StuartO Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 I am planning to add indirect overhead lighting to our MH by using LED strip stuck inside the upper lockers, so that light shines outwards through the ¼" gap along ceiling line. This would also serve to illuminate the inside of the lockers nicely but the primary aim is to have background lighting of the ceiling. So I need to choose the best sort of led strip light, of which there is a selection available, of varing charactaristics, one of which is the "viewing angle" which ranges from 120° to 160°. I'm assuming the wider angle stuff will suit this application better. There is also a choice of waterproof/non-waterproof, which seems to be either coated in plastic or not. I am anticipaing fitting several cut lengths of strip and using soldered cables to connect them together as necessary. Does anyone have any experience of fitting this type of lighting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 Hi Stuart, Our Auto-Trail had fluorescent lights above the lockers all round and we hated the light output from them so much that we never used them. I then saw Aten Lighting at one of the shows and bought a length of their flexible strip LED's and replaced one of the fluorescents and the difference was fantastic! So I went ahead and replaced every fluorescent with LED's (over 4 metres in total) and we now regularly use these lights instead of the mains lights. These are the strips I bought (but can't remember if Cool or Warm White)... Link to Aten. If you buy at a show you'll also get a good discount! Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Joe90 Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 Two things based on experience, run them on a 12volt stabilized supply, DC voltage on your van can be well in excess of this, and you will get failures. The waterproof strips that I originally used were a nightmare to cut then remove the tough silicone like material in order to make soldered connections, they were never very satisfactory and I removed them and used non waterproof type, also the supposedly 3M adhesive eventually failed so be prepared for that although mine may have been a one off .We originally had cool white, the replaced strips were warm white, altogether a nicer light Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted October 1, 2014 Author Share Posted October 1, 2014 I have been looking at EBay and comparing specifications. There seem to be a number of formal specification types (eg 5050) and two-connector and four-connecter variants, the latter seemingly the multi-colour, configurable types. There are also end-to-end connectors for both, which obviate the need for soldered connections. The good news is that (at least on EBay) they are cheap, so I have ordered two 5 metre lengths of cool white plus 10 connectors, to give it a go. Total cost under £15 delivered so if necessary I start again if this lot turns out to be unsuitable. If there is one thing I've learned about using self-adhesive products, it's to clean the surface thoroughly (using brake cleaning fluid for example) before fixing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Joe90 Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 Yes you've guessed right about the four connector ones, they are rgbw, and a right royal pain to solder, but I've used some for mood lighting,...................... for when the missus is in one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliffy Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 I had the same experince as Keithl on our auto trail. I replaced the fluorescent lights. I used cheapo chinese strips, chopped them in appropriate lengths, soldered the end wires staight on to the switched feed, striped off the backing paper and stuck them on. Three years later they are still going strong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
globebuster Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 You might find the cool white a bit harsh. Like Cliffy I've used cheapo Chinese underneath all my overhead lockers, and they're doing fine - in fact all the other lighting is now pretty much redundant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted October 1, 2014 Share Posted October 1, 2014 Maplins do loads of them and can be a font of knowledge re which type is best suited to usage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted October 2, 2014 Author Share Posted October 2, 2014 I already have a mixture of cool white and warm white in the MH and that works well - warm white for the side lighting and cool white, which is much brighter, for the ceiling lights. It is harsher, but for main lighting I find that OK. Because the indirect lighting I'm now going for will be indirect, I reckon cool white will be best, but we'll see. I think the end-to-end connectors which are available now will make a big difference to doing the job - just insert and push together with your fingers. Couldn't be easier as long as they work properly. I have been considering how and where to run the cables and put the switch(es). I could control them all from one switch but I might separate front and rear. Good tip about going to Maplins, I'll go there. I have already learned that 5050 (the designation of the commonest type) simply refers to the physical size of the SMD (surface mounted diode) which in this case is 5mm by 5mm. There are other sizes. The strips come with or without a silicone gel covering, which makes them weatherproof but reduced light output slightly. The multi-coloured strips, which have four cable connections, are 10mm wide and the single colour ones are 8mm wide. All types seem to be cuttable at places marked every three leds along the strip and with the use of end-to-end connectors you can obviously cut to fit fairly easily. Not sure yet whether there is any difference in quality and whether that it categorised in any tangible way. The sources of leds include more expensive places which provide better service etc but maybe they are all selling the same or similar Chinese-made strips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted October 2, 2014 Author Share Posted October 2, 2014 Our local Maplins had limited stock (of strip with transformers, designed for domestic application) and staff without technical knowledge of LEDs etc, so no real benefit. Nor did they have any of the end-to-end connectprs which I think will be so useful: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolly1965 Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 I used the cheap ebay strips, which are the same as sold in maplin. I find them excellent for adding indirect lighting which has transformed our Bessacarr. I used warm white Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capcloser Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 We replaced all our roof lights and under locker lights with a mixture of soft and bright from aten lighting,and put up some mains powered color changing LEDs from maplins,one from aten failed but they replaced it no problem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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