All good things must come to an end. Some things just take longer. One of the major benefits of LED light bulbs is how long they can last when compared to incandescent or compact fluorescent bulbs. But an LED bulb can go bad, so if a bulb is going bad or a problem is being seen with your landscape lighting system what should you do?
How Long Should A LED Bulb Last?
One of the major selling points for LED bulbs is the fact that they should last for a long time. How much is a long time? 50,000 hours is possible. That is more than five years of life if you leave the light on all day every day. Combine that with the fact that it consumes less electricity and an LED light bulb is the way to go.
But like anything manufactured by human hands they may not always live up to their full potential and there may come a time when you see some problems.
How Can LED Bulbs Go Bad
A lightbulb in general has few moving parts so to speak. There is not really a lot that can go wrong with them and that is a good thing. There was very little that could go wrong with the old incandescent bulbs but when it did it was time to replace them. The major culprit of an incandescent bulb was the filament inside the lighting ballast that provided resistance to electricity. This was a necessary part as the bulb would burn out quickly if that resistance was not present.
Now, you probably know that an LED bulb does not have a filament so electricity must be controlled in another manner. These have been replaced with what is called an LED driver and these may not have the same lifespan that your bulb does. When the driver begins to go bad the light will probably not completely fail but will begin to pulsate. If you see that it may be time to replace your LED light, but this effect can be caused for other reasons so it wouldn’t hurt to have your electrician or Resort Lighting check it out as well.
Why?
It Might Not Be The Bulb
There are a lot of electrical components that need to work in order to provide light. Of course your light bulb is probably the cheapest component and generally speaking it is the easiest to replace so most people will start with that. But what if it isn’t the bulb? Or what if you just installed a new LED bulb and the same issue occurs?
The other components should be checked as well. Check for loose wires or damage to the system and make sure everything is secure. If you just replaced a bulb, make sure that the bulb is compatible with your switches. A lot of older systems will not work with newer LED bulbs as they are just incompatible and at best the bulb will flicker. It may be time for an upgrade, so give Resort Lighting a call if you are on Long Island. Also don’t forget to also check the voltage to make sure adequate power is getting to the bulb.
An Electrician Is Best To Handle This
Don’t have the right equipment or know-how to do this? You are not alone.
While most people can replace a burned out bulb, when it comes to dealing with electricity and an electrical system it is best to let a trained professional do that. One mistake when it comes to electricity can kill you. Let the pros do the work. At Resort Lighting we offer full service and maintenance plans so you not only don’t have to worry about figuring out what the issue is but you also don’t have to worry about fixing it. We can do it for you.
How Can I Tell If The Bulb Is Dead?
There are a few ways to tell if an LED bulb is dead or is about to die. If you are lucky or observant enough the bulb can become extremely bright right before it is about to die. Of course if the light won’t turn on, takes a long time to reach peak brightness or is much dimmer than usual it can also mean that the bulb is dead or dying. In some cases you might be able to hear a buzzing or squealing noise which signifies that a vibration has caused the connection to fail.
If any of these occur replacing the bulb should be the first thing tried and chances are it will work. You can save yourself a call to Resort Lighting and you are just down a spare LED bulb.
Resort Lighting offers both service agreements to cover issues with your landscape lighting system throughout its life cycle or we can just come out. Obviously we recommend a service agreement but we will service any landscape system that we have installed. Also if it is time to upgrade your existing system there has never been a better time than now. Give us a call at 631-283-5562 or email us at info@resortlightinginc.com to get started!