LEDs / Halogen Lights

[beau]

I am at the wiring stage for interior lights, in my 39ft power trimaran.
Led's are more reliable? and don't give off heat, and use less power but are they really "bright" enough, for say, a reading light.
Halogen, I know are brighter but I don't like the heat they generate

Can I have some advise please.

[seafox]

Our leds are like moon light. Dam useless for reading. I think as time goes on they will make better ones.

[44'cruisingcat]

We have LED reading lights in our bunk. They are fine for reading since they are very close to the book (or whatever). Not bright enough for reading if the light is further away though. You could also look into cold cathode flourescent (CCF) lights, they are very bright for little power use.

[northerncat]

check here for some photo comparisons of ccfl vs led that i made
Easytalking :: View topic - Lighting
sean

[beau]

Ok Sean i am convinced.
Where do I get 12 volt ccfl bulbs

[sildene]

Sean

I bought a CCFL tube light 6 months ago, and mine is connected to an inverter module, which is then connected to the 12v source. Additionally, the lead connecting the inverter to the lamp is of fixed length (ie. not user extendable).

Just wondering whether you have something more compact than me. When you say "CCFL Bulb", it sounds like this inludes a built-in inverter in the base of the bulb. Any chance you could indicate the dimensions of your bulb (and brand)?

[hellosailor]

Beau, if you are asking about the choice of wiring versus powe draw, I would run wiring substantial enough to support the halogen lights (and fans, etc. as well) on that run, regardless of what lights you decide to install. That way you have wiring which can support the heavier draw, in case you change your mind in the future.

Sean, where did you find cold cathode lamps in that configuration? I've only seen them as long thin tubes, like the ones used in scanners, requiring matching high voltage supplies. (Which can also be an RFI source.)

[GordMay]

SailBoatStuff... Taylorbrite Cold Cathode Lights by Taylor Made Products

[44'cruisingcat]

Here's a good source for LED lighting. They have USCG approved anchor light bulb replacements - this is where you will get the most benefit from LEDs, since it will be (should be) on all night every night.
LED Light Bulbs, LED Auto Light Bulbs, Marine Replacement Bulbs Australia & Worldwide

Beau, you can get CCF bulbs in major hardware shops like Bunnings, (Aus) as well as lighting shops.

[hellosailor]

44-
AFAIK, or I should say "in the little that I know" there is no such thing as a "USCG approved anchor light bulb". The USCG does not approve bulbs, only entire navigation light fixtures, complete with the bulb in place. I wasn't aware that any of the LED-equipped nav lights HAD replaceable bulbs, or that any bulbs had been approved for replacement use in conventional approved nav lights. Delighted to find out that was out of date & had changed though--if it has.

Gord-
Leave it to Taylor to bring something new on the market. I suppose someone should nag them to ADVERTISE ON THE WEB FORUMS so those of us who stopped subscribing to the magazines, would find out about these things.<G>
At those prices I think I might rather still buy the surplus 10" long tubes and ballasts to match, and just retrofit them into slim fluorescent fixtures.<G> Interesting that they claim NO RFI even though they are sending out AC signals, I guess they're just sending out at a frequency too low to be an RFI concern.

[DeepFrz]

Check out the new LED lights. There has been marked improvement in LED lighting in the past few years. But they can be expensive.

Alpenglow, Imtra, Lumenautix, Lopolight are just a few.

[cal40john]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

44-
AFAIK, or I should say "in the little that I know" there is no such thing as a "USCG approved anchor light bulb". The USCG does not approve bulbs, only entire navigation light fixtures, complete with the bulb in place. I wasn't aware that any of the LED-equipped nav lights HAD replaceable bulbs, or that any bulbs had been approved for replacement use in conventional approved nav lights. Delighted to find out that was out of date & had changed though--if it has.

Look less than half way down the page at Certified on...
Doctor LED, Dr. LED, is a designer and manufacturer of LED-based lighting solutions for marine, boat, RVs, cars, and solar panel applications.

That LED is certified in that fixture. He has more LEDs in or going into testing for certification.

John

[hellosailor]

John-
"Certified on aqua signal series 40 anchor light"
Right. As I said, the BULB is never certified. The combination of that specific bulb IN A SPECIFIC FIXTURE is what gets certified.

As I understand it, the FIXTURE gets submitted for recertification with the new bulb in it, the bulb itself never gets certified.

What I don't understand is the reference to the 1972 COLREG, that's throughly obsoleted by newer editions.

Nice to know that if someone has the Aquasignal 40 Series, they can update to LEDs and still be legal--at least, for the 2-mile minimum requirement.

[northerncat]

12v nelson cold cathode light, you can get them in almost any colour they cost 16.85 from bunnings there s a piccie here 12v nelson cold cathode
http://www.goingsolar.com.au/pdf/cat...2_lighting.pdf

[Brent Swain]

LEDs have an abysmally high failure rate in my experience.A flashlight I bought in november crapped out by march. A friend had one bought in november with 4 LEDs and by march only 2 were working. I saw an test in practical boat owner which concluded that per watt of power consumed LEDs are no brigher than halogen.only the tight focus makes them appear brigher. They are grossly overated.I'm impressed with my 12 volt fluoerescent ones tho.
Brent