The Advantages and Disadvantages of Installing Marine ...

Author: Conrad Taylor/Friday, August 14, /Categories: Lighting

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Most recently-built boats are already outfitted with LED lighting, but if your boat is older, or you&#;re considering buying a used boat, the lighting may be ready for an upgrade. Learn more as Imtra product experts walk you through the process of purchasing & switching to LED lighting onboard.

What Are the Advantages of Switching to LEDs on My Boat?

The most common reason to consider switching to LEDs would be that it&#;s time to replace older lights, which may be broken or not performing up to standard. Another reason could be a practical matter &#; if your boat is older, you might have difficulty finding replacements for certain types of halogen & and incandescent fixtures, or even for first generation LED fixtures.

Even if there is nothing faulty with your older lights, there are still reasons to consider the switch. One of the primary values of modern LED lights is that the ratio of light output to energy consumption is much more efficient than older models. LEDs also reduce the heat output compared to many other types of fixtures, including earlier generation LEDs, and they provide a range of light options&#;neutral, warm, and cool white light.

Beyond the range of different color temperatures and intensities of white light, LED fixtures also have an advantage in their ability to produce multiple colors out of one fixture. This is because the diodes themselves can emit colored light. Halogen and incandescent bulbs require colored lenses in order to produce different colors, and one bulb is incapable of changing colors. LED circuit boards in a fixture or bulb can be arranged with as many differently colored diodes as the physical surface area of the board allows.

How Have LED Boat Lights Improved Recently?

All electronics have progressively become more space and energy efficient &#; using less power, lasting longer, and putting out more light &#; and LEDs are no exception. Newer LED lights generally produce more light (measured in lumens) and consume less electricity in a smaller, more energy efficient body.

LEDs themselves are also smaller and less clunky than they were in prior generations. As they become smaller and more energy efficient, they produce less warmth, reducing the size of the fixture needed to dissipate that heat, while also outputting more light in a smaller fixture. If you have additional questions about LED lights for boats, be sure to check out Imtra&#;s Learning Center.

LEDs have brought more sophisticated and affordable lighting concepts to the marine industry, such as &#;white tuning.&#; One lightbulb can now be tuned to show warm, neutral or cool light. For example, the Lumishore brand now has all three white light options available in a single downlight as well as full color-changing capabilities. Boat owners can choose the color they want at any time, using a touch screen to pick and choose.

What Problems Do You Find With Old Marine LED Lights? 

When you&#;re looking to buy a used boat, consider these problem points that may arise.

• Exterior Lights&#;These lights out on deck need to be replaced most often. Courtesy lights are often down low and may be compromised by water or suffer from getting kicked. The overheads may be sprayed by water in certain running conditions and bad weather, and often get corroded.
• Interior Lights&#;Older lights in the cabin will die when the filament burns out or a piece of the light breaks. When working behind the headliner, you might accidentally snap a spring off the light or crack the glass. Sometimes the original bulb or fixture won&#;t be available to replace if the manufacturer changed the style or sizes of their lights.
• Utility Lights&#;Lights in the engine room or lockers will sometimes get banged or bumped and need replacement.
• Underwater Lights&#;Earlier generation LED lights and halogen lights will sometimes fail in part or completely, or may simply not appeal as much as newer LEDs that have more features, like extra colors or synchronization with your music and above-deck lights.
• Navigation Lights&#;Port, starboard, and stern LED running lights are brighter, draw less power, and last longer than older styles. For sailboats, and on any other boat type where weight is critical, LEDs are also a big advantage.

What Are Some of the Obstacles You Find in Making the Switch to LEDs?

The headliner in a cabin can be the biggest challenge when it comes to converting LED lights. If you can&#;t take it down, or if you have a stretch headliner made of canvas and leather with precut holes for the lights, you may not be able to put it back in place on your own. Sometimes, you may even need to replace the headliner.

On some older boats, you&#;ll find that the existing lights are set up to use AC power. Most modern LED lights that are intended for boats use low-voltage DC power. So the question we at Imtra ask customers is whether you have a draw that you can pull from &#; or will you need to install converters from high-voltage AC power to 12 or 24 volt DC power?

Dimmers and switches can also create problems. Halogen and incandescent lights are dimmed through a different process than LEDs, so the dimming switches for the older style lights are almost always incompatible with LED lights. This might require you to replace many of the switches onboard. We dive into more detail on the different processes of dimming in our article on troubleshooting lighting circuits here.

How much does it cost to convert to LED?

As with any lighting system, depending on the scope and complexity of the installation, LED lighting can be relatively inexpensive, expensive, or somewhere in between. As technology and manufacturing capabilities have advanced, LEDs have become significantly less expensive than they were just a few years ago. But of course, the scope of your refit project will ultimately determine the overall cost.

If you&#;re simply replacing old halogen bulbs with LED replacement bulbs, it can be a relatively inexpensive fix. Single-color LED bulbs for an interior light fixture typically range in price from $8 &#; $20 per bulb depending on the size and power of the bulbs. So if you&#;re replacing the bulbs in 15 interior light fixtures, this can easily be done for $100-$150.

Of course, if you have a larger yacht with dozens or even hundreds of lights and choose to replace entire fixtures, an LED lighting refit can get into the tens of thousands of dollars. Every boat is different, and there are almost always several available options for a refit, ranging from simple bulb replacements to high-tech and color-changing synchronized lighting systems. This is why it&#;s important to evaluate and weigh your options, and consult with an industry expert.

Imtra's Seven-Point Checklist Before Shopping LED Boat Lights:

1. Are lights surface mounted or recessed?
2. If recessed, what is the size of the cut-out and recess depth?
3. What size is the bezel (outer diameter)?
4. What voltage of current lighting system
5. Am I dimming now and do I want to dim the LED?
6. Do I need a single color or bi-color light?
7. How do I want to control the lights?
   • Wall fixture
   • Digital switching
   • Switch on fixture?

Have any questions about LED marine lighting, switches, or installation? Be sure to Contact Us and the Imtra team is ready to answer any questions that you may have.

GREATON LIGHTING are exported all over the world and different industries with quality first. Our belief is to provide our customers with more and better high value-added products. Let's create a better future together.

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In the process of offshore fishing, fishermen usually stay at sea for half a month or more each time they go out, and at any time they will encounter a lot of bad weather, such as rain, high winds, thunder, and other natural weather. If the LED fishing light does not have a robust and durable structure, it will cause damage to the internal components and ultimately affect the fishing results.

Stable power supply drive system:

As mentioned earlier, fishermen will encounter a lot of bad weather during their fishing trips, which places high demands on the power supply system of the LED fishing light (also known as the power drive system of the fishing light).

Not only does it have to be able to operate normally with the fishing vessel&#;s own power supply system, but it also has to be able to avoid interference from signal electromagnetic waves and electrical surges generated by thunderstorms.

In addition to this, the fishing light power drive system is required to be waterproof and corrosion-resistant, otherwise, this will seriously affect the normal operation of the fishing light.

Heat Dissipation:

As we know, the principle of a light fixture is that it is converted into light energy by means of electrical energy. However, it is not possible to guarantee 100% energy conversion in this process, so heat is generated, and it is particularly important that the LED fishing light has an excellent heat dissipation system.

Typically, a good LED fishing light has two heat sinks.

1&#;The lamp body structure itself uses the superiority of the structure for air-cooled heat dissipation

2&#;Built-in or external fan for heat dissipation

Effective heat dissipation reduces the light decay of the LED and extends the life of the fishing light.

High-intensity light:

LED fishing light provides better light levels than traditional halogen lamps, provided that high-quality LED chips are used. A good quality LED chip not only enhances the light level and reduces light decay, but is also a key factor in the life of the light.

Usually, LED chips are packaged in , , , and . Different packaging methods and packaging processes can also affect parameters such as luminous flux, luminous efficiency, and luminous angle.

Because the light of fishing light needs to penetrate the seawater and shine into deeper waters. Therefore, LEDs with higher power are usually used to maximize the effect of fishing light.

Easy to install and maintain:

Since LED fishing light is used on fishing boats, in addition to the above factors, practicality should also be considered.

Typically, a 20-meter fishing boat needs 200 fishing lights (or even more). What fishermen need to consider is whether the fishing light is easy to install and remove for maintenance, and the weight of the fishing light will affect the fuel consumption of the fishing boat.

Therefore, a fishing light with high brightness, stable quality, and small size is very important for fishermen.

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