Wanting to change MR11 and transformers to standard UK mains voltage 240V & use dimmable LED bulbs.

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stephenco

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I have a couple of dozen 20 Watt MR11 bulbs on a dimmable switch in a room which I'd dearly love to change to 240 AC mains voltage as the transformers often go and it's a pain changing them.

Is there any type of bulb which would fit the existing bulb holder (MR11 size) and which would mean I could discard the transformer?

I'd also like to change to all LED which is another reason I want to get away from transformers.
 
stephenco said:
Is there any type of bulb which would fit the existing bulb holder (MR11 size) and which would mean I could discard the transformer?
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You can get 35mm diameter lamps with a GU10 base, changing to those would just mean fitting a GU10 lampholder connected directly to 230V. Existing lampholder and transformer removed.
Choice of lamps will be rather limited and they will probably cost far more than you want to pay, particularly if you want dimmable LEDs.

It is likely to be cheaper to just change the entire fitting to a 50mm GU10 type, lamps for which are available everywhere for next to nothing.
 
flameport said:
You can get 35mm diameter lamps with a GU10 base, changing to those would just mean fitting a GU10 lampholder connected directly to 230V. Existing lampholder and transformer removed.
Choice of lamps will be rather limited and they will probably cost far more than you want to pay, particularly if you want dimmable LEDs.

It is likely to be cheaper to just change the entire fitting to a 50mm GU10 type, lamps for which are available everywhere for next to nothing.
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I appreciate this but am just wondering how to easily increase the hole size as a cut out won't have anything to centre itself on. The only way would be to do it manually or is there another way?
 
Anyway - the best thing you could do, although it is disruptive, is to get rid of them altogether. If you think about it, "a couple of dozen lights in a room" is a pretty good indication that they aren't actually any good at the job of lighting up rooms. Unless your room is the size of a football pitch you wouldn't need a couple of dozen lights that are good at lighting up rooms in order to light it up.

But in terms of replacements, you are going to have to replace the lights, not just swap the bulbs. Even if you can find 230V LED bulbs with an MR11 package and a G5.3 base (hard? impossible?) the light fittings you have are not guaranteed to be safe at 230V. The easiest solution, keeping your swiss cheese ceiling, is to look for integrated 230V LED lights which fit the holes, or need slightly larger ones.
 
ban-all-sheds said:
Stack two holesaws together, so the inner one acts as the guide.
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THats what I do, some arbor threads are too short to screw two on, unless you buy there arbor with the longer thread for that purpose, I think its called an OOPS Arbor.
I tend to just wrap tape round the smaller one and wedge it into the larger one.
 
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