Cheap LED strips

[will]

I bought 2 of these LED strips from ebay a few weeks ago and was amazed how much light they throw. I liked them so much i jumped straight back on ebay and ordered another 6. some for the Nav & Some for the boat. they are fully sealed so i can submerge them when fishing at night.

here's the link if your interested.

Flexible Car Strip Bulb Light White Waterproof 24 LED N - eBay LED Lights, Lights, Indicators, Car Parts, Accessories, Cars, Bikes, Boats. (end time 10-Sep-10 18:16:44 AEST)

and here are a few dodgy photos i took on my phone just now.

when the gate is down they give excellent light i can use the back now as a workbench whilst camping, fishing or whenever. and it cost $4.58 for two strips, some speaker wire, double sided tape, an old switch i had lying around and about an hour. not bad for $5.

 

[Gonzo]

Thats Awsome Iv'e been thinking of getting these for a while..........

By the way Nice Nav Mate !!

 

[cabhsv]

Jumped on and bought 10 nice find

 

[Old.Tony]

I wonder if you could do me a little favour...

Could you grab a multimeter and tell me what their current draw is?

If it's low enough, I could use some in the caravan, in several places. Inside cupboards, under benchtops, inside my front boot.

Thanks heaps!

 

[will]

I wonder if you could do me a little favour...

Could you grab a multimeter and tell me what their current draw is?

Thanks heaps!

I'll go check, be right back.

 

[will]

I think thats 140 milliamps for one strip.

 

[Old.Tony]

Awesome, Will, thanks loads for that. That makes 'em 1.68W for all that light. Very impressed.

I'm thinking I'll get myself a few of these. Great find!

 

[Gonzo]

Good on ya Will Just orderd me ten ....!!

 

[raywise]

and again

I always thought the 3 Labcraft 30 LED Rigid strips I bought for $115.00 EACH was a bit steep. From a good 12V place too. Should have looked harder,

Oh well, live and learn,

 

[merchant]

Just bought 10 myself. What a great find.

Now, where to put them? I'm thinking; 1 x under bonnet, 2 x tailgate, 2 x van storage tunnel. That leaves 5 to stick somewhere else (no smart arse comments needed).

Where is everyone putting there's???

 

[merchant]

Awesome, Will, thanks loads for that. That makes 'em 1.68W for all that light. Very impressed.

I'm thinking I'll get myself a few of these. Great find!

Oldie, what size wire should i use for these???

 

[hutchstr]

cheers Will

great find, they will be very helpful

 

[Jason]

They look great.

 

[Old.Tony]

Oldie, what size wire should i use for these???

At such a low current it really doesn't matter over distances up to 3-4 metres, but if you're heading all the way from the engine bay to the rear of the tub I'd go 20A cable to avoid voltage drop. You could run that to somewhere unobtrusive and then run small leads out to the lights themselves, so that the wires can be hidden away more easily.

Personally speaking, I'm going to run 60A cable (with a 30A thermal fuse) but that's so I can use that power to run the battery system in my tub as well. I'll probably run the tub lights from the auxiliary batteries anyway - that way, if I'm having an extended bait-and-hook disposal session (some call it "fishing") I won't be affecting the main battery at all.

 

[merchant]

At such a low current it really doesn't matter over distances up to 3-4 metres, but if you're heading all the way from the engine bay to the rear of the tub I'd go 20A cable to avoid voltage drop. You could run that to somewhere unobtrusive and then run small leads out to the lights themselves, so that the wires can be hidden away more easily.

Personally speaking, I'm going to run 60A cable (with a 30A thermal fuse) but that's so I can use that power to run the battery system in my tub as well. I'll probably run the tub lights from the auxiliary batteries anyway - that way, if I'm having an extended bait-and-hook disposal session (some call it "fishing") I won't be affecting the main battery at all.

Cheers for that.

 

[gshannon]

Just ordered 5 to install in my canopy since I have missed the light that used to be in there until I smashed it!

 

[KraftyPg]

Just ordered 5 to install in my canopy since I have missed the light that used to be in there until I smashed it!

It's going to be like sitting at the MCG in your canopy. I've got two 31mm done light replacement LED bulbs with 4 tiny LED's in each bulb mounted at the top front of my canopy and turning them on at night is more than enough to see everything in the canopy. Putting 120 LED's in the same space seems like a bit of an overkill to me.

 

[will]

It's going to be like sitting at the MCG in your canopy. I've got two 31mm done light replacement LED bulbs with 4 tiny LED's in each bulb mounted at the top front of my canopy and turning them on at night is more than enough to see everything in the canopy. Putting 120 LED's in the same space seems like a bit of an overkill to me.

I agree with this. i put 2 in, but seriously if it's just for light in the canopy 1 would be enough. But considering they are so cheap, why not.

 

[ljacko78]

Was just thinking of buying some work light for the rear tub. How much light do you get at night from them? Beam spread and distance would be great to know as a rough guide. Would it reach a camp table 10m away at night? Cheers all.....

 

[Old.Tony]

I might even replace some of the fluoro lights in the caravan if they're good enough, particularly the one over the sink/stove. I could put two in, one over each, and instead of the 0.8A used now, I'd be using 0.28A.

For those that spend time away from mains power, savings like that are fantastic. I'm also thinking of making loops out of two of them and putting them inside the shower - my fluoro light in there is on the blink. I know it's bloody scary being able to see in there, especially when one glances up and sees what's in the mirror, but I'd rather have light so that I can operate my hair dryer safely.