replace fluorescent bulbs with LED

Hello just wondering if anyone has replaced the 2 x 8w T5 tubes in their Trident or other Auto Sleeper with LED tubes?

Any recommendations on where to get them etc? 

These [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

seem to be the same size and fitting as the originals. 

Is it worth bothering?

Thanks

If you do a forum search for "LED experiment" you will find a long thread on the subject, but it has been raised many times in other threads in recent years.

The reviews for that product on Amazon's website don't seem that great for something that costs that much - there are better, cheaper ways of upgrading those lights, though that "retrofit" type are obviously the least effort to install - most other methods require re-wiring inside the light fitting to some degree.

See this thread


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Atem I can recommend, if at a show they will fit for you free when buying their LED`s, he replaced my fluorescent tube lights with LED`s ,

Thanks for your replies, reading a few other reads I think I'd be happier doing a straight swap, old tube for new led tube. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] seem the right ones?

Hi, iv replaced a couple of the strip lights for the link you provided there, id say slightly brighter light although its more directional so you need to make sure its facing completely the right way or youl lose some light, i went ahead with the led purely for trying to be more conservative on the leisure battery when not on ehu, also mine didnt need any re wiring, was just a case of swap them out and it worked, couldnt see any starters on the old tube lights

Thanks, that's  my reasoning too - save battery.  The spotlights have already been changed to led so thought I'd do the tubes too. Did you have to fit 2 tubes or can you just fit one and leave the other 'slot' empty?

daisy mae wrote:Atem I can recommend, if at a show they will fit for you free when buying their LED`s, he replaced my fluorescent tube lights with LED`s ,

Ahem!!!  

I think Daisy means Aten - and I quite agree. They are an excellent father and son concern (Joe and Saul), and nothing is too much trouble for them. Their bulbs are all top quality too, which is often not the case with Chinese cheapies on Amazon or eBay.

I did buy some cheapies for the van (should have known better!!) and they were not very good, and one of them lasted a week! Sent them back and got some from Aten Lighting with Saul's advice, and they are superb. Saul also recommended full LED lighting for both kitchen and bathroom at home, and we are very pleased with the result.

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Dave

Thanks Dave, did mean Aten  ,  keys too close together, that's my excuse anyway.

[size=32]Thanks, that's  my reasoning too - save battery.  The spotlights have already been changed to led so thought I'd do the tubes too. Did you have to fit 2 tubes or can you just fit one and leave the other 'slot' empty?[/size]




I changed my spotlights also, i would recommend changing both the strip lights as you can see a obvious dark patch on the light cover when one bulb is in there, although it does work with just 1 in if you have the same wiring as mine

You have to check how your tubes are connected in your lamps. As I said in the thread I linked to, I had to use two tubes whereas one would have been bright enough. The light output is so much brighter and also much whiter than the 'cream' output of the old ones. You certainly won't need so many lights switched on.

thanks. there are two tubes, but is there any danger with only putting one in and leaving the other space empty? I'll get two anyway and see.

Thanks for the link to aten lighting - they seem to offer strips of LEDs that you wire to the 12v supply rather than a straight bulb replacement, and not much cheaper than a bulb.

mills1983 wrote:Thanks, that's  my reasoning too - save battery.

If you get LEDs that are roughly the same brightness as the fluorescent lamps you won't save much battery power - fluorescent fittings are pretty efficient anyway. The reason I changed mine is that I wanted a "warmer" colour temperature, and I also wanted something that achieved full brightness immediately it is switched on, unlike the fluorescents.

As you probably know already, replacing halogens with LEDs ~will~ save a lot of battery power though.

It might just be the led tubes thatbi got butbthere wasnt a huge difference in brightness as the light fitting casing takes away a huge amount of the light, but will still be a little bit better on the battery, and seen as tho i do alot of laybysband festivals i needed to preserve the batterybas much as possible

Thanks , the halogens  have already been replaced. To be honest I do t know much about fluorescent tubes  I just assumed leds would consume less power, is there really not much difference then?

Difference in light output or in power usage? I was under the impression that they used considerably less power i could be completely wrong mind as im fairly new to motorhomes, i wanted something that had a less dull looking light also so im pretty happy with them, all in all the ones that i put in id say are pretty similar in brightness as the original tube that was in but have a nicer non dull glow to them, power wise i just assumed that they would use less power as most sites etc say that they would

Led lights on the roof, normal tube on the wall, sorrynif you cant make much out from it

Sorry i tried to upload pics just then but nothing posted, any ideas how i do that? Cheers

Aten Lighting told me when  the fluorescent tubes were replaced with the LED`s , they were of much lower consumption than the tubes they are also brighter,, especially the cool white at the kitchen end,  perhaps it depends where you have the LED`s from.

dean01982 wrote:Difference in light output or in power usage? I was under the impression that they used considerably less power i could be completely wrong mind as im fairly new to motorhomes, i wanted something that had a less dull looking light also so im pretty happy with them, all in all the ones that i put in id say are pretty similar in brightness as the original tube that was in but have a nicer non dull glow to them, power wise i just assumed that they would use less power as most sites etc say that they would

LED lights use considerably less power than even fluorescents, and they can give a much greater output of "purer" light (no flickering and instant start). They usually come in two options, warm white or cool white. The cool white is quite harsh and very white and bright. The warm white is what it says, slightly yellowish (but not unpleasantly so) and a lot softer on the eye. I would say warm white is the choice for most of the van. They are a little less bright than the cool whites, but more than good enough for general lighting.

Most LED bulbs for the van will be MR11 fitting and will draw less than 3 watts each - only around 1 watt in many cases. These (see link) are superb as reading lights for fitting under the top cupboards. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] We have them in cool white as it is better for reading, but all the others we have are warm white for a softer "feel" in the van as a whole.

Hope this helps

Dave

Gromit wrote:

dean01982 wrote:Difference in light output or in power usage? I was under the impression that they used considerably less power i could be completely wrong mind as im fairly new to motorhomes, i wanted something that had a less dull looking light also so im pretty happy with them, all in all the ones that i put in id say are pretty similar in brightness as the original tube that was in but have a nicer non dull glow to them, power wise i just assumed that they would use less power as most sites etc say that they would

LED lights use considerably less power than even fluorescents, and they can give a much greater output of "purer" light (no flickering and instant start). They usually come in two options, warm white or cool white. The cool white is quite harsh and very white and bright. The warm white is what it says, slightly yellowish (but not unpleasantly so) and a lot softer on the eye. I would say warm white is the choice for most of the van. They are a little less bright than the cool whites, but more than good enough for general lighting.

Most LED bulbs for the van will be MR11 fitting and will draw less than 3 watts each - only around 1 watt in many cases. These (see link) are superb as reading lights for fitting under the top cupboards. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] We have them in cool white as it is better for reading, but all the others we have are warm white for a softer "feel" in the van as a whole.

Hope this helps

Dave

Will those you linked to fit in the Duetto (lights along either side of the van) as i tried some bulbs off ebay and they were too long.....the lens cap wouldn't go back on. Those you've linked appear to make the cap cover obsolete.....question is, will they still swivel?

I had that trouble, lens not going back in when I bought LED`s from eBay, but when Aten Lighting change them the lens fit, depends on the style and length of the LED , he knew what the problem was , when I didn`t have the lens on, sometimes the LED`s fell out and I had to fish a couple from the side of the settee. usually after a bumpy road or road humps. even though I slowed down. much better now .

The led i put in the spot lights down the side of the van were to long also but that was down to the led would not fit through the silver reflector part fully, so i just widened that with the tip of some pliers and it fit along with the lens, the led i used was from a lonk i found on this site,

dean01982 wrote:The led i put in the spot lights down the side of the van were to long also but that was down to the led would not fit through the silver reflector part fully, so i just widened that with the tip of some pliers and it fit along with the lens, the led i used was from a lonk i found on this site,

And after enlarging the lens cap hole, did the lens cap actually fit back on ok as you mentioned the bulbs were "too long"?