Hi all,
I would like to replace the interior lighting on my boat. Both fluorescent fixtures (in head and over ice box), main cabin fixtures, reading lights in forward and aft cabins, and possibly the navigation table lamp. I would like to be able to operate each light individually (on/off), and possibly dimmers. Currently, if I have the "cabin lights" circuit turned on, there is no way to turn off the main cabin lights individually. If I want to use the reading lights in the V-Birth, all of the main cabin lights have to be left on. I've read many of the previous posts, but most are from years past, and the technology is constantly changing and improving. It sounds like simply replacing bulbs with LED bulbs can sometimes work, but may be a real compromise.
Has anyone taken on this type of project recently, to take advantage of the newer LED technologies? If so, I would really appreciate learning from your experience.
Some specific areas of interest include:
- Specific fixtures/Sizes
- Switching/Dimming
- Light Output to match existing or improve
- Color Temps (I like the warm look of the incandescents)
- Wiring issues
Thanks.
Mike....
Mike,
I replaced all of my lights with LED except for the chart light on the nav station. I used the Dr. LED dome lights in the salon and have been happy with them (other than one that went out, it was difficult to get them to honor the warranty) I have two different kinds of reading lamps in the cabins. One set forward and another set aft. It has been my experience that the more expensive the fixture is the better the quality of the light output. The more expensive fixtures look like incandescents while the cheaper fixtures look like LEDs. Wiring was easy, just use existing wiring and new butte connectors. Overall I would say it is a vast improvement over the old factory lighting.
FYI if you want to try a less expensive and easier route check out marinebeam.com and just replace your bulbs. I did this for my NAV lights and can't tell the difference, so my caveat on price is not always necessarily applicable.
I have a 1990 MK I so your boat may be different and mine may not be "stock" due to a few different POs. over the years. While I do have one breaker for all cabin lights, each individual fixture has an on/off switch. IF I hear you right, yours don't? Very odd. I'd fix that for sure if I were you, which would rule out just changing to LED bulbs. Meanwhile I am in the process of undertaking the same change to LED project on my boat. I just completed adding two Alpenglow LED lights to my main saloon overhead. I like a lot of light (bad eyes) and these work well. They are combo featuring warm white and red and have dual power high/low brightness switch to control either color. I made some flat teak moldings with an offset channel routed in them to run the wires. I ran the mouldings all the way across the cabin coachroof tying into the saloon hatch frame so that (in my opinion) they looked like they "belonged", were balanced, and appeared less like wire covers. Very subjective decision. I am thinking about just abandoning the port and starboard under deck lights in the saloon as these new overhead lights give plenty of light. I am still undecided about replacing the fixtures in the rest of the boat. The Alpenglow products are very well reviewed (by Practical Sailor, etc.) but are expensive. The overhead style I used in the Saloon are not the best choice in the fore and aft cabins. I am considering their adjustable cabin or reading light models for the cabins. But again--they are expensive, approx $150 per! I may experiment with one, against a cheaper fixture from Luna Sea or West Maine to compare -- before I go crazy with a lot of fixtures.
I've got an 87 as well and all of my lights have on-off switches. Never heard of a boat light that didn't.
I did replace my salon cabin festoon bulbs with LED equivalents. Haven't done any others yet.
I replaced all my salon lights with the dr led johns. I like the light they give off. Nice and warm but brighter than the old fixtures which is what I was looking for. They don't dim but have a high and a low switch setting. I found the best price surprisingly at WM. For the aft cabin I put in 2 LunaSea reading lamps. They are very nice with touch dimmer switches and an option to have the switch glow which could be a good night light.
I put in a very inexpensive led in the head area that I got at a local RV store It's a much colder white but I like the brightness in that area.
RC did a comparison of LEDs. I didn't readily locate the write up - may be on a forum somewhere - but here's the pics..... It's obviously older so the models tested may not reflect what's on the market now.
www.pbase.com/mainecruising/led_bulb_test
Ken
Mike,
What lights do you have in your main salon? Is the standard light that Catalina used...a clear rectangular fixture that is approximately 3" x 7" or did a previous owner replace those with something else?
HI,
I have replaced just the bulb by LED in the standard fixtures in the main cabin.
At $2.00 / ea. and I am very pleased with the result.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Warm-White-48-LED-SMD-Panel-Dome-Interior-Light-Bulb-Lamp-T10-BA9S-Festoon-12V/371035595842?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140602152332%26meid%3Df701374e95eb47e5b34c9a58cd2ac1eb%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D20140602152332%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D221150713054&tfrom=221150713054&tpos=unknow&ttype=price&talgo=origal
Thanks for all of the great feedback and pictures. Nice woodwork Noah. I will check my salon fixtures again later today for on/off switches, but I haven't found them yet. They are approx. 3"x8" with plastic cover. As I recall, the plastic cover encloses everything. They have 2 of the festoon type bulbs in each fixture.
Mike....
Quote from: Mike McDonald on August 22, 2014, 08:05:29 AM
Thanks for all of the great feedback and pictures. Nice woodwork Noah. I will check my salon fixtures again later today for on/off switches, but I haven't found them yet. They are approx. 3"x8" with plastic cover. As I recall, the plastic cover encloses everything. They have 2 of the festoon type bulbs in each fixture.
Mike....
I'm pretty sure you have the same fixtures I have.
here's the scoop...there is no switch. The fixture itself is the switch. It slides forward and aft. There are 3 positions...the middle position is off. Move the fixture fore and aft. One position will turn on one bulb and the other position will turn on both. I replaced all the festoons with LED equivalents as I didn't want to go the trouble and expense of replacing the entire fixture. Way less power draw and there is very little heat output.
I think I'm going to replace my cabin bulbs as well in the near future.
Chuck,
Thanks for the explanation of how the fixture works. I'll try it tomorrow when I get to the boat. Never thought to slide the whole fixture. Thanks.
Mike.....
Quote from: sue on August 21, 2014, 07:05:08 PM
For the aft cabin I put in 2 LunaSea reading lamps. They are very nice with touch dimmer switches and an option to have the switch glow which could be a good night light.
Sue, do your Luna Sea reading lights have white glass shades? I saw them online and was considering them for my aft cabin too. Is the shade translucent and lets light through? Are you worried about breaking the shade and if they did break can you buy a replacement shades?
Also, off thread: you have inspired me and am replacing my old Racor with the 500 series T handle with drop in filter this weekend. Next thing I want to do is a make a beautiful small saloon table like yours. Can you share your project's secrets?
Two LED products I really like are the Sensibulb and anything from Marine Beam. Please be very, very careful with no-name eBay Chinese LED's. LED's need constant current control to operate at safe temps and to maximize life. Good circuit topology for LED control is not cheap. I have one customer who went eBay then paid me for a troubleshoot. I found three of his emitters had literally unsoldered themselves and were in the dome. He now has 100% Marine Beam.
Marine Beam has a bulb to fit anything and everything I have converted. Their warm white is very pleasing and a true warm white. Jeff Field the owner also stands behind the product.. Also Marine Beam supplies many of the "big names" in marine lighting with their LED bulbs...
Superbrightleds is a good company to deal with.
Chuck,
You are right! I have the slider fixtures. After a few connection adjustments, all are working in the 3 different positions. One bulb/two bulbs/off. The Admiral is much happier now. I think I'll look into the replacement LED bulbs for now, except for the galley and head fluorescent fixtures. Thanks again.
Mike...
Great. I got my festoon replacements from Superbrightleds.com. Whoever you buy from, make sure you get warm white. Even the natural white is too blue for my tastes.
Noah., I got these http://www.lunasealighting.com/products/detail/elegant-wall-mount-led-light-33ew/led-fixtures. The globe is white and let's light through. I had not really thought about them breaking. They are physically smaller than I thought they would be based on the photo and seem to tuck out of the way. I don't see anything on their website about replacement parts but you could call the company and see if that is an option.
In terms of the other comments, I think you may be looking at someone else's boat. I haven't done a table modification yet though that is in my plans.
Thx for the info on lights. You are right. The 500 series Racor filter and small saloon table "Sue" lives aboard her yacht Honolulu, Hawaii. LOL!
Quote from: chuck53 on August 23, 2014, 01:57:54 PM
I got my festoon replacements from Superbrightleds.com.
Has anyone found a true replacement for a 20 watt halogen bulb? I asked SB LEDs and I bought what they said was a 20w replacement, but it's barely a 10 watt substitute - was very disappointed. I need a backside G4 terminal replacement -- it's not for on the boat so constant current control isn't that important to me, brightness is. Prefer cool/bright white for this application.
Thanks,
Ken
Ken : I got a flat LED replacement and have seen many others. Most ask if the fixture is under the counter so you can't see the fixture - then they recommend a bright white LED which throw out "tons" of light.
Hope this helps
Quote from: Ron Hill on August 24, 2014, 05:47:22 PM
Ken : I got a flat LED replacement and have seen many others. Most ask if the fixture is under the counter so you can't see the fixture - then they recommend a bright white LED which throw out "tons" of light.
Hope this helps
Thanks Ron,
Yep SB LED sent a flat replacement - I don't know how many, but it has surface, bright white LEDs - nice color for my use, just not anywhere near the brightness of a 20 watt, though SB LED said it was.
It has a narrower beam which was fine - but I'd hate to see the brightness if it was as wide as the oem fixture :-( More like a 5 watt.
I'm wondering if a tower bulb where there's more surface LEDs would be brighter - it wous likely hang out the bottom of the fixture though.
Ken
Ken, www.marinebeam.com (http://www.marinebeam.com) has a great section on their website about choosing the lamps for replacement issues such as yours.
Whether you buy from them or not, the kinda "tutorial" I found is very helpful. I bought a replacement galley fixture LED from them, it's great.
Quote from: Stu Jackson on August 24, 2014, 09:34:50 PM
Ken, www.marinebeam.com (http://www.marinebeam.com) has a great section on their website about choosing the lamps for replacement issues such as yours.
Whether you buy from them or not, the kinda "tutorial" I found is very helpful. I bought a replacement galley fixture LED from them, it's great.
Thanks Stu,
Yep I like Jeff's site - it's one of the really quality made LEDs around. But it doesn't list the lumens of the flat G4 back pin, so I can't tell if it's close to a real 20-w replacement.
I'll email Jeff and ask what he thinks about his g4 bulb output compared to a halogen G4.
Cheers,
Ken