An Easy Way to Upgrade Light in Recessed Fixtures

Most homes with in the last ten years included a lighting package with a number of recessed lighting cans sprinkled through out the home.  These recessed fixtures are usually a 6" aperature (the measurment of the opening) with a plain white baffle trim.  The homes built before ten years ago typically came with a black inside baffle until people realized that the black was absorbing more light than it was reflecting.  All most all of these recessed fixtures used an incandescent light source 65watt BR30 medium base lamp.

Change the Trim it came with

Many standard 6" recessed fixtures have the same type of trim set so different companies have compatible trims.  If you have a black baffle trim and you want the current light source to be more efficient then a Standard Open Trim in the Clear Diffuse interior finish will do the trick.  This will reflect the light better so you are seeing more light rather than the light being absorbed in the black trim. 

Clear Diffuse Trim

What type of Light Source is more Efficient?

As we age our eyesight weakens, by the time most of us are in our 50's our eyesight should be 50% as clear as when we were in our 20's. Knowing this the quality of light becomes more important as the years pass.  The standard incandescent BR30 lamp tends to have a yellow tint to the light it produces which makes it harder to see exact lines and colors. 

Halogen Lamps are a much more efficient source of light, producing a crisp white light.  The bulbs recommended for the upgrade would be 75watt PAR Lamp halogen lamp.  These bulbs have upto a 40% longer life reducing the labor involved in changing bulbs and the waste involved in manufacturing them. 

What Light Sources are more Efficient than Halogen?

Energy Star rated lamps are more efficient than halogen.  Today there are many Energy Star rated compact fluorescent lamps that can fit in to the standard medium based socket that is in a 6" recessed fixture. 

The compact fluorescents or CFL come in a few different styles and color temperatures

• Mini Spiral - 2700K, 3000K & 5000K color temps
• Standard Spiral - 3000K & 5000K color temps
• R20, R30, BR38 & R40 Reflectors - 3000K & 5000K color temps
• A Type - 3000K color temp
• Candelabra Base - 3000K
• Bullet & Globe Style - 3000K & 5000K

The comparable CFL to the incandescent BR30 is the R30 CFL lasting 6000 hours, producing almost the same lumens and 75% less energy usage.  Lumens equals the quantity of light energy produced by a light source. The CFL lamps usually cost anywhere from $8 to $ 14.  With the energy savings, time saved driving to the store to buy lamps, changing the lamp and lumen output is almost the same. 

Sounds light a no brainer to me.