One of the halogen down lighters in my kitchen started to flicker – not the bulb, but the transformer…Time for a change.
So, I bit the bullet and bought some LED down lighters, made by a firm called JCC.
Easy swap for the old units, built in firecans, and only 7 watts instead of 50, so for every 24 hours of use a unit is saved. As they cost £30, I need to save about 200 units at 15p/unit. That is 800 days at 6 hours per day… So let’s hope they are still working in three years time.
So, do they save money? If they don’t break down earlier, yes, eventually. A ten year warranty helps.
Are they green? Well, I am really not sure. I am sure that I will use less electricity, but how much went into making the thing? It is also clear that LEDs use rare resources that the old tungsten bulbs do not use. Time will tell if this is sustainable.
Current plan is to replace all lamps with CFLs or LEDs, except for the ones in toilets and cupboards. It will be interesting to watch the electricity bill.