The need to replace a halogen MR16 spotlight bulb with a LED version is becoming increasingly common with government legislation being introduced aiming for improved energy efficiency within the lighting industry leading manufacturers to stop making halogen MR16s and instead producing LED MR16s.  As LEDs require much less wattage to power and illuminate the best way to establish which LED MR16 you need is to compare the lumens rather than the wattage.

Halogen MR16 lamps are available in a wide range of wattages.  Below are some examples of the amount of lumens a particular wattage of halogen MR16 bulb would hold on average.

Key thing to consider when choosing your LED replacement:

• Beam Angle: Many Halogen MR16s will have a specific beam angle (e.g. 36°).  If you purchase a LED bulb with a different beam angle the light will look different even if it has the same amount of lumens as the light will be spread or reduced over a different surface area.  If you can match the beam angle you are much more likely to get the same effect.

• Colour Temperature: Most halogen lights produce a very warm white or warm white colour (around 2700K to 3000K). When selecting an LED bulb we would recommend you choose a CCT (colour changeable) version as this can be changed to the warm white colour temperature or you can also try cool white or daylight to see if this is something you would prefer. 

What LED Driver Do I Need for a LED MR16?

Halogen MR16 lamps generally operate at 12 volts. Because of this low voltage, they need a separate transformer to step down the standard mains voltage from 240v to 12V.

When switching to 12V LED MR16s, you have two main options regarding the existing transformer:

1. Keep your existing halogen transformer:  Some LED MR16s are designed to work with existing halogen transformers.  You will however need to make sure that the wattage required is enough for the transformer to work as LED bulbs will likely be a lower wattage than your previous halogen bulbs. 
2. Replace the transformer with a LED Driver:  You may want to consider changing your old halogen transformer to a purpose made LED driver.  If you choose to do this you will need to make sure it will operate the total amount of watts produced by the connected LED bulbs and that it is a dimmable driver if needed as not all LED drivers are made to work with a dimming system.

What are the main differences between Halogen MR16 and LED MR16?

The most relevant difference between halogen and LED MR16s will be the cost.  A halogen MR16 might be cheaper to buy at first but will have higher costs in the long term as these use a higher wattage to produce the same amount of light as the lower wattage LED counterpart.

Can I Change MR16 to GU10?

Yes you can and you may find it is a good way to simplify your lighting system.

Why make the change?

A MR16 system runs on 12V and will require a transformer/driver. The GU10 system runs directly on 240v mains voltage and will not require a driver/transformer.

To make this change over we would highly recommend consulting a qualified electrician.

Switching to GU10 will make it much easier when purchasing replacement bulbs in the future as it will not require a transformer or driver to operate when connected to standard 240V UK mains voltage.