LED Conversion?

[sumrzz]

Has anyone gone through the LED light conversion on your inside lights?
I'm looking at eventually replacing all of the inside ceiling lights and side lights with full LED. Just curious if anyone has done this.

[sumrzz]

After looking through Camping World I'll be glad when these LED prices come down...eventually.

[Lloyd]

Originally Posted by sumrzz

Has anyone gone through the LED light conversion on your inside lights?
I'm looking at eventually replacing all of the inside ceiling lights and side lights with full LED. Just curious if anyone has done this.

I have done a full LED conversion on the inside, and a partial on the outside.
Yes, they are expensive. I did a total on the inside because we do sooo much boon docking.

[mhs4771]

Try going here "http://www.filamentfree.com/" as they are a couple on the Montana Forum that have setup a mail order business for LEDs. Still pricey, but no where near CW and their products are good quality and well made. We changed everything over inside our RW.

[Lloyd]

I should have added---
The "best" LEDs I have found come from
LED Tail Lights for RV, Cargo Trailer, Marine Applications manufactured by Command Electronics
They have everything for the trailer inside and out. Still expensive, but the overhead lights I've gotten from them are so over and above the lights I've gotten else where, that I have started replacing the first ones I bought with commands lights.

[sumrzz]

Thanks for the terrific info!

[rcflame]

I have switched our RW over to leds, inside and out. After a lot of research I ended up getting them from M4 Products. They had every light I needed, and maybe they aren't the cheapest, but they have good lights. I order a few to try before I ordered to replace everything. They also have a lot of information about led's so even if you don't order from them, you can learn a lot about the differences.

[FW28z]

I just did a test of replacement LEDs in my 28Z. Since I have something 20 #1141 bulbs to replace, I figured I'd try just two first and see how they came out.

I bought a couple of these:

Amazon.com: Gold Stars 11568301 LED Replacement Bulb 1156 /1003 /1141 Base 120 LUMS 12V or 24V Natural White: Automotive

At $8 each, they are less expensive than most, but still on the pricey side.

They seem to have about the same intensity as the 1141 incandescent bulbs do. You can also buy replacements that are higher intensity (at a higher cost), but these seem to work fine.

Currently researching for even lower cost replacements before ordering the rest.

The current requirement is about 1/10th of the 1141 incandescent bulb.

[medic]

Is there somekind of chart available that shows a person that this LED is the compatible replacement for the old regular bulb? Is the brightness of the LED's the same or are they to bright or are they dimmer?

I guess if a person had this kind of information they could search the web for the best price.

[Lloyd]

Originally Posted by medic

Is there somekind of chart available that shows a person that this LED is the compatible replacement for the old regular bulb? Is the brightness of the LED's the same or are they to bright or are they dimmer?

I guess if a person had this kind of information they could search the web for the best price.

You might try looking here.
LED Lights, Bulbs & LED Lighting Accessories - SUPER BRIGHT LEDS
They use to have comparison charts. I don't know if they still have them or not.

These people supply the RV industry with a lot of their lights.
LED Tail Lights for RV, Cargo Trailer, Marine Applications manufactured by Command Electronics
As far as I am concerned they are the best out there. Their lights are not cheap, but just remember--a lot of times you get just what you pay for.

I have lights from both places.

[k9huluk]

best thing i have ever done swapping all the bulbs to led. saved loads of amps!!!!! well 10 really.

[Blodwyn Pig]

Recently swapped all interior bulbs to LED. Not quite as bright as the old power guzzlers but much more efficient and don't get hot. Now to swap all the exterior locker bulbs. Already had a disaster there, one left on and melted the lens cover and a plastic awning mat next to it. Always check now before moving!

[mikebreeze]

I bought these on eBay for the interior

10x Warm White LED Dome Bulb 48 1210 SMD LED 10pcs Adapter 1156 1141 BA15S | eBay

I have also replace the tail lights, turn signal lights and patio lights with LED's. Working on the clearance lights now.

[FW28z]

The main issue is the intensity of incandescent light bulbs are measured in Candlepower, while LEDs are measured in Lumens.

As well, incandescent bulbs are more or less omnidirectional while LEDs are highly directional. That can cause an increase of shadows when using LEDs in certain situations.

Finally, incandescent bulbs are typically around 3000degK, which casts a yellow/orange color, whereas LEDs are typically available from 5000degK up to 7000degK, which are daylight to blue color respectively.

All this means there is no direct comparison between a LED and incandescent bulb.

What I did is to buy a couple of LEDs that were not expensive; $5~$8, from eBay, Amazon, etc. and tested them as compared to the incandescent bulbs. That way, I had a minimal investment in the LEDs if I decided they were not the right ones.

I probably went overboard in testing but I tested for color, intensity, temperature (using a Fluke 62 IR temperature meter) and current requirement (using a B&K 316 mini-clamp meter).

I ended up liking the 5000degK LEDs the best as they approximate the color of the noon-day sun (the 7000degK LEDs were too blue for my liking). And I found that the LEDs I picked only required 10% of the energy the others required.

The bulbs in my coach were #1141, so I bought LED replacements having the same base so that they were a simple swap out.

After I found the LEDs I liked the best, then I bought them in quantity. The couple of LEDs I tested with that were not picked were still used for the storage lockers - at least the ones that had lights in them.

I feel safer if I inadvertantly leave a LED light on in the storage locker rather than incandescent bulbs.

If you want to replace the LEDs in your tail lights, make sure to buy DOT approved ones for that purpose.

It was under $100 for replacing all of the lights on my coach - around 22 of them, and I mistakenly left on the lights in the bathroom, and they stayed on for about 2 weeks without draining the batteries.

This is what I ended up buying:

http://www.amazon.com/Gold-Stars-115...s=led+11568301

You can buy a different version having 5 more LEDs that is a bit brigher, but the brightness of the ones I bought pretty much matched the brightness of the incandescent bulbs I replaced.

For the porch light, I bought a different version of LED. It was only $10 at Amazon and has 66 LEDs, and is claimed to be the brightest LED in that kind of base. I have not confirmed that, but I can tell you it is very bright and lights up the entire underside of the awning at night.

Amazon.com: The Brightest Ba15s LED Light Bulb Replacement - Warm White Color - 2nd Generation with 66 LED's - Single Contact Base - 10-30V DC: Automotive

That big, fat LED will fit into this kind of enclosure:

[srobm]

I ordered mine from Ebay. They are flat ones that I stick to the light and in the 7000K range and they are 480 lumens. I originally bought 2 from an RV dealer for $14.95 each and seeing they were so good, I ordered them in bulk from China (20). They were exactly the same and only cost $1.07 each delivered to the door. Have extras just in case one goes bad but it is less than 10% of the cost of the ones from the RV dealers.

[Arkcro]

I am half way through my conversion to LED as the 12 ceiling lights in Living and Kitchen/Dining room have been replaced with the flat two pin replacements ordered from Amazon.com. I will replace the storage compartment lights next then the fixtures and lamps in Bed room after.
I did like "srobm" and ordered one or two that were what I thought and then ordered in bulk and Amazon is about the cheapest going

[Rascal55]

Has anyone found that the LED's affect TV reception? It seems that when I turn on the lights that one or more TV stations do not tune in.

[FW28z]

Never heard of that one. Typically the LEDs used for RVs - the ones in replacement sockets only consist of the LEDs themselves, which in reality are only diodes, a couple of "steering" diodes (so you can't plug them in wrong) and a current limit resistor. Nothing I can see that would generate spirious RF.

High power LEDs however require a driver circuit which typically does have components that could generate such signals, but unless you are using an external box that you had to hook up to the LEDs (which contains the high power driver circuit), it shouldn't pose a problem.

[RichyFL]

I did a full conversion, bought the bulk packages off eBay. However you need to look at the lumens and the temperature. If you want warm bright light you will have to pay a bit more. However, the standard 1156 sucks 11`13 Watts and LED's take about .75 so its an immense load reduction and I did all but my dash lights and soon those as well. I put in a fluorescent in the dining area to brighten that up but the rest are just fine. I am installing a load meter this week and will post what my new load id on my 30Q. I am also installing a AC frequency and load meters so I can watch my generator load and make sure its set at 60 HZ.

[petef]

I have bought a variety of LEd to test, still have more coming. My first batch were white light at vary intense. I put them in spots that would work, ie a fixture to leave on while watching TV, in the BR for reading, etc. I have some soft color coming in and will test those. The white ones do not light up like the factory ones do, and do not have the warm glow. My coach has many overhead lights so putting what I want where is the challenge.
I have been buying on Amazon. CW is way to expensive to experiment with.