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Old 13-11-2009, 03:18   #16
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Mark,
As far as I am informed the bottom (black) part of your present light stays on the mast, and you click the upper part of the new light straight onto that. Securing is with a rotating ring. See the Youtube video.
Jef
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Old 14-11-2009, 06:09   #17
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AQUA SIGNAL Series 32 LED Tri-Color Anchor Light - White, 32707

Here is more info on the LED light that Jef plans on using.

Series 32 LED Tri-Color Anchor Light - White, 32707
Video of how easy it is to replace


For sale at Defenders in USA
http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1%7C17%7C17%7C295769%7C320397%7C528244&id=984859

Mark
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Old 14-11-2009, 18:47   #18
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LED lights in all 10 of the Silver Task Lights on the Mahe

Mahe’s

Just received the 10 LED’s in the mail today, so I wanted to put one in to test it out.
Here’s what they look like. Already have these, but side mount in the Saloon and Bimini
Once we switch them to LED we used them all summer with out even thinking about it.

First warning: Do not look at them when they are on

You can just bend the leads straight out and insert into the task light and that’s the end.

I wanted mine to be recessed so the reflector would be functional, so I cut the white plastic off and inserted the LED so it almost touched the reflector.

Product Code:1428WW (for use in all the Silver Task Lights)
6 Warm White Super bright surface mount LEDs (way brighter than regular 5mm LEDs)
Bulb Life 100,000 Hours
Power 12V AC/DC
Diameter 1" or 24 mm
Thickness .875" or 22 mm
Price: $9.50

http://www.ledwholesalers.com/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=534

Mark
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Old 15-11-2009, 05:10   #19
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Mark and Jef
Thanks for all your comments, I am looking at mounting a solar on the davits and having the option of rotating them fore and aft. Would like to share design thoughts.
Has anyone looked at just replacing the anchor light with an LED light instead of the whole unit? I know we all want to say amps, but that unit replacement is $550 US!! that is a lot of Diesel for my generator. I'm looking at just an LED replacement bulb instead, I've found that they are slightly taller than the original, has anyone been up the mast to check if there is any more room in the existing housing for a slightly bigger LED light? At 230 Lb, it takes quite an effort for someone to haul my big B--T up that mast, don't want to do it twice.

Thanks
Scott
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Old 15-11-2009, 09:38   #20
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Scott, it should be possible to purchase that Aqua Signal unit cheaper. Over here cheapest I found is 300 Euro's. I got a "special action" 10 % discount, this made it 270 including 19 % VAT tax. But 300 euro's is 450$, so it should be possible to have it cheaper. Maybe order in the UK with VAT refund?
I have thought about replacement LED's. These are OK for the anchor light, but too weak for the 3color light. Plus there is the risk of VHF radio EMC (interference) from the switch-mode regulator in the LED light. The antenna is directly next to it! I assume Aqua Signal have done good job to prevent this EMC, otherwise I'll just send it back.
There is a good test of all 3color options in an English magazine, Practical Boat Owner, of last summer. I will mail a scan of this to those who send me their email address. The Aqua Signal is test winner. Replacement LED's for the 3color were not bright enough, and the wrong color.
Also in some forums there were people whose LED units had failed. With these new products, do not believe the lifetime specifications! These might be just the figures for the separate LED's. But there is also the switch-mode electronics that can fail, and all the connections. I was in the electronics industry and I know how hard it is to design something really robust against early failure.

If my main problem was power from the anchor light I'd go for a replacement bulb for the anchor light. But we do night sailing, and that 2 Amps of the tricolor is too much. The anchor light is only 0.8 amps.

I'd also like to exchange ideas on the solar panels. So far my thoughts are:
- Panels only between the davits or also outside them? (port and startboard of them)
- Material aluminium or stainless steel? Probably aluminium. Easy to rivet. Lighter. Less corrosion risk with the anodised aluminium frames of the panels.
- 4 panels better than 2 ? Reason: partial shading. Solar panels loose more than 50 % of power when shade is 10 % of surface.
- If 2 panels between the davits: better to have them oriented crosswise than in the length of the ship. Reason: this way you still have power in case of partial shading by the bimini.
- Wires to go through the port davit, shortest to the battery.
- Mark's regulator looks very good from the spec. But two smaller ones is also attractive, especially for partial shading.
- How big is the risk of waves or storm damaging the panels? We have had waves going over the engine hatches. (force 9 in the baltics). But we have not had waves going into the dinghy, only spray.
- Better to take 12 or 24 V panels? Mark uses 24 V models. Lower current, less wire loss.
- Which brand of panels? I was considering 85 Watt Kyocera KC85GX-2P, 2 or 4 pieces. Mark use Sunpower. Plus is higher power/m2 for Sunpower. But power/$ is better for Kyocera.
- Weight is important. Last summer we had to tack against force 5-6 with very short steep waves like you get in the Baltic. We had just taken in full water, 540 liters. We dumped this and gained more than 1 knot, close to 1.5. From 4.5 to 6 knots. With those steep waves the ship is really braked by the waves when too heavy.
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Old 23-11-2009, 09:11   #21
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AQUA SIGNAL Series 32 LED Tri-Color Anchor Light - White, 32707

Mahe’s

PYacht carry’s the Aqua Signal LED for $450

http://www.pyacht.com/aquasignal-led-tri-white-masthead.htm

www.defender.com gets $442 for it

http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|17|295769|320397|528244&id=984859

This is a direct replacement for the current Mahe top of mast Tri-Color/Ancor Light

Mark
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Old 09-12-2009, 00:26   #22
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LEDs in Aus

If any of the OZ based guys are interested in LED replacement bulbs the best place I have found is online purchase from MarineLED.com.au. They look almost identical to the ones pictured earlier in this thread.

They seem to be good quality and the big Chandleries don't seem to have anything suitable. I have only just fitted mine so I can't give any real performance feedback.
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Old 09-12-2009, 16:30   #23
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Marine LED Solutions Australia

MKB53 Martin,

First off, doe’s OZ = Australia ?

I checked out the LED’s you found at
Marine LED Solutions Australia, Saving you power on the water... - Marine LED
Yes, those are the same one’s we are using. They really look good and are VERY bright.
You will need 10 of the Rear Pin LED’s for all the silver task lights.
Order 4 of the Side Pin LED’s for the Saloon and the one on the Bimini.

G4 6 LED 8-30V WARM WHITE, 1.3 watts
Same light output as approximately a 10W halogen bulb
Lumens: 84
$15.95

See Attached Conversion Chart

Mark
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Old 09-12-2009, 16:41   #24
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Yup - Oz is used in informal situations a lot of the time. Australia abreviated = Aus (formal) = Oz (informal).

I have fitted the side pin ones but not yet done the rear pin in the silver lights. The silver fitting baffled me. I figured it needed a twist but decided to go back to the thread for the instructions in case I broke something!
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Old 13-02-2010, 07:50   #25
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LED interior lights Europe

Hi all,
We have now mounted all the LED interior lights which Mark (Cotemar) had kindly sent us from the US to Europe. See his post on this of some months ago. They are as bright as the 10 W halogens, the color is OK, but slightly greenish which is a lot better than blueish.
A friend has pointed me to a European supplier of comparable lights:
roh-tec
His experiences are good: the leds give good light, good color, service is fast, price is OK. They have a broader range of models than Ledwholesalers.com.
Put G4 in the search box.
I will order some light fixtures there for under the beds, and to replace the lights in the engine room and head. I want to replace the one in the head because the light tube suffers from many off-and on-switches. And the ones in the engine rooms because they don't work well with humidity plus low temperature, sometimes they don't start. Plus the leds are more durable, and use less power. (the head light is 11 W)
Jef
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Old 21-04-2010, 18:08   #26
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Replaced the Refigerator 3 Watt filament bulb with an LED

Mahe’s

We keep finding ways to minimize our power usage.
Replaced the Refrigerator 3 Watt filament bulb with an LED

Ancor Marine LED Festoon Bulbs - 12 Volt


Features:
  • Energy-saving alternative to incandescent lighting for on or offshore use.
  • Operates at much lower temperatures than conventional lighting sources
  • No filaments to crack or shatter
  • Life expectancy is rated at 100,000 hours of continued use
  • Offers long term cost savings, an upgrade that lasts a lifetime
  • Available as direct, replacements for existing ANCOR incandescent festoons
  • Shock Resistant
  • Ideal for Harsh Marine Environments
Specifications:
Dimensions: 1.43"L x .46"H x .5"W
Volts: 12
Candle Power: 32
Voltage Range: 9.5-14.0
Current draw: 40 mA
ANCOR Incandescent cross reference # 529095
Defender $12.99 US

Mark
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Old 27-04-2010, 03:43   #27
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fluorescent light conversion to LED's

We have converted the fluorescent light in the bathroom and engine rooms to LED's. Although these products are of great German quality, there are some disadvantages:
- Sometimes difficulty starting when cold and/or wet
- A bit heavy, every ounce counts...
- Light is weak when just started
- They wear fast, especially the one in the bathroom, due to many short uses. And then you need to find spares
- They use little power, 11 watt, for a lot of light, but LEDs are even better

To replace:
Remove the fluorescent tube by unscrewing 4 bolts.
Remove fixture from the wall, cut the wires
See picture: Remove the grey plastic piece above the electronics. Do this by carefully inserting a screwdriver in the 4 holes in the corners, and move the screwdriver inwards to un-click.
De-solder the switch, which is soldered to the Printed Circuit Board at two oval solder holes (the open holes in the picture). You could remove the solder from the holes by heating the solder, and then blow it down the holes using a straw.
Un-click the PCB
Glue wire connectors to the fixture. I used a hot melt glue pistol.
Screw your LEDs to the wire connectors. I used two 16-LED for one, and three 6-LED (Cotemar's type) for another. You will probably have to bend the LED wires, or even replace them, to fit the wire connectors.
Solder the wires like in the picture. Connect to the boat's wiring. I used male and female round (motorcycle type) connector. The black wire is not connected to the switch, it just touches it. There are 2 blue wires on top of each other in the upper duct. I used blue since I did not have thin red wire....

In the bathroom I will make a further improvement for night sailing. The present light (LED or fluorescent) will destroy your night vision. Or in a marina you might be too visible at night. So in the bathroom I will add a weak red LED to the present fixtures (you can get these LEDs from cars shops).
This will be mounted somehow (hot melt glue, and/or a drilled hole) opposite the side where the electronics used to be.
For the switch for the red LED there are two options:
- Replace the present switch, which is a very standard switch, with an on/off/on three-position version
- On the side opposite the standard switch, there is a cut-out with an insert showing the Hella brand name. The cut-out is exactly the size required for an extra switch. This is the preferred solution if you keep the fluorescents.
Yeah, not bad, those Germans at Hella....
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Old 27-04-2010, 06:27   #28
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Over the past few years I have replaced every light on our boat with led's. The best led, by an order of magnitude, is from Sailor's solutions. They can be dimmed with the optional dimmer switch and can be switched between red and white. The light outputis great as is the color http://www.sailorssolutions.com/
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Old 27-04-2010, 06:37   #29
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sailors solutions

RTBates, looked at sailorssolutions. Much too expensive. Could you give a clear statement here that you have no commercial link to them?
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Old 06-05-2010, 16:35   #30
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Thanks guys for all the info. I still have one question. Is it possible to change the anchor lightbulb to an LED bulb without having to do anything major. Like it possible to just change the bulb out to LED? If so do you know what bulb to buy.
Also Mark, you earlier in thread mentioned having to modify LED bulb for task light change over but in later post, part 1428WW looks like it would just go right in with modification. Did you have to do anything for the task lights??
Thanks again
Rozzie (Hull #111)
At Anchor... Airlie Beach, QLD Australia
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