Cree LED light bulbs (Home Depot)

View · by **yuppiejr** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:23 am

... these have been reviewed extensively elsewhere so as usual I'll just link to someone else's hard work and add a bit of my own experience/color commentary.

http://www.technologyreview.com/view/51 ... ould-love/

http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/the-be ... arm-white/

Short version - it's THE LED bulb that actually makes sense to purchase which is getting rave reviews from folks who know a lot more about the science of lighting than I do... Looks like and puts out light of quality similar to an incandescent without the warm up, short warranty or environmental hazards of CFL... $13.50 (at Home Depot) gets you a 60 watt "warm white "(2700k) bulb that puts out 800 lumens (similar to a 60w bulb) and runs on 10 watts of power.. with a *10 year* warranty. I was a semi-early adopter and have some previous generation "ice cream cone" style Lowes/Utilitech LED bulbs in my house that these will be replacing along with all of my CFL's and remaining incandescent bulbs... they are that good.

I put these in some particularly difficult installations which have killed CFL and lesser LED bulbs in short order - enclosed glass ceiling fixtures + mounted upside down in ceiling fans with dimmers. In both cases the Cree LED bulbs have held up just fine all while producing great, high quality light. If 2700k (warm - yellowish light) is not your thing they also have a 5000k "cool white" option as well for a couple bucks more.

I did the math and figured an energy savings around $7 per year per bulb so the ROI break-even would happen in 2 years of the bulb's 8 year life (assuming I don't swap houses or light fixtures... unlikely on both counts). Figuring I've got about 50 bulbs in the house we're talking $30 a month off the electric bill.. $670 with tax up front for $3,600 saved over 10 years would be a conservative estimate which is an %18+ rate of return over 10 years. Not a bad way to "invest" part of the tax return this year without the risk and volatility associated with other options that might generate a similar payback.

Anyway, if you have been looking for simple energy savings options in your home with a quick payback I think now is a reasonably good time to jump into LED lighting via these Cree bulbs if you have a lot of traditional bulb type fixtures/lamps in the house.

View · by **Inspiribomb** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:35 am

Funny this came up, as I just bought about 10-15 of these exact bulbs for my house. I put the "daylight" ones outside, and the soft yellow inside. I really like them, and will probably buy at least that many more for the rest of my light fixtures. If I ever move, I'm taking my light bulbs with me

View · by **yuppiejr** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:53 am

I was doing some reading on this and, supposedly, "warm" color temperature LED bulbs generate almost no UV radiation which, in turn, means few-no bugs flying around-into your exterior light fixtures. There was some controversy over this topic when LED lights were first hitting the market (mostly in a bright/daylight setup which does generate more UV on the blue end of the color spectrum) but more recent analysis along with newer products that hit the warmer color tones are proving less attractive to insects.

http://www.creeledrevolution.com/blog/2 ... cree-leds/

http://robled.hubpages.com/hub/Ten-Amaz ... -LEDLights

.. I have also traditionally used "cool white/daylight" 5000k-ish CFL bulbs on the front of my house which do attract bugs, but am thinking I'll give the "warm" toned Cree bulbs a shot this time around. I guess it makes sense that for years the bug-zappers have always used blue-purple hued lamps designed to pump out the UV to bring them in while those incandescent "bug lights" always came in bright yellow.

Unfortunately I can't fix emitting the CO2 that f-ing mosquitoes love...

View · by **LarryFlew** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 9:08 am

Not to mention Cree has been the leader in LED flashlight bulbs for most major brands for a long time.

View · by **Inspiribomb** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 9:29 am

LarryFlew wrote:Not to mention Cree has been the leader in LED flashlight bulbs for most major brands for a long time.

This, and the price, is exactly why I chose these light bulbs.

View · by **RJWesleyIII** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 11:26 am

I just started switching mine over as well. I did the daylight ones. On sale at Home Depot. 21.xx a bulb. I need to get a few more!

Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

View · by **yuppiejr** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 12:05 pm

I don't think you're buying the same bulbs, these are the Cree brand units specifically, normal price is - $12.97 for the 60w / Warm White (Model #BA19-08027OMF-12DE26-1U100 Internet #203991774 Store SKU #1000003071) and $13.97 for the Daylight White (Model #BA19-08050OMF-12DE26-1U100 Internet #203991776 Store SKU #1000003072).

I was in Home Depot this weekend and noticed they have a different selection of brands in their normal lighting department (all higher priced, even those on "clearance") but the Cree bulbs reviewed are located on the endcaps near the front of the store usually between lighting and paint. All LED bulbs are not created equal, just because another maker uses Cree LED elements does not mean the bulb assembly has the same characteristics that make the Cree branded bulbs review so well.

Packaging looks like:

View · by **RJWesleyIII** on Tue Apr 09, 2013 12:08 pm

I'll have to check those out. These were around 40ish regular price, lifespan of 23 years at 3 hrs a day. 950 lumens. I put them in my outside lights and I'm sure my neighbors love me, LOL!

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View · by **FJ540** on Tue Aug 27, 2013 8:05 pm

I picked up a pair of these based on Jason's review and the mention that bugs don't like them as much. We've got our driveway lights (sconces) on dusk-to-dawn sensors, and the bugs were horrible by the front door. I should take a pic of all the little dead bodies - you can't see the pavement.

At any rate, they're quite nicely built. I wasn't expecting the rubber coating on the bulb, and would suspect these to do well as a trouble light/drop cord.

Illumination is a very good match for 60W (only consuming 8) incandescents, and the color temp is very pleasant. I replaced CFL's which were something like 14W, and the output is very close.

Best of all, no more bugs! :mrgreen:

View · by **yukonjasper** on Tue Aug 27, 2013 9:32 pm

Were the prices reasonable?

View · by **gunsmith** on Tue Aug 27, 2013 9:45 pm

yukonjasper wrote:Were the prices reasonable?

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Cree-9-5-Wat ... h1x3eUn18E

This one's $13 177 reviews. I think there is one for $10 also.

UPdate: Here's the $10 model http://www.homedepot.com/p/Cree-6-Watt- ... h1y5uUn18E

View · by **FJ540** on Wed Aug 28, 2013 10:08 am

$13 each, minus 10% vet discount.

Not having to run through the front door to keep the bugs out was worth every penny!

View · by **gunsmith** on Wed Aug 28, 2013 10:51 am

FJ540 wrote:$13 each, minus 10% vet discount.

Not having to run through the front door to keep the bugs out was worth every penny!

2 things: Home Depot does a 10% vet discount?
Is the color of the light so different that bugs aren't attracted? That would be impressive.