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imacurvygrrl

LED for chandelier?

ImaCurvyGrrl
12 years ago

Hello all. I am looking to consider LED bulbs for my foyer chandelier, mostly so I don't have to think about replacing them too often since the foyer is 2 stories high.

The chandelier I have will easily hide the bulb behind heavily "crackled" glass, so I'm not too concerned about that. What I am concerned about is light. The chandelier says it uses candelabra bulbs (don't care about fancy tip) that are 60w each. One chandelier uses 10 bulbs, the other uses 16. So far I've only seen (polar-ray, of course) leds that replace 30w bulbs, and I'm concerned that won't be enough light in the foyer because of the foyer size.

Any thoughts on the light that would be emitted with the 30w replacement LEDs, and/or where can I find candelabra LEDs that replace 60w bulbs?

Thank you!

Comments (20)

  • David
    12 years ago

    60 watt LED candelabra replacements are not yet commercially available.

    There are LEDs available today that produce > 200 lumens per watt, but most commercial products (excluding flash lights) still produce

  • ImaCurvyGrrl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thank you David and Sean. If we stick with the lower lumens and the "warm" light, do you think there will be enough light emitted for a large foyer area? One of the lights has 16 bulbs, but the foyer area is 8'w x 13'd and two stories (18'+ high). The glass on the chandelier is heavily crackled and somewhat thick, so I worry it won't be enough light.

    Thanks!

  • Granite_Man
    12 years ago

    We tried two different candelabra based LEDs in our chandelier. This version was the best.

    Prior we were only using 15W incandescents so this may not provide enough light for you. However, the manufacturer rates them as a 40W equivalent which I find realistic.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Candelabra 40W Equivalent

  • lee676
    12 years ago

    Hmmm... only 75 CRI, do they give off good light? Also 3000K rather than incandescent-like 2700K. I'd be reluctant to use them indoors based on their specs.

    Has anyone used the Philips 3w candelabra bulb? A reasonable 136 lumens, 2700K, and (unlike the Kimberly bulb above) uses clear glass so it will look like a glowing filament in an incandescent bulb. Seems like a reasonable replacement for a 25w bulb in some instances. Some Philips LED bulbs are flickery though, don't know about this one.

  • Granite_Man
    12 years ago

    We tried the Philips candelabra based LED and found the color to be fine, but the light output was very weak compared to the Kimberly.

    The Kimberly we opted for is clear though I believe a frosted version is available. They sit inside of a glass shade so the aesthetics are not an issue. For this application, the CRI is fine.

  • lee676
    12 years ago

    Do the clear Kimberly candelabra bulbs look like incandescents if they were visible (i.e. in a clear glass chandelier or outdoor fixture) when illuminated? They don't look as though they would be in the picture.

    Also, what are "SMD" LEDs? They use 27 of them, whatever they are. The bottom of the PDF page has a Cree logo - are SMDs a Cree product?

  • ImaCurvyGrrl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks everyone!

    I saw those Kimberly bulbs but had never heard of them and didn't understand all the technical details as Lee676 was talking about. I assumed if they were Cree that Polar-Ray.com would carry them, but I didn't see them on that site.

    As much as I want to do LEDs for the chandeliers for longevity, I am concerned they won't give off enough light. I may have to try to find "long life" incandescent candelabra bulbs instead.

    LOL And then hope when they need to be replaced, there will be newer LED technology to replace them!

  • David
    12 years ago

    SMD is an acronym for Surface Mount Devices. It is not confined to CREE.

    The bulk of LED chips and other chips (e.g. - CPUs) today are produced as SMDs.

    If you're willing to make your own lights, the LED technology is already available today.

    Cree has demonstrated 150 lumen / watt prototype lamps and LED chips that achieve ~ 230 lumens per watt. They hope that other manufacturers (e.g. - GE and others) would be able to utilize their chips and designs.

    It's just that most manufacturers cannot justify the investment.

  • Granite_Man
    12 years ago

    "Do the clear Kimberly candelabra bulbs look like incandescents if they were visible (i.e. in a clear glass chandelier or outdoor fixture) when illuminated? They don't look as though they would be in the picture.
    Also, what are "SMD" LEDs? They use 27 of them, whatever they are. The bottom of the PDF page has a Cree logo - are SMDs a Cree product?"

    The color is comparable to an incandescent, but when lit the bulb itself looks different than an incandescent. The LEDs follow a different pattern than an incandescent filament.

    All in all, we really like the product. It also seems that only the larger distributors carry them. I believe they are popular with architects for commercial applications or so I have been told.

  • s0ne
    12 years ago

    Thanks OP and responders for the info. It has been very helpful to me and my same situation.

    s-one

  • firstian
    12 years ago

    Anyone had some experience with this new bulb? It has a bit higher CRI and is also dimmable.

  • lascatx
    11 years ago

    Are you using 60W bulbs now? Are they on a dimmer? That's almost 1000W of lighting (960)! It's hard for me to imagine a home foyer that needs that much lighting power. My dining room chandelier has 25W krypton bulbs and we would only have it at full power for cleaning or such. For dining, the light would be too hardh, so it is usually dimmed.

    Sorry, the candelabra bulbs are the one place I haven't gone to LEDS yet, so I can't help with particular bulbs other than to say I question whether you really need 60W bulbs. We replaced outdoor cans with 65W equivalents and they are providing better light than the 75W and 90W incandescent bulbs were. I have halogen in my lanterns by the front door and krypton in our indoor chandeliers -- nothing over 25W. By the time these need replacement, I hope we have more options and better pricing.

  • randomdeight
    10 years ago

    Has anyone tried these LED chandelier bulbs?

    Here is a link that might be useful: LED chandelier bulbs

  • grannysmith18
    10 years ago

    I'd also be very interested to know if anyone has tried the bulbs randomdeight asked about. I've been looking all over for LED chandelier bulbs, but the ones I've seen aren't all that strong, and I need them to give off as much light as possible.
    I've got a crystal chandelier which takes 6 bulbs, and I've always used 60 watt bulbs in it. The ones in the link are only about 40 watt equivalents (there's a 50 watt one too, but I just don't feel like spending so much money), but I've got other lighting in the room, so I think I'd be OK with them.
    If anyone hs used these, please let us know.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Chandelier LED bulbs

  • brickeyee
    10 years ago

    Isn't the bleeding edge of technology wonderful?

    Remember that blood is green, the color of money.

  • sharpie510
    9 years ago

    I haven't had much luck using LED bulbs with my crystal lights. They seem to put out a very diffuse light so the crystals look very dull and don't break the light into its spectral colors. The led bulbs I've used are warm white, 60w equivalent. The brightness is similar, but the crystals just look dull when the light is on. Is that your experience if you've been using led bulbs? Thanks.

  • lee676
    9 years ago

    I've like the clear Ikea candelabra bulbs - I have the 200 lumen version in my foyer, but a 400 lumen (40w equivalent) is also available. Both have excellent color rendering and give off light i find indistinguishable from incandescent bulbs. Only drawback is they're not dimmable.

  • grannysmith18
    9 years ago

    I know this thread is old, but I have to respond that the LEDs have come a long way. I replaces my candelabra type bulbs in my chandelier with similar (40 watt equivalent) bulbs from Costco, and they are just beautiful. Clear sparkling light. One long-time friend thought I bought a new chandelier.

  • bus_driver
    9 years ago

    I too found some good LED lamps at Costco. But some things at Costco are one time only, when they are sold out, there is no more. So if you like it, stock up while you can.