LED outdoor lights

This project started when I went to purchase a replacement halogen bulb for my outdoor lights.  When I discovered that they cost about 6-7 dollars each, I had an idea to replace them with something that wold last longer and be less expensive.  LED seemed like the obvious choice, especially since the cost of white LEDs has dropped in recent years.

For this project you will need:

LEDs (whatever color you like, make sure they are bright.  I replaced mine with white ones)
Mounting hardware (however you want to secure your leds in the light fixture)
current regulator (this will vary depending on your LED specs and power supply of your existing lights)
wire (and solder + soldering iron)
adhesive (preferably epoxy, both thermal and regular)

Step 1 Existing Installation

My outdoor lighting setup consists of 15 of these "bullet" style lights.  Each one has a 20 watt halogen bulb inside. They all run off of a typical 12v AC exterior lighting power supply.  The power supply is rated at 300 watts, so I'm cutting it pretty close.  All of these lights have the original bulbs that came with the unit when I installed them.  Since they were installed all at the same time, the fact that one or two of the bulbs have gone out could mean that they are all reaching the end of their expected lifespan.

Comments

[Liz Harte]

LED seems to be the best option for those who want to spend less for their outdoor lighting yet still having a nice and safe lightings. Great post.

[alansoo]

Great project & safe pocket money too... Just too bad I can't get the driver here in Malaysia and those thing cost a bomb to get overseas