LED's Re-visited

Alansails · Nov 20, 2013

I Also have replaced all the interior lights (or at least the ones most used) with red/white LED from Cruising Solutions (Bradd) so I would also be interested in a response to Russ if anyone knows! Thanks!

Dreaming · Nov 20, 2013

Perhaps this thread may help?

http://forums.sbo.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=151550

Look at Post #12

Maine Sail · Dec 17, 2013

Long Story said:
For our Bow and Stern Lights - are they pointed or dimpled? My manuals are missing, anyone know make / model of fixture?

Thanks - Christmas shopping here....

Keep in mind that your nav lights need to meet the COLREGS definitions of a navigation light. This is federal law.

How will you know that a home made navigational light will meet the horizontal sectors, vertical sectors, color and distance specifications? If you are willing to take on that risk, that is fine, I just point it out because folks only tend to think the COLREGS is only about distance and that is simply not true.

There is a part in Rule 20 of the COLREGS that states nav lights SHALL COMPLY with Annex I of the CFR / Code of Federal Regulations, and many folks miss this critical section.

This is what it means, by US Federal Law and the COLREGS to be considered a "navigation light"....

From 33 CFR 84:

Colors

� 84.13 Color specification of lights
(a) The chromaticity of all navigation lights shall conform to the following standards, which lie within the boundaries of the area of the diagram specified for each color by the International Commission on Illumination (CIE), in the "Colors of Light Signals", which is incorporated by reference. It is Publication CIE No. 2.2. (TC-1.6), 1975, and is available from the Illumination Engineering Society, 345 East 47th Street, New York, NY 10017. It is also available for inspection at the Office of the Federal Register, Room 8401, 1100 L Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20408. This incorporation by reference was approved by the Director of the Federal Register.
(b) The boundaries of the area for each color are given by indicating the corner coordinates, which are as follows:
(1) White:
x 0.525 0.525 0.452 0.310 0.310 0.443
y 0.382 0.440 0.440 0.348 0.283 0.382
(2) Green:
x 0.028 0.009 0.300 0.203
y 0.385 0.723 0.511 0.356
(3) Red:
x 0.680 0.660 0.735 0.721
y 0.320 0.320 0.265 0.259
(4) Yellow:
x 0.612 0.618 0.575 0.575
y 0.382 0.382 0.425 0.406

Intensity

� 84.15 Intensity of lights
(a) The minimum luminous intensity of lights shall be calculated by using the formula:
l = 3.43 x 106 x T x D2 x K-D
where:
I is luminous intensity in candelas under service conditions, T is threshold factor 2 x 10-7 lux, D is range of visibility (luminous range) of the light in nautical miles, K is atmospheric transmissivity. For prescribed lights the value of K shall be 0.8, corresponding to a meteorological visibility of approximately 13 nautical miles.
(b) A selection of figures derived from the formula is given in Table 84.15(b).
Table 84.15(b)
Range of visibility (luminous Minimum
range) of light in nautical luminous intensity of light
miles in candelas tor K = 0.8
D I
1 0.9
2 4.3
3 12
4 27
5 52
6 94

Horizontal Sectors

� 84.17 Horizontal sectors
(a)
(1) In the forward direction, sidelights as fitted on the vessel shall show the minimum required intensities. The intensities shall decrease to reach practical cut-off between 1 and 3 degrees outside the prescribed sectors.
(2) For sternlights and masthead lights and at 22.5 degrees abaft the beam for sidelights, the minimum required intensities shall be maintained over the arc of the horizon up to 5 degrees within the limits of the sectors prescribed in Rule 21. From 5 degrees within the prescribed sectors the intensity may decrease by 50 percent up to the prescribed limits; it shall decrease steadily to reach practical cutoff at not more than 5 degrees outside the prescribed sectors. (b) All-round lights shall be so located as not to be obscured by masts, topmasts or structures within angular sectors of more than 6 degrees, except anchor lights prescribed in Rule 30, which need not be placed at an impracticable height above the hull, and the all-round white light described in Rule 23(d), which may not be obscured at all. (c) If it is impracticable to comply with paragraph (b) of this section by exhibiting only one all-round light, two all-round lights shall be used suitably positioned or screened to appear, as far as practicable, as one light at a minimum distance of one nautical mile.

NOTE to paragraph (c): Two unscreened all-round lights that are 1.28 meters apart or less will appear as one light to the naked eye at a distance of one nautical mile.

Vertical Sectors

� 84.19 Vertical sectors
(a) The vertical sectors of electric lights as fitted, with the exception of lights on sailing vessels underway and on unmanned barges, shall ensure that:
(1) At least the required minimum intensity is maintained at all angles from 5 degrees above to 5 degrees below the horizontal;
(2) At least 60 percent of the required minimum intensity is maintained from 7.5 degrees above to 7.5 degrees below the horizontal.
(b) In the case of sailing vessels underway the vertical sectors of electric lights as fitted shall ensure that:
(1) At least the required minimum intensity is maintained at all angles from 5 degrees above to 5 degrees below the horizontal;
(2) At least 50 percent of the required minimum intensity is maintained from 25 degrees above to 25 degrees below the horizontal.
(c) In the case of unmanned barges the minimum required intensity of electric lights as fitted shall be maintained on the horizontal.
(d) In the case of lights other than electric lights these specifications shall be met as closely as possible.

This is what USCG / ABYC A-16 navigation lights are tested to and all nav lights "shall comply" with regardless of certification..

To see where in the COLREGS lights are defined and what those requirements are you need to look no further than Rule 20:

USCG Nav Center said:

Rule 20 - Application

Click to expand

USCG Nav Center said:
(a) Rules in this part shall be complied with in all weathers.

(b) The Rules concerning lights shall be complied with from sunset to sunrise, and during such times no other lights shall be exhibited, except such lights which cannot be mistaken for the lights specified in these Rules or do not impair their visibility or distinctive character, or interfere with the keeping of a proper look-out.

(c) The lights prescribed by these Rules shall, if carried, also be exhibited from sunrise to sunset in restricted visibility and may be exhibited in all other circumstances when it is deemed necessary.

(d) The Rules concerning shapes shall be complied with by day.

(e) The lights and shapes specified in these Rules shall comply with the provisions of Annex I [to these Regulations | of these Rules].

Annex I takes you straight to the CFR definitions of a nav light as posted above... "shall comply with the provisions of Annex I" is not worded lightly. This means every boaters nav lights shall comply with the CFR specs above.. "Shall comply" is not a gray area...

There are plenty of certified NAV lights on the market that meet the COLREGS standards but only two or three tested and certified for use in an already existing fixture. The only after market bulb that is certified, and has the testing certs to back it up, for use in existing fixtures, are made by Dr. LED but only for use in certain Aqua Signal Series 40 fixtures. They have certifications for bow red, bow green and all-round.. However the red/green FAILED to meet the specs & pass certifications for a sailboat so the only certified aftermarket bulb is the PolarStar 40 anchor light when used in an Aquasignal Series 40 All Round. Even Dr. LED can't pass certifications for a sail boat how can you as a DIY be sure..????

Remember there is no requirement I know of that says you as a private boat owner must install "certified" lights. However, it is the law that your lights "shall comply" with Rule 20 / 33CFR 84 for distance, horizontal sectors, color and vertical sectors. How do you know they will, without any testing?

The easiest way to know your lights comply is to simply purchase USCG / ABYC A-16 certified navigation lights. Prices have come way down in recent months...

joker460 · Dec 17, 2013

Why would you replace the steaming light with an expensive LED equiv. Isn't the steaming light only to be used when using the engine is running.
Just a thought.

Maine Sail · Dec 17, 2013

joker460 said:
Why would you replace the steaming light with an expensive LED equiv. Isn't the steaming light only to be used when using the engine is running.
Just a thought.

Perhaps because climbing the mast to replace incandescent is a PITA..?

joker460 · Dec 17, 2013

Maine Sail said:
Perhaps because climbing the mast to replace incandescent is a PITA..?

A good Point

We drop the mast every year (winter) and replace the bulb just as a maintenance procedure.

Maine Sail · Dec 18, 2013

Long Story said:
Maine Sail; As always nothing but the most respect and thanks for what you bring to the table, the knowledge and the facts.

Questions Though: The Fixture is what is certified, not the lamp source. As has been brought up in the past with voltage drop from bad contacts, long wire runs of inadequate size, and the fact that an incandescent bulb looses 15% of it's light output in the fist 50 hours of use how do we know that we are compliant in normal use?

Now when you take a certified fixture, and replace the lamp with LED light source which has a higher luma output, a greater resistance to voltage drop (will output the same light down to 8 VDC) and has a more collimated light focus within the certified fixture, why would we assume any less performance from said fixture? Our fixture and lenses control how the light is dispersed and at what angle it is visible. I know from one LED supplier, they have data that they meet or exceed the visibility (distance) ratings for their replacement bulbs.

Not looking to redesign the wheel, just change a light bulb, and with my boat so far away, and no data handy did not know if I used pointed or dimpled replacement bulbs.

Has anyone who made a change to LED fixtures noted if there is a major design difference between the LED housing and the old incandescent housing (other than being more compact)

Maine Sail, I did have to check one thing after reading your information and this one concerned me (just a little) as this last fall I purchased all new running lights for the dinghy. They are of the LED design, and from a well known supplier. Guess what, the package clearly stated that they ARE NOT Coast Guard Approved for Navigation - go figure that one...

Thanks for the input, always appreciated.

Russ
s/v Long Story

The fixture with a bulb is what is certified. Dr. LED sent in multiple LED's in Aquasignal fixtures and still FAILED to get certifications for sailboats on anything but his All Round. This is a professional company specifically designing his LED's for navigational purposes yet he has but ONE approval that meets the COLREGS for a sail boat.

Dr. LED's red/green bow lights pass for POWER vessels but NOT for sail and this is because they failed either the horizontal or vertical sectors due to LED's not having the same performance characteristics as an incandescent.. The Aquasignal 40 with their incandescent bulb passes for both sail and power. The Dr. LED only passes for power.

As I mentioned above distance is only one SMALL aspect of meeting the federal nav light requirements. People often confuse this.

LED's do not have the same cut off angles or horizontal or vertical sector perforamnce that an incandescent bulb has thus when installed in a fixture not specifically designed for an LED they most often fail to meet certification, especially for sailboats...

IMANNA Labs, that is who does most of the testing, also accounts for bulb degradation in LED's and incandescents. Many of the LED fixtures they have been sent fail the burn in test because LED bulbs also lose lumen output over time and when poorly current regulated. They have tested some LED's that were at 50% output after just one week of use. This is simply sloppy design work. Many others fail color, horizontal, vertical or even distance. LED's also constantly degrade and lose lumen output where incandescent drops initially then remain relatively flat. IMANNA acounts for this in LED approvals.

Companies are rather unscrupulous. One LED nav light IMANNA tested, that failed, wound up on the market anyway! The company simply did not care...

It is NOT easy to meet COLREGS standards with LED and it takes good engineering. Dr. LED has failed with numerous purpose built LED's to gain certification in existing fixtures.

IMANNA fails LED nav lights on a monthly basis and I have had long conversations with them about the process and all aspects of this testing... Companies like Hella, Aquasignal, Marine Beam, LopoLight, OGM and many others have built good LED lights and succeeded in getting them USCG certified. They have also come way down in price.

There are MANY "navigation" lights out there that carry no certification both incandescent and LED and you'd not catch me dead using any of them. I am one who has been through an on-water night time death that involved lengthy forensics testimony on navigation lights. A drunk boater ran over one of my best friends fathers. This was all before LED. I would not risk being on the water without knowing my navigation lights met the FEDERAL LAW REQUIREMENTS.. But that's just me.. Others choose to do differently...

Oh and on the festoon LED's... I climbed a mast this summer due to a deck light being out. The owners steaming light, an LED festoon, was facing BACKWARDS!!!!!!!! Can't physically do that with an incandescent. Owner insisted it was installed facing forward so it must have vibrated backwards.....

One of the most famous non-certified widely used products is the Davis Mega Light. NO CERTIFICATION!

Hamilton Marine feels so strongly about not being involved in the liability chain they have this sign hanging right next to the LED lights where you can't miss it:

And this is the back of a package of an IMTRA LED bulb.

Seems no one wants to accept the potential liability for installing aftermarket LED's not even the people making them or the people selling them. That says a lot to me....

Chief RA · Dec 18, 2013

Interesting information here. I just replaced my interior lights with LED's but opted to leave exterior lights alone. Chief

Maine Sail · Dec 18, 2013

*** I just want to make it clear that as a boat owner you are not required to install certified navigation lights but boat builders, dealers and folks like myself are required to do so.

***You are however REQUIRED to comply with federal law. The easiest way to know that you are doing so is to buy a light that passes the USCG, ABYC A-16, COLREGS/CFR certification standards..

A real gray are but the bottom line is that all boaters are required under federal law to have navigation lights that perform to the COLREGS / ANNEX 1 specifications..