Are LED Lamps Best for RV Lighting?

This short piece was first published this August in the RVLifeStyle.com ezine.

Did you know that 19% of the world’s energy goes to produce lighting? The World Energy Agency says that if we replace inefficient forms of lighting, including open fires, incandescent bulbs, halogens, and old fluorescents fixtures, with more efficient sources like LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes), we can save almost half of that energy.

Last year I looked at my RV and found that over 60% of the electrical power went to incandescent lighting, at least until I turned on that A/C. Even the fluorescents used more than I expected. That was why we couldn’t boondock on solar in the desert until the tanks were full.

I checked out LED lamps and found they used only 1/7^th of the power required by an incandescent bulb to produce the same number of lumens of light (lumens measure light like gallons measure water). I decided to replace my inefficient lighting with LEDs and halve the power requirements in my RV.

I learned more interesting facts. AON Insurance reports that 52% of all RV fires start in the 12-volt electrical system, often involving hot light-bulbs that melt fixtures and insulation, char wall-paneling, and burn curtains. Eliminating white-hot bulbs with LEDs made my rig safer.

Incandescent lights use 85% of their power to create heat and attract bugs. The A/C must use twice that much to get rid of the extra heat. In hot weather LEDs tripled my savings, and I could read in the evening without flying distractions.

Of course, LEDs look different; they are different. The light spectrum from white LEDs does not include all that red and infra-red that makes them hot, so they have more yellow, green, and blue light that mixes together producing a clear, bright white. Newer technology is yielding more warm and cool varieties so I had a choice.

I found that LED lamps are high-priced if you want quality, cheap if you accept junk. The price is coming down and with quality construction, the lifetime of the LED fixture matches the lifetime of the LED, designed for 100,000 hours – that’s eleven years. Incandescent bulbs have expected lifetimes of 200 to 2,000 hours. It is easy to justify the higher cost with the longer life. And I think of my high-quality LEDs as an investment. When I trade that old RV, I plan to take the LED lamps with me.

Best of all, LED lamps are now being designed to fit the environment of the RV interior. Lamps that send the right amount of light to the right place are available. They run cool and safe inside any coach or trailer. They fit into existing light fixtures as replacements for those hot incandescent and halogen bulbs. They simply plug-in and play.

Are LED Lamps best for RV lighting? Yes – that’s why I discarded those old bulbs that Thomas Edison introduced in the 19^th century and started using 21^st century lighting.

Visit www.prudentrver.com for more comments and LED products for the RV and Boat lifestyle.