tkcas01 wrote:
ktmrfs wrote:
What I did was to buy LED strip lights with regulators. The good ones can be cut to length and wired directly to the 12V. So.... you can
1) use silicone adhesive and glue them to the tubes
2) remove the tubes and glue them to the housing.
either way, the light comes out much more like the floresent tube rather than using the rectangular arrays.
Like Mex says, over a stove, I prefer something in the 5000K range, not the 3500K range.
Thanks. I kind of like that solution. Being dense again - what is the benefit of the regulators? And can you provide a link to an example of one that could be cut to length?
Also, In some of the other threads, the lights look SO BRIGHT! I am not looking for more light - just lights that come on when I turn them on. One of my spare 12" fluorescent bulbs says it puts out 400 lumens, so I think I would want the same amount of light out of LEDs. Sounds like I need to be careful and do some research.
Benefit of regulators is that the LED's can run at designed brightness from about 10V through 18V or so. without that, they will be dimmer below 12V as the battery discharges and above rated output when the converter is charging the battery, thus shortening there life.
Downside is that some LED's with regulators can cause RF interference with radio/TV, and of course they are more expensive. But they are brighter and last longer.
LED's brigtness is related to the current in the LED which is a highly nonlinear function of voltage. a small increase in voltage can result in a very large increase in current.
The regulated ones hold constant current over a wide range of voltage.
Here is a link to LED strips that you can cut to length.
These aren't regulated, but so far have held up well in my trailer, and given how much we use it, the only unregulated LED lights that have lasted more than a few months in our trailer given our heavy use.
They are 340 lumens/ft so about the same brightness as your existing tubes.
LED light strips
