Bi Color Nav Light

[rjengelhart]

Anybody replace the bow nav lights recently?  Looking at Aqua Signal LED Series 43 as a replacement for Catalina stock lights.

Any hints or ideas?

Thanks.

[Noah]

I replaced mine with Hella LED fixtures at deck level and a Misea (OGM) Orca Green Tricolor with strobe at mast head.

[KWKloeber]

Anybody replace the bow nav lights recently?  Looking at Aqua Signal LED Series 43 as a replacement for Catalina stock lights.

Any hints or ideas?

Thanks.

Long ago (pre LED, pre series 43) I replaced the bi and stern Series 25 w/ Series 41. I like the 2nm, and the "real" bayonet bulb v. festoon junk.  When she blows, I'll get a 2nm LED bayonet bulb.

kk

[SPembleton]

I replaced mine at the end of last season.  I was surprised by the cost of a led fixture. I ended buying an Aqua Signal 43 regular one, and going to Amazon and buying leds from them.  Pack of 2 or 3 was only about $5.  Works fine.  This spring i am going to do my aft light.

[Noah]

Found this posts on Cruisers Forum, which may be applicable:

05-03-2010, 17:38
Maine Sail
The stuff below is straight from AquaSignal one of the largest nav light makers in the world.

"LED replacement bulbs not manufactured by aqua signal
Aqua Signal is receiving more and more questions about LED replacement bulbs for Aqua Signal fixtures. We would like to take this opportunity to explain our position on LED bulb replacements.

Aqua Signal does not manufacture LED replacement bulbs for our incandescent fixtures. There are several manufacturers in the marketplace that do, however to date; none of them are able to meet USCG requirements. Here are the reasons why:
The bulbs that are being offered as direct replacements for OEM Aqua Signal incandescent bulbs are not and cannot be USCG approved. The USCG only approves, through third party testing, entire fixtures including the bulb. Aqua Signal manufacturers the fixtures, but the bulbs are placed in the aftermarket by another company.

Because the USCG only approves light fixtures for OEM markets where the fixtures are being sold to and installed directly by the OEM, aftermarket bulb manufacturers and fixture manufacturers are not able to attain USCG approval for their offerings.

While we agree that LED lighting is the wave of the future, consumers should be aware of the wide range of these offerings and quality. Aqua Signal has been in the marine lighting business since 1868, and through rigorous testing and research, we decided not to offer replacement LED "bulbs" for our incandescent lights.


It would be a perfect market for us since we have a very large customer base already using our fixtures. However, through our extensive testing we could not attain consistent results with a LED bulb replacement. One of the reasons why is that LED lights are extremely sensitive to onboard system voltage spikes and drops. If you do not manage this voltage properly within the fixture, a voltage spike or drop (dead battery) may result in a catastrophic failure.

To meet the demands of the marine industry, Aqua Signal has developed a full line of dedicated, patented LED fixtures. These fixtures incorporate a single very high quality diode, a patented prism to distribute the light exactly through the arcs of visibility required for each application. We do not utilize lesser quality multiple diodes to distribute the light output. In addition, our entire housing is cast aluminum which is used as a large heat sink. While diodes do not emit a great deal of heat like their incandescent counterparts, they do generate heat behind the diode. This is another significant failure point for a diode. A ten degree temperature rise behind the diode will result in a 50% decrease in the life expectancy of that diode. While this may not be much, a 20 degree temperature change will cause catastrophic failure. Aqua Signal also incorporates computer chip management into our fixtures to resolve the voltage spike and drop issues. The chip will allow for our fixtures to run on both 12 volt and 24 volt systems interchangeably. This completely eliminates LED failures for voltage spikes and drops that can occur on board a boat when using our LED fixtures.

Aqua Signal would like to caution that navigation lights are one of the most critical safety systems on a boat. Awareness of the potential dangers that exist by replacing OEM parts with unproven aftermarket offerings, especially for important safety equipment is very important. Aqua Signal is proud of our history and has developed a reputation in the industry as a provider of the highest quality navigation lights in the industry. If aftermarket bulbs are used in our fixtures, we will not be able to offer warranty coverage for these fixtures.

We hope this clarifies some questions. There are huge advantages of going to LED fixtures onboard a boat. However, if you are going to switch, do it right and switch the whole fixture so you can enjoy knowing that your navigation lights have been specifically designed and tested for that application. Aqua Signal AG was the first company in the industry to receive worldwide approvals on all of their LED lights, so you can also have piece of mind that whatever continent you travel to with your boat, the lights will be legal.


S-40 and LED bulb inserts
We know that there are LED replacement bulbs out there, but their claims that they meet USCG requirements are not accurate. First, you must certify the lights as the manufacturer of the light. They cannot do that since they do not manufacture our lights. They have significant problems with the port and starboard lights meeting any requirement. But the biggest problem is the RFI interference issue. This is not mentioned but can be an issue with your VHF radio when the lights are on. Aqua Signal Series 40 lights are not designed for use with LED bulbs. We have tested LED bulbs in our fixtures and the bulbs do not meet USCG compliance. In addition, there are other problems with LED bulbs in incandescent fixtures. The life expectancy of the bulbs is in question even though they are rated for 50,000 hours. LED diodes are very susceptible to voltage spikes and drops. If you do not have any type of voltage or amperage regulators, they may fail prematurely. Our LED specific fixtures incorporate all of the latest technology not found in LED bulbs.
The use of these bulbs would also void any warranty with the fixtures. It is our recommendation not to use these LED bulbs.
Aqua Signal developed these lights to meet the requirements using an incandescent bulb. We have been testing and working on an LED insert for our Series 40 product and have yet to build one that is satisfactory to our engineers in Germany.
We do realize the benefits of significantly reduced amp hours with LED lights. However, other than in full sail mode, if you are running your engine, the benefits of LED technology are completely eliminated."

[KWKloeber]

Thanks for that info Noah.   Good stuff!

There's something posted here before about cheapo LED bulbs. 

http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,8798.0.html

No experience pro or con, just passing info along.

ken