How It Works
How Long Do Permanent Lights Last? LED Lifespan
Apollo's permanent lighting uses LEDs rated for 50,000-plus hours - roughly 15 to 20 years of typical evening use. Here is how that math works.
Apollo's permanent lighting uses LEDs rated for 50,000-plus hours. That's roughly 15 to 20 years of normal evening use. You shouldn't see real dimming before then. Regular string lights need new bulbs every year or two. Apollo's LEDs last far longer. Here's the math behind that.
How the Hour Rating Actually Works
An hour rating isn't a cutoff date. It marks when the light may start to dim. That dimming happens below a set level. A 50,000-hour LED still makes usable light well past that mark. That's true in most cases. Think of the number as a guess. It's a conservative guess. Slow, barely visible dimming might begin around then. It's not an expiration date.
An incandescent bulb works differently. Its filament burns out. The light stops completely. LEDs fade slowly instead. They don't fail all at once. That's part of why permanent LED systems are close to maintenance-free. You won't walk outside one day to a dead bulb. There's no single moment when it just quits.
What 50,000+ Hours Means in Real Years
The hour rating only makes sense once you know your nightly runtime. Most homes run their lights a few hours each evening. That's for accent, holiday, or security use. They don't run all day. Picture that typical pace. At that pace, 50,000-plus hours works out to roughly 15 to 20 years. That's before the LEDs are expected to dim much.
That range is wide. Every home runs its lights differently. Run your display two hours most nights? You land near the high end. Run six or more hours a night for weeks at a time? You use up that rated life a bit sooner. Even then, you're still talking about many years, not a few seasons.
Why This Beats Replacing String Lights
Regular string lights, even LED ones, are a different kind of product. Single bulbs burn out. On older strands, one dead bulb can kill the whole string. Sun and weather crack the plastic housing. They crack the wiring too, within a few seasons. Most homes replace some string lights every year or two. Maybe it's a dead bulb. Maybe it's a cracked socket. Maybe it's a strand that just won't light after a winter in storage.
A permanent system rated for 50,000-plus hours works on a different idea. You install it once. You expect it to keep working. That's for close to two decades of normal use. There are no bulbs to swap. There's nothing to test strand-by-strand each fall.
How Other Brands' LED Ratings Compare
LED hour ratings vary across the permanent lighting category, so the rating is worth asking about before you buy. Apollo's LEDs are rated for 50,000-plus hours. A rating is not a date a system fails on. LEDs dim slowly rather than switch off, so a higher rated hour count mostly means that dimming shows up later.
If you're comparing systems, ask about the LED hour rating. It's a concrete spec to check. Also ask about warranty length. Ask what the product-versus-labor coverage covers. See the permanent lighting page for the full rundown of Apollo's system specs.
What Else Affects How Long the System Lasts
The LED hour rating is the headline number. It's not the only factor. The housing and mounting hardware matter just as much. That housing stands between the LEDs and Oklahoma's weather. Apollo's system uses waterproof, anti-UV housing. It holds up to sun and moisture year-round. It won't fade or take water damage. Good housing keeps itself from becoming the weak point. That happens long before the LEDs reach their rated hours.
Ask any installer about this. Don't just ask about the LED spec alone. A long-rated LED in weak housing won't reach its full lifespan. Not if the housing fails first. Apollo's FAQ page has more on this. It covers how the system holds up to Oklahoma weather year-round.
FAQ
How long do permanent lights last?
Apollo's permanent lighting uses LEDs rated for 50,000-plus hours. At a typical few hours of evening use per day, that works out to roughly 15 to 20 years. That's before the LEDs are expected to dim much.
Do permanent LED lights need bulbs replaced like string lights?
No. Unlike string lights, there are no bulbs to replace. The LED track is rated for 50,000-plus hours. It runs close to maintenance-free for years.
What does a 50,000-hour LED rating actually mean?
It marks when the LEDs may start to dim below a set level. It's not a hard cutoff when the lights stop working. LEDs fade slowly. Incandescent bulbs, by contrast, just burn out.
How do other permanent lighting brands' LED lifespans compare?
LED hour ratings vary by brand, so ask for the number in writing. Apollo's system uses LEDs rated for 50,000-plus hours.
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