Light bulbs

stevoh

Hi All,

Very much aware that this is probably a very stupid question, but I need to replace some bulbs in my ceiling spot lights and my local store has closed down.

I'm trying to order online and can't get my head around the different types. The current bulbs are Halogen ES 50 GU10 20 W for dimmable lights, but I can't find these exact ones anywhere.

Can anyone advise what I should go for? Also can I buy LED ones or do these need to have different sockets?

Again, sorry I know asking this makes me sound really useless!

sew_what

You've got an odd combination of letters there - ES means Edison Screw which is a big screw in cap, GU10 is a smaller bayonet type cap with two vertical pins which have a "knob" on the end.
I suspect you need GU10 and would be best to go for a dimmable LED lamp which will go in the same fitting (GU10 refers to the cap) You might struggle to find a 20w equivalent though - and be careful about colour -for domestic use I'd always go for warm white.

stevoh

Thanks very much!

stevoh

Would I need special bulbs to go above the shower?

Sandtree

stevoh said:

Would I need special bulbs to go above the shower?

No, but the housing for the bulb in a wet zone must have the appropriate IP rating - IP65 if above a bath/shower

casper_gutman

You mentioned the lights should be dimmable. You may find that the dimmer switch you used for halogen spotlights won't play nicely with dimmable LEDs. Personally if that happens I'd replace it with a decent make that's compatible with LEDs, like a Varilight V-Pro. There are cheaper, but these have a good reputation and work well for me. 

Arfa__

Just replaced a tonne of GU10 ceiling spots in our new house. There was so many in the ceilings of every room, and all 50W halogens! I hate to think what the last owner's electric bill was like... I replaced with these GU10 bulbs:

Dimmable version: https://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-gu10-led-light-bulb-345lm-5w-10-pack/7303v

Non-dimmable version: https://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-gu10-led-light-bulb-345lm-4-7w-50-pack/632fh

Yes, I also found the existing dimmer switches weren't compatible with LEDs so flickered like crazy when slightly dimmed. I swapped in these 'trailing edge' dimmer switches:

https://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-1-gang-2-way-led-dimmer-switch-white/273cc

Work fine, but oddly the lights take about a half-second to come on after being switched on with these switches.

I can also second the recommendation for the Varilight V-Pro IR switches, had one of their IR remote control ones in my last house so I could change the lighting using my cinema universal remote. Nice. Manual operation was a bit awkward though - needed a quick tap to toggle on/off, or a long press to adjust dimness, was very easy to dim or brighten too much.

stevoh

casper_gutman said:

You mentioned the lights should be dimmable. You may find that the dimmer switch you used for halogen spotlights won't play nicely with dimmable LEDs. Personally if that happens I'd replace it with a decent make that's compatible with LEDs, like a Varilight V-Pro. There are cheaper, but these have a good reputation and work well for me. 

Thanks. They seem to be working ok. Is it dangerous to use the wrong switch or is it just that it can cause annoying issues? 

Chickereeeee

Arfa__ said:

Just replaced a tonne of GU10 ceiling spots in our new house. There was so many in the ceilings of every room, and all 50W halogens! I hate to think what the last owner's electric bill was like... I replaced with these GU10 bulbs:

Dimmable version: https://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-gu10-led-light-bulb-345lm-5w-10-pack/7303v

Non-dimmable version: https://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-gu10-led-light-bulb-345lm-4-7w-50-pack/632fh

Yes, I also found the existing dimmer switches weren't compatible with LEDs so flickered like crazy when slightly dimmed. I swapped in these 'trailing edge' dimmer switches:

https://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-1-gang-2-way-led-dimmer-switch-white/273cc

Work fine, but oddly the lights take about a half-second to come on after being switched on with these switches.

I can also second the recommendation for the Varilight V-Pro IR switches, had one of their IR remote control ones in my last house so I could change the lighting using my cinema universal remote. Nice. Manual operation was a bit awkward though - needed a quick tap to toggle on/off, or a long press to adjust dimness, was very easy to dim or brighten too much.

Ah, I was just going to comment that the LAP GU10 led lights from Screwfix have a long turn-on time, then I read your penultimate paragraph.This happens with a regular on/off switch, and I think is worse with a dimmer. This stopped me using them, and I went for the Phillips 'Warm Glow' which were not much more. Also, the Phillips bulbs' colour temperature gets warmer as you dim, mimicking a halogen pretty well.