


A 5W LED spotlight, for example, can offer the same brightness of light as a 35W halogen spotlight. The natural energy-saving properties of LED light bulbs means that they can offer the same brightness of a halogen equivalent, but using only a fraction of the power. This would overload the fitting and potentially cause a safety issue.įortunately, there is an easy way to find the right low voltage LED spotlights.Įquivalent wattage – swapping halogen MR16 light bulbs for LED MR16
Led replacement bulbs for halogen lights install#
For example, if you have a 40VA transformer for halogen bulbs, you should not install 40-watts worth of LED light bulbs. Some transformers might just carry one individual light bulb, while others might be able to carry several lower wattage light bulbs in a series.Īt this point, it’s important to note that if it is a halogen transformer, this maximum load applies to halogen light bulbs only. For example, a 40VA transformer can handle up to a 40-watt halogen light bulb, while a 10-60VA one can carry between 10 and 60 watts worth of bulbs. These numbers tell you the maximum wattage that the transformer can carry.

This VA number will either be fixed, or it will be a range (e.g. You should be able to find this on the body of the transformer itself, in the form of a ‘VA’ number. If you have low voltage halogen light bulbs installed with a transformer, the first thing you need to do before replacing Halogen MR16 light bulbs with MR16 LED bulbs is to find the transformer’s maximum load. Replacing Halogen MR16 light bulbs with LED MR16 light bulbs
