Cabin lights get hot...

F

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
I have 8 interior cabin lights in my E30+ which provide a nice light in the evening, but they get quite hot to touch after being on about an hour or so.

They are the "regular" dome lights, brassy look, white light, about 5" diameter or so, found in most chandleries/catalogues. When they get hot, they don't smoke or smell or cause any visible problem. The soft (vinyl?) headliner around them is not discoloured. The previous owner replaced the cabin lights about 5 years ago (he was an IT/techy sort of guy, so I'm assuming he wired them correctly).

My question is, is it normal for these lights to get hot enough that it's uncomfortable to keep my hand on them for more than a quick second, or am I risking fire or other problems? Other than alternating lights during the evening to allow them to cool down a bit, is there anything I can do to avoid this problem?

Thanks for any tips.

Frank.
 
R

Ray Rhode

Member III
Frank,

The first thing I would check is the wattage of the bulbs. Sounds like maybe the "techy" might have over done it. I believethe standard bulb is about 10 watts.

Ray Rhode
s/V Journey
E35-III, #189
 
F

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
Thanks, Ray...

Ray, thanks for your reply. That's a good suggestions, as he has overdone most things on this boat! I'll check the bulbs next time I'm on the boat.
Frank.
 
F

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
Chris, thanks...

Chris, thanks for your reply and suggestion. I might have to replace them with LED, but only want to go that route if I need to. If I check the wattage and find that they are correct for that light fixture, I may decide to live with the heat; if not, I might replace with LED. Mainly, I want to initially get an idea if this is normal, or indicative of a problem.
Thanks,
Frank.
 
wurzner

wurzner

Member III
Not sure what year you boat is, but it could be contact resistance compounded by oxidized wiring. Tinned copper wire does much better than regular copper...I looked behind my panel and realized the day will come where that panel needs to be rewired, both AC and DC. I'm more concerned about the DC due to the amperage involved.

Each lamp draws about 1.5 amps per my inverter amp meter which is very accurate. If you are running 8 lights, figure on close to 15 amps or more due to voltage drop. Factor is ground resistance and yes, things can and will get hot. Switches are a great source of resistance and I'm sure some on you on the list need to toggle the switch to get them to turn on.

LED's is definately the way to go and I will do that one day soon as well. .07 Amps opposed to 1.5 is a huge difference.

shaun
 
D

dc27

have boat, need time
can someone post a link to replacement LED bulbs? i'm unfamiliar with them, but they sound like a much lower draw on the system. do they illuminate as well as standard bulbs?

i have a 1978 E-27, and i assume the fixtures are original.
 
Shadowfax

Shadowfax

Member III
LED Lights

Pardon my stupidity with LED lights.

I know halogen lights burn hotter then incandescent lights. Do LED lights not burn as hot as incandescent? I assume so with them drawing less power. Are they as bright [I mean a watt is a watt right], or is it just that the light is whiter and more directed?

If someone could give me a quick primer on LED lighting, pro and con, it would be appreciated. Where to use them, where not to use them, that kind of stuff

Thanks
 
J

jkm

Member III
Frank

Your bulbs will get hot if left on for a long period of time.

Most of your bulbs are the type used in automotive applications and if you've ever played around with a tail light or dome light in a car you know what I mean.

LEDs, which I have in my boat, use very little electricity but give out "unpleasant" light. I have one "normal" bulb in my V berth for reading.

The best site for LEDS is "http://www.superbrightleds.com/" they actually are a manufacturer. Price all the sites you've been offered as the price range is fantastic on LEDS

Don't melt the ship!!

John
 
F

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
thanks, John...

John, thanks for your reply. As you can tell, I am still learning about the advantages/disadvantages of the various kinds of lights in terms of heat, kind of light, electrical use, etc.

I had guessed that there may be some trade-offs...for example, I do like the slightly amber/yellow glow from my existing lights, and don't want to go to a blue light or cold white light for the cabin interior. On the other hand, I also don't want to burn the boat (thanks for your helpful tip on this! :D ).

What I don't know yet, is whether my existing incandescent lights will get hot enough over a few hours in the evening to cause actual damage--ie. could it start a fire? could the heat make the wires brittle prematurely? Or are they ok to use, as long as I'm not concerned about the electrical use and don't touch them?

I would appreciate any answers you or others might have on this.

Thanks again.

Frank.
 
H

Howard Keiper

Moderator
Remember, incansescent lamps do get hot...they're supposed to...or they wouldn't incandense. Just how how hot is a function of their wattage (brightness). A 12V lamp will be noticeably brighter if you're connected to your battery charger and the applied voltage in upwards of 13-13.5V.
Also, what is hot to you usually has no relevance to anything, given a normal installation of a fixture.
I'll bet you won't like to read by LED light. "White" LEDs produce really spooky light...nearly monochromatic, favoring the short or blue end of the spectrum. Good for a lot of things, I guess, but reading isn't one of them.
In any case, you shouldn't worry about your fixture being too hot. Hot is OK.
As an after thought, you may have a fixture that accommodates two bulbs. If so, you can remove one of them.
howard keiper
 
F

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
Thanks, Howard.

Sounds like I need to check on whether there are two bulbs or one, and to ensure that the previous owner didn't use a higher than normal bulb. Having done that, and wanting to retain the amber hue of incandescent lights (ie. not the blue of LEDs), I may have to monitor to ensure the boat doesn't "melt", as cautioned by a previous reply.

Thanks, all--I think I feel a bit more reassured, and have learned lots about lighting, and what to watch for.

Frank
 
K

Kim Schoedel

Member III
Frank,
The fixtures on Windfall get hot too. Same thing on our previous boat. I have never thought it to be a problem since "lights out" in the evening happens quite early for us after a day on the water. I would double check the bulb wattage just to make sure. Don't know what size I have however the dome, round lights we have do not really produce gobs of light. The little cone shaped reading lights work much better as the light is more focused.
 
E

erobitaille

Member II
Frank,

I worried about the lamps getting hot also but since I was on the boat figured I could keep an eye out for any heat problems. That was until last month we we walked away from the boat one day and unknowingly left two lamps on. Three weeks later we returned to the boat, she's hooked up to shore power, and found them on and not a sign of any problems.

My check off list now has IN BIG BOLD LETTERS TURN THE LIGHTS OFF!!! :0305_alar

Emerald we use our oil lamp a lot. It actualy makes the boat nice and toasty on cold nights.
 
G

gareth harris

Sustaining Member
Frank - The other option is fluorescent lights, which most people find a lot more comfortable light than LEDs, and at a power consumption that is readily workable in a sailboat system.
I read somewhere that a typical 60W house light bulb is about 1% efficient - i.e. 0.6W lights your room and 59.4W heats it. A fluorescent tube producing comparible light may take a quarter of the power.

Since it sounds like your lights have been running that hot for a while, if you are worried about damage to the surrounding boat, just take one off and look for signs of melting or charring. I would think that unlikely, as the bulbs would have to be far above the recommended maximum, but previous owners can do some daft things sometimes.

Gareth
Freyja E35 #241 1972
 
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