Inisde LED Light Strips

I will try to post some pics later, but I just made a project box using one of these from:
***Link Removed***Used Electrical Supplies

The PCB was a wired madcatz 360 pad. And all I had to do was desolder the analog sticks - pull them off, and I left the variable resistors on and glued them in place.

I will try to post some pics later, but I just made a project box using one of these from:
http://www.yagionline.com

The PCB was a wired madcatz 360 pad. And all I had to do was desolder the analog sticks - pull them off, and I left the variable resistors on and glued them in place.

i do buy my led's on ebay and have gotten great deals on them like these led strip lights i have also started buying strip light channels and using them. i use screws to mount them and then apply the led's strip light channel

D.E. Bishop,
I buy a few electrical items here, at Waytek Wire Their distribution center is 4mi away so I'm pretty much a walk-in customer but I have done biz with them through Email and by phone. There distro center is modern so orders placed are filled in less than an hour.

Check out this LED fixture:


In action:


These are made using a business card display frame from the Dollar Store. I remove the easel back, install same size piece of aluminum at the location, press on an LED panel and wire with the included Molex connector, and slide the display frame and glass over the LED panel.
Total cost: $1 frame display, $1.69 for LED panel---total $2.69
If the panel fails (hasn't happened), slide off frame, disconnect terminal, attach new LED panel and reverse the rest. Cheaper and easier than replacing a light bulb.

Panel draws 200ma and I've had 14.9V on the 12V system many times. I bought the panels off E Bay and ordered a variety of colors and chip numbers on the board, experimented to find the right lumens and color for the location.

Lovin' me some LED's!

I have converted all my fluorescent ceiling lights to led with strips I bought from eBay. I installed lighting in the entertainment center and the kitchen in the S&B. And in my last rig I had a waterproof amber strip under the entry step with a remote switch I kept in the towed. All purchased from eBay.

The strips I used at home were easily concealed behind face frames and in false bottoms of kitchen cabinets. I used self adhesive strips and either 1/2" aluminium angle and 1/2" aluminum c channel for reflectors and for mounting.

In the Winnie I used strips factory mounted on pre-scored aluminum sheeting and glued it inside the fixtures with contact cement. For the steps I used self adhesive waterproof strips and "T" tapped off the power to the step controller.

When using the adhesive backed strips, extreme care should be taken when prepping the surface and placing the strips, in my experience, re positioning the strips degrades the adhesive to the point that new glue needs to be added(messy and doesn't always work) or using new strips.

If you are willing to search for light strips online, you can find literally hundreds of mounting channels both with and without diffuser lenses. There are ones to recess, mount in corners and any number of other ways and places to mount them. In this case, eBay is your friend.

As for how to get the power, there are some good ideas in the prior posts and it all boils down to how gifted you are in doing the installation. I love trying to outsmart the obstacles but not knowing where you want yours and what is available for power, it is very hard to give specific suggestions. I would not be too concerned about fuses and the chance of causing a fire are minimal, I would suggest some sort of switch ,however. Also on ebay are a huge array of remote switches.

If you take a clue from the manufacturer of the strips, they use #18 or #20 wire to carry the current needed for a 5 meter strip.

I also spent quite a bit of time digging up info on what all the different types of LEDs and what type would work best for me. Colors from warm white that is almost amber to icy white which is really blue is also a consideration. There are charts on line that tell you what color to expect from what Kelvin rating.

Other items that are available on line are dimmers, not all lamps and not all strips can be hooked up to a dimmer, but many can be.

If you are one of those who prefer not to order from eBay, the same LED supplies are available from S&B stores and from other on line stores. I will suggest that eBay is a great place to learn what is available. I would bet there are tens of thousands of different items and configuration sold on eBay and it is a great information resource.

I usually do not include disclaimers, however, I did say that I would not be too concerned about fuses. I am concerned about safety and preventing fires or injuring my family. Almost any place you can tap for power will be protected with a fuse. If I were to run a circuit just for new lighting, I would include a fuse and in my case, I'd use LittleFuses and something about .5 to 2 amps for the self adhesive strips. For a factory made fixture, the wattage should be on the fixture and fuse accordingly. Pulling wire in a wall, I would use teflon coated zip cord of an appropriate size. I buy most of my wire from a professional electronics and A/V supply company. Fortunately I have one fairly close and they are on line.

On edit, both the amber strip under the steps and the florescent to LED conversion is in the archives on the forums.

I'd suggest to soffit the strips so that they are unseen, directly.

FWIW, I used conventional LED panels in warm white frequencies. Since I was rewiring my trailer, power was routed through wall switches, in most locations. I'm real happy with the results.

If all fails , Plan B

If not for reading and just mood lighting....................

I would use non clear solid plastic 'c-channel'.

You can cut it to length easily and place the open end towards a wall or ceiling to allow light to reflect off such, offering a softer more spread out light but at the same time, using very little 12v power.

Doing it that way, you won't have to worry about making the strip straight inside the tube. I would plan the route so the end wires would end up being near a point close to the 12 v source for hooking into your power. (drill a hole into a cabinet then run the wire out of sight)

I would run separate 12v pos/neg fused wires from a 12v source or the battery to an on-off switch or possibly a dimmer switch if the lights were compatible with a dimmer .

If you're only adding LED's for reading lights, etc., go to Dollar Tree, and buy some "puck" style or "light switch style". They are battery powered (3 AAA), and come with a sticky tape on the back for mounting. We've added them in our TT above the sofa and under cabinets. Also added them in our park model trailer where we spend the winter. Even added some in our house under the cabinets. They work fine, and no hassle with finding a power supply. No more than they're used, batteries last a long time. You can find some better quality ones at Big Lots and Ace Hardware.

Added Led strips to the inside top of out slide, for indirect lighting. Got 12v power from under the drivers seat, the connection for a power seat which is not being used. connected to slide with a flexable section of 16g 110v appliance cord, which is very flexable. Left enough slack for slide to move in or out. Did the same for bedroom slide, got power from bedside light connections. added switch to light fixture. The wall is white, so just taped the short wire from light fixture with a piece of white tape. Cannot be seen unless you are looking for it.