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Jammer · 03-06-2012, 01:06 PM

There are many threads on LED lighting upgrades but the information they contain is incomplete and has in many cases become stale. LED lighting prices have come down, quality has gone up, and vendors have come and gone.

I therefore suggest this thread as a place to provide recent, relevant information. Describe your 2011 or later LED upgrade here!

I suggest you include:
* The name of the vendor you used (very important)
* Which models of lamps from that vendor you used including color rendition (warm white, etc)
* What year and model of Airstream you upgraded
* Which lamps you upgraded (e.g. ceiling, closet, tail/turn, porch, etc.)
* Any installation problems you had and suggestions for best practices
* Your subjective assessment of brightness (same as before, less but sufficient, OK but not suitable for reading, etc)
* Any failures, whether covered under warranty or not, including partial failures of some LEDs or loss of brightness over time

Bluto · 03-06-2012, 01:46 PM

Good idea Jammer!

tinman1 · 03-06-2012, 02:21 PM

Replaced some of the 12" flourescent tubes (ceiling lights) with strip LEDs No. T250mm WW. (2 LED strips for each fixture)
Also replaced hood range light with a LED pad No. PDS 70mm x 32mm WW, all were warm white. (1 LED pad)

Lights were purchased from LED4RV.com.

Installation on all very simple. The hood range light is matter of unplug existing light, plug in new LED pad, which adheres with tape and lays on lens, for a very good lighted surface.

Wish I had done this modification earlier - well pleased.

Condoluminum · 03-06-2012, 02:23 PM

So I'll help get it rolling.. Our '88 Excella 25 has the grouped square lights at tail with 2 stop/turns and white backup in between on each side...

We bought LED bulbs from Superbrightleds about a year ago, for tail lights and upper marker lights (amber and red "running lights")

Tail lights needed to be visible from side, since the socket is in top of receptacle, and running lights were snap-in flat mounts... We replaced outer tail bulbs and half of running lights only as test, and could easily see difference.

Red Tail bulbs were BA15 18 models, P/N 1157-R18-T at $18 each
Red and amber running lights were WLEDx5 models, either WLED-R5 or WLED-A5 at ~ $3 each.. New bulbs are brighter than old bulbs in both cases...

Installation simple- remove and replace after removing lens covers... Probably wait for prices to come down before replacing remainder, but may replace interior lighting with warm white versions for some of the fixtures..

TouringDan · 03-06-2012, 08:31 PM

Great idea for a thread Jammer- thanks for doing this.

I have a 1966 Tradewind with 5 original interior light fixtures that had 4- #1157 bulbs in each fixture. I replaced all 4 bulbs with 2- 36 SMD warm white pads. I bought the SMD pads directly from China and they were cheap- $4.26 each with free shipping. Here is the link to order them:

36-LED SMD Warm White Interior Room Dome Door Car Light | eBay

I went this route because I was not sure how well they were going to work, not sure if they would be bright enough and not sure if I would like the color. They worked fine. See posts 37, 38 and 40 in the following link:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f447...d-79632-3.html

I replaced all the interior ceiling light fixtures and the outside spot light. It worked best for me just to cut out the old light bulb socket and wire the smd pads directly to the wiring. I still need to replace the lights in the reading lamps. Any suggestions?

Warm White- color is fine. I think they are equivalent to about two 1157 bulbs- maybe even slightly brighter.

No problems, no failures yet. I would not do anything differently next time.

Dan

barts · 03-06-2012, 08:53 PM

I replaced two elevator bulbs in our 1971 Trade Wind with Halco LED bulbs.

Halco 1383/3WW/LED LED LED R12 2.6W FL 2700K BA15S PROLED Lamp Bulb [Halco_1383/3WW/LED] - $25.21 : Divine Lighting, Discount Lamps, and Lighting Supplies, LED, and Professional Lighting

Nice and bright, warm bulb - about the color of halogen lights - and a simple install - fits directly into old fixtures.

- Bart

Jammer · 03-11-2012, 08:20 AM

I've started some LED upgrades for my 2010 30' Classic.

I am very happy with the fluorescent ceiling fixtures and have no plans to change them out. However, there is a fair amount of incandescent lighting in incidental areas.

The shower and exterior compartments all use 1141 bulbs. I'm replacing these with G4-xWHP30-RAC flat G4 panels from superbrightleds.com, in warm white, using their adapter base. Since the fixtures have the bayonet oriented in random directions it's necessary to turn it with pliers before installing the adapter.

The overall light level is comparable to the 1141. Despite being "warm" LEDs, the overall color has a blue cast.

The 1141 draws 1.5 amps per specification, while the LED array draws 0.115 amps, per the retailer. Pricing is around $20 for the socket adapter and the LED panel.

A problem with the exterior compartment lamps is that the switch can be bumped on as items shift about in the compartment during travel causing a good deal of battery drain before corrected.

It's too early to comment on longevity but this otherwise seems to be a good modification, if expensive.

Jammer · 03-11-2012, 08:25 AM

We use the light in the range hood quite often making the wedge bulb a candidate for replacement. I tried replacing it with WLED-xHP6-DAC LEDs, again from superbrightleds.com, and it isn't nearly bright enough. I'm going to have to try something else.

Jammer · 03-11-2012, 08:36 AM

There's an oddball fixture in the closet. It uses a #581 loop-end festoon bulb. There isn't a manual switch -- it turns on whenever the closet door is open. I'm not so much concerned about the amp draw as fire safety with these, because the festoon bulb runs fairly hot. While the fixture has a safety grid to prevent contact with clothing, I'm paranoid at times.

Superbrightleds has RL4410-WWHP9 as a direct replacement for $6. It's not nearly as bright, but the stock bulb is brighter than necessary, in my opinion, so that works out OK. I had installation problems, though. The loop ends aren't quite the same shape as they are on the incandescent bulb, and I had to bend them and pull them out of the housing quite a bit to get them to fit the contacts in the fixture.

nwmsmith · 03-15-2012, 10:05 AM

Does anyone know what the brightness/color ratings are for the halogens used in late models? And which LEDs are the closest in brightness and color quality?