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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

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LED Anchor light - report

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britinusa
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Initially Posted - 06/13/2007 : 22:16:04

During the BEER cruise, Tom Potter and I both had our new LED anchor lights on display.

Without doubt, their effectivness is excellent! They provide a Very bright 'white' light that is vastly superior to the fillament lamps on other boats. Obviously much brighter and thus easily passing the 2mile requirement. I'm certain Tom will agree, it's a very worthwhile mod.

On JD I used the lamp recommended by Turk. It fit without modification and performed perfectly. Tom has a different lamp, but it was amazing to see the brightness difference between his boat at anchor and others in the group (there were about 45 boats in the group, and both our boats stood out due to our anchor lights.)

Paul

Joint Decision. (Sold)
PO C250WB 2005 Sail # 841.

Moved up to C34 Eximius

Updated August 2015

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OLarryR
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Response Posted - 06/14/2007 : 05:49:02

It is also possible that the wiring size and the low amp draw of the LED light have something to do with it. Possibly if one had gauge 16 wire for mast wire and the standard lighbulbs, the amp draw would be a bit reduced for that thin a wire. Some of us when we rewired the mast and/or inside wiring for the lights have gone to a gauge 12 (overkill) or 14. But if the gauge 16 wire was used originally and if just the anchor light was changed to an LED, the amp draw is so much less that there probably is basically no reduction in current through that line. So...I would think that the LED is maxing out on it's brightness, whereas, the original light that draws more amps, may have the current slightly reduced due to the wire size.

Anyway.... Ilike my LED Anchor Light as well. I just have to make night-time opportunities to use it.

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Champipple
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Response Posted - 06/14/2007 : 06:23:50

side note slightly related: On another board this company has received some praise for LED...

http://www.bebi-electronics.com

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Gloss
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Response Posted - 06/14/2007 : 21:13:08

My Led anchor light draws only .2 amps and is the brightest light in the anchorage.

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Turk
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Response Posted - 06/15/2007 : 23:57:43

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Gloss
 My Led anchor light draws only .2 amps and is the brightest light in the anchorage.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

I agree. The LEDS are superior to the traditional festoon incandescent bulbs. I left my anchor light on now for a week and have not noticed any amount of power (voltage) drop on my batteries.

I did get lots of calls from surrounding boaters that I left my light on!!!

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Stu Jackson C34
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Response Posted - 06/16/2007 : 01:12:52

Please post a link to the source of the fixtures in what appears to be an earlier thread. Thanks.

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OLarryR
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Response Posted - 06/16/2007 : 06:26:22

I am not sure what link you are referring to as this subject has been brought up a number of times in the past with different posted threads. I know that at present there are at least 2 or 3 makers of LED Anchor lights that are Coast Guard certified for 2 NM. Here is a link of the one I used (OGM) and it's literature indicates the amp draw between .15 - .2 amps. It also has the news caption regarding the USCG approval.

https://secure.orcagreen.com/xcart/product.php?productid=16142&cat=0&bestseller

Another one which I did not go with but have been interested in their bow lights (interested only right now since they are so expensive) is the Lopolight:
http://www.lopolight.com/

They have a 2NM anchor light but also have a 1NM light, so need to search their product list. Not sure if this one is USCG approved but it does pass certain International Reqts.

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Turk
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Response Posted - 06/16/2007 : 06:29:32

http://www.catalina-capri-25s.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=15357& SearchTerms=led

Here is the topic thread with the product we used. This bulb fits our Hella marine fixture on the 250 catalina.

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Tom Potter
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Response Posted - 06/16/2007 : 07:37:39

I got mine through [url="https://www.professorled.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=55"]Dr LED.[/url] This bulb fits the Aqua Signal series 25 navigation lights. He also has a link on the Catalina Owners Forum.

Edited by - Tom Potter on 06/16/2007 07:39:33

Turk
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Response Posted - 06/17/2007 : 11:14:25

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by tompotter
 I got mine through [url="https://www.professorled.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=55"]Dr LED.[/url] This bulb fits the Aqua Signal series 25 navigation lights. He also has a link on the Catalina Owners Forum.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

No offense, but $49 as opposed to $7 for very similar bulbs is why the thread became so popular. The $7 LED bulb is a high quality bulb using hi output LEDs (yellow when off) and on;y requires snipping off the 4 top LEDs and filing off the sharp wires. Some are reporting not even having to modify at all. Definitely worth the 7 bucks and saving you a 1/2 a boat buck!

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Tom Potter
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Response Posted - 06/17/2007 : 11:45:50

Different type anchor lights Turk. My "aqua signal" requires a festoon bulb not the bayonet. Very hard to find 360 degree festoons.

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britinusa
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Response Posted - 06/17/2007 : 13:26:08

From Turk's posts on the other thread, this is the lamp we installed on JD.

On JD, I did not have to trim the top of the lamp off. JD has the Hella anchor lamp fitting. It was a very very snug fit, but there was room for it.

Paul

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Champipple
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Response Posted - 06/17/2007 : 17:54:40

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by tompotter
 Different type anchor lights Turk. My "aqua signal" requires a festoon bulb not the bayonet. Very hard to find 360 degree festoons.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

take a look areound this site...

http://www.bebi-electronics.com/afamakuaka.html

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Turk
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Response Posted - 06/17/2007 : 20:16:19

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by tompotter
 Different type anchor lights Turk. My "aqua signal" requires a festoon bulb not the bayonet. Very hard to find 360 degree festoons.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Oops! Your right. I spent a great deal of time looking for festoon 360 degrees and they just don't exist. I have found and I'm in possession of the new inverted cone 8mm LEDs that are 360 degrees. I will be testing them to use in a bow light. Here is a pict:

Edited by - Turk on 06/17/2007 20:18:53

OLarryR
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Response Posted - 06/18/2007 : 05:34:42

LED technology is something to behold. It can be quite confusing. For example, I replaced my inside cabin lights with festoon LEDs. The Festoon LED I used had 9 LEDs and it provides light that is somewhat hard to compare to the original incandescent festoons. The LEDs provide a more focused light that is somewhat dimmer than the originals. Perhaps in one narrow area directly under it, it is equal to my original light but the light is dimmer on the outer edges/2-3 feet away from the light on the sides.

But the OGM Anchor light that I have (USCG approved for 2NM) is very bright radiating out equally 360 degrees from one itty bitty little LED in the center of the fixture. At first glance at the OGM light you would not even notice the LED. You would think they left it out.

So...the fact that one light has more LEDs does not automatically indicate it will be sufficeintly bright. Comparing LUMENs is also not an exact science again because the cabin lights may provide equal Lumens directly in front of the light but perhaps not 2 feet away on the sides of it.

For cabin lights, the 9 LED festoon takes some getting used to and it's okay, definitely is a fraction of the amps of the original but not fully equal. I forget the manufacturer but there is one that i saw at a boat show and on some websites that has a squarish micro-board with the LED mounted on it. Apparently this LED cabin light replacement is about 1/4 the amps of the original cabin light and does provide equal lighting. It sells for about $40 so is way more expensive as an initial investment compared to the origianl festoon and it is only a replacement for cabin lights - not anchor lights. It does look a bit strange in that it has this 1" square micr-chip board that is sort of hooked up with a wire to the original housing connection. They have adapters to make the connection. Sorry I do not have the name of the LED or manufacturer and well discussion is on anchor lights anyway. Just thought I would mention the above because at first glance at LEDs...the thought is that well more LEDs is better than less....but not always the case. The LEDs are rated differently and it is not quite so clear as to if a specific one will meet your requirements. This is why if looking for an Anchor light LED it is best to ensure it is rated for 2NM and is 360 degrees. If it is USCG approves...then it will be sold only with it's own housing since I do not believe they sell LED bulbs alone rated as USCG approved for 2NM. It is only as an enclosed LED with it's own housing that gets that approval.

There was a discussion on the Forum some time ago that the Coast Guard does not actually provide approvals. But I would then look at the literature that backs up the USCG approval claim. OGM has the news articles that go into that detail about the approval. Many do not. Others experiences may then prove to be very helpful in trying to make a decision on LEDs. While LEDs have been around for awhile, they are still very new for specific applications and I believe this is perhaps one reason why they do not have all their ducks ina row as to providing the necessary info to clearly decide whether a specific LED will be suitable for your function.

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OLarryR
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Response Posted - 06/18/2007 : 05:48:02

My cpomments were really meant for those deciding to take the plunge into an LED Anchor light. Obviously, the report that started this posting thread indicates a more than satisfactory LED that seems to provide equal or better brightness to other anchor lights in a harbor. My comments were only to point out if someone was going to get a different LED and than what was specifically mentioned in the beginnig of the posting thread, that LED ratings, etc can be confusing and some may not be into checking things out - so it was just providing info not to consider all LEDs equally bright and that ratings can be confusing.

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Champipple
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Response Posted - 06/18/2007 : 06:36:53

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by OLarryR
 
There was a discussion on the Forum some time ago that the Coast Guard does not actually provide approvals. <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

From what I've come to understand through my research is that they approve the lights themselves, not the bulbs.

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