Tried doin' that but the LEDs were woefully lackin' in Lumens.
.........compare voltage capability (you want LEDs that can deal with something like 10-30VDC, NOT just straight 12V LEDs),..............
We've changed all interior, all engine room, some exterior, and all courtesy lighting to LED, and we also changed the whole anchor/mastlight fixture to LED. In ALL cases, the LEDs put out more light, in some cases LOTS more light (the anchor light, for instance).
At the same time, we've reduced DC power consumption for lighting by about 90%.
It pays to shop; compare lumens or candela, compare color temperature (~2700°K is approximately the warm lighting incandescent bulbs provide), compare voltage capability (you want LEDs that can deal with something like 10-30VDC, NOT just straight 12V LEDs), compare heat sink capabilities, and when necessary compare whether dimmable or not.
FWIW, most of ours have been from marinebeam.com, not cheap, and some from superbrightleds.com, ditto not cheap. Some of the earlier LEDs I used from a different source had some heat issues, so we replaced.
Another FWIW, I think the specific product name for our G4 bi-pins -- most of our serious interior lighting -- is marinebeam's "Force 12" or something like that. 12 LEDs per disc, warm white (2700°K), dimmable at least on our dimmers.
-Chris
good advise. I'll proceed to replace my automotive style 1141 incandescent bulbs with LED's of similar lumens and color temperature and report results.
YepJust a small comment, your fuses/breakers are intended to protect the wires, not the device...
Just a small comment, your fuses/breakers are intended to protect the wires, not the device...
Just a small comment, your fuses/breakers are intended to protect the wires, not the device...
Then why do all your electronic devices have fuses. Why do bilge pumps, circulating pumps, bow thrusters, winches, specify a fuse or breaker size. Circuits such as power outlets have have fuses / breakers to protect the wires because the load is unknown.
Ted
Well OC, you have a panel with gangs of breakers or fuses, notice they are all different specifications? Notice how your windlass has a giant breaker and the radio has a small one? Take a look at the ampacity of the wires that are used to power these devices...check this out - Circuit Wizard - Blue Sea Systems
Electronic devices and bilge pumps have individual fuses because they might be wired to circuits that have a different level of overcurrent protection. We might have a 20 amp circuit with two chart plotters, a GPS antenna and a depth sounder module attached. Each device would need individual protection. Or, we could run individual circuits to each and provide protection at the source. Some devices need protection that can't be provided by typical circuit breakers. A GPS antenna fused at one amp, for example.
A bilge pump usually has a fuse because it is usually wired in a way that it bypasses any electrical panel and is powered all the time.
...... The point that I was originally making was that incandescent lights don't need to be fused to prevent a risk of fire, the circuit does. LED emitters should be fused to protect against the extremely small risk of a fire when they fail. Since the emitter doesn't have a fuse, prudence dictates you limit the circuit (with a fuse or breaker) to the minimum amount of amperage required.
Ted