Anchor light

[Craig]

I am looking at ways to reduce power consumption on my 16.  I have used a battery powered lantern for an anchor light, but I'm wondering about the Davis Mega Light.  It claims to use only 1 amp hour over a 12 hour period.  Anyone have the masthead version?  The utility verions?  How do you like it?

Craig

[CaptK]

Craig -

I have one. It purports to have a "5,000 hour" lightbulb, IIRC. Well, I got a lot less than that, on both bulb #1 and bulb #2.

What I've done since is to modify it with an off-the-shelf waterproof LED cluster for $17 from Boaters World (West sells them, too). It's a 5 minute job, and cuts the current draw even more, while being, at least to my eye, brighter. And the bulb won't burn out for *100,00* hours.

The Davis light is good - I recommend it. I'll post details of how to do the LED mod later.

Mine is the 12V cabled version, not masthead.

[Craig]

Kurt,

Does the LED need the fresnel lens of the Davis light to be bright, or do you think the modification would work with any masthead light?

Craig

[CaptK]

The Fresnel lens of the Davis light does a lot to spread the beam. It is quite focused or directional on it's own, consisting of 4 20-degree-cone LED's, as far as I can tell. I don't think it would work as well without the prisms to spread the light.

http://tinyurl.com/3sfes  <- Link (they are cheaper now - only $12 US). See it below:



Boy, wait 'til Jobst sees this discussion - he knows *a lot* about LED's.

One thing about the Davis light - it is *not* a USCG-approved anchor light (ie; it's not been given their stamp of approval). So, technically, and in a court of law, if you wound up there because someone ran into your boat at night, there would be some discussion about your anchor light.

That said - it may well be as bright as the USCG specs call for - I just have not run any technical tests on it to know for sure. The LED's are brighter than the low-amp-draw Davis bulb, though. And they won't burn out while you are asleep (as happened with my 2nd bulb).

It's a gamble, maybe, but one I think is worth it, taking into account the energy savings, and the safety of a bulb that *won't* burn out.

[backtalker]

I have a Davis Mega-Light, masthead model, as my anchor light.  When looking at my options, I couldn't get a straight answer from  the vendor, so I called Davis Industries directly.  I was told that the light IS visible at 2+ miles ONLY IF you change to the higher-amperage bulb supplied with the light kit -- the "bright" bulb, ML1893 -- but that Davis had decided not to go through the process of obtaining USCG certification on it.  You have to figure that they're primarily marketing the use-it-anywhere versatility of their M-L Utility Light and their M-L Ultimate Cockpit Light (and I can see where either of those products could be useful to almost anyone) so that's where their bread-and-butter comes from.  It's a wonderful anchor light IMHO, seemingly made with small yachts in mind, but I do wish they'd give us all a little follow-through and get it certified.  Nice & adequate is good, but certified & legal would be even better.  I'm definitely interested in hearing about the LED conversion!  Let me know!

[Craig]

That's good to know. Davis markets their masthead light with the lower amp-hour bulb which is not visible for two miles, and are not offering the brighter bulb as part of the package. Could be why they are not seeking coast guard certification.  Also, is the brighter bulb more prone to burn out and changing a masthead light on anything bigger than a 19 a pain, hence the dimmer bulb?  I still may buy one, but will go with the utility light so if I need to anchor where a light is essential I will at least have the option of the brighter bulb.

Commerical LED masthead/anchor lights are still too big for a 16 and too expensive for me.  Jobst, got a solution for me?

Craig

[CaptK]

Michael Quigley referred me to this site. They have both complete LED lights, and "standard light fitting inserts" made with LED's.

http://www.orcagreen.com

[Jobst]

1) As far as I know, there is only one LED anchor light that is currently USCG approved under the new rules.  Unfortunately, it is a combo masthead tri (very expensive) and next to useless on a trailer sailor since it is illegal when under auxilliary power.  Orcagreen is the builder

2) The holy grail of a cheap LED anchor light that meets the USCG standards is still a ways off - but the automotive world is making strides in the right direction to use LEDs in mass market applications - so this is still possible.

3) USCG approved LED navigation lights (port, starboard, and stern) are available - and the price is dropping - but they are still very expensive.  

4) I've built a fair share of LED devices - even sold a few - but they are all designed for interior cabin lighting.  If I were to use the same devices in a waterproof enclosure with a good fresnel lens setup, I believe I could make a device to pass the USCG standards - BUT

it would be way too expensive

it would not be as energy efficient as folks would like


To make a long story longer - wait a few more years till the Detroit folks push the price/performance curve a bit more on white  LEDs - what we all want is possible - will be available - will be legal - and will be relatively affordable.

Just my opinion

[Jobst]

Try this link to see a sample of what Autozone sells in their stores

http://www.jamstrait.com/products.html

Several folks are selling these automotive bulb replacements in the typical colors (red, amber, green, blue, and white)

Usual disclaimers apply - I have no financial interest... Your mileage may vary ... etc.

[Craig]

I have a Hella all around light I mounted on the top of the mast.  It has a bayonet single contact bulb (5008).  What if I replaced it with something like this:
http://mastercatalog04.westmarine.com/0678.asp

Are these bulbs too directional for the diffusing pattern of my light?  Amp draw is less than Davis ML.  Reading reviews the bulbs in the ML have a tendancy to not last long.  Though the LED bulb is expensive, not to have more stuff to carry in my 16 is a plus, and if they last anywhere near the 100,000 to 200,000 hours of use I will never buy another one.

Craig

[tsaiapex]

When I bought the CP19, it came with a portable anchor light that uses 6 volt battery and with photocell.  One battery has lasted couple trips with combined 5-6 nights.

It does not require wiring, just hang the anchor light at the forestay the go to sleep.  At dawn, the photocell turns off automatically.

It is very well made with rugged waterproof gasket.

[Craig]

I bought an led bulb on eBay.  If you want to see it, it is reference #7918267730.  

What caught my eye was the multi-directional nature of this bulb.  I suspect my power usage will be somewhere in the 200 milliamp range, which is higher than the Davis ML with the dim bulb, but a whole lot less than my current .83 amp bulb.  When I get it and try it out I'll report how it does.

Craig

[Gil Weiss]

Hi There Captain Craig,

Why not consider a solar panel set up like I have. I ran my lights and CD player all season and never had to touch my battery. I am considering posting a short article on how I set this simple system up as it sure beats hauling a battery in and out of the boat.

How has the sailing been since you got back from vacation?

[Craig]

Wow!  I got promoted to Captain already?  We better belay that Captain talk or CaptK may keel-haul me, make me walk the plank and scuttle me bones in Davey Jones' locker for mutiny!

Your solar set-up is a great one for you situation.  My boat is dry sailed and spends most of it's time "moored" in my garage where the battery is easily hooked up to a charger.  I do not take it out of the boat, just pop the cover off the battery box and hook up the alligator clamps.  If I had to take that group 24 out every time it needed charging I would come up with something quick.  That rascal is heavy and the interior of the 16 does not give much room to get leverage.

My hope is to reduce the energy consumption by my lights down to where I can realistically count on my group 24 to provide all the power I need for a 4 or 5 day cruise.  By reducing the anchor light to 2 amp hours a night (rather than the 7 to 8 it consumes now) I will greatly extend the useful life of a charge.  The battery is allegedly rated at 60 amp hours, but I read somewhere that half that is a more reasonable number to figure on, mostly because you do not want to run even a deep cycle all the way down.  So if I start with 30, and figure 8 to 10 for anchoring, that leaves me 20 to 22 hours for nav lights, interior lighting, etc... which should be plenty even though the nav lights consume 1.6 amps combined.  I currently use a handheld VHF rather than a fixed mount, so I carry spare AA batteries for when the NiCad goes belly-up.  

The sailing since vacation has been non-existent.  I've been busy catching up with staff changes, the annual health insurance debacle, and such.  On top of that we've had about 5 inches of rain in the last 3 days.  I'm hoping labor day weekend provides some fresh winds and blue skies.

Hope your sailing has been better.

Craig

[Gil Weiss]

Craig,

(Notice the Captain designation is gone . . .You are right about not wanting to infringe on Capt. Kurt. Incidenatally, having a CP16 is advantageous over having a 23 if you are going to be keel hauled.)

Anyway, I forgot that your boat would not be in the sun much of the time. Plugging into a charger is not a big deal in your circumstance. Also, I agree with your math. Getting a series 24 battery in and out of the forward compartment seems very difficult which is why I opted for my 13 lb 18 Amp Hour Gell Cell.

Sorry to hear about your work and weather issues. The health insurance bit is a real pet peeve of mine but I won't get started here. The weather on LD weekend looks promising so far, except for Florida.