scouserl41 Posted March 26, 2015 Report Share Posted March 26, 2015 I just installed some LED's in our rig and learned a few things that might help others doing the same thing. http://banbrv.blogspot.com/2015/03/learning-every-day-leds.html Hope it helps I'm not an expert. BnB 2009 Monaco Cayman DP 38' bnbrv.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceNorman Posted March 26, 2015 Report Share Posted March 26, 2015 Nice write up! I'm looking at making the change in our coach - and have book marked your write-up for future reference. The level of technical was just right - and the pictures were a big help for an RV newbie like me. Thanks for sharing! The Spacenorman 2012 Holiday Rambler Endeavor 43' DFT 2012 Jeep Liberty Our Travel Website: www.penquinhead.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouserl41 Posted March 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2015 Glad you got something out of it Spacenorman. Glad to pass on what I learned the hard way! I learn so much here on this forum it's just mind boggling. BnB 2009 Monaco Cayman DP 38' bnbrv.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 Where did you buy your LED bulbs? Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Second Chance Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 I'm sure Brian will respond as to where he purchased his LEDs. When I replaced all the lights in our TT with LEDs, I (after research) ordered a specific flat-panel type LED from a seller on eBay. Not wanting a blue-tinted light, I ordered the "warm white" and am very pleased. The panels came with adapters for four different types of sockets (mine are bayonet). http://www.ebay.com/itm/10x-BA9S-T10-Festoon-31-44mm-Dome-Bulb-Warm-White-48-1210SMD-LE-/180920077628?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a1fad4d3c Rob 2012 F350 CC LB DRW 6.7 2020 Solitude 310GK-R, MORryde IS, disc brakes, solar, DP windows Full-time since 8/2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 I'm sure Brian will respond as to where he purchased his LEDs. When I replaced all the lights in our TT with LEDs, I (after research) ordered a specific flat-panel type LED from a seller on eBay. Not wanting a blue-tinted light, I ordered the "warm white" and am very pleased. The panels came with adapters for four different types of sockets (mine are bayonet). http://www.ebay.com/itm/10x-BA9S-T10-Festoon-31-44mm-Dome-Bulb-Warm-White-48-1210SMD-LE-/180920077628?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a1fad4d3c Rob On correction from Rob, the $31.27 is for a 10 pack. I missed the 10X at the beginning of the description. OUCH! $31.27 each! That's a bunch of money if you have 10 lights to replace. I do like the idea have the multiple sockets that come with the lights. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcharrette Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 I ordered and installed these from camping world about a month ago. http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/led-replacement-bulbs-906-912-921-922-6-pack/74270 It took a few weeks to get use to them. They are not as bright as the stock bulbs but certainly do the job. Now that we've been using them (we've been living in our camper for 3 months traveling) I hardly notice it and it's great when boondocking to save battery power! Others may have a better solution and more details but these worked for us and just plug right in. Randy Charrette 2014 Kodiak 240BHSL www.pedaladventures.com (our travels) www.axelproject.com (our non-profit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smitty77_7 Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 I've found some good quality lights at M4 Products. A few unique applications that I was having trouble finding bulbs for, they had. Both of their products lines are good, but the Elite line I felt was worth the extra $$ for what should be one time purchases. (We do plan to keep our coach for a 10-15 years usage, so I always factor the costs of upgrades over the expected usage period.) http://www.m4products.com/elite-series/ Nice write up!! For those on tight budgets, or just by nature looking for the least expensive way to go - many good write ups (Google is your friend.) on buying Ebay strips of LED's and making whatever you want. On another note. I found that on may of our 18" two florescent fixtures, that one higher output good quality LED bulb was more then enough light. For our two under counter kitchen 12" florescent fixtures, I used two LED's to maximize surface work space. In the bathroom/shower area we have four of the 18" florescent fixtures, I did also add two bulbs to the fixture directly over the sink, that my wife uses along with the light bar over the mirrors, for her makeup. The other three define with only one LED. (Worth a try, you can always go back and add another bulb if wanted.) Best to all, Smitty Be safe, have fun, Smitty 04 CC Allure "RooII" - Our "E" ride for life! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Second Chance Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 OUCH! $31.27 each! That's a bunch of money if you have 10 lights to replace. I do like the idea have the multiple sockets that come with the lights. No - that's for a 10-count. They're $3.13 each. Rob 2012 F350 CC LB DRW 6.7 2020 Solitude 310GK-R, MORryde IS, disc brakes, solar, DP windows Full-time since 8/2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wa_desert_rat Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 Great blog post and some very good responses here. Nicely done! Thanks. WDR 1993 Foretravel U225 with Pacbrake and 5.9 Cummins with Banks 1999 Jeep Wrangler, 4" lift and 33" tires Raspberry Pi Coach Computer Ham Radio Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 No - that's for a 10-count. They're $3.13 each. Rob Thanks for the correction. I edited my original entry with your correction. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fccbandit Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 Just replaced all the bulbs in our rig with led. Order them all from CabinBright.com. Joe Brignold the man that owns the company will answer any questions that you have. He will set you up with the perfect replacement bulbs and strips to replace your florescent tube. cabinbright.com Thank Cathy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouserl41 Posted March 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 Oops didn't realize there had been so much activity! My buying secret? E-Bay. I search for the type then use the cheapest including shipping button and find a supplier in the US. You can see the specs for the particular LED in the write up with lumens, voltage range etc. I actually ordered 4 last Saturday and they arrived on my doorstep SUNDAY!! One was dimmer than the other 3 so I e-mailed the seller and a replacement arrived Tuesday with a return label for the faulty one. I think that was excellent service! Brian 2009 Monaco Cayman DP 38' bnbrv.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarDreamers.us Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 Would be good to have a large selection of LED bulbs at the next Excapees function. Thanks Safe Travels! SKP #89742 - Lifetime membership - Member of the SKP Class of 2007Good Sam Club - Lifetime MemberDataStorm #5423Passport America - Lifetime MemberSons Of The American Revolution (SAR) - Lifetime MemberAmerican Legion - USAF - Lifetime MemberRotary Club Member - 30 years Escapee CARE Supporter National Wildlife Refuge Volunteer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouserl41 Posted March 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 I believe there was a vendor at Escapade. If you are going thru Yuma there are lots of vendors at the Arizona Marketplace. Brian 2009 Monaco Cayman DP 38' bnbrv.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docj Posted March 28, 2015 Report Share Posted March 28, 2015 On another note. I found that on may of our 18" two florescent fixtures, that one higher output good quality LED bulb was more then enough light. For our two under counter kitchen 12" florescent fixtures, I used two LED's to maximize surface work space. In the bathroom/shower area we have four of the 18" florescent fixtures, I did also add two bulbs to the fixture directly over the sink, that my wife uses along with the light bar over the mirrors, for her makeup. I used LED tubes to replace fluorescents in the first fixture I converted a couple of years ago, but for the 18" one I converted last month I simply bought two 19.7" adhesive strips of LEDs from http://superbrightleds.com I completely gutted the Thinlite fixture removing both the ballast and sockets. The LED strips were long enough to cover the length of the fixture with enough left to turn up at the ends where the sockets once were. The strips had red/black pigtails so wiring was trivial. The strips were rated at 380 lumens/foot in warm white (3250K) and for 9-14.8V use. With that lumen rating the 19.7" strips provide ~624 lumens each; the lighting improvement was very noticeable. The strips cost ~$13 each with $2 shipping which is quite a bit less than the cost of Revolution or Ming LED tubes. I have lots of other adhesive strip LEDs from the same source that have been up for three years without an adhesive issue. The prices of LEDs have fallen dramatically over the past several years and IMHO there's no reason to rely on suppliers who cater to RVers unless you enjoy paying higher prices nor do you have to go the eBay or foreign supplier route. Sandie & Joel 2000 40' Beaver Patriot Thunder Princeton--425 HP/1550 ft-lbs CAT C-12 2014 Honda CR-V AWD EX-L with ReadyBrute tow bar/brake systemWiFiRanger Ambassador Follow our adventures on Facebook at Weiss Travels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BooneDocks Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 Ah, a chance to show off my soldering skills.......with about $4 of parts including 3528 LED strips from an ebay seller a fluorescent fixture can be converted to LED operation. Presently MotorHomeLessFollow Our Full-Time Travels Through Our Blog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roy67ss Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 You did an overkill! I used 2 strips of warm white in my converted fluorescents and the amount of light is just as good as the original tubes. You could have done 5 fixtures with the amount of leds you put in that one fixture. Nice job, just a little much.IMHO Roy 2011 GMC 3500 SRW CC, SB, Duramax/Allison 2008 HitchHiker LS 29.5 FKTG, 7000lb axles, Glide Ride, HD brakes, dual pane windows, 40" Panasonic, Magnadyne HTS, PD surge protector, etc. Mods: 5 gal pressure tank, Motosat dish, plumbing reworked, inside steps storage, SeeLevel tank gauges, Rear view camera, major changes to basement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarDreamers.us Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 Thanks for sharing. Safe Travels! SKP #89742 - Lifetime membership - Member of the SKP Class of 2007Good Sam Club - Lifetime MemberDataStorm #5423Passport America - Lifetime MemberSons Of The American Revolution (SAR) - Lifetime MemberAmerican Legion - USAF - Lifetime MemberRotary Club Member - 30 years Escapee CARE Supporter National Wildlife Refuge Volunteer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BooneDocks Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 You did an overkill! I used 2 strips of warm white in my converted fluorescents and the amount of light is just as good as the original tubes. You could have done 5 fixtures with the amount of leds you put in that one fixture. Nice job, just a little much.IMHO With the 3528s the lumens of that fixture are about the same as with two fluorescent bulbs. I prefer the the 3528s to 5050s as the latter look a bit greenish to me. I also like how the light is spread out over the whole area of the fixture rather than in just a couple strips. Presently MotorHomeLessFollow Our Full-Time Travels Through Our Blog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docj Posted March 29, 2015 Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 You did an overkill! I used 2 strips of warm white in my converted fluorescents and the amount of light is just as good as the original tubes. You could have done 5 fixtures with the amount of leds you put in that one fixture. Nice job, just a little much.IMHO No he couldn't, not if he wanted the same amount of light as the fluorescents provided. 3528 strips provide 118 lumens/ft, while the 5050's are 380 lu/ft. Gary used the right amount of LEDs; the only issue is whether or not he wanted the "color" of the warm white 5050's. I don't happen to mind the 5050's and the fixture they're in is only used occasionally. Sandie & Joel 2000 40' Beaver Patriot Thunder Princeton--425 HP/1550 ft-lbs CAT C-12 2014 Honda CR-V AWD EX-L with ReadyBrute tow bar/brake systemWiFiRanger Ambassador Follow our adventures on Facebook at Weiss Travels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KandJBm Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 I'm sure Brian will respond as to where he purchased his LEDs. When I replaced all the lights in our TT with LEDs, I (after research) ordered a specific flat-panel type LED from a seller on eBay. Not wanting a blue-tinted light, I ordered the "warm white" and am very pleased. The panels came with adapters for four different types of sockets (mine are bayonet). http://www.ebay.com/itm/10x-BA9S-T10-Festoon-31-44mm-Dome-Bulb-Warm-White-48-1210SMD-LE-/180920077628?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a1fad4d3c Rob These are the type of bulbs I would like to buy but I see that these bulbs are described only for 12v. At the web site it says "This product is only for DC12V, if your car voltage higher than 12V, please use the constant current bulb." In other words they are not built for a voltage range such as 11v to 15v for example. Are they holding up when you are using them on battery power only and while the batteries are charging either by solar or a battery charger/generator? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Second Chance Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 These are the type of bulbs I would like to buy but I see that these bulbs are described only for 12v. At the web site it says "This product is only for DC12V, if your car voltage higher than 12V, please use the constant current bulb." In other words they are not built for a voltage range such as 11v to 15v for example. Are they holding up when you are using them on battery power only and while the batteries are charging either by solar or a battery charger/generator? If I recall, we did one or two nights dry camping (and didn't have solar or a generator). The LEDs were still working well when we sold the TT this summer (we are now full-time in a fifth wheel). I have stayed in touch with the gentleman who purchased the TT and he is still happy with everything (although I don't know how much dry camping he does, either). Rob 2012 F350 CC LB DRW 6.7 2020 Solitude 310GK-R, MORryde IS, disc brakes, solar, DP windows Full-time since 8/2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis M Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 There were a couple of LED b=vendors at the last Escapade, sure there will be next year as well. One of them was JIRAH knowledgable and helpful, we bought a couple from him. Like them in our bedroom & living room reading lights, not so much around the vanity. Nice write-up and good info BTW. Dennis & NancyTucson, AZ in winter, on the road in summer.1999 Volvo 610 "Bud" 425 HP Volvo, Super 10 spd.2005 Mountain Aire 35 BLKS2013 smart fortwo CityFlame riding on Bud(Replaced '05 smart first loaded in '06 and '11 smart that gave it's life to save me!)Our Travel Blog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouserl41 Posted September 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2015 Update. We're full-timing now and doing a mix of dry camping and full hookups. We've added a few more LED's to fixtures we hadn't bothered with before when we realized we needed light in certain areas. Our coach is FULL of fixtures. There are 11 in the living area alone! We only put LED's in the ones we use often. I added LED's to the outside light fixtures with yellow lenses over them to discourage bugs. We have had no failures of the E-Bay LED's we bought in 6 months of use and the only ones we'd change would be the bright white panel types we put over our seating area which are a little harsh for reading a paperback. That being said we got used to them so I'm too lazy to change them! Don't have a way to check battery drain but nothing has dimmed after 4 nights on batteries with no generator running to recharge anything. BnB 2009 Monaco Cayman DP 38' bnbrv.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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