LED navigation lights

[nor'easter]

I am thinking of replacing my sidelights with LEDS. Mine are mounted on the foredeck/horizontal and are perko standard lights now. Vibration and corrosion are killing bulbs and they seem to be problematic more often than not.
I have heard good things about some of the LEDs, and would think that they are better for my application....especially with the vibration being mounted far forward.
I may add a hard top next 1-2 yrs and thought about moving them up top then, but if I had good service on the foredeck from LEDs, I would leave them there.
Any experience/brands?
Thanks

 

[Mike36c]

I installed LED nav and mast lights on my 36, after 4 years with zero maintenance they still work every time I flip the switch.

 

[nor'easter]

Thanks Mike. That is what I wanted to hear.
What brand do you have? Any that I should stay away from?

 

[yachtsmanbill]

I have the perko nav lights with a $20 32 vdc bulb... are the LEDS available in 32 volt?? ws

 

[Mike36c]

At the time I believe Perko had the only USCG approved LEDs so thats what I went with. I just added some silicon sealant to the gaskets to make sure they were water tight. It's nice knowing they WILL work when the sun goes down.

 

[fissioneng]

I need to buy new red/green navigation lights. Mine are vertical mount.

Seems like the mainstream players are:

- Perko
- Aqua Signal
- Hella

After researching their offerings, the prices seem to be all over the place. Some use multiple LEDs (Perko), other use a single LED with "proprietary" lense technology (Aqua Signal, Hella). Some have lives of 50,000 hours (Aqua Signal, Hella), others have 100,000 hour lives (Perko). Some are ~$60 each, others are $200 each.

Anyone gone through this research before? Do I just go with the cheapest or is there something to be gained by spending more money? LED life seems like a trivial concern as they will probably outlast my ownership of the boat and I don't boat much at night. LEDs seem to be such simple devices, but like anything else, I am sure there are technical differences.

Or I could take the really cheap route and just buy incandescents.

 

[Silverado6x6]

If I was converting lamps to LED I would just buy them in bulk from China, I designed and sold LED flashlights back around 2000 before hardly any were on the market, I made a killing for a year or so until the imports started showing up.

If a person was a DIY like me with basic electronics background you can make your own lights for a few bucks each.

For a start anyone interested can go to http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ and just ask around, some will gladly make you a light or direct you to the latest products.

Myself I was one of the early members at that forum, I have not posted in years though but the old timers know me.

Or do a search on ebay, many times I can buy a hundred LEDs for a couple of dollars from China, many will ship a matching resistor for 12v, do some math and you can use a higher resistor for higher voltage.

 

[bigbill]

you can replace most old style bulbs with LEDs without changing the fixture. superbrightleds.com is where i got my bulbs from. bigbill

 

[fissioneng]

I should clarify a bit. I want to change the fixtures to a smaller profile model. The original lights are HUGE and protrude out too far (4") from the sides of my FB....like right into my shoulders. The old ones also look a little too vintage to me. Older Convertibles seem to have smaller lights, for some reason my boat (most MYs?) has these huge lights (Perko 0109).

I guess I could buy new incandescents and put LED bulbs in them, but they might not be as weather/corrosion resistant as a new LED fixture. My experience is that the old fixture sockets are part of the problem no matter what bulb is in them.

 

[spartonboat1]

I should clarify a bit. I want to change the fixtures to a smaller profile model. The original lights are HUGE and protrude out too far (4") from the sides of my FB....like right into my shoulders. The old ones also look a little too vintage to me. Older Convertibles seem to have smaller lights, for some reason my boat (most MYs?) has these huge lights (Perko 0109).

I guess I could buy new incandescents and put LED bulbs in them, but they might not be as weather/corrosion resistant as a new LED fixture. My experience is that the old fixture sockets are part of the problem no matter what bulb is in them.

Check into the USCG regs for the size candlepower required for your size vessel, as larger vessels require a large nav light than smaller.

 

[Pete]

I will be mounting Hella LED navigation on our 48 when I get it back from the paint job. The Starboard light has a part number of 959908211. They take 9 to 33 volts dc. Bought them from Defender a few months back and it my memory is working, they were just under $100 each.

Pete

 

[fissioneng]

Check into the USCG regs for the size candlepower required for your size vessel, as larger vessels require a large nav light than smaller.

For side lights only, the regs say they must have 2 nm visibility if you are over 12 meters in length. 1 nm if under 12 meters. The other lights have different requirements.