LED bulb for fully-enclosed ceiling fixtures?

[Vageetasjn]

I have fully enclosed fixtures at home (like this: http://f.tqn.com/y/homerepair/1/S/D/F/-/-/10_install_shade.jpg) and am looking for an LED to replace the incandescent 100W bulbs, mostly on dimmer switches. Many products warn not to use them in enclosed fixtures because they will overheat. My main goal with switching to LED is longevity, as I have somewhat high ceilings and don't like climbing up there every few months.

I found this product, which seems promising, if a little pricey (https://www.earthled.com/collection...closed-fixtures-17a21g4dim?variant=1296692180). What do you think of this bulb? Do you have any other suggestions?

 

[herm0016]

we use the standard cree glass ones in our enclosed fixtures with no trouble at all.

 

[Vageetasjn]

If it's not rated for enclosed fixtures, I would worry about setting the building on fire. Is that unreasonable?

 

[herm0016]

I think so. are these fixtures that will be on for hours per day? Worst thing that will happen is the electronics in it give out.

 

[Vageetasjn]

What if I go out and accidentally leave a light on all day?
edit: oh the bulb will die.

 

[dbcooper1]

If the fixture is designed for a 100 watt incandescent bulb, any LED device you can put in there is very likely to be just fine. Make sure the ones used in dimmer circuits are suitable for that; usually they will state that they are.

 

[edro]

None of the big guys are making 100W equivalent bulbs that are fully enclosed rated.
Philips and Cree have 100W equivalents (~1600 lumens), but they are not fully enclosed rated for life.

I personally would not trust anything from anyone other than a big name like Philips, Cree, GE, Sylvania, etc. The market is too tumultuous right now and it is easy for small name companies to get low quality through. They will likely burn own quickly.

As far as creating a fire, it is highly unlikely for that to happen. As was said before, if the fixture is rated for 100W incandescents, it will not catch fire from an 18W LED bulb. So can the LED bulb's electronics catch fire if it is too hot? Highly unlikely. It will just have drastically reduced life.

I would get a few of the 100W equivalent Cree bulbs and think nothing of putting them in there enclosed.

If you don't need dimmable, I would get one of the newer 60W equivalents from Philips ($2.50ea) or GE Bright Stik ($3.33ea) from Home Depot. Both whould be high quality and are very cheap.

 

[paperfist]

Not sure how big your fixtures are, but you might want to consider changing the whole thing with these:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia...hite-LED-Mini-Flushmount-FMML-7-840/203583417

I'm not sure it's an exact 100W replacement.

 

[SparkyJJO]

Be aware that even dimmable LEDs usually can't be dimmed on old school dimmers. They usually require a dimmer designed for dimming LEDs.

I have some Philips LED bulbs and they've been pretty solid so far.

 

[edro]

Not sure how big your fixtures are, but you might want to consider changing the whole thing with these:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia...hite-LED-Mini-Flushmount-FMML-7-840/203583417

I'm not sure it's an exact 100W replacement.

I haven't seen that yet. That looks pretty good.
I can think of a few places I could use that.

660lm 4000K and 680lm 3000K will be better than a 60W incand., but not a dual 60W.
It will be better than a dual 40W incand. fixture.

For the OP, your 100W fixture only outputs about 1000-1200lm.
(1600lm lamp, ~80% efficient fixture, and lamp depreciation 20%)
Do you have 1x 100W lamp in your fixtures, or 2?

If you have 1, these 660lm fixtures from Lithonia still wouldn't be as bright, but may be good enough.
If you have 2, you will need to stick with 100W equiv. LED lamps if you want the same brightness.

 

[paperfist]

I haven't seen that yet. That looks pretty good.
I can think of a few places I could use that.

660lm 4000K and 680lm 3000K will be better than a 60W incand., but not a dual 60W.
It will be better than a dual 40W incand. fixture.

For the OP, your 100W fixture only outputs about 1000-1200lm.
(1600lm lamp, ~80% efficient fixture, and lamp depreciation 20%)
Do you have 1x 100W lamp in your fixtures, or 2?

If you have 1, these 660lm fixtures from Lithonia still wouldn't be as bright, but may be good enough.
If you have 2, you will need to stick with 100W equiv. LED lamps if you want the same brightness.

I've had 3 of them running in my office for a couple of years now and so far so good. They seem to put out more light than the 4 60 bulbs they replaced.

 

[Micrornd]

I've had 3 of them running in my office for a couple of years now and so far so good. They seem to put out more light than the 4 60 bulbs they replaced.[/QUOTE

We've replaced all lighting with LEDs in my home and noticed the same thing.
Lumen for lumen, LEDs "appear" to produce more usable light than incandescent and CFLs by eye.
I just attributed it to a broader spectrum of light being produced.

We also noticed that "daylight" temperature bulbs in LEDs are much closer to actual daylight than their incandescent or CFL brethren in color rendition.

 

[edro]

We've replaced all lighting with LEDs in my home and noticed the same thing.
Lumen for lumen, LEDs "appear" to produce more usable light than incandescent and CFLs by eye.
I just attributed it to a broader spectrum of light being produced.

We also noticed that "daylight" temperature bulbs in LEDs are much closer to actual daylight than their incandescent or CFL brethren in color rendition.

They actually output a narrower band of light that your eyes are more sensitive to.
Also, higher color temperatures (3000-6000K) appear brighter to your eyes than incandescent (~2700K) because your eyes are more sensitive to blues/greens than oranges/reds.

A perfect example of this is HPS (high pressure sodium) outdoor infrastructure lamps. They are very orange and have a low CRI, so they do not appear as bright as an equivalent white source like LED, fluorescent or Metal Halide.