeting you and it was great to get tips from the on-site lighting expert about how to increase lighting energy efficiency. It’s a topic I’ve been sadly pretty ignorant about until recently. We have a lot of CFLs in our house, but the Home Depot guy encouraged me to look at their LED offerings while I was at the store on Saturday.
I think it sort of stinks to have to drop $8-16 on just a single bulb, but how crazy is it that LED bulbs last for literally 20 years and they use a fraction of the wattage that an incandescent bulb uses?!
I picked up a pretty expensive (almost $16!) Cree bulb that has a new technology that’s supposed to help colors read more correctly, which has been my main complaint about LED in the past. I also bought this Ecosmart two-pack as a cheaper comparison that brought the price-per-bulb down to about $8. And I threw in to the test group an incandescent I already owned for good measure, just because I was curious. All of the bulbs were Soft White in tone and 60 watts or equivalent.
Well, here are the results of my extremely technical and super scientific light test results! ;)
I actually really liked the tone of the most expensive LED bulb (surprise, surprise), but really the Ecosmart brand wasn’t bad at all. I’d probably use it in bedrooms or for fixtures we use a little less. And actually I’ve read that it’s a good idea to switch over to the more expensive bulbs over time to help spread out the initial expense, but that you should put the new bulbs in your most frequently used fixtures so you can start the energy savings right away.
As a part of the workshop last weekend, Home Depot gave me a $100 gift card to give away today! Maybe you’ll want to spend the gift card on a dozen or so new LEDs? :) To enter, leave a comment here on this post. I’d love to hear about what bulbs you’re using and loving.
Contest ends next Thursday at midnight. Winner will be emailed. Good luck!
PS Home Depot has lots of great (free!) DIY workshops coming up! To see what your local store has to offer, check out the registration page here!
I started switching over to LED in the past year and so far so good – definitely expensive though! I love the thought of not having to change burned out bulbs as often as I have in the past!
Don't have any LED bulbs yet, but would love to give them a try.
I havne't made the switch yet, I loathe the light from CFLs though so I'd love the opportunity to start switching.
I have never used LED bulbs, but have thought about getting them when my CFLs start to die out.
We are slowly switching to LEDs as we need to change out bulbs.
We swallowed the cost for 4 dimmable LED bulbs and while 80 bucks for 4 light bulbs is pricey. They are not hot! and we are saving energy. I even saved my home depot receipt on the side of my fridge for 6 months just making sire they would work, they did!!
I'd love to start replacing bulbs!
I do love LED's as well- but I have one picky part of me. They have to be the white tone bulbs, not the ones that cast yellow. Drives my husband nuts how bright the white is but it makes me happier!
I'm afraid to make the switch. If I win this gift card, I'll use it to buy some more energy efficient lightbulbs! :)
We still use the old incandescent because I don't really like cfls and the LEDs are so expensive but Iit would sure be nice to have light bulbs I didn't have to change for 20 years
I'm guilty of buying the cheap light bulbs, but 20 years is crazy! I think I'll slowly transition over to the LED's.
My partner's obsessed with lighting, so he always switches out the standard rental lightbulbs for lower wattage, energy efficient, dimmable if possible bulbs. I never paid attention before but he's rubbing off on me.
We just put new LED bulbs in our bathroom vanity, and the lighting is way better! I've had to do way less frantic rubbing off excessive makeup when I get in my car each morning, lol. mer[dot]marty[at]yahoo[dot]com
We have been swapping out to LEDs for a year or so. I have found the least expensive to be at IKEA. Not sure the comparative quality though. Light fixtures is probably what the money would go towards if I win. Not holding my breath though. I never do.
Thanks to your "research" I'll buy more LED's since the look really is about the same.
I need to try switching to some LEDs
We're using Cree in the house now, so yes, it was pricey! I hope they really last for 20 years!
Love those sconces! Also, great info on LED's.
I just got my first LED bulb a few weeks ago and I've been loving it, the light it provides is great, would love to switch more bulbs over!
I struggle with switching to energy efficient bulbs so much because the light color doesn't look good! I like to be earth friendly in most other parts of my life, but I secretly want to hoard incandescent light bulbs because fluorescents are just so ugly. Isn't that terrible? I am anxious to try out these suggestions!
We have not switched out our bulbs yet… Probaly a good time to try it!
This would be a great way to switch over our bulbs and save some money.
We are moving and need to replace all of our light fixtures so this is really timely!
I've switched some light bulbs to LED in the past 5 years, but I stopped because I can't stand the look of the bulb or the light. These bulbs look better. I might give one a try.
We're currently working on switching out our old bulbs for LEDs. So amazing how long they last!
When I moved into my new house I started switching out all the CANS to be LED ones. As we switched out other light fixtures they're all either LED, Halogen, or CFL.
I've been hating CFLs so I'm interested to try these new fancy LED ptions!
I wish I had all the money I have spent on light bulbs over the twenty years I have lived in my house. I am sure it is a tidy sum. Just switched to LEDs in the kitchen. I hope they last 20 years.
I've been trying to switch my overhead lights to LED, but it's so expensive!
We use dimmable LED bulbs for our recessed overhead lights, they work great. Thanks for the giveaway!
We're about to move to our first "grown-up" house. Would love to win the bulbs. But winning or not, I'm already a fan of your blog. All best,
M
Didn't realize that LED bulbs lasted so long! Thanks for the info!
We just bought our first home, and are ready to eco-fy the place!
I've started buying LEDs as bulbs need to be replaced. I've tried Cree for the lamps I use all the time, but I think I'll give the Ecosmart a try for overhead fixtures that aren't used very often!
you're making me think I need to experiment more with LED's. I really hate the light they put off but it doesn't look so bad in this post…
Just going to have to make the change.
I don't have any LED's yet, but would be nice to start changing over to them.
I'd love to get a new light for my kitchen!
I'd love to get a new light for my kitchen!
My husband is a LEED certified construction project manager, so he's pretty passionate about energy consumption. :) Cree light bulbs all around!
We have a bunch of the "warm" CFLs, and just a few LEDs. I think the newer ones you reviewed are much better than the ones I currently have. I like how bright the LEDs can get for task lighting, too. Will definitely have to check out those options!
I needed some dimmable bulbs and I've found that LED is WAY better than CFLs for this. Dimmable CFLs basically have two settings, dim and full on. I returned them and splurged on the LEDs.
I'd love to get some LED's for my outdoor flood lights. The CFL's are bright, but burn out quicker than I'd like. I'm sure my husband would love putting off climbing ladders for a few years!
I really need to do this in our home!
I'm so happy to try ANY light bulb that doesn't give off heat, but I love the new LEDS for overhead lighting. We use warm fluorescents and LEDs when we can get them. So much of the interesting lighting out there has been halogen lighting, which is too hot for southern living. Turning down the AC to counteract heat-emitting bulbs just doesn't sit right with me! –Dixie
My husband and I have been huge fans of the energy efficiency, longevity and cooler temps of the LED, but the aesthetics were a little lacking. I'm VERY excited about the new bulbs!! Can't wait to try them out!
I rent so I'm not really up for replacing our bulbs with LED ones just yet. I think I might look like a weirdo if when we moved out I took all of the bulbs with me…
I am in the process of switching all our lightbulbs to LED. When we moved in, we tried to replace as many as we could afford, but are still going piece by piece bc of the price. I usually only by the CREE ones in daylight because I like having the bright light rather than a soft light. I also love I can use dimmers on them!!!
I need to make the LED switch on the decorative bulbs above my bathroom vanity–there always seems to be at least one or two bulbs burnt out at any given time!
We recently moved and we took our small handful of LED bulbs with us! Left the new residents to deal with the CFLs! ha! :)