Frequently Asked Questions about Marine and Automotive LEDs
This page contains questions
about LEDs in general and in relation to our products
In 90% to most cases you will find an answer to your LED related question
in this section of our web site..
All the questions we've encountered over years of business are on
this web page We update
this page constantly
Are
automotive LED bulbs as bright as standard incandescent bulbs?
Our full size 13x3Chip SMD LED bulbs equal the brightness of a standard
21w bulb, they're more outstanding at night however than a normal incandescent which will to look orange compared to it.
The white units have an "arctic blue" look to
them and stand out against the Normal White incandescent reversing light which has a Yellow tinge.
Should
red brake lights be used behind red lenses and amber behind
amber? Yes - the richness of the color is particularly noticed
at night - you will find that your LED brake lights will
make the other types look orange.
Of course clear lenses look excellent on your car and LED
enables you to use them without those horrible painted bulbs.
How
do I know what fits my car?
To date no supplier has been able to provide us with parts lists
for cars. Basically all we need to know is the size of the base and the length/width of the bulb - we should be able to go from there.
Where
can I get an LED version of the new BAU15S or BAZ15S bulbs?
At
the moment, LED bulbs are unavailable in this pin configuration.
We will be looking into these in the very near future.
Why
do I have a bulb out light in my dash after installing LED
bulbs?
European
and newer model cars will often show a bulb out light as
an LED bulb only draws between 1 and 5 watts. Your original
factory issue incandescent bulbs draw at least 20 watts.
Your car's electrical system interprets this lack of load
as a bulb out. You can get around this by installing a flasher
can.
SMD LED Festoon LightsRed, Blue,
Warm White and Cool White
Usage:
Dome and cabin lights in cars, navigation lights on boats plus a whole range of other applications
How
bright are the SMD festoons and how do they compare to normal
incandescent festoon bulbs?
Way
brighter than normal incandescent festoons with an intense
pure white light output.
There is the faintest tinge of blue in its colour temp of
around 6500k
Do
they shine light in all directions? The
SMD festoons will shine up to 120°
Do
they lose their brightness after a while? As
all things do they will degrade initially up to 10% over
the first 1000hrs of operation followed by a slower rate
of decline to 30% loss after 50000hrs.
1156 (BA15S) 12 & 24 Volt
Usage:
Indicator bulbs for cars, trucks and trailers, reversing
lights.
NOVEMBER 2009 UPDATE
Our new 6x6 Layer Reversing lights are now available - unique to The LED Shop these are adaptable into any application that requires an intense amout of ligt to be emitted from a small area. Our upodated heatsinks allow us to operate 6x6 layer LED without thermal overload. For normal automotive operation the standard 3x6 Chip uniots will suffice but if you want that extra zap these re for you.
What do you have available in this range?
For the Park light we have the product #0210 - a5x3chip unit exactly the same size as the normal Park light.
For reversing lights the old White 19 LED units have been replaced by a 3x6Chip unit.
The Amber reversing lights have also been replaced by a 3x6Chip unit.
Why
are my indicators flashing faster when using LED bulbs?
Due to the fact that the LED bulb is using a fraction of
the power of the bulb it replaced, the mechanical flasher
unit (the flasher can) needs to be replaced with an electronic
unit..
Our electronic flasher
cans are $19 each and they will replace the mechanical unit.
Do
your 1156 white and amber units replace standard reversing
and indicator lights? In nearly all cases yes - our 3x6Chip white and amber
units are the same physical size as the normal filament
type white reversing and amber indicator.
The benefit with LED of course is that you an run them behind
clear lenses.
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of page BAY15D (1157) Brake lights - 15mm, pos and neg on round base with staggered side locating pins Usage:
Brake lights for cars and trailers.
You have 13x3Chip and 3x6Chip brake lights available - can you explain the difference?
We now have 2 different types of brake lights available. For highly reflective lenses, we now have the 13x3Chip unit, you will see a marked improvement in the quality and performance over previous versions. We are now able to use constant current drivers inside them, also increasing lumens output using the new SMD LED. You would expect the 13x3Chip units to exceed the performance of a normal 21w incandescent bulbs - you would expect to see normal brake lights looking orange compared to them. For the smaller lenses with little or no reflection we have now produced the 3x6Chip unit - where we have no other LEDs around we can use 6 layers of LED. This produces an intense amount of light coming from a small area - perfect for smaller non-reflective lenses.
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of page
Do
you have anything to replace my "H" series lights?
Even
though this item is currently available in a LED configuration,
we do not stock them as yet, as we do not feel that they
are bright enough to successfully compare with existing
halogen lights.
We believe that LED lights of this type are available on
e-bay, however, we would not recommend them if you require
a great deal of light output.
I
don't like the color of the white lights in my cabin. Do
you have anything less stark?
We
stock a wide variety of cabin lights in warm white, which
gives a softer tone of white, much like the color difference
between a pearl and a clear household incandescent bulb.
Yes it seems confusing, thats because it is.
T series numbering came from the diameter of the glass part of the incandescent bulb.
T25 series:
3156/3157: Replaces 25mm glass globe type
*** Both above lamps all have the (19.50mm) large wedge base
T20 series:
7440/7443: Replaces 20mm glass globe type
*** Both above lamps all have the (19.50mm) large wedge base.
T10 and T15:
Both of these have the same 9.5mm small wedge base.
The T10 version is generally used in dashboards and other small recessed parts of the car.
They generally aren't used as reversing or parking lights.
The T15 version (which originally was a larger 15mm glass bulb) was a larger incandescent bulb and therefore as an LED equivalent we use the T15 LED lamp.
We enlarge the bulb's diameter & power for the T15 wedge accordingly
Code #194 comes from the GE number for T10mm glass globe lamp.
Code #906, 912, 921 ...comes from the GE number for T15mm glass globe lamp.
Some Common Applications for the 3157 bulb:
Chrysler, GM, Ford, (Domestic Trucks and Cars) VW (Folkswagon - many models)
Fits manufacturers part numbers 3057, 3157, 3357, 3457, 4157 P27/7W
GM OEM Part number: 12450064, 12450108, 12450182, 15233607, 15806441, 15855631, 1999367, 21994812.
The 3157 is a 13x3Chip version RED - double acting.
Usage: Brake/tail lights for cars, trucks and trailers for newer carsBack to top of
page
T20 7440 wedge Parking Lights and 7443 wedge brake lights
Often seen in Subaru, Honda (01-05) Mazda, Lexus, Nissan, Toyota, Mitsubish and BMW.
7440 now available in 11x3 Chip WHITE
7443 bulbs are still available in the 8LED version.
Replaces part numbers T10, T-10, 194, 168,
158, 12256, 12961, 2821, 2825, W5W Usage:
Dashboard and Parking lights for cars and boats
We now have colour changing
available in the T10 plus a new 1w White 120° version.
These fit a variety of applications and we've introduced
different colors by customer request.
We have white, purple, and
rainbow
LED T10 bulbs plus now the 360° version (in Red,Green and White) plus
the colour changing version in the T10.
Picture shows the 1x6Chip version - dimensions are same for
the 4 LED10mm version (available in Red and Blue only)
The SMD version is a true 360° bulb and has no LEDs
sitting up on top - all its light is projected sideways.
We tested it and it lit up a 70 sqm room with enough light
to see your way around.
The new 1w version achieves a 120° viewing angle because
it has one big flat punchy LED sitting up on top.
Replaces part number 286
Usage:
Dashboard and Parking lights for cars and boats
The number #74 bulb is the T1-3/4 (5.5mm).
There's also a T1-1/2 (4.70mm) replacement for filament
glass shape lamps.
In LED we call them all T5 as they have the same wedge base
and same 5mm diode.
So there's no real difference between the T1-3/4 & T1-1/2
size in LED Lights, as we all use the single 5mm LEDs in
all of them.
These fit a variety of applications and we've introduced
different colours by customer request.
We have white, blue, red,
green, amber
and purple
Using the 1x6chip version we have increased luminous output by 100% over previous 2008 version - 120° viewing angle.
Replaces incand 14, 52, 258, 449, 461, 1446.
Usage:
Dashboard and Parking lights for cars and boats
E10 Dashboard bulbs
Using the 1x6chip version we have increased luminous output by 100% over previous 2008 version - 120° viewing angle.
Usage:
Dashboard and Parking lights for cars and boats
Red, Blue,
Warm White and Cool White
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