Outside Lights - camping tips

[DutchmenSport]

Not to argue the use of outside lights when camping (pros and cons, lights on all night, blinding your neighbor at 2:30 am, etc)... But ...

But to share a simple money saving tip for those who do use outside lighting: Buy lights after holidays!

After Christmas is a great time to purchase string lights, rope lights, all kinds of lights with different colors very cheap. Stock up and if a string of lights goes bad, it's no great loss financially.

I've done this every year for many, many years now, (purchased holiday items after the holiday), especially lights.

At one time, we had over a hundred boxes of Christmas outside ice-sickle house hold lights. I ended up giving them all away to my son so he could hang them at his house a few years ago. So I had no more.

Actually, I got tired of hanging outside items out when camping, including lights.

Well, there is another holiday that is great for after-holiday buying... and that is Halloween.

This last year, after Halloween, the local grocery store had all kinds of left-overs, including rope lights. I bought 9 strings for about $2.00 each. They are purple. I thought that would be pretty especially NOT during Halloween.

Well, this week end is the first time I used them. So I put them out in a very simple fashion.

So, if looking for some cheap lighting and a simple way to use them at your campsite without a lot of work, here's how it worked out for me. FYI, I turned them off at 9:30 pm.... I don't like lights when I'm sleeping either! They look red in the photo, but they are actually purple. The photo below was taken just right before it got dark last night, so the sky looks much lighter than it really was.

Feel free to share your outside lighting ideas! Photos welcome!

[SCVJeff]

DwnSth wrote:
I usually have a telescope or two when traveling. I still like to have some ambient lighting, usually our windsock lights that I've had for 25 years (can't find replacements). They light up the awning a bit but not bright enough to bother me with telescopes or neighbors. ---snip---

If you ever do find those, PLEASE PM me about it!
I have the same windsock lights and have searched the internet for hours on hours. Came close with smaller socks and xmas mini lights, but not any with the 7W (candelabra?) socket. Every time they are up I get asked where they came from?

For those with scarelights: Put a dimmer on them. Problem solved.

[Kittykath]

Our seasonal site has 3 trees in the perfect locations to accommodate 2 strings of plain jane clear lights. They provide just the right amount of nighttime glow. The only two neighboring campers who can see them at all are his brother and my sister. Although I could church up my site to my heart's content, I really only like the nightlight effect. We also keep a small end table style lamp on a table outside the door.

[DutchmenSport]

DutchmenSport wrote:

dodge guy wrote:

Dave H M wrote:
I have 2 flood lights on my camper, on both East and West side of the camper that is enough to light up a foot ball field. It's TOO bright for ambient "mood" setting (romantic) camping..

My lights had regular bulbs in them which I changed out to a more reasonable blinding spot. :W But i still have respect for my neighbors and do not keep them lit up at night.

How are you able to always have the lights on the East and West side of the trailer? Do you never travel East or West?!!!! Is the trailer always parked with the front facing North or South?!!!

"East" and "West" (side of the camper), refers to the sides of the camper opposed to the front and back ends. Terms are often referred to "East" and "West" (sides) when leveling the camper, opposed to "North" and "South" (ends)

For what it's worth, I think these lights are called "scare lights". Add the 2 front lights (on the front - tongue) side, and my white "scare lights" are bright enough to annoy even the most docile camper! The nice thing is, if we get an annoying camper on our back side (not the door side), and they leave their awning lights on all night, I can flip on that scare light and flood them out! I've never done that, but I've thought about it many times.

North - front of camper
South - end of camper
West - door side of camper
East - non-door side of camper

Edit: Now ... if you are in a truck camper, I think the East-west direction still applies, but not sure about North and South since the back of the truck camper is actually the front (door) and the front is actually the back???? and very few truck campers have doors on the side? So does that make the sides "east and west" or North and South?

[DwnSth]

I usually have a telescope or two when traveling. I still like to have some ambient lighting, usually our windsock lights that I've had for 25 years (can't find replacements). They light up the awning a bit but not bright enough to bother me with telescopes or neighbors. We will hang more lights when at Fort Wilderness along with some rope lighting, part of the atmosphere I guess. When no hookups I will use some very subtle solar hanging lights (again, way less bright than a Coleman lantern). We usually abide by the atmosphere of the place we're at. If no one has lights, then I don't turn anything on. Lights go out at bedtime regardless. Floodlights, especially on backside left on all night never make sense to me, not sure what it's for.

[DutchmenSport]

dodge guy wrote:

Dave H M wrote:
I have 2 flood lights on my camper, on both East and West side of the camper that is enough to light up a foot ball field. It's TOO bright for ambient "mood" setting (romantic) camping..

My lights had regular bulbs in them which I changed out to a more reasonable blinding spot. :W But i still have respect for my neighbors and do not keep them lit up at night.

How are you able to always have the lights on the East and West side of the trailer? Do you never travel East or West?!!!! Is the trailer always parked with the front facing North or South?!!!

"East" and "West" (side of the camper), refers to the sides of the camper opposed to the front and back ends. Terms are often referred to "East" and "West" (sides) when leveling the camper, opposed to "North" and "South" (ends)

For what it's worth, I think these lights are called "scare lights". Add the 2 front lights (on the front - tongue) side, and my white "scare lights" are bright enough to annoy even the most docile camper! The nice thing is, if we get an annoying camper on our back side (not the door side), and they leave their awning lights on all night, I can flip on that scare light and flood them out! I've never done that, but I've thought about it many times.

North - front of camper
South - end of camper
West - door side of camper
East - non-door side of camper

[RandACampin]

skipnchar wrote:
Just one thing. Hanging lights up in the air ANYWHERE contributes light pollution that EVERYONE has to enjoy. Ground lights have minimal effect on your neighbors. NEITHER will keep wildlife or the boogie man away.

There's always one

[dodge_guy]

Dave H M wrote:
I have 2 flood lights on my camper, on both East and West side of the camper that is enough to light up a foot ball field. It's TOO bright for ambient "mood" setting (romantic) camping..

My lights had regular bulbs in them which I changed out to a more reasonable blinding spot. :W But i still have respect for my neighbors and do not keep them lit up at night.

How are you able to always have the lights on the East and West side of the trailer? Do you never travel East or West?!!!! Is the trailer always parked with the front facing North or South?!!!

[Dave_H_M]

I have 2 flood lights on my camper, on both East and West side of the camper that is enough to light up a foot ball field. It's TOO bright for ambient "mood" setting (romantic) camping..

My lights had regular bulbs in them which I changed out to a more reasonable blinding spot. :W But i still have respect for my neighbors and do not keep them lit up at night.

[DutchmenSport]

portscanner wrote:
This is the correct way to do outside lighting on an RV

NOW THAT IS AWESOME! !!!

[2gypsies1]

portscanner wrote:
This is the correct way to do outside lighting on an RV

Ugh!!! NOT!

[portscanner]

This is the correct way to do outside lighting on an RV

[goducks10]

Dutchman has the right spot and the right lights. Very nice. Low key but effective.

[kellertx5er]

Thunder Mountain wrote:

skipnchar wrote:
Just one thing. Hanging lights up in the air ANYWHERE contributes light pollution that EVERYONE has to enjoy. Ground lights have minimal effect on your neighbors. NEITHER will keep wildlife or the boogie man away.

Thank you so much for chiming in. It saved me from the pain of getting flamed. Unnecessary light pollution is one of my pet peeves.

Oh, good. A two-fer. Is this to say that a string of 20 mini-lights along the awning is objectionable? Or that a 500 watt halogen work light placed on the ground is OK? The 'scare' lights on an RV are not 'hung' but are about as objectionable as lighting can get. It just seems that a statement like "Hanging lights up in the air ANYWHERE contributes light pollution ..." does not fairly describe the real issue.

[BurbMan]

Lantley wrote:
The proliferation of LED string lights has turned the CG's into a circus/Vegas at night atmosphere.
After reading my post I think I'm turning into an old "Fuddy Duddy" curmudgeon. LOL :E

Well that makes two of us then!