DIY LED Work Light (much better than halogen!)

Kappy · 05-29-2014, 05:08 PM

I was looking for other LED bulb options and saw this EcoSmart bulb on the Home Depot site. The specs say 1300 lumens, with a 5 year warranty, and it looks like a single diode in the photo. The specs also say it's shatter resistant.

EcoSmart, 120W Equivalent Day Light (5000K) PAR38 LED Flood Light Bulb (E)*, ECS 38 120WE CW FL 120 TP at The Home Depot - Tablet

**ski2** · 05-29-2014, 05:20 PM

Originally Posted by Kappy

I was looking for other LED bulb options and saw this EcoSmart bulb on the Home Depot site. The specs say 1300 lumens, with a 5 year warranty, and it looks like a single diode in the photo. The specs also say it's shatter resistant.

EcoSmart, 120W Equivalent Day Light (5000K) PAR38 LED Flood Light Bulb (E)*, ECS 38 120WE CW FL 120 TP at The Home Depot - Tablet

That looks like one, but note that it is "out of stock online" and I haven't seen any in my HD in months.

**zmcgovern45** · 05-30-2014, 07:33 AM

Spent several hours working with these new lights last night... this is the most time I have spent with them so far so I figured I would share some of my feelings.

1) They are absolutely awesome at showing defects. The slightest towel marring/wash induced swirls were shown... not something I could ever see with Halogen lights

2) I wish the stand went a bit lower... I will have to come up with a way to remove the lights from the stand and set them on the ground when needed. (Although Claude (Dr Pain) found another awesome stand that fixes this issue... he can post a link to it if he wants)

3) These bulbs definitely do put off some heat, but it is WAY less than the Halogens... I mean WAY less. Here are some temp. readings.

Halogen Case/Heat Sink:

LED Case/Heat Sink:

Halogen Face (stupid hot!):

LED Face (the face of the bulb was cooler than the rear casing.. this was noticeable by touching each area as well):

Still very pleased with these lights.

**Setec Astronomy** · 05-30-2014, 07:50 AM

Originally Posted by zmcgovern45

2) I wish the stand went a bit lower... I will have to come up with a way to remove the lights from the stand and set them on the ground when needed. (Although Claude (Dr Pain) found another awesome stand that fixes this issue... he can post a link to it if he wants)

Arghh...I've already got the stand and the head, trying to decide on bulbs...should have waited!!

**jaymz** · 05-30-2014, 08:07 AM

I think these bulbs would do the job and are half the price:

20W LED PAR38 Reflector Light Bulb at Menards

Jim

**zmcgovern45** · 05-30-2014, 09:09 AM

Originally Posted by jaymz

I think these bulbs would do the job and are half the price:

20W LED PAR38 Reflector Light Bulb at Menards

Jim

I'm sure they would work fine. Consider the true differences between the 2 options....

The Menards bulbs are $27 compared to the $37 bulbs I used from Lowes... this is a 27% price difference, but also consider the 28% decrease in brightness with the cheaper bulbs (1000 lumen vs. 1400 lumen)

Just depends on what is most important to you... price or performance.

**ski2** · 05-30-2014, 11:07 AM

Originally Posted by Kappy

I was looking for other LED bulb options and saw this EcoSmart bulb on the Home Depot site. The specs say 1300 lumens, with a 5 year warranty, and it looks like a single diode in the photo. The specs also say it's shatter resistant.

EcoSmart, 120W Equivalent Day Light (5000K) PAR38 LED Flood Light Bulb (E)*, ECS 38 120WE CW FL 120 TP at The Home Depot - Tablet

Was in HD today and found these lights in stock. Seem to be the same as the original EcoSmarts, but without the "fins." About the same price as the ones at Lowes.

Kappy · 05-30-2014, 11:20 AM

Originally Posted by ski2

Was in HD today and found these lights in stock. Seem to be the same as the original EcoSmarts, but without the "fins." About the same price as the ones at Lowes.

So was I and they had a full display of the EcoSmart bulbs. The only advantage that I can see, without trying the bulb, is the longer warranty. I have no idea if 1400 lumens will be noticeably brighter than 1300, 2800 versus 2600 for two bulbs, or if the bulb concentrates the light within the same area as the Utilitech, which is also important.

I considered getting the EcoSmart bulb to compare side by side to the one from Lowes, but the packaging is not user friendly and I didn't want to rip apart all of the plastic if I wasn't going to keep the bulb. Since the Utilitech bulb has already been Zach-tested and approved, it might be the easiest and best one to get, regardless of the shorter warranty.

**KneeDragr** · 05-30-2014, 11:30 AM

subbed

**zmcgovern45** · 05-30-2014, 11:51 AM

Originally Posted by Kappy

So was I and they had a full display of the EcoSmart bulbs. The only advantage that I can see, without trying the bulb, is the longer warranty. I have no idea if 1400 lumens will be noticeably brighter than 1300, 2800 versus 2600 for two bulbs, or if the bulb concentrates the light within the same area as the Utilitech, which is also important.

I considered getting the EcoSmart bulb to compare side by side to the one from Lowes, but the packaging is not user friendly and I didn't want to rip apart all of the plastic if I wasn't going to keep the bulb. Since the Utilitech bulb has already been Zach-tested and approved, it might be the easiest and best one to get, regardless of the shorter warranty.

Get one of each to try... The packaging was a PITA, but I would not feel bad returning one if it truly wasn't the best option for you. That is why they have return policies