LED DOWNLIGHT INSTALLATION SUNSHINE COAST

If you're like most Sunshine Coast property owners, then you know that LED downlights are a great way to save money on your electricity bills. They're also excellent for improving the look and ambience in your home, but they do require professional installation by an electrician. 

How many LED downlights do you need? What colour temperature is best? What diameter and wattage are best? What should LED downlights be made out of for best longevity?

If you're not sure about these questions, this is why it's so essential to hire an electrician who knows what they're doing when it comes to installing LED downlights.

When it comes time for you to install brand new LEDs in your home or business, we recommend calling us first! We've installed thousands of LED downlights across the Sunshine Coast since 2013, and we have the experience and knowledge to know what LED downlights are the best fit for your space. Whether you need LED lighting in a tiny room or the entire house, there's no job too big or too small for us!

We'll come out to assess your home's needs before giving you a quote at no cost, which means there will never be any hidden charges when we complete our work!

For a local and affordable Sunshine Coast LED downlight installation, call Sparkies Plus today!

Why choose Sparkies Plus for LED downlight installations?

• LED downlight expert electricians
• On-time or we pay you $50
• No call out fee
• Free upfront quotes priced by the job and not the hour
• Clean up upon completion guaranteed
• Local Sunshine Coast electricians

If you have existing halogen downlights, this is why you need to swap to LED's

Halogen downlights were all the rage years ago, and many Sunshine Coast properties still have them installed. Back in the day, halogen downlights seemed like the perfect solution for a minimalistic and modern lighting solution; however, as time passed, some problems were apparent:

• Halogen downlights became way too hot (after 10 minutes of operation, the surface temperature of the bulb can reach 300 degrees celsius)!
• Due to the extreme operating temperatures, halogen downlights became a fire hazard in your ceiling space. When they are installed too close to timber joists or ceiling members, insulation or anything else flammable in the ceiling space (even blown-in leaves or nesting materials from rodents), you could have a severe problem on your hands.
• The beam angle of halogen downlights is narrow (often 30 or 60 degrees), meaning you need more of them to light the entire room.
• They are incredibly inefficient. One halogen downlight consumes about 55-60 watts, which is about the same consumption as the old, traditional incandescent light bulb. By way of comparison, in years past, the one incandescent light bulb in the centre adequately lighted a room; however, due to the narrow beam spread of halogen downlights, you'd often need 4 x downlights to sufficiently light the room. However, now you consume 4 x times the wattage (4 x 60 watts) instead of the one 60 watt light bulb in the centre.
• The heat generated by halogen downlights puts an incredible amount of wear and tear on the adjacent electrical parts such as the lamp holder, wiring, and transformer.
• Halogen downlights have poor longevity. Typically the halogen bulbs are only rated to 3,000 hours of operation, but many fail well before this time.
  

Why are the benefits of installing LED downlights?

LED downlights are far superior to halogen downlights in the following way:

• They produce little to no heat during operation, and therefore the fire risk is dramatically reduced.
• LED downlights are incredibly efficient. They consume about 80% less power than a halogen downlight.
• LED downlights will produce a wider beam angle, often between 90 - 120 degrees (compared to a halogen downlight which is usually 30 or 60 degrees). You, therefore, need fewer LED downlights in a room to produce the same light output.
• They are close to twice as bright as a halogen downlight for the same physical size. A measure of a light's output is called a lumen. When halogen downlights are new, they will produce 350 - 450 lumens. A modern 10 watt LED downlight will deliver 800 - 950 lumens.
• LED downlights possess legendary reliability. Depending on the manufacturer and quality, their rated lifespan is often between 30,000 to 50,000 hours. If this holds, even if you run the LED downlight for 5 hours per night every day of the year (probably unlikely), you could expect it to last 27 years!

The benefits of LED downlights are clear. You require less of them to light a room due to the broader light beam produced; they are 80% more efficient anyway and will last 10-15 times as long. And most importantly, as they run cool, you'll have peace of mind when it comes to fire risk.

How do I choose the right colour?

LED downlights generally come in one of three colours:



• Warm white (3000 kelvin)
• Cool white (4000 - 5000 kelvin)
• Daylight (6000 kelvin)

When shopping for LED downlights, you'll find the downlight produces only one of the colours above. Or it might be labelled as a 'tri-colour fitting which means it is colour selectable, and you can choose the colour temperature during installation with a flick of a switch on the fitting itself.

A cool white or daylight fitting produces a white colour light (with a daylight fitting having a starker white colour of the two). A white colour temperature is best for the eyes to see detail, so these are more suited to working areas in the home or business (kitchen, bedroom, office, garage). 

A warm white downlight produces a softer, warmer, more inviting yellow colour. A warm white light is best for 'relaxing' areas such as bedrooms, lounge rooms, dining rooms and entertaining areas. 

With that said, we've seen an uptick in more Sunshine Coast homeowners choosing cool white LED downlights throughout their homes for a brighter, fresher look. However, nothing stops you from choosing warm white throughout, or perhaps a combination of both - cool white or daylight in some rooms and warm white in others. A cool white or daylight downlight will generally output a little more light (more lumens) for the same wattage, but the difference is often negligible and hardly noticeable. 

If you're unsure what colour LED best suits your home or space, our recommendation is to choose a tri-colour LED downlight. That way, if you change your mind down the track, it's easy enough to flick a switch on the fitting to change the colour and give your home a different look.

How do I choose the correct diameter?

If you're replacing existing halogen or CFL (compact fluorescent) downlights with new LED's, the size of the LED downlight you choose is governed by the size of the existing hole in the ceiling. The most common LED downlight we install in Sunshine Coast homes and businesses has a 90mm ceiling hole cut out and about a 110mm outer diameter. Larger diameter LED downlights are available to fill the holes in ceilings where old large diameter incandescent downlights were previously installed or where you'd like additional illumination using fewer light fittings.

How do I choose the correct wattage?

The popular LED downlights we install at Sparkies Plus are in the 10-watt - 13-watt range. These are typically 110mm total diameter and are suitable for most applications. A more important specification to be considering than wattage is the lumen output of the fitting. The higher the lumens, the more light it will produce. A LED downlight producing 800 - 1000 lumens is the most common and will deliver bright and impressive light.

What LED downlight construction do you recommend?

Our recommendation is to choose LED downlights made from polycarbonate or ABS plastic. These won't rust, corrode, warp or discolour with age. We often see stainless steel, brushed chrome, or other similar finishes corrode and pit. Metal downlights that have been powder-coated can corrode, causing the powder-coat to flake off with time.

How do I know if I can retrofit my current light fitting with an LED downlight?

As long as we have a 230-volt wiring connection at the fitting location, we can install a LED downlight there. If you're unsure, arrange for a Sparkies Plus electrician to visit you at your Sunshine Coast property to assess your needs and provide a FREE quote.

Other benefits of LED downlights

A halogen downlight often consist of an outer ring and an inner ring (this allows the inner circle to be removed for bulb replacement). However, a large gap between the two rings allows dust and dirt from the ceiling space to enter the home. LED downlights are typically a sealed design and when installed flush to the ceiling, they won't allow dust or dirt to fall through, meaning a cleaner and healthier home.

What are the drawbacks of installing LED downlights?

Discuss with your local Sunshine Coast electrician Sparkies Plus some of the potential drawbacks of LED downlights. Some of these include:

• When replacing halogen downlights with LED's, you may end up with more LED downlights you need in a room because we've had to install the lights where the old ones were. Because LED downlights are often twice as bright as old halogens, you may find the lighting in the room is far too bright for your liking. This, though, is usually remedied by installing a dimmer at the light switch to take the edge off the brightness.
• The lens of many LED downlights is often flush with the ceiling, which means sometimes glare can be a problem.
• LED downlights are very susceptible to murmurs or glitches in the incoming supply to your home from the Supply Authority. You may sometimes see your LED's flicker or flutter when the Supply Authority sends out the frequency pulse across the grid to switch off-peak tariffs on and off.
• If you have existing dimmers in your property, these may or may not be compatible with the new LED downlights when installed. You may need to budget to have your dimmers replaced as well when upgrading to LED.
• The electronics in LED drivers (similar to transformers) are susceptible to damage from surges and over-voltage issues at your property.
  

How do we install LED downlights on the Sunshine Coast?

Most modern LED downlights come with a lead and plug. Sparkies Plus will install a lighting socket (similar to a power point) in the ceiling space above each new LED downlight for it to plug into. The advantage here is that should you wish to replace your downlights yourself later; you won't need an electrician to do so as the plug socket is now there, ready to go.

Are LED downlights a fire risk?

Halogen downlights pose a high fire risk due to operating temperatures reaching 300 degrees celsius. Due to the cool running and operating temperatures of LED downlights, the risk is now minimal. LED's are considered safe in this regard. We recommend that the LED downlights you use are rated and marked as 'IC-F' (insulation abutted and covered), meaning they are safe to have ceiling insulation abutting it in the ceiling and covering it.

The lifespan of LED downlights

LED downlights have expected lifespans on the LED chips of 30,000 to 50,000 hours, equating to 20 - 30 years of operation. However, a LED downlight's Achilles heel is the item powering it, called a LED driver. LED drivers can be vulnerable to surges or other voltage fluctuations, which will likely fail sooner than the reliable LED chips. With that said, you can expect an exceptional lifespan from your LED downlights, and they are a wise investment for your home or business.

Can you replace LED downlight bulbs?

Usually no. LED downlights are a sealed unit, and when a downlight fails, you will need to replace the entire fitting. However, due to the extended lifespans of LED's and a plug socket now being in your ceiling space above, you won't require an electrician for this job. Of course, we are always happy to help whenever you need assistance.