led light questions

I've had 3100k that were very yellow and 3100k that were very white. LEDs are hard to shop for! I just used up 3 rolls of strip LEDs from led wholesalers and they have a color chart so I knew what I was getting. BTW, the 2026 3100k strip is a very good and cheap way to convert a fluorescent. The 2026 6000k is slightly bluish but not bad. The 2026 1919k is yellow and worked great for the above-cabinet night lights. Craig

The responses here are the reason I held off and bought them in person. Everyone's definition of what's bright, warm, or blue is completely different. And while one may have no problem with 5000k+ (Daylight), others insist on a color temp close to what they have with the existing lamps. It's a personal preference. I'd rather get what makes me warm and fuzzy than worry about the bottom line $$. This is a one time buy.

A typical RV lamp color temp is considered WW (~2700k). All of my internal LED's are 2700k with the exception of the kitchen area and the microwave LED's at 4100k (Brite White) that have far superior color rendition, and as high of a color temp my brain can stand. Storage bays are daylight. Don't know about pricing these days, but the daylight LED's used to be far cheaper.

HERE is a good article on color temp, including a pretty good color temp chart.

I used warm white lights when I replaced my lights with LEDs a couple of years ago except for the light over the stove, where the DW wanted a white light. A couple of the "warm white" LEDs turned out to be a blueish white so I used them in an outside compartment.

Most posters have mentioned only the number of LEDs as determining the brightness. There is more to it than that. At that time there were 2 LED types that were used in most of the lights, the 1210/3528 and the 5050 LEDs. The 5050 is about 2x brighter than the 1210/3528 and drew about 2x the current so it only takes half as many 5050s for the same brightness. Now there are several newer LED types, mostly brighter.

I bought my lights on eBay and am happy with the lights. I suggest buying 1 or 2 and trying them out before buying a bunch. I have found a large variation between sellers.

The last I knew all LEDs are made in China, so buying from a US vender will only increase your cost.

Try here. Takes about 2 wks from China. Good vendor.
http://www.ebay.com/usr/2011_led

Shadow Catcher wrote:
Color temperature is expressed in degrees Kelvin and a 3200K is about what you get with a conventional tungsten bulb. Bulbs in the 5600K range are actually closer to day light and bluer, but the blue disturbs the sleep cycle.

standard incandescent softwhite bulbs are typically 2700K, rather yellow looking.

Halogens get a bit less yellow and range from 3000K-3500K.

For myself I find 2700K rather dim looking and 5000K "daylight" is too over the top harsh for general lighting and I also find it rather dim looking.. 6500K is way over the top too blueish making everyone looking dead (zombies perhaps)..

For me 3000K-4100K is my just right point for brightness and decent color rendition..

It is really hard to find LEDs which TRUELY are the color temperature that they state so you will end up having to experiment with a bunch of different LEDS to find the ones that suit your taste..

I have had problems finding LEDS in 3000K-4100K range which I like, pretty much most of them is 2700K OR 6500K..

I also had a problem finding LEDs bright and small enough to fit into my Puck style lights which had G4 20W halogens..

Found THESE LEDS which are Warm White or 3000K and they actually have the light output which matches the 20W halogens!

The color is really subjective (not to mention ACTUAL LIGHT OUTPUT varies, manufacturers tend to overstate the brightness) so if possible buy only one or two to try before committing to a large purchase..

Color temperature is expressed in degrees Kelvin and a 3200K is about what you get with a conventional tungsten bulb. Bulbs in the 5600K range are actually closer to day light and bluer, but the blue disturbs the sleep cycle.

See here:

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/28105889.cfm

I won't pollute this thread with info from that one, but I did some real-life research in different LED replacements in that thread.

EDIT: I did not mention in my comparison that I used "warm white" LEDs. The "bright white" is actually blue and dimmer than warm white. I put those in the closets.

For my money, flat panels are the only way to go. Just pick how many diodes you want on the board. None of the ones that are shaped like various bulbs put out enough lumens, and they block their own fixture reflectors.

At first I started with some ebay ones, which were more blue and didn't put off as much light as the old bulbs.

I ended up spending more and going with better made bulbs from m4products.com they often have 3 color choices and multiple bulb choices. We found the natural white a good choice for us, and we used the warm white for reading lamps.

For sure LED's are much cooler to the touch and save a lot of juice if you are looking to boondock much.

I recently installed a bunch of these:
eBay LED Lamps

Thought they might be too harsh, but in fact they are just fine. And at $3 each, with free shipping, you could just get one or two and see if you like them.

I've been running LED for several years. Took them out of our old TT and moved them into our fiver when we upgraded. Needed more to complete all the fixtures. It's about the best thing you can do to your RV if you care about battery capacity.