Best Dimmable LED Flood Brand

I've been playing around with replacing my BR40 recessed lighting floods with CFL/LED. This really isn't an easy process, as you don't know what the thing are going to look like until you put them in and try them out.

I have GE Zwave dimmers that are tied into my home automation system, so they aren't mechanical dimmers. I've tried a few different bulbs and I'm finding that the bulbs I've tried to dim worth a crap unless I have at least 50watts of load on the dimmer, which can be difficult with LEDs.

The problem I'm having is find a good dimmable LED. I've tried Ultratech and Cram and both don't work all that well. The TruDIM CFLs work infinitely better. I would put TruDIMs everwhere, but they are pretty spendy for a CFL. I'd like to put in LEDs if I'm going to spend the money given they last so much longer. However, I'd like to ask if anyone has had good experience with a certain brand of LED flood?

Thanks,

I have tried several BR40 LEDs and find TCP to make the best dimmable one. They dim well, do not hum, and even come in 2400k color (also in less yellow colors). I have 11w and 14w TCP and am very happy with them.

If you want a more powerful bulb then Sylvania Ultra 16w is a good choice.

I've used Lighting Science (as well as their Ecosmart orange store version) as well as Green Creative (and Phillips for BR30s), and Feit (BR40 Utilitech). Overall they all dim very well, but ARE sensitive to the type of dimmer they are on. In some rooms I've had to change out my Lutron Skylark dimmers for LED compatible versions, otherwise I get synchronized flashing (unless there is an incandescent on the circuit to provide some load).

I particularly like the new Ecosmart BR40s (although I wish that they were a little brighter). They have the same width as a BR40, but the length of a BR30 (as well as a flatter face instead of a bulge). I have some fixtures in my house that are on the shallow side, and standard BR40s do not recess and peek below the ceiling.

Having said all of that, I'm going to lay off of led BR40s and BR30s for a while. I have several rooms in my house where the lights are left on all the time, and switching to LEDS not only saves electricity, but it keeps the rooms cooler. However, I was not happy with the results when I tried LED bulbs in the dressing area and bathroom: my red shirts looked dull, and some other colors were off (e.g. my brown socks look black). For those areas I'm going to keep using halogen lights, at least until high-CRI comes to the consumer market (Soraa?).

Here is the short-length Ecosmart BR40:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/EcoSmart...ED-Light-Bulb-ECS-BR40-90WE-W27-120/203914616

I am a huge fan of Soraa's MR16 bulbs. They easily have the best CRI (95). Your point about colors is well taken and I have noticed the same thing with a lot of LEDs. TCP BR40 has a CRI of 85 I think, and I find the light very pleasing and colors look very good. It is worth your while to give them a shot. I tried the Ecosmart BR40 but the bulb was too short for my fixture and I do not like Ecosmart's color rendition (not just BR40 but also MR16).

TCP has a some really cheap flood LEDs now but i bought 4 and 1 died after a week. Luckily I was able to get a full refund. The others are still ok.

Tuwago also has a BR30 (but no BR40 option) which seems very good so far. They claim CRI over 85 which is pretty high for any flood LED with translucent diffuser out now. Bought it for $30 but they are on sale for under $20 now.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GM3JA50/?tag=cpf0b6-20

skyled said:

TCP has a some really cheap flood LEDs now but i bought 4 and 1 died after a week. Luckily I was able to get a full refund. The others are still ok. ...

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Other than the infant mortality in the one, how do you like the TCP BR40s? I have a bunch of 75w BR40s I would like to replace. They aren't used enough to be high priority on a cost of operation basis. However they do offer a 3000K version which I would like. And their 11w version seems like it would be a good replacement for the 75w incandescents.

I have had one TCP BR20 for the past year, and really like it. Dims nicely with a Lutron Diva dimmer.

I ended up returning the TCP batch because of the one that died so quickly. I don't want to have to deal with warranty replacements past the return period with these big companies. I've dealt with warranty replacements with Tuwago for another bulb and their customer service and response time is very good.

In terms of the light output, I had the TCP 2700K 15W BR40 from big orange and it was only nominally brighter than the BR30 from Tuwago. 900 lm vs 800 lm. They both have good color but I preferred the Tuwago BR30 because it has a higher CRI (above 85) and I like that its 3000K. Somehow it felt easier on my eyes. With low CRI bulbs my eyes get strained from the weird tints after long periods. They dim nicely as well without any flicker or humming.

I have about 10 or 12 TCP 2400k 65w and 85w BR40s in the house. It has only been a few months but they are working very well. Nice color, dimming, and no buzzing. The CRI is around 85 and the color rendition is much much better than Switch Lighting's 75w A19 which has a CRI of 82 (I think).

Cree is a decent choice.
http://www.cree.com/Lighting/Products/Indoor/Downlights-US/CR-Series
I installed a batch of the CR6 lights to replace some standard floods. They are rated at 2700k with a 90 CRI. The light quality is very good and they look a lot cleaner as a sealed unit. $25 at Home Depot in the store.
I haven't tried dimming yet, although they are rated for it. Still looking for some switches that are compatible with the Apple Home-kit automation.

I wrote about my experiences with CR6s and dimming here: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...lights-and-dimmer-for-home-theater&highlight=

sunset LED bulbs by Sylvania and again I think they have at BatteriesPlus Bulbs for $27.99 and there is a $3 mail in rebate until the end of September