Can i replace halogens with led

To get the maximum benefit from your new LED downlights, have an electrician check your circuits and fittings to ensure they are compatible with the lower-wattage LEDs. Otherwise you risk the excess power blowing the LED. This is especially true if you live in an area with frequent voltage spikes. A good way to tell if you need to change the transformer is to check if the halogens have pins or pegs to connect them to the circuit.

LEDs draw such little power that they never pull the minimum wattage that the transformer is rated for. We use cookies to make your experience better. To comply with the new e-Privacy directive, we need to ask for your consent to set the cookies. View Cookie Policy. With the ban on halogen now firmly in place, there are still lots of halogen and incandescent lamps out there wasting energy and draining the earths resources. These energy hungry relics from a distant past need to get upgraded to LED.

There are a 3 main options of upgrading from halogen to LED, choosing the right option for you depends on the type of downlights and halogen lamps you've currently got. If you're replacing low voltage MR16 50W halogens that have low voltage 12V transformers, the first and obvious option is to replace it with something like an MR16 LED.

These retrofit lamps should operate from your existing transformers. This often results in you having to replace your transformers.

You don't find out that they're not compatible with your transformers until they start flickering or randomly flashing. This happens more-so when you're dimming them. Lower numbers are warmer, while higher numbers are cooler. If you prefer the warm glow of a typical halogen bulb, look for LED bulbs in the K range. Opt for a color temperature between K for cool lights. If you prefer the modern, sterile look of cooler lights, look for a higher color temperature range. These are the hues most people associate with LED bulbs.

Choose dimming LED bulbs if you have a dimmer switch. If you like to adjust the brightness of your lights depending on the time of day, you can opt for LED bulbs that work with a dimmer.

Most LED bulbs will work with your existing dimmer. However, in some cases, you may have to change the dimmer to a low-voltage version. To replace the dimmer switch, turn off the power to the switch, then unscrew the switch plate and remove it. Pull the switch out of the electrical box and remove the wires, then reattach the wires to the new dimmer switch.

Push the new switch into the electrical box and replace the switch plate. Method 2. Cut off the power to the lighting circuit to avoid electrical shock. Find the breaker box in your home and make sure the electricity is cut off before you unscrew any light bulbs. To be extra safe, double-check that the circuit is off with a simple circuit tester. Remove the halogen bulb by twisting it a quarter of a turn and pulling it out.

GU10 bulbs twist and lock into position, so you should be able to just twist it counter-clockwise, then pull straight down to remove the existing halogen bulb from the fitting. As long as you purchased the correct bulb for your fitting, installing the new LED bulb is as simple as removing the old one. After a quarter of a clockwise turn, the bulb should lock into place. Switch the power back on, then turn on the new LED bulb at the light switch.

Flip the breaker back to its original position to restore power to the light switch. After that, you should be able to turn on the light from the light switch as usual.

Method 3. Turn off the power to the lights before you do anything else. Pull out the existing halogen light. MR11 and MR16 lights have pins that push straight into the fitting, so you should be able to pull it straight out of the socket. Dispose of the old bulb by throwing it into the trash. If you have any of these you need to dispose of, check to see if there is a drop-off location in your area where you can take light bulbs that contain mercury. Remove the fitting and locate the transformer in your MR16 circuit.

Use a screwdriver to loosen any screws that are holding the fitting into place and carefully remove it. Follow the wires until you find the transformer, which is usually located just above the light fitting. Find the transformer's maximum load, or the VA number. This information should be printed somewhere on the body of the transformer, and it may be either a fixed number or a range.

If there is only one number, the voltage of your bulbs should match the VA number. For a transformer that controls more than one bulb, you would add up the voltage of each bulb to find out the total voltage.

Disconnect the transformer if you need to replace it. MR11 and MR16 bulbs use 12 volts of power, so in most cases, they fall below the minimum load for a transformer. If this is the case, unscrew the posts holding the black wires in place to disconnect the transformer, then unscrew the wires that attach the bulb fitting to the transformer.

Snip off the ends of the wire and strip 1 in 2. Using wire strippers, cut off the ends of the wire that were previously attached to the old transformer, then strip off a piece of insulation about 1 in 2. This will ensure that you are working with fresh, unfrayed wire. Connect the 2 wires to the LED transformer.