LED strip lighting effectiveness?

I've been using a 1 metre rigid strip LED that I've found to be excellent. Reviewed it on the blog site.


Product Review - LED Strip Lights

Cheers Mick

Hi Min

The light quality and colour vary a lot with LEDs and its easy to buy a product that fails early.

You shouldn't buy it in terms of length - its like buying a tankful of petrol with no idea as to how big the tank is.

Only buy on a specification and for light in your camper you need around 600 lumens of light.

The light colour used is white or some people prefer "warm white" which is a little yellower.

Good quality LEDs will give your 600 lumens using about 10 watts of power.

As a practical matter its better to have a couple of light sources so that you may optimize light or have a lower level to save power.

E.G. 1 to help in food preparation and another positioned for maybe reading.

LEDs life specification should be in excess of 30,000 hours.

Its easy for cheap suppliers to pump more current through LEDs so they
glow brighter and die as they turn the plastic encapsulation yellow .

Don't buy from anywhere that can't give you above details.

We bought a 1m (90 LED?) strip from I thought the Explore Oz shop. Works well inside our Kimberly Kamper. Fix to either roof bow or cantilever frame side with Velcro
Provides more than adequate lighting for general use, though we supplument with in built OE bed reading lights for night reading.

Hi guys

we have a softfloor 9' camper. We use a 1m strip which is attached to velcro. We attach it permanently to the peak of the roof inside the camper and its not affected by folding the camper up. We find 1m of the stuff works really well inside and i agree about the above comment re lighting colour. We find the yellower light more natural and we we use this inside but we also use 1m of white led strip for outside, its better to read under and cook under.
see our photos here
our camper

i buy the leds in 5m rolls for $30 delivered off ebay. You can cut it every 3 leds so its very verstile, uses bugger all power and very cheap.

i replaced all 12 volt globes with LED "globes" (18 led's i think) and provides more than enuf light from each unit with current drain of only 0.23A. Gives equivalent or
that close to incandescant it replaced that aint worth worrying........Out in annexe I have a portable rigid 18LED strip light that provides high quality reading light to all areas of annexe

Hi Min,
We have a hard floor Aussie Swag, it is now about 2 years old, and it came with LED strip lighting permanently attached to the middle bow inside the tent. It provides really great light, and folding the camper up with it attached is not a problem. I think Aussie Swag get their led strip lights from kulkyne campers - you could give Aussie Swag a ring to check. I have always found them very helpful with all after sales stuff.
Leanne

I got two cheep LSDs on Ebay.
I got what I payed for had to strike a match to see if they were on.
These were only 18" long. After reading these posts I will try another larger LED as they are easy to fix to the camper trailer inside and out

Cheers
Wayne B

I bought these for my CT and zip tie them to any tent pole inside or out then you can point them to where you need more light
.


http://cgi.ebay.com.au/4-X-52-CM-WHITE-LED-LIGHT-BARS-12V-BOAT-CARAVAN-CAMPING_W0QQitemZ150622529610QQihZ005QQcategoryZ102814QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Doesn't look like I need to preach any more... but I love em! Best thing is no shadows over the kitchen area unlike our "burn ya retinas out" fluro. Also, nowhere near the number of bugs.