LED Lighting Conversion

[Midnightsun]

Most of us have already converted our halogen/incandecent lighting to LED including myself however for those who have not here are some tips.


Early on LED lights were cool white only, some like it but I find it too white with almost a blue tint to it, the early versions of warm white were rather green in effect and looked ok but a little odd. Point is both did not do well in light color in comparison to halogen which is just right IMHO.

Fast forward 8-10 years and many alternatives have hit the market. My favorite is the silicone encased type I always try to purchase the dimmable type as even if you do not have a dimmer you may want to add one somewhere down the road. Do not assume they are dimmable, read what you are buying and make sure the description says dimmable. To be able to dim LED you do need to have a PWM (pulse wave modulation) dimmer that is. Sounds fancy but can be had for a few dollars on eBay.

You do not need to purchase LED bulbs at the Marine store and pay $15 each. The can be had for more like 75 cents each which is on the expensive side since I just bought a pack of 50 @ 66 cents each delivered to Canada. Most are available in 3 or 6 watt. 3 is more than enough IMHO. https://www.ebay.com/itm/G4-Led-Bulb-Di ... 2749.l2649

Most common bulb type on boats is by far the G4, bi pin 12v style. Usually found in the overhead lighting as in the link above. There are also others such as festoon but one needs to be careful are there are quite a few lengths out there so measure yours before you order anything.

Courtesy lights tend to be mostly T10 also referred to as 168 or 194. Problem here is finding the right color and brightness. The ones I have now are quite nice but I tend to experiment so Just bought 20 of these to try out. Unfortunately by the time I get them it may not be until spring before I can report back. https://www.ebay.com/itm/10pcs-T10-194- ... SwImRYSShU

Would love to hear about your experimentation and results.

[Viper]

Good job Hans, thanks for the heads up

[PJHoffnet]

We've also replaced all the interior lights with LEDs (CBConcept Dimmable 320 Lumens Warm White 3000K). We really likes the added brightness.

Like you the next step is the external courtesy/deck lights. I haven't started to research (because I'm waiting for cooler weather) them but I'll be looking for something Blue in color and certainly not as bright as my internal lights - though I hadn't even thought about dimables (Bright at the dock/on the hook, dim when underway sounds nice). It looks like there are Contura dimmer switch you can put in your dash to replace the standard on/off rocker switches. Has anyone ever used these?

Another LED lighting thing I'd like to research is replacing my current halogen running lights with LED bulbs. Because of the COLREG implications, I'm gonna go slow on this one - though I'm guessing someone out here has already done the research.

[g36]

Ive switched mine also but i believe one important thing to keep in mind with leds is to realize some 12vdc bulbs do not have a tolerance for voltage swings. Some 12vdc bulbs will not work or they will burn out instantly in a environment that has voltage swings such as a boat or car voltages which can be 11-15dc. So I would recommend to review the operating range for whatever led you consider before purchase.

[Midnightsun]

Source of the post Ive switched mine also but i believe one important thing to keep in mind with leds is to realize some 12vdc bulbs do not have a tolerance for voltage swings. Some 12vdc bulbs will not work or they will burn out instantly in a environment that has voltage swings such as a boat or car voltages which can be 11-15dc. So I would recommend to review the operating range for whatever led you consider before purchase.

You are probably correct however I do believe this was a while ago. I have literally tried dozens of different types all from China at ridiculously low cost, never lost one yet. Oddly enough the only few I have ever lost were at home on a regulated power supply which never wanders off of 12v, go figure.

[Midnightsun]

Source of the post We've also replaced all the interior lights with LEDs (CBConcept Dimmable 320 Lumens Warm White 3000K). We really likes the added brightness.

Like you the next step is the external courtesy/deck lights. I haven't started to research (because I'm waiting for cooler weather) them but I'll be looking for something Blue in color and certainly not as bright as my internal lights - though I hadn't even thought about dimables (Bright at the dock/on the hook, dim when underway sounds nice). It looks like there are Contura dimmer switch you can put in your dash to replace the standard on/off rocker switches. Has anyone ever used these?

Another LED lighting thing I'd like to research is replacing my current halogen running lights with LED bulbs. Because of the COLREG implications, I'm gonna go slow on this one - though I'm guessing someone out here has already done the research.

The chances of nav lighting being inspected due to a crash at night are rather slim to say the least but yes I guess it could happen, just like getting hit by lightning. That being said I did swap out the anchor light with the appropriate festoon in my case. I just looked for the brightest one I could find and determined all is good. Never bothered with the red and green nav lights as they are really rarely used and if they are used you are almost sure to be running the engine(s) so no power draw to think of. That being said, depending on the bulb style, some of them out there today will put a halogen to shame in terms of light output. pretty sure there is nothing wrong with being too bright.

[g36]

It may be less common now days but ive had friends order from various places including known good led suppiers who offer all kinds of 12v bulbs. but some have no tolerence from 12v range and sure enough they burned out because they were spec'd for 12 only. Just saying need to be mindful of manufacturers data beside assuming all 12v bulbs are the same . I work in electronics and have 35 years I've seen a lot of changes just thought it would be helpful especially after seeing how my friends reacted when I spoke so highly of 12v lefs and they ordered the wrong thing.

[Midnightsun]

Here is a little secret I have kept. My boat happens to have Carling rocker switches like most boats do however mine are not standard size. They are slightly bigger than your normal everyday rocker you find almost everywhere. They are the LD series from Carling therefor replacements are not easy to find but thanks to Great Lakes Skipper they have quite a few.

The Carling LD series happens to be used on big rigs so yes they can be had. Experimented with this dimmer switch for the overhead cockpit lights in the hard top. These normally are always way to bright and dimming would be a great option. I did convert those to LED and gave it a whirl. Worked wonderfully. A bit spendy but pops right into place after removing the existing switch. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Carling-Techno ... 2749.l2649

[PJHoffnet]

Source of the post Here is a little secret I have kept. My boat happens to have Carling rocker switches like most boats do however mine are not standard size. They are slightly bigger than your normal everyday rocker you find almost everywhere. They are the LD series from Carling therefor replacements are not easy to find but thanks to Great Lakes Skipper they have quite a few.

The Carling LD series happens to be used on big rigs so yes they can be had. Experimented with this dimmer switch for the overhead cockpit lights in the hard top. These normally are always way to bright and dimming would be a great option. I did convert those to LED and gave it a whirl. Worked wonderfully. A bit spendy but pops right into place after removing the existing switch. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Carling-Techno ... 2749.l2649

Those are some big boys. Did you have to modify the dash, or do they fit in the standard footprint? Bit pricey, but sure like the dimmable aspect.

[Midnightsun]

Those are what came with my Carver, they pop right in. In fact my dash lights actually had this dimmer switch in place from the factory to allow dimming of the instrumentation. Since the dash lights are not LED I rewired it to test on LED which worked so I bought a few for other areas. Have no clue what Carver used on previous years/models so do check for fitment.