Question for MEXICOWANDERER

[Bobbo]

Mex, my Airstream trailer came with no illuminated switches where you can tell if the switch is turned on at a glance from a distance. I have added illuminated switches to 3 locations, but there is another switch that I want an illuminated indicator for. However, there is a problem.

The remaining switch is not just a pop-in switch. It is connected to a printed circuit board and has a dimmer slider. It has 3 wires coming to it, a fused hot wire, a load wire to outside lights, and a ground wire.

I am not wanting to use the load wire to outside lights to power the indicator LED because if I dim the outside lights with the dimmer slider, it will also dim the LED indicator light. I want the indicator light full brightness regardless of the dimming slider.

Have you any ideas?

Thanks

Bobbo

[MEXICOWANDERER]

RV'er helping RV'er

[Bobbo]

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
Forgive me if I have a hard head. When I task myself I stick with it. Found a square red pilot lamp. Cute. It glows bright enough at 5.0 volts to see twenty feet away 90 degrees sideways in a darkened space.

Will be in the USA on Friday at the post office. PRIVATE MESSAGE ME your mailing address and I'll throw it into an envelope. If notified I will solder a couple of 20 gauge red and black wires on it. I realize this is important to you 🙂

PM coming! Thank you.

Bobbo

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Forgive me if I have a hard head. When I task myself I stick with it. Found a square red pilot lamp. Cute. It glows bright enough at 5.0 volts to see twenty feet away 90 degrees sideways in a darkened space.

Will be in the USA on Friday at the post office. PRIVATE MESSAGE ME your mailing address and I'll throw it into an envelope. If notified I will solder a couple of 20 gauge red and black wires on it. I realize this is important to you 🙂

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Reactive intensity that tracks the outside lights is sorta neat -- if you're in bed and see a bright glow...

[Bobbo]

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
I am envisioning a good looking square red lamp with a round base, and a pair of 22-gauge wires to connect to existing wires.

This sounds like what I am looking for. I don't want it TOO dim because I want to be able to notice it from the length of the TT. Approaching the brightness of the illuminated switches I have already installed would be perfect. I am sure you are familiar with those illuminated switches. (I have put 3 of them in my TT, water heater electric element, scare light and step light.)

[MEXICOWANDERER]

LED brightness is not necessarily linear to voltage. It depends on the COB and emitter design. This is why actual testing using an adjustable lab power supply is valuable. It does not rely on assumptions.


Patio events that utilize lots of lumens needs tighter supervision against "forgot" mistakes than does nightlight glow.

I am envisioning a good looking square red lamp with a round base, and a pair of 22-gauge wires to connect to existing wires.

But if you need a faint glowing pilot lamp with full brightness exterior lighting then what I am thinking of is invalid.

[wnjj]

LED’s are dimmed by rapidly pulsing the voltage to them (called PWM) with less and less “on” time than off time as they go dimmer. It may be possible to connect a diode followed by capacitor to “fill in the gaps” and provide a more constant, brighter output for an indicator LED.

On the other hand, it may pull enough current at the wrong times and affect the LED’s you’re trying to dim.

[Bobbo]

Ozlander wrote:
I don't understand what the dimmer is for?

The dimmer is to dim the LED awning lights so you don't blind everyone with spotlights under your awning. They are bright.

The PCB is attached to the plastic frame holding the switches and dimmers in such a way that I would have to break the plastic to get access to the connections between the switches/dimmers and the PCB.

I have very easy access to the PCB output wire right behind the switch plate. The wire is a good 6" long or more and is butt spliced into the trailer's wiring. I can easily tap into that, but would prefer having the LED pilot light I want to install not dim.

I already spliced into the ground connection this switch plate has. That is where I tapped a ground wire for the other illuminated switches I installed just above it.

If I have an LED light that is dimmable, I could use that and just live with the dimming of the pilot light, I guess. The whole point of this thread was to try to figure out a way to keep that pilot light from dimming. An LED that is full brightness at any voltage this dimmer puts out (if such a thing exists) is what I was hoping Mex could point me to. I assume that is why he asked what voltage is output by the dimmer at its lowest setting.

What I wanted to do may not be feasible. I wouldn't know because, while I am decent in 120v and 12v electricity, I know less than nothing about electronics.

[Naio]

If you don't want to go near the circuit board, it seems to me that you could tap into the line that runs out to the lights at any point, and put a little indicator light in there.

Maybe there is some point along the wire route that is convenient to see from bed or when getting ready for bed.

I am not Mex, but I want to be him when I grow up. :B

prichardson wrote:
Instead of adding a pilot light put a dab of red fingernail polish or paint on the edge of the switch that is exposed when in the on position.

This is what I did with my heater! You can also get glow-in-the-dark paint at a hobby store

[MEXICOWANDERER]

The lamp is soldered to the switch pcb?

If the slider switch has WIRES between the pcb and lamp, THERE is where you tap into to gain voltage versus intensity readings. Leave the printed circuit board alone.

Surely when the slide switch is popped from the bezel there are wires running to the bulb outside?

[2112]

Bobbo wrote:
I would have to destructively disassemble the PCB/switch to access the input side of the slider

Is the slider soldered to the PCB? If so, solder a wire to the slider connection where a constant 12V is present when the switch is ON and not present when the switch is OFF.

[Ozlander]

I don't understand what the dimmer is for?

[Bobbo]

Thanks everyone. I will cogitate on the situation. I would have to destructively disassemble the PCB/switch to access the input side of the slider. I will have to decide if it is worth it to remove the scare light from the side of the trailer to get Mex's readings. I would hate to mar the trailer side or light fixture. I may have to settle for leaving this particular switch alone.

[2112]

Connect the LED anode to the input leg of the slider. It should always be 12V when the switch is up regardless of slider position. I can only assume at this time the slider is controlling PWM duty cycle.