Pool lights can add a charming glow to our pools, but they also need regular maintenance. If the pool light bulb can be easily replaced, then the maintenance work will become more convenient and cost-effective. In this guide, we will introduce you to some common types of LED pool light bulbs, their advantages and disadvantages, and how to choose the best one for your pool.
Replaceable pool light bulbs consist of light-emitting parts (such as LED chips for LED lights), lenses, housings, some electronic components, and other components. You can remove them from the pool light by twisting or plugging them in and out. They not only emit light, but also determine the power, beam angle and other parameters of the pool light.
All pool lights may encounter various problems during use, such as light decay, water ingress, flickering, etc. Even big brand products with more stable quality and longer warranty period are no exception. If only the bulb is faulty, replacing the damaged pool light bulb can save a lot of costs and avoid the trouble of discarding or reinstalling the entire pool light.
Although replaceable bulbs have many advantages, there are still a large number of LED pool lights that do not design their bulbs as replaceable.
This is mainly due to the following reasons:
Nowadays, LED is the absolute mainstream product in the pool lighting field. LED has a long service life, which means you do not need to replace or maintain them frequently under normal use.
LED can be flexibly designed according to needs and integrated into various shapes and specifications of pool lights. Manufacturers have developed various pool lights with unique shapes and large size differences according to market demand. However, different manufacturers and different models of LED pool lights have huge differences, making it difficult to adopt a unified standard.
The above reasons lead to the market demand for LED bulbs being far less than pool lights. Many manufacturers do not design replaceable light bulbs for their products because they want to reduce manufacturing costs and minimize the manufacturing process.
Although the above reasons lead to the development scale of LED replaceable bulbs not being large, there are still two specifications of pool light replacement bulbs that are more popular in the market.
PAR is an abbreviation for “parabolic aluminized reflector”. It is a lighting product widely used in personal and public lighting fields. PAR bulbs usually consist of luminous parts (such as LED chips), tempered glass or PC plastic lenses, and parabolic reflectors (used to focus and control the beam angle). Most PAR bulbs are non-detachable and completely sealed.
PAR56 is a standard size circular reflective light bulb. The diameter of circular PARs is expressed by the nominal diameter of the reflector in eighths of an inch, so dividing the PAR size by 8 gives an approximate nominal diameter (in inches) of the lamp bell mouth at its widest point. The diameter (in millimeters) can also be obtained by multiplying the PAR name by 3.175. For example 56/8=7，56×3.175=177.8. By calculation, the diameter of PAR56 is 7inch or 177.8mm.
In the field of pool lighting, most PAR56 bulbs use LED chips instead of traditional halogen bulbs for their light-emitting components. Many pool light manufacturers have developed LED pool lights based on PAR56 bulbs, such as Waking Lighting.
PAR has various standardized sizes, here is a table of common PAR sizes:
| Name | Diameter (inches) | Diameter (mm) | Usage Scenarios |
|---|---|---|---|
| PAR16 | 2 | 50.8 | Spotlights |
| PAR20 | 2.5 | 63.5 | Recessed downlights |
| PAR30 | 3.75 | 95.25 | Track lighting |
| PAR38 | 4.75 | 120.65 | Floodlights |
| PAR46 | 5.75 | 146.05 | Stage lighting |
| PAR56 | 7 | 177.8 | Pool lighting |
| PAR64 | 8 | 203.2 | Aircraft landing lights |
PAR56 pool light bulbs have two main designs, one with a parabolic reflector and one without a parabolic reflector. The bulb with a parabolic reflector is larger in size than the one without a parabolic reflector. However, these two types of bulbs have the same installation standard and can replace each other. Manufacturers also develop unique features for their PAR56 bulbs according to market demand.
For example, some PAR56 bulbs have anti-glare lenses, which make the light more uniform and soft. In addition, WAKING Lighting has developed a PAR56 bulb with a hollowed-out housing and internal waterproofing. This bulb has better heat dissipation performance than traditional PAR56 bulbs, and the maximum optional power is 50W.
ES stands for Edison screw, which is an electronic component interface standard developed by “Thomas Edison” and patented in 1881. Bulbs that use this standard have metal bases that can be screwed into matching threaded sockets.
The “E” in E27 stands for Edison screw interface, and 27 indicates the diameter measured in millimeters at the peak of the bottom (male) thread.
In the field of pool lighting, the most commonly used Edison interface is E27. E27 and E26 have a 1mm difference, but they are compatible with each other.
This pool light manufactured by Pentair, which can be replaced with a light bulb of E27 specification.
There are four common types of E interfaces:
PAR56 and E27 bulbs are the most popular types of bulbs in the pool lighting field, but their shape sizes and installation methods are completely different, so they cannot replace each other.
PAR56 bulbs are circular reflective bulbs with a diameter of 7 inches or 177.8 mm. They are usually installed by inserting them into a niche or a bracket in the pool wall. E27 bulbs are cylindrical screw-in bulbs with a diameter of 27 mm. They are usually installed by screwing them into a socket on the pool light fixture.
Power Difference In addition to having anti-glare lenses and hollowed-out design, PAR56 bulbs also support a much higher maximum optional power than E27 bulbs.
The above details the types, features, and differences between pool light replacement light sources. We also explain why many LED pool lights do not have replaceable light sources. We hope these contents can help you make a wiser choice when selecting pool lights and light source products.
WAKING Lighting is a professional LED pool light and bulb manufacturer. We have a variety of pool lights, some of which have replaceable bulb design. If you want to know more about LED pool lights or bulbs, please feel free to contact us.
