# L.E.D. changeover.



## tresrikay (Feb 7, 2008)

Today I have at last completed the changing of all the halogens inside (and the awning light) of my van. It has been a costly exercise, mainly because I started with 4 at £11.00 each, before finding a new source at £4.50 a piece I also had to buy 2 M16 spots that were £11.00 with p&p. So nearly £80.00 on bulbs but I think I can now not worry about leaving lights on or changing bulbs they are supposed to be good for 50,000 hours, I don't think I'm good for that long so they will see me out and if I do change vans I will take them with me. So I will let you all Know how things go with my now (with solar panel) self sufficient accommodation.


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## Trevor (Feb 7, 2008)

Hi tresrikay,
I recon they will be a saving in both  battery and replacement bulbs.


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## tresrikay (Feb 8, 2008)

Trevor said:


> Hi tresrikay,
> I recon they will be a saving in both  battery and replacement bulbs.



Thats what I'm hoping, mainly to keep going on batteries, don't like relying on hookups.


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## sundown (Feb 8, 2008)

thats quite an expence for the humble light bulbs, rick
you must be the only man who has to enter light bulbs in his
last will & testament


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## Trevor (Feb 8, 2008)

The LED lights i bought were about £30 for 10 but i had to shop around, it depends on what type you want.


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## tresrikay (Feb 8, 2008)

sundown said:


> thats quite an expence for the humble light bulbs, rick
> you must be the only man who has to enter light bulbs in his
> last will & testament



Well Nick, I worked out that at the rate I use lighting they should last for 333 years, just wish I could upgrade me so I could use them till they fail. So I will have to hand them down through the generations, to make sure they last as long as they should and if they dont then Iv'e got the address so they can get a refund.


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## Nosha (Feb 8, 2008)

You could have always done what I did (being a tight a*se) and that's to simply change one in each area!

Afterall how often do you want ALL the lights on?

So I've changed the awning light, one in the lounge and one in the bedroom, I've left the loo as I wanted the brightness for shaving etc... and how long do you spend in the loo (answers on a postcard please).


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## JOHN WEST (Feb 9, 2008)

i dont bother ,,,windup torch does me,,,,,hee


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## walkers (Feb 10, 2008)

tresrikay said:


> Well Nick, I worked out that at the rate I use lighting they should last for 333 years, just wish I could upgrade me so I could use them till they fail. So I will have to hand them down through the generations, to make sure they last as long as they should and if they dont then Iv'e got the address so they can get a refund.


might have been a good idea to do them as they failed one at a time it would have cost the same but would have hurt less a bit at a time


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## Tom2023 (Mar 2, 2008)

Anyone have any links for cheap LED Bulbs and lighting?


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## Belgian (Mar 2, 2008)

*Led*

I added some LED pastilles in the interior. They are really energy-savers. But as their tone is blueish-white; my wife doesn't like them. She is not found of purple tomato-soup or brown wine. But I think this will change in the future; it was the same as with the TL-tubes 50 years ago. 
As for now LED's are quite expensive; but prices will go down and when red wine is red again:  I change all the halogens for LED's


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## Deleted member 2636 (Mar 2, 2008)

Virtual Village seem as cheap as anyone. 
There is also Ultraled (?) in the UK but I don't have their URL to hand


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## tresrikay (Mar 3, 2008)

Tom2023 said:


> Anyone have any links for cheap LED Bulbs and lighting?



I still have 6 available, they are a straight replacement for the 2 pronged halogens that are in most spots. They do not replace the all in one M11 or G4 units, £4.50 each + £1.00 p&p. P.M. me if you want more info.


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## camping_gaz (Oct 2, 2008)

anybody tried these and can they find them any cheaper 
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/B17-Campervan...39:1|66:2|65:12|240:1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

thanks in advance


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## Polly (Nov 8, 2009)

Hia

Now PLEASE don't cringe  when I ask
what are LED Bulbs?  
 and I am now probably going to die with embarrassment asking  and probably not live it down
Yes I do know they are light bulbs


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## bigboack (Nov 8, 2009)

*Hi Polly hope this explains it to you.*

The incandescent lightbulb is a miracle of modern engineering. It requires a vacuum inside, blown glass and special filaments to work. Yet despite more than a century of refinements, an average bulb emits just 15 lumens of light for every watt of electricity it consumes. As a result, simple lighting accounts for 22 percent of the electricity used by buildings in the U.S. Now a team of engineers and chemists has created a carbon-based series of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that operate at the pinnacle of efficiency while emitting a strong white light.

Electrical engineer Stephen Forrest of the University of Michigan, chemist Mark Thompson of the University of Southern California and their colleagues created the so-called organic LED by combining two layers of phosphorescent diodes--to release green and red wavelength light--and one layer of a fluorescent diode to supply blue wavelength light. Together, they produce white light much more efficiently than current incandescent or fluorescent bulbs. "A 100-watt bulb is about 15 lumens per watt and we're at about 25 lumens per watt just on the lab bench," Forrest says.

The diode also requires a lower voltage than purely phosphorescent devices do thanks to its fluorescent component, the researchers note in the paper presenting the finding in today's Nature. Furthermore, because the organic layers are only 10 nanometers thick, and transparent when turned off, they can be built into walls, furniture or even windows.

Challenges remain before light-emitting ceilings can become common. Among other things, scientists will need to find a material to encase the sensitive diodes. "This doesn't need a vacuum but it does need a moisture barrier and that can be expensive," Forrest explains. "The biggest barrier to large scale production is simply cost. It costs very little to make a light bulb today." Nevertheless, the development of the novel LED may well signal the dimming of the lightbulb era.


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## zeezee16 (Nov 8, 2009)

bigboack said:


> The incandescent lightbulb is a miracle of modern engineering. It requires a vacuum inside, blown glass and special filaments to work. Yet despite more than a century of refinements, an average bulb emits just 15 lumens of light for every watt of electricity it consumes. As a result, simple lighting accounts for 22 percent of the electricity used by buildings in the U.S. Now a team of engineers and chemists has created a carbon-based series of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that operate at the pinnacle of efficiency while emitting a strong white light.
> 
> Electrical engineer Stephen Forrest of the University of Michigan, chemist Mark Thompson of the University of Southern California and their colleagues created the so-called organic LED by combining two layers of phosphorescent diodes--to release green and red wavelength light--and one layer of a fluorescent diode to supply blue wavelength light. Together, they produce white light much more efficiently than current incandescent or fluorescent bulbs. "A 100-watt bulb is about 15 lumens per watt and we're at about 25 lumens per watt just on the lab bench," Forrest says.
> 
> ...


Thanks profesor, have you got any idea where we can get cheap replacement bulbs, I have all my 12v on led's, and 2x240 25w lights for when we are on hookup.
Cheers, Pete


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## Polly (Nov 8, 2009)

Hia
Now come on Bigboack

I am actually glad I asked
 as you have made it very clear to me 
 I think

and zee zee whats all this 12 volt LED and 2x240 25w  

the pair of you have completely confused me

I may have to think twice before asking another question


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## ajs (Nov 8, 2009)

.

OI pigpoke _...(smartass)

.._ i want all mine replacing please...
so get yer ass down here.. i'll provide the food, overnight accom and the wiksey lessons/appreciation classes.



i'll wait till yer disease has subsided though  

 




regards 
aj


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## biggirafe (Nov 8, 2009)

Hi Polly
In short an LED light is a light source that uses far less electrictity, therefore if you replace your normal lightbulbs in your MH with them  your battery will last a lot longer. The downside is that the best price for a replacement LED bulb is about 50 times the price of a normal bulb. Thats about 50p for the 12 volt bulb in my interior spot light about £3 for a replacement LED to fit it with posting from Hong Kong.http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160375933550&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

If you replace all the light fittings with LED only fittings you can buy cheaper, about £2.50 a bulb. If you are a serious Wildcamper and need to use as little of the battery as possible its well worth the expense.

Like the new low energy bulbs we now all use in our houses expect the price to come down over the next 2 years, my new company car has come with all led bulbs so I would expect to see them on sale in Tescos before long.
Mark


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## Polly (Nov 8, 2009)

Hia
Please bear with me Biggaraffe these work of your lesuire batter/ies will they work on electric hook up.
Would they be as bright as they are now
Thanks for your reply


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## biggirafe (Nov 8, 2009)

Polly said:


> Hia
> Please bear with me Biggaraffe these work of your lesuire batter/ies will they work on electric hook up.
> Would they be as bright as they are now
> Thanks for your reply



Thats OK Polly,
These are 12volt only. If your interior lights are 240 volt the same as your house bulbs then these will not work.

Most vans have 12 volt interior lights which will be run from a 12 volt battery charger or power source when on hookup. In short if your lights still work when you are not on hook up then they will most likely be 12volts and yes you can replace them with these bulbs. Its not possible to fit a 12v bulb into a 240v holder or visa versa.

Are they as bright, yes the ones linked too above are meant to be replacements for a cars turn signal so they must be as bright as the bulb being replaced.

Some people do not like the light from an LED, just like a kitchens flouresecent tube some people find the light to be false.

Mu advice buy one and try it


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## zeezee16 (Nov 8, 2009)

tresrikay said:


> I still have 6 available, they are a straight replacement for the 2 pronged halogens that are in most spots. They do not replace the all in one M11 or G4 units, £4.50 each + £1.00 p&p. P.M. me if you want more info.


have a look at www.allforlaptop.com they seem to have loads of different ones,
Cheers, Pete


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## BedfordMJ (Nov 8, 2009)

The big bonus for me is that they don't give out heat like the halogen lights. I hate halogen lights when i'm cooking and it's hot. The LED didn't take much getting used to and I kind of like them now.


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## bigboack (Nov 8, 2009)

*Sorry Polly I couldnt help myself.*

I just could not help myself there. I am currently looking into changing all my lights in Big Bertha, so will be pricing up at the wholesalers and FleeBay also. I will let you all know how I go on and pass on the findings to all you lovely people on here. Except AJ of course,as he wont be going anywhere that needs lights as its dark in them Dungeons down SARTH. Hang all speeders I say. Till the next posting fairwell.

ps ,as to my trip to Ireland next year.
Bushmills have a big carpark and I have Emailed them in advance to ask permission to stop on there carpark for a night, after the big tour of course.


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## Talbot Bertha (Nov 8, 2009)

zeezee16 said:


> have a look at www.allforlaptop.com they seem to have loads of different ones,
> Cheers, Pete



That address doesn't work just a domain parked page!


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## zeezee16 (Nov 8, 2009)

Talbot Bertha said:


> That address doesn't work just a domain parked page!


Its an ebay dealer, from Hong Kong, try searching for allforlaptop, you should find it.
Cheers, Pete


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## maingate (Nov 8, 2009)

It is recommended that you buy the LED`s with the built in 12v regulator otherwise they can blow, just like ordinary bulbs.

Also, you can get them in softer, less harsh lights.


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## ajs (Nov 9, 2009)

maingate said:


> It is recommended that you buy the LED`s with the built in 12v regulator otherwise they can blow, just like ordinary bulbs duckie.
> 
> Also, you can get them in softer, less harsh lights in pastel shades just like my limp lipstick
> 
> .


 

hummm thought as much 

regards 


aj


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## Readytoroll (Nov 9, 2009)

maingate said:


> It is recommended that you buy the LED`s with the built in 12v regulator otherwise they can blow, just like ordinary bulbs.


Not just recommended, it is essential they have an in line resistor built in which some of the cheaper led’s do not have.

The cheaper ones will be ok if you are purely using them on the battery. The problems arise when you are running the engine or have a battery charger on.

When buying led’s one should check with the supplier what the voltage range is. It should be some thing like 10~16v and make sure your charger goes no higher than that.

On the whole ordinary bulbs can take this to some degree and just get brighter, led’s will not get brighter, but very hot instead and heat is what kills led’s


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## ClaireVv (Nov 10, 2009)

Hi,

My name is Claire and I'm the Assistant Marketing Manager at VirtualVillage.com. I noticed some of our LED lighting has been mentioned in this thread and I want to say thank you!

We have huge range of lights in different colors, shapes and sizes. The motorhome lights start at $3.99. Check out our White LED 12V Car Roof Ceiling Interior Light Lamp 

To say thanks again for the Vv mention, I'd like to pass on a 20% off discount code. The code is VVN392R. Type in the code when prompted in checkout and the discount will be applied.

If you have any further questions, comments or if there is anything I can help with, please don't hesitate to get in contact with me. Go to VirtualVillage.com to find more inexpensive accessories and LED lighting. 

Claire Bartels
Assistant Marketing Manager
claire.bartels@virtualvillage.com
Accessories for Everything | Quality Products at Low Prices | Virtual Village - US


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## Polly (Nov 10, 2009)

Hia

Readytoroll stated thet LED get hot 
I am beginning to get confused (no comments please) do they get as hot as everyday bulbs 
Is it worth cahanging them????

If so I would do my 4 spots
 then my strip light kitchen area
 do they do strip light bulbs and progress to the main lights. I have not looked in them yet so don't know what kind of bulb is in


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## biggirafe (Nov 10, 2009)

Polly said:


> Hia
> 
> Readytoroll stated thet LED get hot
> I am beginning to get confused (no comments please) do they get as hot as everyday bulbs
> ...



Hi again Polly

In normal use if the power going into an LED is correct they will not get 'HOT' in the way that a normal light bulb does (they do get slightly warm). If you were to put a 12volt LED in and then put say 14Volts into it. If it does not blow then it might get hotter than normal.
The main reason you would want to replace a normal bulb with an LED is to reduce the amount of electricity that is being used and therfore your battery will last longer when wilding. If this is not what you are after doing then the expense may not be worth it.

With regards to your strip lights these will probably be Flourecent Tubes, I am not aware of any replacement led lights that will fit these (someone may correct me). I would expect that you would need to replace the entire fitting. Last weekend we saw a new Kontiki with a strip of LEDS being used as an awning light. However the amount of power saved by replacing a flourecent tube may not make it worthwhile anyway. In general flourecent tubes are quite economical to use. Maybe someone has knowledge of the amount of power used by a 12v flourecent tube.


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## Firefox (Nov 10, 2009)

Florescent tubes are quite energy efficient. Typically 8-15w for a small tube.


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## BedfordMJ (Nov 10, 2009)

Hi Polly,
I like them because they don't get hot. I can't stand the heat from Halogen lights when i'm cooking.
regards

Simon


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## Deleted member 967 (Nov 10, 2009)

biggirafe said:


> Hi again Polly
> 
> Maybe someone has knowledge of the amount of power used by a 12v flourecent tube.



1 amp for an 8 watt tube,  about 1.5 amp for a 13 watt tube.


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## Deleted member 967 (Nov 10, 2009)

biggirafe said:


> Hi again Polly
> 
> In normal use if the power going into an LED is correct they will not get 'HOT' in the way that a normal light bulb does (they do get slightly warm). If you were to put a 12volt LED in and then put say 14Volts into it. If it does not blow then it might get hotter than normal.
> The main reason you would want to replace a normal bulb with an LED is to reduce the amount of electricity that is being used and therfore your battery will last longer when wilding. If this is not what you are after doing then the expense may not be worth it.



This issue is puzzling me.

I was always under the impression that a vehicle runs at or about 13.8 volts in normal driving use.  It is only when the alternator stops producing and the battery stands for a while that it reaches 12volts.

If I change my side lights to LEDs for Parking (Over 3500kg need sidelights on while parked in lay-by on roads over 30 mph speed limit.)  Will these burn out faster if I run with sidelights on (In fog or at night)?

I have only two non-florescent lights in my van (Spotlights at 12v 21W) plus two 5w bulbs in the awning light.

I have seen bulbs listed with the normal bayonet fittings to replace side and stop/tail lights.  I see no point in changing flasher bulbs as these are only used while the vehicle is running or for hazard lights.

My gas generator auto senses battery voltage and cuts out at 14.5v so if I fit LEDs to the interior they may have that voltage applied while charging the leisure batteries

Your advice and opinions please.


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## Firefox (Nov 10, 2009)

I believe that over-voltage will reduce LED life, but then so it does with halogen too. And since LEDs have a much longer working life (10 + times that of halogen) I don't think it is a major problem with LEDs. Just an opinion though.


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## AndyC (Nov 10, 2009)

LEDs sold for '12v' vehicle use - including motorhome/caravan interior lights -  will have their own internal voltage regulator. 12v LEDs sold for domestic/commercial lighting are designed to run off a regulated power supply and so usually do not have the internal regulator. They are cheaper, but their life will be reduced when operated at more than 12v.

I got all my LEDs from Aten Lighting

AndyC


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## Polly (Nov 11, 2009)

Hia
I would like to thank you all for helping me to make my mind up on should I or should I not change my lights for LED 
I have decided to leave alone
But Thank You All


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## bigboack (Nov 11, 2009)

Polly said:


> Hia
> I would like to thank you all for helping me to make my mind up on should I or should I not change my lights for LED
> I have decided to leave alone
> But Thank You All



Dont blame you Polly, As i remember you told my Missus that you stay mainly on sites, so no need for LED's,

Happy camping Polly


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## Belgian (Nov 11, 2009)

Polly said:


> Hia
> I would like to thank you all for helping me to make my mind up on should I or should I not change my lights for LED
> I have decided to leave alone
> But Thank You All


Changing halogens for LED's is no problem, Polly.
If you find those 2-pin LED's get them and simply put them in the place of the halogens. No problem at all 
"Put the lights on" Polly,
Cheers,
Leo


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## biggirafe (Nov 25, 2009)

Hi All
I have just purchased a couple of LED lights from fleebay as a bit of an experiment and thought I would share the results.

The lights I bought were these, very cheap even with postage from Hong Kong
2pc 12V White 1156 36-LED CAR Light Panel Energy Saving on eBay (end time 24-Dec-09 22:23:32 GMT)


The results are below, Even though its a bit Heath Robinson I'm very pleased with this as they are bright and can easily be replaced with standard bulbs if needs be or when I sell the van. I tried some of the normal replacement bulbs but found they were too fat and would not reach the bayonet in the spots, these come on a short trailing wire which is perfect. I have glued them in place with a couple of dabs of rubber glue that can easily be removed if I want.










Any thoughts


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## Kontiki (Nov 25, 2009)

Is more LED's better or brighter? I saw these on eBay G4 21 LED Cabinet Spotlight  they also have 12 & 18 ones, the price is about the same just the shipping is a bit cheaper.
Not too keen on buying from Hong Kong but the prices seem pretty cheap so I might chance a couple of quid to see what they are like.


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## biggirafe (Nov 25, 2009)

Kontiki said:


> Is more LED's better or brighter? I saw these on eBay G4 21 LED Cabinet Spotlight  they also have 12 & 18 ones, the price is about the same just the shipping is a bit cheaper.
> Not too keen on buying from Hong Kong but the prices seem pretty cheap so I might chance a couple of quid to see what they are like.



More LEDs is brighter, but also uses more lecky, although with led's the ammount of lecky is negligible. The ones I used are sold as a replacement for your brakelights so should give an idea of how bright 36 leds is.

I buy plenty from Hong Kong via fleebay and have so far not had any issues, if you pay just standard postage it does take about 5 days to recieve the goods but thats not a problem. If you buy several at a time and message them before paying they will often combine the postage


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## Kontiki (Nov 29, 2009)

Ordered 2 of these  'G4 6 SMD LED Marine Warm white Light Bulb Lamp 12V' item 220505597522 from ebay Auto_led_shop365 . They are 99 pence each but post & packing is £1.49  they looked like the ones I had seen at the shows. I tried emailing to ask is they would do a combined shipping charge but they said no as the price is cheap. I had already seen the same question asked but I thought I'd try anyway, I usually ask a question when buying off ebay as I think it gives an indication of who you are dealing with, ones who don't reply to a query before I buy are unlikely to be any better communicating if you have a problem.
Up to now I had an email to say that they have been dispatched on the 28th Nov. & they said that it can take up to 14 working days so I will update when they come.


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## rickboy (Nov 29, 2009)

*LED great minds*

I did exactly the same re combined shipping,and had the same reply.I  have ordered a couple of the G4 21 led type .Will post the results if and when I receive the lights.


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## Kontiki (Nov 29, 2009)

I looked at the 21 LED ones, they were 99 pence each + 99 pence p&p, but for those they also had them priced at 2 for 99 pence + £2.59 p&p so saving a little bit. 
It's a pity they won't do anything about the postage, if they did I would be inclined to take a chance & order enough for all the lights in the van, I did think about ordering them one at a time as it would cost them in time & postage but apart from that it wouldn't save me anything. I saw somebody had asked if they did a reduction on postage for ordering 10 but they got the same answer as I did


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## biggirafe (Nov 29, 2009)

Kontiki said:


> Ordered 2 of these  'G4 6 SMD LED Marine Warm white Light Bulb Lamp 12V' item 220505597522 from ebay Auto_led_shop365 . They are 99 pence each but post & packing is £1.49  they looked like the ones I had seen at the shows. I tried emailing to ask is they would do a combined shipping charge but they said no as the price is cheap. I had already seen the same question asked but I thought I'd try anyway, I usually ask a question when buying off ebay as I think it gives an indication of who you are dealing with, ones who don't reply to a query before I buy are unlikely to be any better communicating if you have a problem.
> Up to now I had an email to say that they have been dispatched on the 28th Nov. & they said that it can take up to 14 working days so I will update when they come.



6 LEDS, The ones I have bought are 36 leds for the spotlights and 18 led's for the overhead lights. I'd be interested to know how bright these are as they are cheaper than getting the ones from Hong Kong. 

I have had excellent results with the Hong Kong ones. We were out last night and even with the kids turning lights on left right and centre the meter had hardly moved on the battery when we left today at lunch time.


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## biggirafe (Nov 29, 2009)

Hi AJS
These are the ones that might fit your lights
12V AC DC Warm White 90 Lumen G4 Base 9 SMD LED Bulb on eBay (end time 29-Nov-09 18:57:33 GMT)


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## Proff (Nov 29, 2009)

John Thompson said:


> This issue is puzzling me.
> 
> I was always under the impression that a vehicle runs at or about 13.8 volts in normal driving use.  It is only when the alternator stops producing and the battery stands for a while that it reaches 12volts.
> 
> ...




You have inbuilt parking lights on your Hymer..
same as our 660
turn light switch anti clockwise to the arrows, one puts left lights only, on other arrow right side only...
THEN go to campercare>>>Welcome to the CamperCare website
look for the equivalent bulbs that are illuminated in the parking lights and replace with the LEDS.
we have changed ALL our [apart from Headlights] to LED 
no problem parked up for 12 hours in the dark now..
Even the festoon bulbs in the wardrobe and marker lights have been changed

We are also 4.6 tonne gross so need to park with lights 

Another thing is VOSA  are on about bringing in COMPULSORY reversing bleepers, for vehicles 3.5 tonne and over.
I've found an ingenious way with leds, some clever so 'n so combined bleeper in the bulb and they WORK,  got two in the Hymer >>
From here >>
reverse bleeper bulb reversing T4 T25 camper 4x4 van X2 on eBay (end time 15-Dec-09 11:03:05 GMT)

Others want £7+ each, plus post. he does them for £4 for 2 plus £2.15 post.
I've bought a dozen and all are fitted in my Cars, my sons Cars and even put one in a mates bike as his STOPLIGHT
it's driving him mad looking for the bleep every time he brakes

My MOT examiner loves them as well and is fitting all his vehicles with them.....


Regarding the Flouro light over the worksurface, I removed all the gubbins and wired 2 of these in the original mounting plate, light is perfect and they use less than 10% of the power used by the 3 flouro tubes !!!

http://www.ledbulbs4u.co.uk/catalogue/Viewer.jsp?pID=235

If anyones not sure I'll post a pic showing exactly how they fit in....


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## Kontiki (Nov 30, 2009)

The ones I'm getting are from Hong Kong, I decided to go with the 6 LED type as I had seen these at the shows. All the ones I saw seemed to be 60 lumen (which I assume is how bright they are) no matter how many LED's  my thinking was more LED's possible more likely to have a problem. If they are the same brightness then I couldn't see any benefit from having more. It looks like the yellowish coloured flat type LED works out at 10 lumen for every LED, 6 LED = 60 lumen - 9 LED = 90 lumen. Question is how bright in lumen is a normal G4 10 watt bulb when I looked on one site selling them in the specs they were from 100 to 150 lumens  maybe this isn't how to work out the brightness?

The best price I saw for the Warm White 90 Lumen G4 Base 9 SMD LED Bulb 12V AC DC from a UK outlet. I was going to try out the ones from HK to see what they are like & if I want something brighter I might buy a couple of these from the UK.


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## Deleted member 967 (Nov 30, 2009)

Proff said:


> You have inbuilt parking lights on your Hymer..
> same as our 660
> turn light switch anti clockwise to the arrows, one puts left lights only, on other arrow right side only...
> THEN go to campercare>>>Welcome to the CamperCare website
> ...



Thanks for all that info.  The way you have fitted LEDs into a Fluorescent Fitting appeals to me.


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## Norris (Dec 5, 2009)

walkers said:


> might have been a good idea to do them as they failed one at a time it would have cost the same but would have hurt less a bit at a time



Mmmm but they might have failed in the dark on a rainy night on day one of a three month break!


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## Kontiki (Dec 11, 2009)

*My Bulbs Came*

Well my LED bulbs arrived from Hong Kong  tried putting power on them & they light up  they are quite brightBUT they don't fit  the pins on a normal G4 halogen bulb measure 0.7mm the pins on my shiny bright new LED bulb from Hong Kong measure 1.48mm . I have written to them but looking at recent feedback they've had I don't think that I will get much joy. What I am going to have to do is unsolder the pins & solder something closer to the size,  I'm thinking of using needles as I can get something very close to the size & they are quite tough. What I don't know is if they will solder ok I will try to solder them to something first to see is it works ok.  I did have quite a few attempts to see if I could push the bulb in using long nose pliers, then I used some needles to gauge what size I can fit & about 1 mm is the absolute max.


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## Kontiki (Dec 11, 2009)

Wrote to the supplier in Hong Kong & received this reply:
'If is so we'd like to resend you 2 new G4 6SMD, and the pin is just thinner than before. Is it OK?

Best wishes 
auto_lamp'
Then when I wrote to say ok I then got this:
Dear our customer,
OK we'd like to resend you. Because of the Christmas it will spend much more to arrive, we hope you could understand it and we will rend them to you within 2 days. Hope you could understand it.

Best wishes 
auto_lamp

Can't complain about their quick response, just have to see. Didn't ask what they want me to do with the other bulbs?


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## twosugars (Dec 12, 2009)

Kontiki said:


> Ordered 2 of these  'G4 6 SMD LED Marine Warm white Light Bulb Lamp 12V' item 220505597522 from ebay Auto_led_shop365 . They are 99 pence each but post & packing is £1.49  they looked like the ones I had seen at the shows. I tried emailing to ask is they would do a combined shipping charge but they said no as the price is cheap. I had already seen the same question asked but I thought I'd try anyway, I usually ask a question when buying off ebay as I think it gives an indication of who you are dealing with, ones who don't reply to a query before I buy are unlikely to be any better communicating if you have a problem.
> Up to now I had an email to say that they have been dispatched on the 28th Nov. & they said that it can take up to 14 working days so I will update when they come.



i just fitted these on my van, 

be very carefull as you push the pins into the fitting. the pins are glued to the circuit board (not very well) and may come unstuck!


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## Kontiki (Dec 12, 2009)

The pins on the ones I have are soldered on, they seem to be fixed pretty good considering how I tried to get them in. But there is no way they would fit the pins are just too big. As you see they are supposed to be sending me some with thinner pins. I will see if they ask for the others back before I try to re-solder some thinner pins on.

I found some holders from the other type of lights (not the side fitting ones) & the bulbs fit in these. I intend to rig them up for a test using these so I can then switch between the halogen & the LED to judge how good they are.


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## rickboy (Dec 13, 2009)

*21 led*

I got the 21LED from the same source.They fitted ok,beware they a polarity sensative and marked up + and -. I just got 2 to try and to be honest they are only about the same as 8/10 w halogen.I shall stay with fluorescents untill
they get brighter and cheaper.If you go the LED route you need a lot of them.


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## Kontiki (Dec 13, 2009)

I tried the G4 6 SMD LED Warm White ones I received. I found some old spotlight holders & wired them up so I could connect them using a cigarette lighter plug. I was able to compare them to the normal 10 watt halogen bulbs, they were good but not quite as bright. These bulbs are 60 lumen ones so I might go for 2 of these Warm White 90 Lumen G4 Base 9 SMD LED Bulb 12V AC DC from a UK dealer at £4.04 delivered. They would be for the 2 main lights in  the living area of the van.

Just looked at ordering from this site & it says they are shipped from directly from Hong Kong 7-15 days so not really what I expected as the company is called Suntrekstore UK. They do have a place in the UK but it seems that it is just for ordering & everything comes from Hong Kong.


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## biggirafe (Dec 13, 2009)

rickboy said:


> I got the 21LED from the same source.They fitted ok,beware they a polarity sensative and marked up + and -. I just got 2 to try and to be honest they are only about the same as 8/10 w halogen.I shall stay with fluorescents untill
> they get brighter and cheaper.If you go the LED route you need a lot of them.



We have replaced all the spots and overhead lights which were all normal lightbulbs with led's but we intend to leave the flourecent tubes as is. 

We found using 19 led's in the spots works great very bright as a directional light in fact better than the bulbs that were in the spots previously, but they are not so good in the overhead lights as the light is focused down and does not fill the van. In our van we have 4 flourecent tubes on the sides and we found that using these in conjunction with the leds overhead lights works great and still uses less than the old lightbulbs.

We think LED's are a bit of a compromise for lighting large areas but if you want to stay off of a hookup longer its worth it not to have to worrry about how many lights you have turned on all the time


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## rickboy (Dec 13, 2009)

*Course of least resistance.*

You can get 3LED push on/off lights that take 3aaa batteries  @ 2 for a £1
in the 99p/£1 shops. Having faffed around with the "proper" ones I think these are a good  bet, the batteries last ages and its ohhhhh so easy.
Rick


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## biggirafe (Dec 13, 2009)

rickboy said:


> You can get 3LED push on/off lights that take 3aaa batteries  @ 2 for a £1
> in the 99p/£1 shops. Having faffed around with the "proper" ones I think these are a good  bet, the batteries last ages and its ohhhhh so easy.
> Rick



These work great in cupboards and in the lockers.


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## bigboack (Dec 13, 2009)

*LED's*

I got these from Fleabay, they have been on in the garage on a Alarm battery 12v for the past 24 hrs, They light the garage up in total darkness so will be trying them in Big Bertha, They seem to be ok and thats without a regulator.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItemVersion&item=220493681938&view=all&tid=511435750012


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## Kontiki (Dec 13, 2009)

These are the bulbs I got, the one showing the back also shows a needle I am going to try to solder in place of the pins. The needle (0.76mm) is just slightly bigger than the pins (0.70mm) of the normal halogen bulb & will fit in the holder. These bulbs do seem to spread the light reasonably well, I think it will always be difficult to get them as good as the ordinary bulb as you can't make use of the reflector behind the bulb with the LED ones.











I have messed about with the cheap push lights that you can pick up from poundland but they are useless for lighting the van but are ok for lockers & small areas.


 BTW the link for the eBay item doesn't work, possibly it's the link from when your logged on, what you need to do is put the eBay item number.
Ed


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## bigboack (Dec 14, 2009)

Ebay Iten number is 220493681938 type this in ebay and see what you think, BTW the lights are still on in thr garage, 3 days now continuous. Cant fault them really.

Try this link hope it works.http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....8+%09&_sacat=See-All-Categories&_fvi=1&_rdc=1


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## biggirafe (Dec 14, 2009)

bigboack said:


> Ebay Iten number is 220493681938 type this in ebay and see what you think, BTW the lights are still on in thr garage, 3 days now continuous. Cant fault them really.
> 
> Try this link hope it works.2X 24 LED Linear Flexible Strip Car Light 12V white on eBay (end time 10-Nov-09 21:03:24 GMT)



I thought about using these to replace our Tubes but decided the gain was not worth the effort. They look good though, would work well in the kitchen area maybe.

Maybe we should all fit long blue ones under our vans, would this give us some street cred?


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## zeezee16 (Dec 14, 2009)

biggirafe said:


> I thought about using these to replace our Tubes but decided the gain was not worth the effort. They look good though, would work well in the kitchen area maybe.
> 
> Maybe we should all fit long blue ones under our vans, would this give us some street cred?


I got some of these, I put them on the outside of the van, wired them up to a remote so you can switch them on when you are on your way back from the pub.
Cheers, Pete


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## Deleted member 967 (Dec 14, 2009)

Well I started the LED changeover today.

Changed the lights in our bathroom and the reading light my wife uses.  Put the bulbs in the holder nothing happened put old bulb back everything OK.  Then it dawned, LEDs are polarity sensitive the old bulbs are not.  Tested LEDs on the battery they worked OK but in doing so proved theory of the polarity.

With my van being wired with two wires throughout and not relying on a body earth return everything had been working with normal bulbs.  Changed the wires over and we had lift off.

Next job is to change the vehicle running lights for LEDs.


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## Deleted member 967 (Dec 15, 2009)

Well I was happy with the lighting in the bathroom after changing the bulbs to LEDs.

However I had a duff fluorescent unit that I had replaced over the sink.  I bought two of the LED Strip-lights from Camper Care  LIGHTING .:. LAMP UNITS  The units are halfway down the right hand column.

I gutted the old unit and glued the two lamps into the old fitting (they are the same size an a conventional 8 watt tube) removing the plug in section from the end of each unit and connecting them together with a chocolate block.  They work fine but "The Senior Management" is not happy with the results.  She prefers the harsh light of the single 8 watt flourescent tube to the warm light of the twin LED strips.  In her opinion it was an expensive exercise and although it may save power in use, she would rather have the brighter light over the kitchen.  We have agreed to give it a try.  We are off to Birmingham tomorrow until Friday so we should be able to gauge the light in action better on that trip.  

I was thinking of doing the rest of the fluorescent lights but the lack if brightness from the two LED strips have put me off.  I was hoping that the new light over the sink would be brighter, but it isn't so replacing the 13 wattt fluorescent tubes would make the van much darker.  

The four bulbs, 1156 SINGLE CONTACT BULB, that I put in the bathroom are brighter than the 10 watt original bulbs but not as good as the 21 watt in the reading lamp. She however prefers the less bright lamp for reading in bed,

I also bought some bleeping LED bulbs and intend to fit these in the reversing lamp.  The one led on those seem much brighter than the warm yellow square LEDs on the 1156 bulb with 13 LEDs.

I thought that side lamps all had to be 5 Watt and Stop lights/Fog Lamps 21Watt  These LED lights seem to be an in between.  I wonder if they comply with the vehicle lighting regulations?


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## biggirafe (Dec 15, 2009)

John Thompson said:


> Well I was happy with the lighting in the bathroom after changing the bulbs to LEDs.
> 
> However I had a duff fluorescent unit that I had replaced over the sink.  I bought two of the LED Strip-lights from Camper Care  LIGHTING .:. LAMP UNITS  The units are halfway down the right hand column.
> 
> ...



yeah we came to the same conclusion, we have left the current tubes in place and only replaced spots and bulbs.


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## Kontiki (Dec 16, 2009)

Managed to solder some smaller wire to the the LED bulbs I have & they work ok. Both the lights I put them in had the polarity the wrong way but there was a screw block type connector that was easy enough to get to. They aren't  quite as bright as the halogen but not by much. I sent for a couple of the 9 LED 90 lumen ones @ £4 each, these should be ok as they are half as bright again.


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## Kontiki (Jan 1, 2010)

*Update*

Received the replacement bulbs the dealer from Hong Kong promised to send with the smaller pin size so now had 4 bulbs for the price of 2. Found the original bulbs must be the white as the new ones he sent were warm white. We will fit the white ones over the kitchen (I managed to solder some smaller pins on but don't know if they will last) & the warm white ones in the living area. Still waiting for the brighter 90 lumen ones to come, date for delivery I was given was 25/12 to 5/1 so hope they come for next week.
Some of the holders are easy to get out as up to now most have been wired the wrong way for the LED's. I had to remove the metal plate above the kitchen as it is impossible to get the front off the light in situ. Some of the spotlights are proving difficult to remove (if anybody has any tips for how to get them out I'd appreciate it).

Looking at the way the LED bulbs can fit, the pins seem close to the metal reflector so I will have to see about some insulation just in case as I don't fancy taking the chance of them shorting out.


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