low wattage cabin lights and quiet fans

[hathanger]

Looking to replace cabin dome lights and fans with new one's that are low wattage to conserve power while cruising. Thanks, Chip

[fallard]

LEDs will use about 1/6th the power of an incandescent bulb with the same light output. The LEDs are a lot cooler, too!

You can buy LEDs that plug into most existing fixtures. If you want the warm glow of an incandescent, look for an LED that has a color temperature of 2700 degrees. The higher the color temperature, the bluer the light.

[hellosailor]

LEDS. The cheap ones just use dropping resistors, the better ones (more expensive, more reliable, less prone to damage) use "controllers" to make sure they operate at the proper amperage and voltage, regardless of what your ship's power is running at.

Ask the vendor how they protect their LEDs and regulate the power supply to them, and the ones who just mumble? Well, if you buy their product buy spares. Sometimes cheap is good, sometimes it is just more work to do.

[lickingcardboard]

12-Volt Fans | The Boat Galley read this see if it fits your needs

[JimsCAL]

My boat has a bunch of Perko dome lights that use a bayonnet bulb. As a trial, I replaced one in the main cabin last year with a LED replacement by IMTRA. It is a square board with 9 LEDs and a short cable to the bayonnet plug. Took only a few minutes to change and it worked great. Couldn't tell the difference in light between the one with the incandescent bulbs and the LED. I plan on changing several more this season and also try their replacements for the reading lights. Cost at Defender is $16 to $19 each - lower than most of the competition.

[arf145]

I recommend Marinebeam.com for LEDs. They have replacement bulbs (which I have installed) and fixtures. You can check out their site for info on their circuitry, quality control etc. You do need to watch out for radio frequency interference from some bulbs--I found the Marinebeam bulbs to be RFI quiet and to put out pleasant light.

No association with Marinebeam--just like their stuff.

[Bilgewater]

Originally Posted by lickingcardboard

12-Volt Fans | The Boat Galley read this see if it fits your needs

I have 3 fans on my boat, 2 of them are these Caframo's as in the link and the other is a caged fan. I've had one of the Caframo's for about 5 years with no problems at all. Very quiet and they push a lot of air. The caged fan (the name escapes me) is noisy, pushes very little air and will soon be replaced with another Caframo. I'm very pleased with this model of fan.

[TQA]

Another vote for Caframo.

Mind you I am not sure if the fan blades are UV resistant have had one disintiigrate in use.

[josrulz]

On the subject of LEDs, I just read some older posts, including the one by Maine Sail, and the net net seems to be that Sensibulb is the best, though there are others that cost less and are OK. I went to Sailor Solutions to check out the Sensibulbs, but I can't seem to get to the site. Anyone else experiencing the same thing?

[rmeador]

I can't access it either. Yesterday around this time I was trying to get it and it was only returning a blank page. Now I can't even get a connection at all, it seems.