LED Bulb Replacement

[socalhd]

I have a2014 Fuzion 342 and this thing has lights everywhere. Because it is a Toyhauler and we do dry camp I am thinking I want to replace all the bubs with LED Bulbs. To include the light in the Refridge and the outside cabinet lights. Has anyone done this? and could you save me the trouble and provide me with Part numbers on the bulbs?

[Alpine]

You will love the difference! I changed out our fiver to LED's. With just a couple of the old Halogen lights on my converter would start humming! Now with the whole house lights on...nary a noise! And a lot cooler as well. Speaking of cool...I did not change out the fridge light!

This is a wonderful place to purchase all your LED lighting. They make it simple to navigate their site. You will get a 10% discount when purchasing 10 or more and another 5% when checking out and use the code RVGEEKS5.

They are lightning fast with your order (free shipping) and by the time you click "submit" they will be in your mail box!!! Ok...that's a bit of an exaggeration!

http://www.m4products.com/led-rv-retrofit-bulbs/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KF_Ig8sutg

[buzzcop63]

If your trailer is using the 921 Incandescent push in light bulbs here is a replacement that I have been running since 3/20/15 or 41 nights camping. These LED run very cool and our converter did not come during any of the trips. With the incandescent lights you could hardly put your hands on the plastic covers on the lamps as they got so hot and the plug in for the base of the light turned brown on many of the light fixtures due to heat. I replaced all 20 inside lights, these bulbs come in packages of 10 each for $20.20, and I purchased two packs and got free shipping. What I ordered was 2 "GRV T10 921 194 24-3528 SMD LED Bulb Lamp Super Bright Warm White CD 12V Pack of 10 from Amazon. Also ran one light all night, still cool. Do a search, lots of information!

[sw342]

Originally Posted by socalhd

I have a2014 Fuzion 342 and this thing has lights everywhere. Because it is a Toyhauler and we do dry camp I am thinking I want to replace all the bubs with LED Bulbs. To include the light in the Refridge and the outside cabinet lights. Has anyone done this? and could you save me the trouble and provide me with Part numbers on the bulbs?

I replaced them on my 342 a couple years ago. No reason to do the fridge or the lights in the basement. They are hardly ever used, so it makes no sense to spend the money on the bulbs there. It takes more than part numbers. You have to decide on how many lumens you want. As far as the G4, I could not find any over 120 last time I looked. Some people like the bright white, some more yellow, so you will also have to decide on the Kelvin rating.

The round puck lights are G4 base. There are like 20 of them. There are also the other lights in the garage and bedroom. Cannot remember those, but used the LED boards and they are very bright. If you are spending over $2 a bulb(for the G4's) you are throwing money away. I got all mine off Ebay from China. They have been going strong for 2 years now and have not lost a single one. Take a look at Amazon also and see what they have to offer. Places like M4products and LED trailer lights are crazy expensive for what you get, but if you have deep pockets and want to spend $10 a bulb, go for it.

[Rick]

I'm a dry camper too, so this is one of the first things I did. Those 921's drew lots of amps, and were HOT! Want to warm your trailer during winter...just turn on the lights.

I bought mine off ebay. Took about a week to get to CA from China. Never had a problem with them. Here's who I bought them from.
I'd suggest the round, direct plug-in type (pictured) as opposed to the flat, stick on type. The round ones are easier to pull and put in a new RV when the time comes. The flat sticky ones are a bear to remove.

Also, I'd suggest getting the regulated LED's. You can do a search on "LED's burning out" and see what they say. Ebay ads for non-regulated will say "12V", while regulated LED's will say "12-24V".

Lastly, color. Warm White is like your traditional incandescent bulbs at home. Cool white has a blueish cast to it. Not my cup of tea.

Here's the difference between the two-
Non-regulated


Regulated


Rick

[Andymon]

How about LED's for the tail lights on the TT? Anyone know which ones?

[Rick]

Just do a Google search for "1157 led bulb", then click on the "Image" tab. You'll find thousands of different shapes and sizes. Be careful on the plasma bulbs, though. From what I've read, yes, they're brighter, but can take up to 45 sec to reach that brightness and they don't respond well to going on and off quickly. Best to first read up on all the different types, then make your decision.

Rick

[sw342]

Originally Posted by Andymon

How about LED's for the tail lights on the TT? Anyone know which ones?

You are just best to pull the bulb and cross reference it to an LED. Again I dont see the advantage of swapping those lights out for LED except to say you have LED tail/brake lights.

[swanson]

The brightness is the reason that you change out the tail/brake lights.

[LittleJoe]

If you travel in snow LED taillights do not get warm and keep snow melted off.
A big factor if traveling under these conditions

[swanson]

Cities have found this out also in there "stop" lights.

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by LittleJoe

If you travel in snow LED taillights do not get warm and keep snow melted off.
A big factor if traveling under these conditions

Most of the traditional RV tail light fixtures are just too large to be adequately warmed by the heat generated by the low power filament of the 1157 bulb to prevent ice and snow buildup. It's not a valid consideration.

[mazboy123]

the only thing i don't like about LED lights is the cost involved.

[sw342]

Originally Posted by mazboy123

the only thing i don't like about LED lights is the cost involved.

Depends on where you are buying the lights. Most of mine were $1 a light. Some specialty light bulbs might have been around $5, but there were very few of those. I probably did about 30 bulbs for around $100 and I still have left over bulbs.

[JRTJH]

This is not intended to be argumentative, rather explanatory of my findings about LED's. I keep hearing about how "expensive" it is to convert to LED's and I just don't think that's always the situation.

I don't know of very many people who would go to the Ford dealer, find a truck with a sticker price of $45K and turn to the salesman and ask if they have a "better built version" of the exact same truck with a sticker price of $50K. LED's are pretty much the same as trucks. All the Fords are about the same, all the GM's are about the same as the rest of the GM's and it's the same with RAM. So, it would seem "foolhardy" to offer more than the truck is worth believing that you'll get a "better truck" by paying more money. LED's are essentially the same.

Depending on where you buy your LED's and the marketing "brand" you buy, they can be extremely expensive or they can be about the same price as incandescent lighting. I say "marketing brand" because all LED's are currently being manufactured either in Malaysia or in China. Some are sold directly from there, some are imported into the states and then repackaged, assembled, rebranded and then sold to the consumer. Sometimes there is a significant markup on pricing. Take, for instance a "flat panel array of LED's consisting of 24 individual "3528 diodes" that emit 9 lumens each at a "color temperature of 3600 Kelvin and are arranged on a phenolic block with a voltage regulator and a 921 plug. These are available on EBay and at Amazon for about $1-2 each. They are available from "quality LED manufacturers" (actually LED assemblers) for anywhere from $6 to $25 each.

Essentially they are the same LED components, the same phenolic block, the same voltage regulator and the same 921 plug. Where much of the difference is found is the cellophane packaging and the "brand". That's the marketing advantage that "touts" the product as "superior".... The question is: Is it really that "much better" or is it the same with a better package and someone to call to discuss problems? Most of the complaints from people who are "unhappy" with their LED purchase can be traced to them buying the "wrong kind of LED" and expecting good results. They buy the wrong color, the wrong type (3528/5050/5630) with too many or too few components on the array and they don't get the anticipated performance. It's not the LED, it's what they bought. The majority of the "American retailers" of LED's have reduced the "tens of thousands" of choices down to "one or two" and have eliminated the potential for "buying the wrong LED". That doesn't make the "EBay or Amazon LED's any worse or any better, you just have to know what to buy.

Another example is the "commercial LED awning strip sold at CW. It is listed for about $90. The same strip can be found on Amazon (without the $1electrical pigtail) for about $20.

What makes the expensive ones better? I haven't found anything other than the "quickness of exchange" if anything should go wrong. I'd note that I bought all of my "earlier technology LED's" from China about 6 years ago (when they were $2 each) for our Springdale. I transferred them to the Cougar and bought additional ones to complete the exchange. To date, I haven't had any "failures" but I have had a couple of panels with a "blinking LED" when the converter is in bulk charge (14.4VDC) mode.
The cost for those two panels was $4. Had I bought the same LED's from one of the "American marketers" at $19 each, I would have spent well over $500. Even with "zero failures", it would have cost me significantly more money for the same product.

My total expenditure for 100% LED conversion was about $125. If you add the Peterson LED tail light assemblies, it's up to about $250. Had I bought Peterson incandescent lights in the same configuration the cost would have been about $50 less.

So, yes, LED conversion can cost upwards of $500 or even more or it can be done with "essentially the same components" for $100 - $200, depending on how many LED's and how extensive you want to go with your conversion. (Running lights, tail lights, scare light, awning LED addition, etc).

I don't suppose it's a mod that's "right for everyone", but it can be done significantly cheaper than some of the "American made" (at least advertised as such) LED's that are being advertised.