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22-01-2025, 07:52
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#1
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Registered User
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Halifax, NS, Canada
Boat: 47' Steel Roberts Cutter
Posts: 492
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Forward facing LED illumination
Hey folks -
After some nerve-wracking sailing in high latitudes in low-light and ice conditions last year, I am considering adding some high-intensity, forward looking lighting on my pulpit. The idea is to be able to spot those little bastard growlers that lurk all around you when traversing icy waters; but also to help when entering unknown anchorages at night.
I'm honestly conflicted about this - I hate being blinded by fishing boats with their huge LED arrays these days; and I know whatever I put up there is going to be beaten to a pulp in a year or two and non-functional most likely - it's a tough area to put anything electronic if you go offshore seriously in any way. But it would be a good boost to safety when operating in these waters -which I seem to be doing more of.
Does anyone here have experience with specifying types/beam angles/warmth/colour and or brands for this purpose? any tips or hints?
I'm less concerned about power draw- although it is still a factor - and more concerned with effectiveness, durability and utility.
thanks!
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22-01-2025, 10:16
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#2
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: between the devil and the deep blue sea
Boat: a sailing boat
Posts: 21,199
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
Imho car fog grade lights are mostly vg. And way less expensive.
Still, the BEST option is the gear the fishermen use. Walk the dock see what they have installed. Then copy their set ups.
The car fog grade lights may have better penetration (vs the fisherman thing) - they are built to cover just the road ahead. So probably a good choice for a boat moving in forward and looking out for things on her track.
The fisherman grade is all about plenty of light, but not very directional.
b.
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23-01-2025, 06:47
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#3
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Senior Cruiser

Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Thunder Bay, Ontario - 48-29N x 89-20W
Boat: (Cruiser Living On Dirt)
Posts: 51,834
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
The most common fog light colours are yellow [which I recommend], and amber, each offering different levels of visibility, and glare reduction, in foggy conditions.
Yellow Fog Lights have longer wavelengths, which means it scatters less, has reduced glare, and can penetrate fog heavy fog and snowy conditions more effectively.
Amber Fog Lights offer a middle ground, between yellow, and white, providing ample illumination. without overwhelming glare.
__________________
Gord May
"If you didn't have the time or money to do it right in the first place, when will you get the time/$ to fix it?"
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23-01-2025, 07:52
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#4
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2015
Boat: R&C Leopard 40
Posts: 1,033
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
Consider Black Oak LED. Very high quality and lots of options.
__________________
-Chris
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23-01-2025, 14:45
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#5
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: BC
Boat: O'Day 40
Posts: 1,117
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
+1 on auto fog lights. A good fog light will have a very flat beam with virtually none lighting up the fog in front of your eyes. I don't see any marine or off road lights that will do that.
__________________
Trying to make new mistakes.
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23-01-2025, 16:14
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#6
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2017
Posts: 68
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
If you are looking for safety at night and into anchorages etc, NOTHING beats the investment in IR / Nightvision. I have found it completely eliminates the pucker factor, doesn't screw up night vision, doesn't screw up everyone else in your vicinity and these days portable handheld units are quite cheap. seriously, I can see a painter or mooring line floating from over 150metres, big picture stuff is gobsmacking in sight and clarity
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24-01-2025, 02:16
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#7
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Senior Cruiser

Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Thunder Bay, Ontario - 48-29N x 89-20W
Boat: (Cruiser Living On Dirt)
Posts: 51,834
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2020
If you are looking for safety at night and into anchorages etc, NOTHING beats the investment in IR / Nightvision...
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Indeed; but...
Infrared night vision doesn't work well in in fog, snow, rain, or even high humidity etc., which can all severely degrade the capabilities of IR units [just like /w regular visible light], because the IR light refracts [blooms] off of every water droplet, in that wall of moisture, essentially, rendering it useless.
__________________
Gord May
"If you didn't have the time or money to do it right in the first place, when will you get the time/$ to fix it?"
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26-01-2025, 08:02
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#8
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Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2010
Boat: Gemini 105Mc+
Posts: 962
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
Gord May, I always enjoy your additional insights, often some obscure point but always enlightening. I picture your desk to be surrounded by heavy tomes or maybe just a high end computer connected by Google fiber. Regardless, keep it up, I am sure others also find your comments add to our days.
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26-01-2025, 08:28
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#9
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Writing Full-Time Since 2014
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Deale, MD
Boat: PDQ Altair, 32/34
Posts: 10,281
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
I'm not sure the OP's question has much in common with auto fog lights. He didn't say anything about fog (spotting ice), but it could be, and I also wonder if lighting the rode very close in front of the boat has much value, since you are viewing from the cockpit and can't see the water for at least 100 feet in front of you anyway.
a. Yellow might be a good color, but if it does not reflect off fog, does that make it a good color for showing up ice? Honest question, don't know. I'm guessing that white would be more effective. Maybe not. I think yellow, but I would check into this.
b. Higher location to shine farther out and reduce blinding? At the pulpit will generate a lot of reflection off the water too close and diminish night vision farther out. Maybe the light needs to be at the spreaders (with baffles to keep it off the deck) and you can't use the jib. Obviously, he won't have the jib up when crawling into anchorages at night. I would think the target range is 30-150 yards. But the OP probably has a better feel for this. Pick a range and set the baffles based on that geometry.
Good questions, but I think fog lights are for a different problem. Most of the lighting would be below his line of sight from the cockpit. Auto lights are largely designed not to blind others, which does not matter in this exercise. Also, consider that 4x lights are mounted high, on a bar above the cab. They are to light up the road in the distance.
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26-01-2025, 08:34
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#10
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Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2019
Location: Rochester, NY
Boat: Chris Craft 381 Catalina
Posts: 6,985
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
I had a similar thought of lights up higher, like on the mast. You'd probably want a tighter beam pattern than you would for lights down low (to help throw the light further, but not to the extreme that the lighted area is too narrow). And definitely make sure they don't throw any light on the deck.
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26-01-2025, 09:27
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#11
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2015
Boat: R&C Leopard 40
Posts: 1,033
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
A quick web search shows FLIR shows floating ice pretty well.
Not sure about how well low light cameras show ice, but they are amazing at showing up land, water and boats. Sionyx Nightwave.
Of course, it can all get expensive and complicated.
We are doing all three, super bright Black Oak LED light bars in all four directions, FLIR pan/tilt and Sionyx low light camera. It may take a while for me to get everything fully implemented. Initial tests have been very positive.
__________________
-Chris
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26-01-2025, 09:29
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#12
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2020
Posts: 1,052
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
The IR lighting sounds like a good idea, but when I look at the screen displaying the IR image, I feel like my eyes are getting just as maladjusted as they would looking at a normal headlight/foglight situation.
I think it's a great idea to try, not sure why it's not more popular with boats occasionally entering unknown places at night.
__________________
Contribute to OpenSource Alternator regulator for LiFePO4 XEngineering . net
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26-01-2025, 09:58
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#13
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 7,981
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
No need for lights which will inhibit your nightvision and be an annoyance to other vessels degrading navigational signal light.
Use simple Marine FLIR cameras
https://www.flir.eu/marine/recreational-boating/
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26-01-2025, 10:34
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#14
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2015
Boat: R&C Leopard 40
Posts: 1,033
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
Quote:
Originally Posted by markxengineerin
I think it's a great idea to try, not sure why it's not more popular with boats occasionally entering unknown places at night.
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Cost!
__________________
-Chris
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26-01-2025, 10:46
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#15
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 7,981
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Re: Forward facing LED illumination
https://airbornescience.nasa.gov/ima...n_Nares_Strait
A screen grab of an image captured by ATM's FLIR Camera, a nadir-pointing infrared imager, while flying over a combination of ice floes and open water in the Nares Strait at 33,000' MSL. This image represents cold temperatures in "cool" colors - blues and greens, and warm temperatures in "warm" colors - yellows and reds. These newly-formed ice floes are roughly circular in shape, and of course are colder than the surrounding water. Their thickness also varies, and the thinner ones allow more heat from the water beneath to radiate through them, making them look warmer in this infrared image than the thicker (and cooler) floes appear.
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