LED strip lights in engine room

Peterlewis321

Peterlewis321

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Morning All,
Has anyone fitted 12v ribbon/strip lights on their boat? Am considering doing it in the engine room to give better visibility for maintenance. Am no electrician but as far as I can tell, given my boat is 12v powered, I could simply wire the new ribbon/strip directly to an existing engine room light fitting for power and on/off control (i.e I would not need a separate transformer or power unit)

LED Strip Waterproof IP54 – 4.8W/m Natural White

Any experience/guidance appreciated!
 
I fitted them in a sail boat's engine bay and based on that experience I'd agree with simonfraser: The adhesive backing on the led tape-lights doesn't hold when it gets warm (I refixed using araldite) and wire them though a separate switch, preferably one that's visible and includes an activation light - I left ours switched on when it was laid up one winter, the batteries were not impressed.
 
I put up a cheap strip of led lights in my engine room about 7 years ago, used cable clips, still working well now and much brighter than the old individual 12v lights that were there before. There are many more stylish options available now but ultimately they all do the same job.
 
I have two LED Batten Lights with two long cables, so I can carry them anywhere and at any angle in the engine room or even outside the engine room. I found this much helpful than fixing it in one place.
 
I bought “ultrabright” LED striplight on a roll and have used it in the engine room and also replaced the existing strip in a light in the heads. So much brighter.
I used double sided sailmakers tape because as noted above the adhesive isnt that great on them.
 
longjohnsilver said:
I put up a cheap strip of led lights in my engine room about 7 years ago, used cable clips, still working well now and much brighter than the old individual 12v lights that were there before. There are many more stylish options available now but ultimately they all do the same job.
Click to expand...

+100%.

Gets light into all those little nooks and crannies for very little effort and cost. Spend a few extra pence and get the light strips with a waterproof plastic coating, the really cheap unprotected stuff will corrode and fail within a season or two.
Go to Ebay. Buy the brightest available . Usually available in 5m reels.
Also ideal for gloomy lazerettes and lockers.
CT1 (or similar) will make sure it stays attached for ever.
 
oldgit said:
+100%.

Gets light into all those little nooks and crannies for very little effort and cost. Spend a few extra pence and get the light strips with a waterproof plastic coating, the really cheap unprotected stuff will corrode and fail within a season or two.
Go to Ebay. Buy the brightest available . Usually available in 5m reels.
Also ideal for gloomy lazerettes and lockers.
CT1 (or similar) will make sure it stays attached for ever.
Click to expand...
I would agree with the above and also add that the brightest strip has the LEDs very close together and is rated at 20W per metre, so not much is needed to get a lot of lumens. From experience the output does drop over time due to clouding of the encapsulation resin from heat but for locker and engine space illumination that is not an issue.
 
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