LED T8 and T5 upgrades

[William Brosam]

So the other day(sunday the 24th) i bypassed my flouresecent ballasts as i put multiple bulbs in them and got no working lights.

i purchased these units from seller bovilles
6x T8 18" units
http://www.ebay.com/itm/321092493523?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

4x T8
http://www.ebay.com/itm/321092491428?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

2x T5 12" for above the toilet
http://www.ebay.com/itm/321092486877?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

Originally i tried bypassing two of them next to shower worked great, then i tried to plug in two to the existing ballast and they got very hot and turned off they were not providing enough power. so popped the cover off cut the white ground and wire nutted it and put covers back on and presto nice bright lights.

none have failed and the price is real good.

[Joel Weiss]

Those look similar to, but have lower lumen ratings than these (this link is to the 12" tube size) which I have been quite pleased with:

http://www.rvledbulbs.com/product-p/18-0577.htm

I found that two 300 lumen LED tubes produced slightly more light than the two 12" fluorescents they replaced.   I have used mine for over a year with no problems.  

[William Brosam]

yea having more leds will make it brighter for sure.

these are brighter then the flourescents i replaced to my eyes and highly recomended mod, i added LED's to the trailer 12volt lights already

[Orman Claxton]

Yes the LEDs are very nice, I have changed all except the one in the Kitchen, nice and bright also led electrical draw

[Jerry Carr]

Orman the change over is very EZ and the bottom line results are better then the original tubes, I have been running my LED tubes since the quartzite rally and love them.

[Greg Kamper]

Those look similar to, but have lower lumen ratings than these (this link is to the 12" tube size) which I have been quite pleased with:

http://www.rvledbulbs.com/product-p/18-0577.htm

I found that two 300 lumen LED tubes produced slightly more light than the two 12" fluorescents they replaced.   I have used mine for over a year with no problems. 

When you replaced the fluorescents, did you have to remove the ballasts as well?

[Joel Weiss]

When you replaced the fluorescents, did you have to remove the ballasts as well?

You don't have to remove the ballast, as long as you cut the wires going to it.  The ballast is hidden by the center decorative cover.  However, I usually remove it just to be neat.

This is an old thread and on my more recent LED conversions I didn't bothered to buy the LED "tubes".  I've been using just a length of LED stick-on strip and it works just fine and costs ~half as much as the tubes.  Once the fixture cover has been replaced you can't tell whether the LEDs are in tubes or are simply stuck to the top of the fixture.  When I use the stick-on strips I remove everything in the fixture including the lamp holders.  That way I can maximize the length of LED strip that I use.

For example, about two months ago I bought two of these:  https://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/flexible-strips-and-bars/led-light-strips-led-tape-light-with-18-smdsft-3-chip-smd-led-5050/2138/3281/  and the result was quite a bit more light than the fluorescents provided.

[Greg Kamper]

Thanks Joel or Sandie... Iknew this was an old post so I'm glad you still answered it. I'm envisioning these all over in our coach... Especially underneath to replace all of the storage lights.

[Joel Weiss]

Thanks Joel or Sandie... Iknew this was an old post so I'm glad you still answered it. I'm envisioning these all over in our coach... Especially underneath to replace all of the storage lights.

Greg:

We've used LED stick-on strips under all the cabinetry in the living area.  They are hardly visible under the front edge of the cabinets and the high power ones I bought can produce quite a bit of light.  They are all wired using inexpensive touch-activated dimmers so you don't get the bright light unless you want it.  We also have a set of LED undercabinet lights in the kitchen; those were purchased at Lowes.  In addition, we replaced all the wall sconces with more attractive, faux-Tiffany ones that take standard base bulbs (instead of candelabra base) and these all now have the kinds of residential LEDs you can buy at Lowes or HD and are ~60-watt equivalent.  And the dining area fluorescent fixture was also replaced by one that takes standard base LED bulbs and which now provides excellent task lighting for my wife's quilting efforts.

The bottom line is that we have so much available lighting (all of which is dimmer-controlled) that I haven't even bothered to replace the halogen "puck lights" since we have no need for them and the lighting we have is far more uniformly distributed than these provide.  In our opinion most RV interiors are "dreary" because they are underlit.  That's not ours; on a cold, dreary day we can definitely brighten the place up.

Joel

[Greg Kamper]

Thanks Joel,
I think we need to try to go to a BAC rally sometime to get ideas... Do they turn into mini RV shows for us newbies who need ideas to upgrade?

[Joel Weiss]

I can't speak to what you will see at rallies; they're not our style.  From what I've seen in our years of full-timing, far too many RVers seem to feel it necessary to keep their coaches as close as possible to how they were delivered from the manufacturer.  To us that is dull.

[Mike Humble]

Greg,
Regarding your comment about attending a BAC rally, they are all different.  The International Rallies do have some vendors, although not like a show.  The last two at Kerrville and Hemet have had a LED lighting vendor and I did learn some from them.  The smaller rallies offer an opportunity to talk one on one with other Beaver owners.  The upcoming International Rallies are in Branson MO, Rayne LA, and Canyonville, OR.  Hope to meet you at one of these or a Regional Rally.
Mike

[Michael Yaki]

Replaced all of our 18" fluorescents with LEDs obtained from Joe Brignolo at cabinbright.com at a much lower price.  Easy to install and Brignolo is easy to work with.  Very pleased with the results - brighter lights and less draw on electricity.

[Joel Weiss]

Replaced all of our 18" fluorescents with LEDs obtained from Joe Brignolo at cabinbright.com at a much lower price.  Easy to install and Brignolo is easy to work with.  Very pleased with the results - brighter lights and less draw on electricity.

I have no idea what you're comparing cabinbright's prices to but I was able to convert an 18" fixture for ~$25 using LED strips.  By way of comparison cabinbright is charging $62 for a single 18" fixture.  They seem to feel that there is something "superior" about the fact that their product isn't an LED strip.  If you believe that and enjoy spending more money, then, by all mean, buy from cabinbright. 

[Dick Simonis]

I also upgraded the lights in our PT using the Cabin bright modular product.  Joe is easy to work with.

http://www.cabinbright.com/shop/warm-white/fled12r-144/

However I see he is only offering these in WW now as opposed to the ~4100K units he offered earlier.  I did look at using strip lights but had a tough time getting enough chips in the fixture to achieve comparable or greater brightness and his product was easy.  When done the cabin was nice and bright.

My biggest grip with LED conversions in general has been finding modules that are at least as bright as what is being replaced when you compare the lumens.