Back when we did the whole kitchen remodel, it was at a point in time when CFLs were dominant, but LED bulbs were coming to market. I very much wanted to use LEDs when we could, but going with what the marketplace offered meant most of the fixtures were made for CFL or incandescent bulbs. For the most part that wasn't that big of a deal: I could either use LEDs in the fixture as it was or with a slight modification. The central light in the kitchen, however, was a bit different.
The Kichler fixture we chose was fluorescent with four-pin G24q bases. Eventually, I found LED bulbs that worked in it without having to rewire things and removing the fluorescent ballast, but apparently that technology was not long for the market. When one of the replacement LEDs went out, I had a hard time tracking down a bulb that would supposedly work, and after trying two that either didn't work or only worked sporadically, I was getting frustrated.
It didn't help that the way the fixture housing was designed was a bit of a pain to work with ... which is how I ended up dropping the (acrylic) diffusor, shattering part of it. Remaining frustrated, we lived with it like that for a while—a broken diffusor and one bulb that worked intermittently—but when the diffuser fell out and almost hit Evelin, it seemed the time to move from frustration to action was at hand.
I'd tried when it first broke to source a new diffusor from Kichler or one of its dealers, but no-one was willing to sell a replacement. The fluorescent version had been replaced by an LED version and while it looked identical online, I would only be able to see if it worked if I bought a whole new lighting fixture.
Searching around, I eventually landed on the Access Lighting Solero III, which was the same diameter as the original fixture. It didn't look as sleek, but it also cost a lot less. It's an LED fixture with the bulbs integrated, so when/if they start to die the whole thing will need to be replaced. I'm not wild about that, but it seems to be the trend these days.
