LED bulb upgrade for interior

[efstewart]

I would like to replace all of those interior ceiling small pin type bulbs with some LEDs. I think I counted about 30 or so. Anyone do that to their Country Coach yet? Was it costly?

[fleetwood ex]

Ordered mine from Amazon research the colour / temp. Charts of what you would like cool white bright white ECT not expensive at all , did make quite the difference in illuminating the coach.

[SteveJ.]

Originally Posted by efstewart

I would like to replace all of those interior ceiling small pin type bulbs with some LEDs. I think I counted about 30 or so. Anyone do that to their Country Coach yet? Was it costly?

When deciding on the bulbs, do note the working voltages. If they are rated for only 12 volts they will loose elements due to 13 -14+ volts in your system when plugged in.

Get the ones with a voltage range, i.e. 8-20 volts. The exact numbers don't matter except to make sure that the voltage range includes the varying voltages of your "12 volt" system. I learned this the hard way.

The preferred bulbs will cost a bit more. We mixed up warm colors with "daylight" colors, depending on where the light is.

LED bulbs really help out on my small boondocking set up. Roadtrek van, single group 29 battery, 150 watts of solar.

[BrianGlenn]

Search G4 pin base LED on amazon. Replaced all mine a couple of years ago. I bought extra to replace a few that burned out quickly.

[Metalbendr]

You might want to contact Steve at M-4 Products. He has been very helpful and they have high quality LED's.

[Smitty77]

Originally Posted by Metalbendr

You might want to contact Steve at M-4 Products. He has been very helpful and they have high quality LED's.

X's 2 on working with M-4. Not the lowest cost. But, the comfort of good upfront purchase advice, as well as feeling confident it a problem occurs they'll work with you - makes that higher cost a value.

If in doubt. Purchase one bulb each of different values and warmth - and do some trial runs in the locations you want them. We ended up with a blend of bulbs for our puck lights. We went with a focus on 'reading' in the bedroom bucks. And less harshness in the front living area.

One other tip I was given, and partially followed. Was to consider areas you may want to 'dim' some too, and add a dimmer switch with a bulb that could handle the dimming, for a few key areas. (For example. In our front living area, we have a few wall sconces. We added dimming switches along with 'warmer white' bulbs to the sconces, which works well for evening TV watching.

E-Bay is another way to go. At least then if you get a bulb that is not long in life. Or does not really match what you thought it would be coolness or brightness wise - you can toss it... Me? I'll pay it bit more fore better quality of product, and most of all - service.

Good luck, and have fun,
Smitty

[birdhunter]

I have tried relatively inexpensive g4 LED bulbs off of Amazon and eBay. I've been through literally 90 or more. Every single one of them has burned out or partially burned out within a year or less, even though the alleged rated voltages were up to as high as 15 volts. You need to get bulbs that have actual voltage regulators in them (don't go by stated voltage range) such as the M4 products since our chargers with temp compensation can easily send the voltage as high as 15 or more. The voltage-regulated LEDs are much more expensive but they will not burn out.

[Willee]

Sources for quality LED's for motorhomes

M4LED.COM
CABINBRIGHT.COM
BRIGHTIDEARVLEDLIGHTS.COM
SUPERBRIGHTLEDS.COM

All of these folks sell quality LED's. Through 3 coaches I have replaced all the bulbs and all of these folks sell LED's that work, and last. They will replace a bulb that's defective or starts to flicker.

Couple of things too remember with LED's:

If they are cheap to buy, they won't last, period! They are cheap because they are crap.

If you have a circuit that is dimable, you have to put LED's that are designed for that application.

Make sure their voltage spread matches your circuit.

More lumens the brighter the light. 240 lumen bulb will generate more light than one rated 180. You will notice that difference.

Color can make a big difference in application lighting:
warm white 3000 -3400; mid range 4000-4400; bright white 5000-5400

On G4 bulbs there can be a variance between manufacturers on the pin length and diameter.

Be sure to check a bulb's measurements to insure that it will fit in the fixture. Also, take into account the overall size in relation to actually installing the bulb in the fixture. (On my Affinity I have these very little exterior fixtures that contained a bulb that just didn't put out any light. I replaced with a LED from Cabin Bright that puts out over 800 lumens, and is very small, and just fit. Wow, the light output difference was absolutely huge.)

If you have the older style fluorescent bulb type fixtures, you can get LED replacement kits that very easy to instal. They replace the bulb and ballast , and don't require you to replace the fixture.

[rampage42]

I replaced all the fixtures, 57 of them with a frosted lens LED.
$6 or so on EBay. Way better output and better looking.

[Mr_D]

I have about 60 or the lights in my CC. Bought a bunch of then from eBay and Amazon. Found that they were giving off enough RF to knock my AquaHot thermostat off line. Bought a bunch of the M4 side pin ones in warm white and they work great and my control is doing just fine now. Expensive at about $9 each but worth the extra!

[efstewart]

Well, I learned a lot from your good and bad experiences with the Bulbs. I made contact with the folks at m4, and am thinking about replacing all of them. But first I have to decide on the color and lumens that we want.

Thanks for the advice and warnings. This forum has always come through for me.

What happens if I mix some of the new LEDS with the old halogens on the same circuit?

[jwlce]

Do you have a dimmer on any of the bulbs you wish to convert? If Intellitec multiplex system they use pulse width modulation to dim the bulbs and a standard led should work (it did in mine). As per the manufacturer recomendation. If a dimmer works by reducing voltage, you need leds rated to dim otherwise you will get flickering. One thing I did notice was that the leds did not dim as much as the halogen bulbs.

[oldnavycdr]

I made the mistake of relamping my coach with "cheap" LED's off of Amazon. None could handle the voltage swings and began strobing and burning out immediately. Seller warranty was worthless. Having learned the lesson I bought some from Kevin Mallory of Cruising America RV repair at the Tampa show. In quanty of 8 or more they are $7 each with lifetime guarantee. They work great, look great and have transformed my coach. Here is what can happen to the cheapies:

[efstewart]

Getting ready to order all of my LED lights for the interior from the m-4 company. It will be a sizable expense.

How long can I expect theses elite LED lights to last in my motorhome? Also, the automotive style push in bulbs that I have in my closet shower and outside curb lights, come in LED. How much of a draw on current do these bulbs pull as compared to the halogen that I am replacing?