Community Forums

RickO · 12-19-2007, 06:42 AM

I took advice from this forum and mounted rope lights permanently under both the main and bedroom awnings using new plastic channel strips sold at Home Depot. They come in 6' strips and have adhesive backing... but they also need to be secured with small sheet metal screws into the awning housing itself. Then I just pressed the rope light into the channel.. they just snap in place.. and secured the rope lights further using "U-clamps" which I also screwed into the awning housing about every three feet.

I really wanted to permanently wire them too but haven't yet figured out how to safely get AC from inside the slides to the outside lights.
I use outdoor extention cords to tie the two rope light strips together and then to AC power in a storage bay. I plug them into a wireless control unit which is controlled from a master unit inside which also controls the rope accent lighting I've installed behind the ceiling molding throughout the interior. Pretty cool but I still wish I could figure out how to get AC through the slide to the exterior lights.

No pictures yet but I'll post them when I can.

Tom N · 12-19-2007, 01:44 PM

I bought these lights from Camping World about 6 years ago for my old motorhome. They come with 10 2' long plastic channels that slid into the aux awning slot. When installed the channels go the full length of the awning. A rope light then snaps into this plastic channel. The awning can be rolled up with the lights installed.

Haven't tried them on my new electric awning.

http://www.campingworld.com/browse/skus/index.cfm/Outdo...t-Strip/skunum=26172

-Tom

Easyrider · 12-19-2007, 01:50 PM

Sorry it took me a while to respond about the rope lights, I hadn't checked back in a while, but Rick is right about useing some mounting strips to attach them to the side of your rig. They are available at Home Depot and probably Menards or Lowes also. They come with double sided tape on them, you can add screws or poprivets if you like but that may not be neccessary, then take the plug off the end of the electric plug in cord, drill a hole through your exterior wall just big enough for the cord, caulk it a little, then either put the plug back onto the cord to plug into an interior outlet or if you're really good or lucky at wiring (or both) you can hard wire it into your 110 volt wiring with a switch to control it, depending on how the wiring is in your motorhome and how close it is in the wall to your rope light. It looks great and is very functional. Good luck with your light project!

sunnydays · 12-21-2007, 02:43 AM

Steve and Rick, thanks for sharing that - we really like like how you did that. Less work all around once they are installed and a nice look to boot.

RickO · 12-21-2007, 11:17 AM

I should clarify/correct my earlier post on this. I attached the plastic channels which hold the rope lights to the SLIDE TOPPER housings and NOT the awning housings. There is a half circle indentation on mine which runs the length of the housings and allows for the sheet metal screws without interfering with the operation of the topper.

bsavage · 12-26-2007, 04:28 PM

Sunnydays, if you have an auto awning, and it's working properly, it WILL retract when the winds pick up. Can you imagine the mess that could be created (or hazard) if your lights got caught up in the mechanism? Sounds like a scene from "RV"...

I like easyrider's idea, and I'm curious too as to how the lights were attached. Good question!

Brenda, of...