[C38] LED Bulbs

Wed Apr 25 15:46:36 EDT 2012

Hi Peter,

I had the same anchor light on Estancia, but it fell into pieces when I
tried to disassemble it for the fist time, so I bought an Aqua Signal 360
degrees anchor light and replaced the incandescent bulb for a Doctor LED.
No problem so far.... With the incandescent bulb, I was able to see the
windex at night. Not the case with the LED.

Estancia had a steaming light located close to the first spreader set, I
just replaced it with a Forespar steaming/ foredeck combo fixture. had to
route more wires inside the conduit. The worst part is fishing them at the
mast base, but it can be done. I have replaced all the internal mast wiring
already. The spreader lights wires are running outside of the conduit.

Rivets came in couples.. One is for the conduit, and the other one for the
hook that is inserted to hold the conduit against the mast wall for
riveting. If that hole is for the hook, just put another rivet. But If you
can see the conduit, and is separated from the mast, drill the hook rivet,
make a hook and follow previous instructions!!!!! LOL

A couple of years ago, I ordered a new Sparcraft mast for a friends Hunter
375, and the mast came with double conduits.. If I take down my mast ever,
I'll install another conduit for this wires....
Hope this helps!

Regards,
Max

El 24 de abril de 2012 20:59, Peter Lagan <pblagan at shaw.ca> escribió:

> ** **
>
> Hi,****
>
> ** **
>
> This carries on from last month’s topic on LED Bulbs. I'm finally getting
> around to changing the anchor light bulb to LED, with
> consideration on replacing the entire fixture. It's a bit of a read but as
> I dig deeper, I have more questions, and it's probably worth sharing.
> Personally I love the long reads as they provide great detail, and enjoy
> the knowledge shared by you all. We're lucky to have the history provided
> by Joe Launie, and the mechanical skills provided by Tom Troncalli. I also
> love all of your blogs!****
>
>  ****
>
> Back to LED's, Captain Jeffry Matzdorff* *had posted an LED replacement
> chart some time ago. Unfortunately I cannot see these attachments so
> apologize if I'm duplicating information. Chuck & Anders are helping sort
> this out.
>
> Firstly, the cheap $1 LED bulbs that I was buying from ****China**** are
> apparently not the best for the boat. This is because voltage ranges on the
> boat can be from 11 to 14.5 volts, depending on how low we let our
> batteries discharge, to how high the solar panel regulator charge. The
> cheaper LED bulbs use a fixed resistance to provide a voltage drop for the
> LED. Since the range of voltage is large, the current can vary and could
> overdrive the LED's PN junction causing it to overheat, which can be
> dangerous. We need the LED's with Constant Current Drivers included that
> rate the bulb for say 10-30vdc. Here's a good web site that explains this:
> http://store.marinebeam.com/whyounetokna.html
>
> So, our masthead light fixture, the original Perko 1196 which I've also
> seen on another C38, is supposed to provide 225 degrees of 3nm white light
> forward as a 'Steaming' light, and 135 degrees of 3nm light reward that
> when combined with the forward light, provides an anchor light.
>
> Ours was likely installed backwards from the factory, thus providing 225
> degrees rearwards, and the forward bulb is not lit when the anchor light
> switch is on...not good. Correct installation is shown here:
> http://www.perko.com/images/catalog/pdf/Figs%201183%20to%201197%20Inst%20(1183INS1).pdfThe setscrew or holding screw on ours is facing forward. Has anyone else
> experienced this? It might be a good idea to check it out with binoculars.
> When you anchor, do you turn on both the steaming light and the anchor
> light switches, or is there some sort of Double Pole, Double Throw
> combination you use on the anchor light switch to energize both bulbs?
>
> For LED replacements, I'm leaning towards two marinebeam bulbs designed
> specifically for the Perko 1100 series?
> http://store.marinebeam.com/perko-31mm-anchor-light.html . The lens kit
> is reasonably priced, so those would get replaced also. Is the key element
> in replacing bulbs to maintain the specifications set forth by the
> collision regulations and ABYC? I think the marinebeam products exceed the
> specs, but don't mention approval. By the way, I'm not trying to plug their
> product, but I do trust what they have to say. They indicate that it's
> because it's the only luminaries (fixtures with bulbs) are certified
> against the Colreg requirements. Does this mean that if we're hit at anchor
> and it's determined that our light is not approved, are we liable for both
> vessels? Will our insurance cover us?
>
> Being a huge Peregrine fan, I love to follow the upgrades made by Steve
> Smolinske who has a 225 degree steaming light combined with his spreader
> light part way up the mast, and a tri-color, strobe, with anchor light on
> the masthead. I looked at the possibility of doing this, namely moving the
> steaming light down to the spreader light, and then obtaining an all-around
> anchor LED approved light. I later discovered that the Sea-Dog anchor
> light was using the cheap LED bulbs. So, unless the voltage range is
> specified 10-30vdc, they're not constant-current. www.lopolight.com makes
> nice lights, but they're out of our price range. With the mast in place,
> how hard is it to intercept & pull the steaming light wire down from the
> top to the spreader light location? Can it be intercepted at the spreader
> light or should it be pulled down to the bottom, then pull the spreader
> light wire down with a string attached to pull them both back up?****
>
>  ****
>
> I'd love to hear some comments on this. It's been a couple of weeks since
> I've tried posting this, and now our decision is made. We're going with the
> common practice of replacing our bulbs in existing fixtures with
> constant-current LED's that exceed requirements set out by the collision
> regulations. Perhaps when we service our mast, we'll make some changes
> depending on how industry and regulatory bodies accept the LED movement.**
> **
>
>  ****
>
> On a final note, having gone up & down the mast a couple of times, I
> noticed a loose rivet which is presumably holding the wiring conduit, which
> rattles and drives me nuts when it's windy. I've read a few threads on this
> rattling conduit...can the loose rivet be easily replaced to solve the
> problem?****
>
>  ****
>
> Thanks Chuck for helping me post.****
>
> Peter,
> C38, Gusto.****
>
> ** **
>
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>

-- 
Max Soto
C38 #198 ESTANCIA
Puntarenas, Costa Rica
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