Effectively brightening up your home requires placing the right amount of lights at the perfect locations. Nowadays, homeowners use recessed lighting for practical reasons. Can lights are the more traditional yet canless LED lights are more convenient to install and DIY friendly. Now, you might wonder if you use canless LED lights, if they are safe for your home? Here is what we found.
Yes. Canless LED lights are safe. First, LED lights don’t burn out. If properly installed, they are not much of a fire hazard. Second, they are environmentally friendly because they don’t contain mercury, unlike compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) lights. And lastly, they are more energy-efficient with a long lifespan.
Read on to know more about canless LED lights. We’ll cover pros and cons, how to install them, and why you should switch to canless LED lighting.
What Is Canless LED Lighting?
As the name suggests, canless LED light is a type of recessed lighting in which the bulb is not contained in a can. These lights act as a single unit and are within a thin layer connected directly to the electrical wires, which is why they don’t require an electrical box.
However, when these lights dim or run out of diode, you have to replace the entire unit.
How Long Do Canless LED Lights Last?
Out of all bulb options, LED lights have the longest lifespan. According to some studies, LED lights nowadays have an average lifespan of 50,000 hours. And it can last up to 100,000 hours depending on its use.
Comparatively, other bulb options like CFL only last to about 15,000 hours while incandescent and halogen lights have lifespans of 1,000 hours and 2,000 hours, respectively.
What Are the Pros And Cons Of Using Canless LED lights?
Here are a few pros and cons to help you decide whether to invest in canless LED lights or not.
Pros
1. Long Lifespan
As mentioned above, LED lights now have an average lifespan of 50,000 hours. However, depending on how often you use them, it can shorten their lifespan.
2. Energy Efficient
Unlike incandescent bulbs that use filaments to light up, LED lights use diodes to emit light. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, residential LED lights use at least 75% less energy than incandescent lighting. To put it simply, using LED lights is like having brighter illumination for lesser wattage.
3. Less Heat Production
LED lights emit energy that produces only 20% heat and the rest is produced as light. This is also one of the reasons why LED lights are the least likely fire hazard among all lighting options. Comparatively, incandescent bulbs emit 90% of their energy as heat while CFLs produce 80% of their energy as heat.
4. Environmental Friendly
In addition to their energy-saving advantage, LED lights don’t have mercury, unlike CFLs, making them environmentally friendly.
5. Easy To Install
Since canless LED lights are thin and compact, it is quite easy to install them and you can do it yourself. Unlike can lights, you don’t have to worry about making holes in your ceiling and looking for joists and trusses to install your canless LED lights.
Cons
1. High Investment Cost
The initial cost of buying canless LED lights can be expensive given that they have a longer lifespan compared to others. However, you can cut down your electric bills since LED lights require less wattage and are energy-saving.
2. Can’t Be Used Again Once LEDs Get Too Dim
One drawback of using canless LED lights is you can’t replace the LED bulbs once they run out. Instead, you have to replace the whole unit with a new one to once again light up the affected area.
How To Install Canless LED Lights?
There is no standard when it comes to the installation of canless LED lights. It depends on the manufacturer so each one might have its unique installation guidelines. In addition, unlike can lights, worrying about the location of your joists and trusses is insignificant when using canless LED lights.
Are Canless LED Lights Right For Me?
Lighting up your home is not an easy task. It requires strategic arrangement topped with creativity. If you are looking for a safer, long-lasting, hassle-free, and energy-saving lighting option, then canless LED lighting is perfect for you.
However, it all depends if the canless LED lights features are appropriate for your needs.
Click here for this canless LED recessed light on Amazon.
In Conclusion
Canless LED lights are safe to use mainly because, unlike conventional lighting, they produce less heat therefore the risk of fire is low. In addition, they don’t have harmful elements like mercury, making them environmentally friendly.
Canless LED lights also have a longer lifespan and are energy efficient. Overall, investing in canless LED lighting sounds like a good idea.
You can also check out these articles if you’re looking for living room design ideas.