LED Christmas Lights: Thoughts?

[Keebler Elf]

So I bought some of these the other day and put them up. The ones I bought are indoor/outdoor lights and are the large size (the same size as regular outdoor lights).

PROs:
- Inexpensive. A strong cost me around $25.
- Low power usage. Uses about 1/6 the electricity, which amounts to savings of ~$20-30 over 2 months.
- Cool. They don't heat up like regular lights. This is probably more of a pro for indoor lights.
- Lightweight. Without all that heavy glass, a string weighs much less.
- Less breakage. No glass to shatter. Bulbs don't burn out as easily.

CONs:
- Brightness. I must say, I'm a bit disappointed that the light is so much dimmer than regular lights (and dimmer than I expected them to be).
- Burnouts. You can't replace individual bulbs. I don't know if that effects all the other bulbs.

I think LED lights are the wave of the future and they'll work well indoors. But when your neighbour has nice bright lights, your LEDs will pale in comparison.

 

[pug2775]

- Burnouts. You can't replace individual bulbs. I don't know if that effects all the other bulbs.

I didn't think led's burnt nout

 

[Gentle Ben]

I was tempted to buy some to replace incandescent, but the fact that bulbs are not removable has me stalled, it means you can't change colour schemes like you can with the "old fashioned" lights

 

[QB7]

I was tempted to buy some to replace incandescent, but the fact that bulbs are not removable has me stalled, it means you can't change colour schemes like you can with the "old fashioned" lights

They now have LEDs that can change colour - from red to green or from red to blue. So buying one set is just like getting two sets !!

Cheers
QB7

 

[Keebler Elf]

I didn't think led's burnt nout

They don't really burn out; but if something happens to the LED and it no longer works, you can't replace the bulb like you can with regular lights. So LEDs should last much longer, but when/if they do go you can't replace them without replacing the whole string.

 

[Gentle Ben]

They now have LEDs that can change colour - from red to green or from red to blue. So buying one set is just like getting two sets !!

Cheers
QB7

Yup, but , say this year I want blue, next year red, year after red/blue/yellow/green, thats where LEDs fail IMO

 

[ig-88]

Just make sure you take down your lights around January 2, and don't have them still up in March.

 

[brat_man_7]

Inexpensive. A strong cost me around $25.
- Low power usage. Uses about 1/6 the electricity, which amounts to savings of ~$20-30 over 2 months.

How did you work out that savings? I think normal bulbs are about 5 watts/each. In that case 1/6 approx. 1 watt. You must be running several hundred bulbs 24 hrs/day to get that kind of saving. Just curios what numbers you used to get at those saving.

no. of bulbs
watts/bulb
no of hours per day turned on.
no of days on per month.
$/kw for electrical.

Cheers

 

[Papi Chulo]

There are more expensive LEDs where you can replace lamps.

LEDs this year are much brighter than last year.

the pros outweigh the cons!!

Bulbs should last at least 10-15 years.

use 1/10 the energy of incandescent lamps

 

[HafDun]

The savings are really that extreme!

Inexpensive. A strong cost me around $25.
- Low power usage. Uses about 1/6 the electricity, which amounts to savings of ~$20-30 over 2 months.

How did you work out that savings? I think normal bulbs are about 5 watts/each. In that case 1/6 approx. 1 watt. You must be running several hundred bulbs 24 hrs/day to get that kind of saving. Just curios what numbers you used to get at those saving.

no. of bulbs
watts/bulb
no of hours per day turned on.
no of days on per month.
$/kw for electrical.

Cheers

String of 35 LED's = 2.4 watts

350 lights...
10 stings*2.4W*6hrs*45days*$.06/kwHr= $.39 in electricity

if U are using 5 W bulbs

5W*350*6hrs*45days*$.06/KwHr=$28.35 in electricity

Savings for 45 days of Xmas lights $27.96

Now think about a million homes converting to LEDs
Using the same 6 hrs/day for 45 days thats a saving of 465 million KW hours. Just for xmas lights???

 

[Papi Chulo]

Now think about a million homes converting to LEDs
Using the same 6 hrs/day for 45 days thats a saving of 465 million KW hours. Just for xmas lights???

It would reduce demand significantly.... freeing up megawatts, on the grid

Also.. imagine if millions of homes switched to compact fluorescent lamps in their most frequently used rooms.

 

[Keebler Elf]

How did you work out that savings?

I was basing it off of what's on the back of the box but see HafDun's post above for the calculations.

 

[l69norm]

...So LEDs should last much longer, but when/if they do go you can't replace them without replacing the whole string.

Most of the time, you have an extra 10 ft left over so you can double back on the string to bypass the dead bulb.

Suppose:

0-0-0-0-X-0-0-0-0-0

double back:

0-0-0-0-X-
---------0-0-0-0-0

It kinda looks funny, but you can't see it in the dark.

It also used to be the white LED bulbs where too white in color and had no feeling of warmth. They now have "warm white" LEDs that have the same color as regular clear bulbs.

 

[james t kirk]

I don't like the look of LED.

Therefore, end of story.

I bought a few strings a couple of years ago, but opted not to put them up this year and have switched back to incandescent.

Something just looks "right" with the good old fashioned light bulbs.

The one drawback that no-one has menioned is that LED's won't melt snow. If you put LED in your bushes and it snows, they will be buried. Incandescent will melt the snow and look kind of cool in the process.

As far as the power usage goes, the big gobblers of power are:

Hot water tanks
Ovens
Fridges
A.C.

Anything involving heat transfer.

 

[Molly Robinson]

I hated the LED lights I bought last year.

I like all white lights and when I put them up they where blue...not white as they claim.

Plus for some reason the squirrels chewed the lights off mine and in the spring when I raked the leaves it seamed they had chewed through not just mine. I found different coloured bulbs in my yard.

I will try one more year….I found lights I am happy with the colour they are the Noma Outdoor 100 Rice LED Light Set, Warm White lights they are very tiny little lights and they are very bright. I have them around my front porch and they look just as good as my old white light strands.

 

[oldjones]

Just make sure you take down your lights around January 2, and don't have them still up in March.

When we have more daylight than dark, then I'll take mine down. Speak for yourself.

 

[oldjones]

…edit…

As far as the power usage goes, the big gobblers of power are:

Hot water tanks
Ovens
Fridges
A.C.

Anything involving heat transfer.

You forgot plasma-screen TVs.

 

[bestillmehard]

last week a recall was issued on the green LED lights that were given out to those who traded in their "old" lights.