LED help please

[Brisyboy]

I am considering installing a 5-meter string of LED lights in the engine room to supplement/replace three individually switched standard incandescent 12 v bulbs - usual type found in boats of my era (1985 Island Gypsy) Two I rarely use as they are out wide and difficult to reach so I am looking forward to vastly improved light in the engine room.

My question is thus" the 12v string I am planning on installing has a current draw of 2.1A. How does this stack up against the draw of a standard 12v incandescent bulb? As you can see by my question I'm a bit of an electrical dummy.

 

[READY]

The LED will draw far less current than the incandescent lights. Probably less than 10%. You should be fine with existing wiring. I am assuming this is a diesel engine? They will also last a long time and give off much less heat.

 

[Cigatoo]

Seems like fuse protection should be changed? Maybe 3 amp in line just before the string of LED’s?

 

[SIBERNUT]

5050 LEDs adhesive on 1/2 " alum angle

 

[ranger58sb]

I am considering installing a 5-meter string of LED lights in the engine room to supplement/replace three individually switched standard incandescent 12 v bulbs - usual type found in boats of my era (1985 Island Gypsy) Two I rarely use as they are out wide and difficult to reach so I am looking forward to vastly improved light in the engine room.

My question is thus" the 12v string I am planning on installing has a current draw of 2.1A. How does this stack up against the draw of a standard 12v incandescent bulb? As you can see by my question I'm a bit of an electrical dummy.

I did that on our previous boat -- two 5m ropes, IIRC -- and also replaced the 4 original incandescent bulbs with LEDs in the original fixtures.

IIRC, overall current dropped to about 15% of original.

-Chris

 

[O C Diver]

Seems like fuse protection should be changed? Maybe 3 amp in line just before the string of LED’s?

Yes, this is very important! It is extremely rare, but emitters (especially those with Buck Boost circuits to compensate for voltage rage) can burn up. It's important to have a fuse trip when the circuit becomes a heating element.

On Slow Hand, switching from incandescent engine room lights to LED reduced the need for a 40 amp breaker to 5 amp.

To determine amperage, many "better" multi meters will allow you to insert the meter probes where the fuse or circuit breaker is and measure up to 10 amps DC. Read the directions of the multi meter carefully! Typically I would increase the amperage rating to 20% above the draw to cover fluctuations in voltage. If you're unable to replace a breaker or find a low enough amperage to make a significant difference, you can add an in-line fuse holder after the breaker. ATC style fuses are available down to 1 amp.

Ted

 

[Marco Flamingo]

I have tried three different LED setups in the ER. First was a self-stick light string. Then really cheap stick-on strips. Finally some better quality (still cheap) screw ons. The first two tries failed over time in various ways. LEDs do put out heat, and in my case, enough to loosen the adheasive. The other problem was that some of the LEDs winked out over time. It seemed to be voltage related, although I checked and they were always getting +12V. But they were definately brighter with the engine running. My uneducated guess is that 12V LEDs for the automotive world are happiest at +13V, i.e., when the engine is running. My first two systems definately were nice and bright when the engine was running. But that's not when I needed them most. And occasionaly sticking them back up erased the "convenience" of sticking them up during initial installation.

One nice thing about new LEDs was being able to place them where needed. The old dim lights were fore and aft of the engine. Now also have sides of engine and spare parts area lit. Almost makes working in the engine room pleasant.

I wired mine so that I could still use the two rather dim incandecent lights, although I haven't turned them on for over a year.

The ones that are working now: Amazon.com

 

[ranger58sb]

It seemed to be voltage related, although I checked and they were always getting +12V. But they were definately brighter with the engine running. My uneducated guess is that 12V LEDs for the automotive world are happiest at +13V, i.e., when the engine is running.

Many of the decent boat-focused LEDs are 10-30 VDC.

We've gotten most of ours from marinebeam.com.

And most of the less expensive LEDs we got prior to that got really hot, showed signs of excessive heat on the backplane as we replaced them...

-Chris