RFI from Cree LED bulbs?

[k0ua]

I have a 60 watt standard a19 type Cree LED lamp and a Cree 65 watt BR30 replacement flood lamp.
I cannot find any RFI from either of them in the HF or low VHF spectrum. This info is just for those that want to know. It has no other significance.

Antennas are a OCFD running along the spine of the house at about 30 feet, so maybe 15 foot above the house, and the MA5B minibeam for 20thru 10 meters at a height of 40 foot(13 meters) at one end of the house.. The distance from the lamps would be approximately 35 foot slant distance.

The bulbs seem to be clean with this setup, or if there are any birdies, or hash I haven't found it yet. I could not find this information anywhere, so I am posting it here in the hopes it will help someone.

A19 60 watt:
[h=2]Model # BA19-08027OMF-12DE26-2U100[/h][h=2]Internet # 204592770[/h][h=2]Store SKU # 1000003071[/h]

Br30 equivilant 65 watt
[h=2]Model # BBR30-06527FLF-12DE26-1U100[/h][h=2]Internet # 204366182[/h][h=2]Store SKU # 1000009290[/h]

 

[texasjohn]

good to know

 

[k0ua]

good to know

Yes they seem to be clean RF wise, and I was please with the soft white color temp. and the light output and low heat buildup. They seem to be all they say.

 

[texasjohn]

I have several CREE lights....they are absolutely awesome. I could not be more happy with the distance a beam goes.
They are small, light and the battery lasts a long time, is rechargeable. I can see eyes at night at over 200 yards....further than I can shoot accurately.

I have two for hunting...a white light and a green light (doesn't bother varmints, can't see green much if at all)

And, I just got two light bars to add to my RTV....incredible price with incredible lumens with amazingly low power drain.

Just pay attention to the lumens when you purchase and make sure you get the brightness you need.

For value, CREE lights are a great buy...and I have found that if one does an internet search they are priced all over the map....so look at specs carefully and you can find great ones for very reasonable prices.

 

[MossRoad]

Nice bulbs... but $14.00 for one light bulb is quite a bit.

 

[dave1949]

Nice bulbs... but $14.00 for one light bulb is quite a bit.

It is, but if you have faith in the expected lifetime, think of your ROI. :laughing:

 

[k0ua]

Nice bulbs... but $14.00 for one light bulb is quite a bit.

The 65 watt flood was near $20. And the 60 watt conventional was $9.95. They should pay for themselves eventually IF they last and don't get blown out by a spike.

 

[MossRoad]

It is, but if you have faith in the expected lifetime, think of your ROI. :laughing:

Yeah, and IF they last long enough, they will give you an energy savings payback. However, with my few attempts at CFL's I was highly disappointed. The light was not "soft" and the bulbs didn't last as long as I expected, and they aren't dimable. These CREE bulbs are LED, dimable, "soft" and should last a lot longer and use even less energy than the CFL's, but if one goes out within a few years, then all your savings is lost. I have 4 incandecent bulbs in my kitchen that were there when I bought the house 18 years ago! They are the first ones on and the last ones off every day. Talk about a quality product!!! However, I shudder to calculate how much energy they've consumed over their life.

Now, if you are of the mindset that as an environmentally responsible person, you should pay some extra money to use less energy to decrease pollution, etc... that is all fine and good. But how many people living on a low or fixed income are willing to pay the up-front morallity tax of higher priced bulbs when at the end of the year they realize they paid $280 dollars to replace the 20 lightbulbs in their house that would have been about $10.00 in incandescants....

Few folks figure out far ahead and how much they could save. An example follows:
The average American household expense for lighting is about 14% of their total electric bill.
IF your average electric bill is $100 per month, you spend $14 per month on lighting.
$14 X 12 months = $168.00 per year on lighting.
You should see your energy savings payback in under two years if you convert from incandescent to LED at the prices we've been looking at in this thread. IF and only IF, the bulbs last longer than two years. If they only last two years on average, its a wash. You used less electricity, which is great for the environment, but you saved nothing from your bottom line, which is what most folks look at. "I can't afford to save the planet" comes into play. I'm gonna wait just a little while longer to see of the LED bulbs are dependable. If they are, I'm switching. It makes environmental AND personal economic sense.

 

[dave1949]

Yeah, and IF they last long enough, they will give you an energy savings payback. However, with my few attempts at CFL's I was highly disappointed. The light was not "soft" and the bulbs didn't last as long as I expected, and they aren't dimable. These CREE bulbs are LED, dimable, "soft" and should last a lot longer and use even less energy than the CFL's, but if one goes out within a few years, then all your savings is lost. I have 4 incandecent bulbs in my kitchen that were there when I bought the house 18 years ago! They are the first ones on and the last ones off every day. Talk about a quality product!!! However, I shudder to calculate how much energy they've consumed over their life.

Now, if you are of the mindset that as an environmentally responsible person, you should pay some extra money to use less energy to decrease pollution, etc... that is all fine and good. But how many people living on a low or fixed income are willing to pay the up-front morallity tax of higher priced bulbs when at the end of the year they realize they paid $280 dollars to replace the 20 lightbulbs in their house that would have been about $10.00 in incandescants....

Few folks figure out far ahead and how much they could save. An example follows:
The average American household expense for lighting is about 14% of their total electric bill.
IF your average electric bill is $100 per month, you spend $14 per month on lighting.
$14 X 12 months = $168.00 per year on lighting.
You should see your energy savings payback in under two years if you convert from incandescent to LED at the prices we've been looking at in this thread. IF and only IF, the bulbs last longer than two years. If they only last two years on average, its a wash. You used less electricity, which is great for the environment, but you saved nothing from your bottom line, which is what most folks look at. "I can't afford to save the planet" comes into play. I'm gonna wait just a little while longer to see of the LED bulbs are dependable. If they are, I'm switching. It makes environmental AND personal economic sense.

Well, after two years, do you know how many McD's $3 breakfasts that is per year--for free!! ? :laughing: It is a shame people are not conversant enough with technical terms to use the 4-banger math they already know.

Three weeks ago I bought three BR30 Phillips led bulbs and two CREE "standard type" bulbs to use in table lamps. I figured it is time to give them a try, see how I like the light, will they last, etc. So far so good. They seem to be an improvement over the cfl's and they use 5-6 watts less power than the cfl's. Sharon loves the one I put in "her" walk-in closet because it doesn't have the cfl-type delay.

I've not had lifetime problems with the cfl's I bought in late 2006, bulb failures have been rare, but I understand there have been a variety of experiences on that. It must be a lack of consistency in manufacturing or some are better designed from the git go. Those could certainly be issues with led's also.

The all-in payback time, not just the electric bill, could be longer than your calculation for led's since there is more production material, embedded energy and technology tucked in there. Those carry their own environmental costs that likely exceed incandescent technology.

For people generating all or some of their own power, the all-in costs should reflect reduced system demand and the resulting investment reduction. For example, maybe it means one less solar panel, or allows the use of lower wattage & lower cost inverter, or an existing system is able to provide a greater percentage of total consumption.

 

[k0ua]

So far so good on the Cree's. These lamps are used as our TV room lighting. so they are on a lot. I like the instant on, just like an incandescent, and of course the efficiency of the bulbs and the low heat generation is great here in the summer time. Of course this winter, kind of offsets that a little. I had a CFL in the main walk in closet but took it out because I hated the CFL delay. It was just too darn dim, and I spend seconds in a closet not minutes. I wound up putting an incandescent back in. Of course that might be a good application for an LED. Time will tell on how long they last. I can tell you this, If they go dead in a couple of years, I am going to cry some real tears. The dang things just cost too much. I just had to buy a couple to see what all the hype was about, even if they do cost a fortune. At this point I am very pleased with them, and wish I was LED through the whole house, but I would need a long term loan to do that.