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05-21-2023, 11:20 AM
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#1
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Member
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: Ottawa
Posts: 39
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light fixtures.... 12 and 120v why?
good afternoon,
me again with another question, I'm just curious to know why some light fixtures are 12v and others are 120v? I always assumed that every lights in the RV were 12v so we bought all new 12v light fixtures and today while installing them I realized that the wall mounted light fixture above the sofa is 120v but the one above the table, 2 ft away, is 12v.
thanks!
JL
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2012 Cougar High country 291RLS
2018 Ford F250 diesel
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05-21-2023, 11:43 AM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Henniker
Posts: 2,176
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Our interior lights are all 12v LED. I don’t recall ever having 120v lights in a camper. That being said, anything is possible!
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Rob & Amy
2019 Passport 240BH SL (for sale)
2024 Cougar 29BHL (Taking delivery 5/11/24)
2022 Ford F250 7.3L Godzilla Crew Cab FX4
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05-21-2023, 12:02 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: Wickenburg
Posts: 3,314
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Same here. What's the 110v fixture look like? I'm assuming it's something fancy, unlike the 12V near it.
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2019 Cougar 26RBSWE
2019 Ford F-250
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05-21-2023, 01:45 PM
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#4
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Site Team
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Modesto
Posts: 20,353
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Since your trailer is 2012 according to your signature, there were RVs made back then with a 120VAC light above the dinette table. Years before that there was an LP light ( think Coleman lamp) mounted on the wall above the dinette.
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2012 Copper Canyon 273FWRET being towed by a 1994 Ford F350 CC,LB,Dually diesel.
Airlift 5000 bags, Prodigy brake control, 5 gauges on the pillar.Used to tow a '97 Jayco 323RKS.
Now an RVIA registered tech. Retired from Law enforcement in 2008 after 25+ yrs.
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05-21-2023, 02:24 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Box Elder
Posts: 2,910
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Ours is the same way, 120v above the dining table and 12v above the sofa. Even the wall sconce between the sofa and table is 120v.
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Bob & Becky
2012 3402 Montana
2012 Chevy 2500HD D/A CC
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05-21-2023, 03:56 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: Mico, TX
Posts: 7,471
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We have two wall sconces that are 120V and two of those dome lights over kitchen table and sofa area that are 12V. The 12V have bulbs that look like 1156 taillight bulbs but the little ears are at the same height. I can't recall what their bulb number is but I found some somewhere and bought a couple extra.
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wiredgeorge Mico TX
2006 F350 CC 4WD 6.0L
2002 Keystone Cougar 278
2006 GL1800 Roadsmith Trike
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05-21-2023, 04:30 PM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2020
Location: Upper Chesapeake Bay
Posts: 4,840
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I’m thinking they used to do it like that for redundancy…in case you had a converter failure you would still have some lighting in the rv when connected to shore power
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2020 Cougar 315 RLS
2020 Ram 3500 6.7HO 4.10 Dually Aisin
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05-21-2023, 05:06 PM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Henniker
Posts: 2,176
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wiredgeorge
We have two wall sconces that are 120V and two of those dome lights over kitchen table and sofa area that are 12V. The 12V have bulbs that look like 1156 taillight bulbs but the little ears are at the same height. I can't recall what their bulb number is but I found some somewhere and bought a couple extra.
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1156 bulbs have two filaments and 1157 bulbs have one, otherwise they are the same size but the nubs are different
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05-21-2023, 05:07 PM
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#9
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Site Team
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Gaylord
Posts: 26,997
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Jasin1 is probably "right on the money" with his redundancy thoughts...
I remember our 1972 Jayco having three light sources. There were 12 volt (battery lights). 120 volt (shore power lights) and two propane lights, one over the dinette and one in the bathroom....
I asked the factory rep about that. His response was, we designed our trailers to offer complete versatility for our owners. They can enjoy their trailer with lighting, no matter where they are or under what circumstances they might encounter.....
I didn't put much faith in his response until I used the trailer in Colorado for elk hunting north of Steamboat Springs... It sure was nice to have that propane light in the bathroom on those cold mornings and even nicer that it was there on those frigid winter evenings when there was no battery left and no shore power for 50 miles in any direction.....
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John
2015 F250 6.7l 4x4
2014 Cougar X Lite 27RKS
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05-21-2023, 07:36 PM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: Mico, TX
Posts: 7,471
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If I had to guess why both power sources, I would say Keystone buy went down to Fred's Surplus and Bargain Barn and they had a stack of each type. Cheap is my guess.
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wiredgeorge Mico TX
2006 F350 CC 4WD 6.0L
2002 Keystone Cougar 278
2006 GL1800 Roadsmith Trike
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05-21-2023, 08:02 PM
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#11
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Site Team
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: W. Texas
Posts: 17,695
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wiredgeorge
If I had to guess why both power sources, I would say Keystone buy went down to Fred's Surplus and Bargain Barn and they had a stack of each type. Cheap is my guess.
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I think 10-15 years ago RV manufacturers were still thinking about doodads that would benefit a guy out "camping", not glamping like we do now. Like John mentioned I think that redundancy, little answers to those "what if" moments that used to happen when out camping (again not glamping). I think back then they viewed those as selling points just like the buyers. Nowadays technology has changed so much along with people's habits those things wouldn't make monetary sense...so we get what we got.
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Danny and Susan, wife of 56 years
2019 Ram 3500 Laramie CC SWB SB 6.4 4x4 4.10
2020 Montana High Country 331RL
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05-22-2023, 03:08 AM
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#12
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Member
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: Ottawa
Posts: 39
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thanks everybody, redundancy makes sense.
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2012 Cougar High country 291RLS
2018 Ford F250 diesel
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05-22-2023, 10:57 AM
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#13
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2019
Location: Cotulla, TX
Posts: 463
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NH_Bulldog
1156 bulbs have two filaments and 1157 bulbs have one, otherwise they are the same size but the nubs are different
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Other way around….1156 bulb is a single element and the 1157 bulb is a dual element.
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Mesa, AZ
2019 Alpine FL3700
2020 F-350 King Ranch
Retired Fire Capt/paramedic 34 yrs
Current owner 2 HVAC companies
Past owner Res/Com electrical
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05-22-2023, 01:06 PM
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#14
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Indiana
Posts: 2,719
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Quote:
Originally Posted by firestation12
Other way around….1156 bulb is a single element and the 1157 bulb is a dual element.
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Ditto!
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2019 Montana High Country 375FL
2014 Chevy Duramax HD 6.6 - 3500 Diesel Dully Long bed Crew Cab
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05-22-2023, 01:30 PM
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#15
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Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Henniker
Posts: 2,176
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I switched all mine to LED years ago, shows you the last time I actually had to know which was which.
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05-28-2023, 07:33 AM
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#16
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Jacksonville
Posts: 542
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JeLo
good afternoon,
me again with another question, I'm just curious to know why some light fixtures are 12v and others are 120v? I always assumed that every lights in the RV were 12v so we bought all new 12v light fixtures and today while installing them I realized that the wall mounted light fixture above the sofa is 120v but the one above the table, 2 ft away, is 12v.
thanks!
JL
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Usually all interior lights are 12V DC. This is so the off grid campers can operate a fan or light and refrigerator lights off or HW Heater light off.
There may be a few rigs that have a 120 V AC light or socket but not many.
So when disconnected from shore power, from generator or inverter this is the only light not working? Is it connected to an electric reclining sofa?
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06-01-2023, 07:21 AM
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#17
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: Kamloops, BC
Posts: 385
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JeLo
good afternoon,
me again with another question, I'm just curious to know why some light fixtures are 12v and others are 120v? I always assumed that every lights in the RV were 12v so we bought all new 12v light fixtures and today while installing them I realized that the wall mounted light fixture above the sofa is 120v but the one above the table, 2 ft away, is 12v.
thanks!
JL
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I haven't seen that type of setup in a long time. Everything I have owned since 2000 has been 12V lighting and that's it.. older units in the 60's and 70's quite often had this split of lighting and maybe even propane lights because they only had a battery charger at best not a converter. so, it wasn't made to be left plugged in unless you shut off the switch for the charger when the battery was full. even my 1991 camper only had a single stage converter in it, but it all was 12V lighting and nothing else.
I imagin park modles would have a split for efficiency ...
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