invstr55
Texas
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Joined: 05/17/2012
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this is my question... is it worth changing the bulbs in my toy hauler?
2012 Dutchman Voltage 3905
2011 Ultra Classic
2012 Ram 3500 Dually
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ScottG
Bothell Wa.
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Joined: 02/25/2005
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If your dry camping and have battery life issues, sure it's worth it.
Scott, Grace and Wesly
2003 Dodge 3500 4x4, 6 speed Cummins (lightly bombed),
2004 Forest River 25RKS many, many mods.
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dupreet
High Point, NC
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Joined: 08/03/2007
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I changed all mine out to the cheap LED bulbs on eBay from China - $3-5 each. They seem to be good quality and I haven't had any failures. One reason I switched is because we do a fair amount of camping where they don't have electricity at the site. The LED's don't make much of a dent in my batteries!
Todd
Todd
1993 Ford E-350 pushed by a 1988 Wilderness 24' TT
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chesterb
Ohio
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Joined: 11/14/2010
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Besides battery life, another reason to change is the heat generated from the incandescent bulbs. They run a lot hotter than the led's and that can make a difference on a hot summer night. As previously stated, they are only a few bucks each and you don't need to change them all at once just the lights you most commonly use. Buy a couple now and see how you like them. Worst case scenario, you're out $10.
2011 Dodge 2500 Hemi, Crewcab, 4x4, 4.10
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Y-Guy
Tri-Cities, WA
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It really comes down to how you camp. We do a lot of 2-3 night trips, and a couple week long trips. I'm able to manage my batteries fine with running the genset a bit each day. When we dry camp for a week I pull one bulb out of all the double light fixtures. Gets the job done and never had any problems.
The biggest challenge is keeping the kids from charging their phones in the 12v outlet!
Our RV: '07 Winnebago Sightseer 35J
Our Toys: Four Winns Horizon 190, Polaris Sportsman 500's & Honda Recon's
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trickyvic3
Raymond NH.
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Lots of people seem to be doing it. I would say if you do any dry camping it would be well worth it for the power savings alone.
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jackxclan
bakersfield
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Joined: 10/20/2006
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I'm not sure the really good one's, the one's with good light are still pretty expensive. I've tried the cheapo's and they didnt last very long and the light was terrible.
For now I replaced all the bulbs with 1003's they use less power and create less heat.
Gun metal gray 07 new body style 3500 diesel crew cab 4x4 dually
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Sandia Man
Rio Rancho, NM
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Joined: 08/09/2008
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We did and used an Ebay seller recommended by forum member Kendallp. We didn't have any battery issues while boondocking since we could just run the genny a bit and let the Iota IQ4 quickly replenish us back to 80-90% state of charge. The LEDs run so much cooler and use a fraction of the power required by the incandescents they replaced. Have replaced 20+ incandescents throughout the interior and exterior of the rig and not a single failure going on our second camping season. Many worry about converters that have high bulk charging voltages possibly causing premature failure, but when our Iota is supplying 14.82VDC to our battery bank and rig, not a single LED of the 36 mounted on each panel has failed. Quality varies among Ebay sellers and I waited until I read the LED post submitted by Kendallp where he cited his LED Ebay sources. It's sure nice to be able to light up your rig's interior (like Las Vegas) when off the grid with hardly a dent into your DC reserves. We have about $80 invested and are very happy thus far with their performance.
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pianotuna
Regina, SK, Canada
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Joined: 12/18/2004
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Hi,
If you boondock yes, if you don't there is no reason to move over.
Regards, Don
Kustom Koach Class C 28'5" 256 watts Unisolar, 875 amp hours in two battery banks 12 volt batteries, 2500 MSW watt inverter.
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Dennis M M
Geneva, IL; Tucson, AZ
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Joined: 11/06/2004
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Don't know about interior, but they are worth the effort for brake and tail lights. The LED brake lights come on noticeably faster than the incandescent ones. We have four taillights on the fiver, the signal flasher would not work with all four on LEDs, but with two LED and two incandescent bulbs the signals worked fine. You can see the distinct difference between them when you apply the brakes.
What was originally a temporary fix I left because there is a distinctive effect when the upper pair of lamps come on a second or two before lower pair. I figure it is more attention getting.
Plus I read somewhere that the faster response of the LEDs in brake lights gives the vehicle behind you an additional 20 to 30 feet in stopping distance at 60 MPH!
'99 Volvo VNL610 - 425 HP Volvo; Super 10 Spd
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