Adding a LED light strip

I am wanting a 'warm white' 12 volt set up.

Thoughts on this one?

http://www.amazon.com/LEDwholesalers-Flexible-300xSMD3528-Adhesive-2026WW-27K/dp/B002Q907EW/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1441485348&sr=1-1&keywords=warm+white+12+volt&pebp=1441485350369&perid=0F7Z42YBPJ2FSZPV6M4A

There are many different sizes of barrel plugs, varying both in outside diameter and in the diameter of the inner pin. You may or may not get lucky with the box o old wall warts.

Usually a device will have marked on it a sort of hieroglyphic showing what polarity it expects from the plug. Something like this:



Use an ohmmeter or whatever to figure out which wire goes to which contact on the plug.

What about the color of the light emitted?

I understand on a color chart the lower the number the closer to natural daylight.
Something around 2700 is close to 'warm white'



Did some of you buy these LED kits and bypass the supplied power supply/transformer
and just connect the strip to your 12v in the coach?

I do not have that "remote color changing" type as .. I mean that's a lot of technology when a simnple ON/OFF is all you need.

I do have a strip I picked up at Radio Shack.. Now so for I've only hooked up a short segement of it for testing but I was warned that if I ran this 12 volt strip off RV power (which in my case can hit 15 volts) it would not last long.. Knowing a bit about electrical design (I've done that) and construction (Same) I went ahead and did not listen to the nay sayers.

As I type the strip is still glowing brightly,, I forget if I installed in NOv, Dec, or Jan. But it was right around the holiday season (2014/5) when I hooked it up in parallel with one of my ceiling lights so it;'s on for 12 hours at least six days a week.. Still going strong.

Yes you can run ;'em off battery power so long as it's a 12 volt model. I would skip the remote controlled ones though. Go for a straightr strip

All Electronics (Google them) has a staright strip for you (I have two of those in a drawer awaiting failure of some other lights.. Converting to LED on a replacement basis.)

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
Ooops. Older wall warts use transformers and are specifically intended to power an EXACT load. Too small of load too high a voltage and if load is exceeded then voltage sags.

If the wart weighs about an ounce it would most likely be a switched type power supply which is voltage regulated. But I ALWAYS check working voltage rather than see smoke signal -$- sign.

The OP is talking about using the connector off an old wall wart, mot the wart itself.
I imagine most are like me, and have a box full of them, I'm just too OCD to throw them out.

Ooops. Older wall warts use transformers and are specifically intended to power an EXACT load. Too small of load too high a voltage and if load is exceeded then voltage sags.

If the wart weighs about an ounce it would most likely be a switched type power supply which is voltage regulated. But I ALWAYS check working voltage rather than see smoke signal -$- sign.

Excellent information all, thanks. I have been reevaluating what I plan to do based on your recommendations.

12 volt motion detector

If you want just white light you can buy rolls of white led strips on Ebay. Then use the motion detector shown so you don't have to fumble with switches. Parallel the power going to the existing light in the bay and you can still turn the old one on if needed.

If your bay has uneven surfaces where you want the light buy some thin wood strips and stick the lights to that and then mount them.

I use the strip lights in several places. One of the motion detectors is used in my hallway to make night time trips easier.

Another detector is used in our closet.

Additional strips have been added under the cabinets over our kitchen area. Much better lighting. Running some in the cabinets make finding things easier too.

Just cut the wire that goes from there power adapter to the little white control box you see in the picture. On mine the red wire was pos. You can check them with a 9 volt batt to make sure which is the power wire

Winged One wrote:

My question is powering it. You can get them with an ac/dc adaptor. However, I wish to power off 12 volt.

I have some old ac/dc adaptors (for now gone calculators and such). If I cut the wire off the old adaptor, can I use the plug end to power the white box controller, while stripping the other end of the wire and connecting directly to the 12 power to one of the basement 12v lights?


Is there an easier way to power this LED light strip?

That's the way to do it- it will work fine.