L.E.D (Light Emitting Diodes) lights seem to be the latest thing in lighting from flashlights to running lights. They are very low in power consmption and last much longer than traditional incandecent lights making them ideal for a sailboats running on batteries. Has anyone found a good source for LED bulbs to replace the incadescent cabin lights?
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Lights
Paul, Unfortunatly, I dont think that you will find an actual bulb to replace. I am pretty sure that the LED's require differant recip. Please let me know if I am wrong.
Paul, Unfortunatly, I dont think that you will find an actual bulb to replace. I am pretty sure that the LED's require differant recip. Please let me know if I am wrong.
Try this
They have mostly bulbs for autos, but alos have the bayonet type interior lights use, as well as festoon types that some running lights require. You have to know the type # of the bulb you have to cross reference. I haven't (yet) purchased anything from them, so I can't say if they'll a right fit or not. But I probably will when I get to the boat to ID the bulb types I need. I also found the bayonet type at West Marine, but much more expensive, like $40.
They have mostly bulbs for autos, but alos have the bayonet type interior lights use, as well as festoon types that some running lights require. You have to know the type # of the bulb you have to cross reference. I haven't (yet) purchased anything from them, so I can't say if they'll a right fit or not. But I probably will when I get to the boat to ID the bulb types I need. I also found the bayonet type at West Marine, but much more expensive, like $40.
Already Working On Them!
I've been toying with this idea for a while. White LED's have been bringing >$2.00. About 2 weeks ago I was on a site that does LED reviews and found one of the vendors sold on ebay. Checking ebay there's hundreds of LED listings. I bought 100 20,000 mcd (Bright White) for $34.95 direct from Hong Kong. My Hunter has three types of lights and I plan on doing the round white ones and the spots. 3 of the 20,000 mcd's seem to be putting out more light than the 10 watt spotlight bulbs. (My over head lights are 12.5 watts.) The LED's will draw less than 1/10 of the power it takes to run a standard bulb and they'll last 10.8 years of Constant usage. I have a Excel Spreadsheet I did that will calculate your resistor size. If you email me I'll send you the Spreadsheet. I plan on doing my mast and anchor lights too. mxsxc@yahoo.com Mike
I've been toying with this idea for a while. White LED's have been bringing >$2.00. About 2 weeks ago I was on a site that does LED reviews and found one of the vendors sold on ebay. Checking ebay there's hundreds of LED listings. I bought 100 20,000 mcd (Bright White) for $34.95 direct from Hong Kong. My Hunter has three types of lights and I plan on doing the round white ones and the spots. 3 of the 20,000 mcd's seem to be putting out more light than the 10 watt spotlight bulbs. (My over head lights are 12.5 watts.) The LED's will draw less than 1/10 of the power it takes to run a standard bulb and they'll last 10.8 years of Constant usage. I have a Excel Spreadsheet I did that will calculate your resistor size. If you email me I'll send you the Spreadsheet. I plan on doing my mast and anchor lights too. mxsxc@yahoo.com Mike
Here is an idea that sounds good but......
really isn't cost effective or practical IMO. Unless the power savings is CRITCAL to your mission, I really don't see any compelling reason to change over to LEDs. In 7 sailing seasons I have replaced 1 interior halogen bulb for $4 from Home Depot. In the same time I have replaced 1 running light that was smashed and lost- bad enough to replace a $40 lamp assembly, it would probably have been double or more if it had a LED in it. I think that the anchor light might be the only lamp that *may* be worth replacing with a LED cluster, but I just can't get by the cost. I can think of better ways to spend $40+. Regarding the flashlights that are being hyped- I find that they are too dim for any use other than chart reading. Hi-tech and glitzy? Yep, you bet! Practical- sorry. They don't get my vote.
really isn't cost effective or practical IMO. Unless the power savings is CRITCAL to your mission, I really don't see any compelling reason to change over to LEDs. In 7 sailing seasons I have replaced 1 interior halogen bulb for $4 from Home Depot. In the same time I have replaced 1 running light that was smashed and lost- bad enough to replace a $40 lamp assembly, it would probably have been double or more if it had a LED in it. I think that the anchor light might be the only lamp that *may* be worth replacing with a LED cluster, but I just can't get by the cost. I can think of better ways to spend $40+. Regarding the flashlights that are being hyped- I find that they are too dim for any use other than chart reading. Hi-tech and glitzy? Yep, you bet! Practical- sorry. They don't get my vote.
LED Anchor
We are cruisers in the caribbean and spend a great deal of time at anchor. When we get back to the states the first thing I will be changing is the the anchor light to LED. We spend a lot of time on the hook and no having to up and down the mast to change the buld would be a pleasure. The LEDs we have seen draw less, last longer and provide better visabilty. The cost is small when replacing the bulbs that our boat currently uses. $18. if we can find them!
We are cruisers in the caribbean and spend a great deal of time at anchor. When we get back to the states the first thing I will be changing is the the anchor light to LED. We spend a lot of time on the hook and no having to up and down the mast to change the buld would be a pleasure. The LEDs we have seen draw less, last longer and provide better visabilty. The cost is small when replacing the bulbs that our boat currently uses. $18. if we can find them!
LED Lamp Source
Here's a site that seems to have a good selection of LED lighting: http://www.innovativelight.com I haven't used them, just found the URL in a boating magazine recently.
Here's a site that seems to have a good selection of LED lighting: http://www.innovativelight.com I haven't used them, just found the URL in a boating magazine recently.
mike c
im interested in your research on the led lights im starting work doing the same to my h37c.dont know how to contact you
im interested in your research on the led lights im starting work doing the same to my h37c.dont know how to contact you
Practical Sailor did an extensive review on this subject in the Sept 2004 issue. The article is very detailed and basically says that incandescent lights still have their place on boats but that most light makers are now going with halogen and xenon bulbs for most applications. There is an extensive chart that outlines the results of testing for area, directional and LED cluster lights. Sources are also given. They caution that lamp shades, lens types and interior reflector can make a big difference in the intensity, spread and color warmth of any light. Also, colors and reflectivity of surrounding surfaces also have an effect. That said, the Alpenglow and Taylorbrite get good marks. As for LED lights, Daniel R. Smith's "Little Inagua" and Imtra's F1 "warm white" cluster get positive mention. www.practical-sailor.com Alpenglow: 800/422-1301www.alpenglowlights.com; Daniel R. Smith 561-842-5704 www.drsa.com; Imtra 508-995-7000 www.imtra.com; Taylorbrite 941-708-0940 www.taylorbrite.com
LED information
Being a do it yourselfer, I did a some research about LEDs and lighting. Check out some of these sites for ideas. http://www.tek-tite.com/src/products.php?c=898 http://www.affordable-solar.com/1125.html http://www.superbrightleds.com/ http://www.otherpower.com/ This site takes some exploring, but has some super information on LEDs and power supplies. http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Bill_Bowden/homepage.htm#menu Very nice site for projects and people handy with a solder iron. http://www.ledtronics.com/ http://www.mouser.com/
Being a do it yourselfer, I did a some research about LEDs and lighting. Check out some of these sites for ideas. http://www.tek-tite.com/src/products.php?c=898 http://www.affordable-solar.com/1125.html http://www.superbrightleds.com/ http://www.otherpower.com/ This site takes some exploring, but has some super information on LEDs and power supplies. http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Bill_Bowden/homepage.htm#menu Very nice site for projects and people handy with a solder iron. http://www.ledtronics.com/ http://www.mouser.com/
Not very bright
After going to a boat show last spring I purchased 40' of the 12V rope lights. What a mistake that was. They looked real good on display. I strung them around the solon and turned them on. There was light everywhere BUT not bright enough. I pulled them out and went back to the bulbs. At least I could read with the old stuff. I should have bought the red and used them for night running. I vote no on the rope lights.~~~~~
After going to a boat show last spring I purchased 40' of the 12V rope lights. What a mistake that was. They looked real good on display. I strung them around the solon and turned them on. There was light everywhere BUT not bright enough. I pulled them out and went back to the bulbs. At least I could read with the old stuff. I should have bought the red and used them for night running. I vote no on the rope lights.~~~~~
LED Efficacy
Due to the tremendous pace of technical developments, LED efficacy now rivals or surpasses that of standard incandescent lamps. For example, some white LEDs are now producing more than 20 lumens per watt (lm/W), compared to 8 – 15 lumens per watt for incandescent lamps. White LEDs are actually blue LEDs with a phosphor coating, which converts a portion of the blue light to yellow – the combination resulting in white light. Utilizing the so-called "substrate-less" GaAs LED, Red LEDs can achieve a luminous efficacy of more than 50 lm/W. The Brightest and Most Efficient LEDs and where to get them: http://members.misty.com/don/led.html
Due to the tremendous pace of technical developments, LED efficacy now rivals or surpasses that of standard incandescent lamps. For example, some white LEDs are now producing more than 20 lumens per watt (lm/W), compared to 8 – 15 lumens per watt for incandescent lamps. White LEDs are actually blue LEDs with a phosphor coating, which converts a portion of the blue light to yellow – the combination resulting in white light. Utilizing the so-called "substrate-less" GaAs LED, Red LEDs can achieve a luminous efficacy of more than 50 lm/W. The Brightest and Most Efficient LEDs and where to get them: http://members.misty.com/don/led.html
drop in bulbs will give you an idea how they look
The least labor-intensive (but not cheap) way to try out LED's is to use the bayonet-socket bulbs as replacement for what's in your existing fixtures. West Marine among others has a selection of them (see link below). They're not cheap and, as others have said, probably not worth it unless battery saving is critical to the mission...
The least labor-intensive (but not cheap) way to try out LED's is to use the bayonet-socket bulbs as replacement for what's in your existing fixtures. West Marine among others has a selection of them (see link below). They're not cheap and, as others have said, probably not worth it unless battery saving is critical to the mission...
reds
all my red cabin lights for night voyaging are now LED. much better for night vision than a red lens over incandescent bulbs. plus, the bulbs last 100,000 hours. we leave the reds on when we leave the boat and expect to return after dark. the power drain is negligable, and it's nice not to stumble down the companionway looking for a light switch.
all my red cabin lights for night voyaging are now LED. much better for night vision than a red lens over incandescent bulbs. plus, the bulbs last 100,000 hours. we leave the reds on when we leave the boat and expect to return after dark. the power drain is negligable, and it's nice not to stumble down the companionway looking for a light switch.
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