Navigation lights ..

horacebat · 26 February 2012, 09:22

So the big question is .. to LED or not to LED .. that is the question, and if so does anyone recommend a particular make and model ?

CJL · 26 February 2012, 09:46

NOT - what's the point?

Expensive and you won't use your boat enough to get the advantage from the additional lifespan.

How often do you use your boat at night anyway?

Chris

martini · 26 February 2012, 10:21

I've had to replace 2 led's in 3 seasons so far, at £80-90 a pop I'm wondering why I bothered...

Leapy · 26 February 2012, 10:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by CJL

NOT - what's the point?

Expensive and you won't use your boat enough to get the advantage from the additional lifespan.

How often do you use your boat at night anyway?

Chris

All good points...our boat came new three years ago with LED's and we've used them once. Both have just failed because of water ingress

The backplate of the lights (Hella) was cast metal (zinc or aluminium?). When they were taken off, the backplates looked like white powder held together with, well, not very much actually. Presumably, differential metal corrosion with the SS A frame

The replacement lights now have a moulded plastic backplate and a £100 price tag

horacebat · 26 February 2012, 11:00

Crumbs the reliability of these LED lights really don't look like they've matured enough to be robust yet ...

And at the price compared to the "run of the mill" lighting units are massivly different too .. I'm guessing this is the sort of technology that will improve over time, but we're not quite there yet.

BruceB · 26 February 2012, 12:38

Well..........I use LED nav lights on my boat and use them reasonably regularly and had no problems. They have been on my RIB for around four years without any problems so far.
They weren't even expensive ones, they cost around £60 for the set of three.
So far I have found as long as they are sealed well when connecting they seem to be fine but mine are all plastic, not sure I would rely on any zinc alloy casing for a marine light.

When I used normal incandescent types on my old RIB I found the opposite, corrosion on the lamp contacts needed cleaned regulary or they didn't work when needed.

willk · 26 February 2012, 12:48

Lekkie and saltwater - always gonna be a loosing battle - it's a matter of time for all fittings IMO.

LED - Great looking light - very snazzy on dull days! Uses next to no power so can be left on without concern - i.e Anchor light/s or deck lights. The cost is scary. They WILL fail and when they do, you can't fix them.

Incandescent - Very bright, in a boring kind of way. Burning a lot more watts, but with a good battery this shouldn't really be a problem. Cheaper to buy. They WILL fail too, but a quick rub of sandpaper on the contacts should sort them. You can carry a few spare lamps easily - there's nothing else in them that can actually "fail".

BTW, I always checked my lighting as part of the pre-launch shakedown. Nice to know they're gonna come on that day if you need them.

nugent · 26 February 2012, 12:57

std unit change out bulb for tetra unit i can illuminate 2 leds stick it in pint of beer and leave alight 50,000 hrs awf for a pic be right back

Nos4r2 · 26 February 2012, 13:09

I LED'd my 5.4 last year as the standard Aquasignal bulbs on it used a lot of power (40w),at tickover the charging system was being pushed quite hard running them plus the 100w spotlight in dark unmarked channels and they ruined my night vision.

I did it by making my own push-in LED adapters using old bulbs and these .

They still work fine, are actually more visible than the incandescents, don't disturb my night vision quite as badly as the steaming light doesn't shine downwards onto the tubes as much and use hardly any power.

100% success, and I'm going to do the same on the Ballistic.

nugent · 26 February 2012, 13:11

trust me these will out live your boat

simply solder to your existing cables then shrink wrap or use 3M silicoln connectors

nugent · 26 February 2012, 13:12

6.1mtrs of these draw 0.85amps also note i have not sealed other end of the cables

Nos4r2 · 26 February 2012, 13:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by nugent

trust me these will out live your boat

simply solder to your existing cables then shrink wrap or use 3M silicoln connectors

Where do I get some?

I want some deck lighting.

Maximus · 26 February 2012, 13:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by martini

I've had to replace 2 led's in 3 seasons so far, at £80-90 a pop I'm wondering why I bothered...

I replaced one on my last boat...2yrs Got new one F.O.C... maybe a Ribcraft thing?

They do work well too.. when they are!

nugent · 26 February 2012, 13:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

Where do I get some?

I want some deck lighting.

err me

nugent · 26 February 2012, 19:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by nugent

6.1mtrs of these draw 0.85amps also note i have not sealed other end of the cables

sorry 12.2 mtrs is 0.85amps

horacebat · 26 February 2012, 20:22

ok .. heres another stupid question then .. Maglite for example sell a replacement LED bulb kit, can you get an LED kit that you can interchange ?

mick · 26 February 2012, 20:40

Unless you pay top money LEDs are a waste of money a lot of land-rover guys get them and say they don't last

BruceB · 26 February 2012, 23:40

I do a lot of work with LED technolgy at work for normal and external lighting purposes, money isn't the only reason for poor reliability.
In fact the most expensive external ones I ever fitted from a very large company at £550.00 apiece have experienced a 40% failure rate despite being from a very large reputable company with a full guarantee. The cheaper ones fitted elsewhere are so far 100% OK.
In general they are extremely reliable and any issues are usually driver related.

The ones shown here are about four years fitted, have been moved on the boat in position when i fitted the A frame last year and still work reliably.
The red and green light were around £35 delivered from the antipodes and the ARW about £30-40 delivered from down south over the internet.
I personally wouldn't go back to notmal lamps now even if the whole lot failed tomorrow, I had far more problems and poorer reliability before I fitted them.
However you pays your money and takes your choice.........

Crusher · 27 February 2012, 00:42

I bought some of these and used them in my standard fitting. So far after 12 months I think it's great! MUCH brighter, for less power, and touch wood, no problem :-)

http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/vie...id=54119039421

ssobol · 27 February 2012, 01:00

You can get LED strip lights in white or other colors starting from ~US$6 per foot (ordered from China). These can be cut every 3rd LED to make shorter strips.

I replaced the lamps in my nav lights with short segments of LED. For example, for the anchor light I just took as 6 LED segment and looped it around on itself to make a ring with the LEDs on the outside. I then glued this into the bulb housing. I did similar things with the red and green lights. Just replaced the bulbs with LED strip segments.

These are brighter, connect right up to 12V, should be more durable.

I also use 3 LED segments around the boat for courtesy lights, locker lights, map lights, etc.

They turned out very well.