New boat owner, need tips on interior LED lights

[thomasward00]

I've recently purchased my first boat a North American Spirit 23, I'm looking to install Interior LED lights, does anyone have any pointers?

Thanks in advance

[Zanshin]

Are there lights installed already? If they are halogen fittings and bulbs, then there are several LED drop-in replacements for the G4 sockets available. Or are you looking at a completely new system?

[JimsCAL]

Replacement bulbs are the easiest way to go - and less expensive. I have installed a number of Imtra replacements in my dome and reading lamps over the last couple of years and they have worked well. You will have to determine what type of socket you have and then check to see whats available. I got mine from Defender.

[rikhall]

We too have put LEDs in place of incandescent on most of our interior fixtures. Our incandescent bulb was an #1141. You can purchase replacements at almost any marine store or online. I have no affiliation with this online company but I am going to order a bunch from them.

We also installed two of these in the galley and they are surprisingly bright. They take six AAA batteries - so, no wiring at all.



At $20 each they were a very good solution for us.

Rik

[thomasward00]

Originally Posted by rikhall

We too have put LEDs in place of incandescent on most of our interior fixtures. Our incandescent bulb was an #1141. You can purchase replacements at almost any marine store or online. I have no affiliation with this online company but I am going to order a bunch from them.

We also installed two of these in the galley and they are surprisingly bright. They take six AAA batteries - so, no wiring at all.



At $20 each they were a very good solution for us.

Rik

Do you have a link for that light strip? That seems like it would be ideal.

[JoeDiver]

I have a Catalina 25, and I replaced all of my interior cabin lights with LED's. While not the least expensive option, I purchased complete fixtures, mainly because my old fixtures were not in the best shape. They were those cheap RV style 12V fixtures anyway. I only needed 5 of them to do a complete replacement. I purchased mine through Catalina Direct, so I got fixtures designed as replacements for my boat.

I paid about $25 per fixture. Each one was extremely simple to replace, only 2 wires each and had to drill 4 new holes to mount each one. Each one took about 15 minutes to install, so a couple hours work and I was done.

I can now light the whole boat for less than the amp hour cost of a single incandescent bulb that I replaced. The light is "whiter" than the gentle yellowish glow of the incandescent, but it is not overly harsh. The fixtures have a nice design that diffuses the light well, and also provide a "spot" directly underneath. This is very nice up in the V Berth for reading.

Summary: Easy. Worth it. Do it.

[ccriders]

Originally Posted by JoeDiver

I paid about $25 per fixture.

Hey Joe,
I just went to Catalina direct and did not find any $25 lamp fixtures. Do you have a part number or a link to what you purchased?
Thanks,
John

[rikhall]

Originally Posted by thomasward00

Do you have a link for that light strip? That seems like it would be ideal.

I bought mine by walking into Hamilton Marine. I was a bit skeptical, but the Commodore wanted more light in the galley so I bought one.

A week later we were in Belfast ME again and I hitch hiked to Hamilton Marine in Searsport to buy a second one for over the salon table. They work really well.

They come in white or grey.

http://store.hamiltonmarine.com/brow...7/4,36608.html

Rik

[DwayneSpeer]

My best advice is make sure you do your homework first. LEDs are rated both by Kelvin Color and Brightness. Get ones that are well into the white range and bright enough to actually use. I made the mistake quite a few years of buying a then quite expensive LED light to replace one of my cabin lights and it actually was bright enough to use as a night light! The technology and costs both have improved drastically since then but you still need to make sure of what you are getting.

A good place to start understanding is autolumination dot com/colors dot htm.

[JoeDiver]

Originally Posted by ccriders

Hey Joe,
I just went to Catalina direct and did not find any $25 lamp fixtures. Do you have a part number or a link to what you purchased?
Thanks,
John

HERE they are....$29 bucks.....