08 Sea Ray 185 LED SMD Strip Light Install - Your thoughts

[lucasier]

Hi Guys..

Looking at installing some LED strip lights in the side panel storage compartments and the compartments under the glove box and steering wheel and want to bounce some ideas around.

My aim was to wire these directly to the nav lights, however they are BLUE and have been told night vision sucks when underway. Would 4 strip lights be a problem when navigating at night? or should I have them wired to a separate switch?

Firstly correct me if Im wrong, to wire these puppies directly to the Nav lights I believe I will have to tap into an earth wire and the grey wire (for the nav lights)

Does the wiring harness for this boat run the wires I require under the gunnells esp on the port side to tap into? or what is the best way to intall these. Ie running new cable or jumping off existing cable?

Any advice on install specific to my boat would be appreciated. cheers.

 

[tobnpr]

You only want the lighting when you're underway?
What about when you're anchored up- won't need them?

 

[lucasier]

I get your question. To answer that I guess I would like the option to have them on when underway and specifically when anchored so I guess I would be best wiring to the anchor light which has a separate switch

 

[lucasier]

According to the wiring diagram to tap into the all round / anchor light I need to tap into the grey/white wire and the black for the earth???

 

[Firerooster]

My advice.... Wire them separately I have green LED lights in my cockpit, engine bay, and in cabin. All on different switches. They are bright.... Probably interfere with your night vision. Also blue lights while underway is illegal in most states. Just an FYI. Wire them separate to a different switch

 

[Merge360]

Lucasier...

Great your willing to take on this project! Very easy and rewarding! Those LED's are going to put out A LOT of light, so just be prepared! I tackled this same project a few years back.... Your going to want to hook everything up to a seperate toggle switch or two!

Like Firerooster stated, blue is illegal in most states (as well as red) but check your own area regs and make sure....

I completely outfitted my 2006 195 Sport with blue LED's... Side storage compartments, under glove box and steering wheel, cup holders, plexi-glass speaker rings, engine compartment vents, beneath swim platform, etc....

Everything "IN" the boat, is on one toggle switch.... Everything "OUTSIDE" the boat (engine compartment vents, beneath swim platform, tower speaker rings) are on another toggle switch...

This way, while underway, I can still run with everything on "IN" the boat, and can turn off all the lights "OUTSIDE" the boat.... But while anchored, I can have everything on and not have any problems...

Oh yeah, I ran all new wire for my LED's... I actually built a completely seperate wiring harness for all my lights... Didn't tap into any of the electrical harness already in my boat!

I'll see if I can't find a few of the older threads about what I did!

Good luck with your project!

 

[Merge360]

Lucasier...

Merge again... Here's a link from a few years back...

http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6902

If you go under "Sport Boats", around page 50-60 (that's how far back all these discussions were!) there's several post about LED lighting/audio systems.... That should help you out!

You'll notice on some of my earlier post there were pictures attached, but now there's a message that states " This photo has been deleted or moved...." If you "click" on the link in my signature, it will take you to photobucket, where I created an album with all of those same pictures... I just wanted them all to be in one location!

If you have any other questions, just ask... Everyone here on the board is pretty knowledgable and can probably get you steered in the right direction!

 

[lucasier]

Thats awsome! I installed two strips last night in the side compartments. I ran new wiring through the bow with piggy back connectors to the Anchor Light Switch. Only problem now is when I turn the Nav Light Switch on the Anchor light switch illuminates and the LEDs turn on. ( I take it this is not what is meant to happen...) Not what I intended as I only wanted them operational when the anchor light was activated. In my haste I possibly have one of the connectors touching the adjacent switch. Will have to have another look tonight to see what I have done wrong and repost tomorrow. The reason I did this was I didnt want to modify the existing dash panel with new switches, however after seeing your install I may have changed my mind. Do you mind if I ask where u purchased your illuminated rocker switches from and your swim platform lights. I was going to use the light strips under the gunnel of the swim platform also but now in two minds. If price wasnt an problem than I would go a pair of Ocean LED Amphibian A3's.

 

[tobnpr]

It is meant to happen- your white light (whether you have an all-around single light) or a masthead/stern combination) is always on with you nav (red/green) lights.

I's like to see the statutes on the colored lights being illegal...
I've always wondered about the underwater LEDs that are advertised as being safe to leave on while the boat's on plane- Ocean LED's advertising video shows them running with the lights on. I've not found anything in the CG regs about it...

 

[lucasier]

Great thanks for your reply. You just saved me hours of diagnosis for a problem that didnt exist. Although I had it in the back my mind this may be the case that the nav lights activate the anchor light at the same time. I havent had the boat on the water yet so I didnt know.

I guess this will help the next person who does the install to do as Merge360 did and install separate toggle switches to avoid this problem. If I cannot navigate at night due to the blue illumination I will go down this track also.

Off the topic, I read a post about guys getting the aft storage / cooler boxes installed under the rear seats (sea ray part nos 1819581 starboard side and 1819582 port side). This is something I wanted to get done but sea ray parts here are through the roof. Would be interested if anyone has done anything else not off the shelf so to speak instead of installing factory coolers. ie fabricated their own somehow. I have been told in the states they are around $100 bucks for each side? Can anyone confirm pricing?

 

[TexasA&M]

Here are some pics of what I did on my boat... this is blue LED rope light that is wired to a separate switch (power coming from the fuse panel). The switch is underneath the dash and is easy to reach, but out of sight.

Since all of the lighting is indirect, it doesn't interfere with my sight while driving. It is the perfect amount of ambient light for night boating.

 

[Rono007]

Here are some pics of what I did on my boat... this is blue LED rope light that is wired to a separate switch (power coming from the fuse panel). The switch is underneath the dash and is easy to reach, but out of sight.

Since all of the lighting is indirect, it doesn't interfere with my sight while driving. It is the perfect amount of ambient light for night boating.

What type of lights did you use (brand, etc.)? Do you have a link to the site where you purchased them?

 

[TexasA&M]

I need to go back through my records to confirm, but I'm pretty sure that this is where I got them -

http://www.lightingfx.com/item--LED-Rope-Light--RL-LED

I also looked at this site, but can't remember why I chose one over the other.

https://ssl.adhost.com/noveltylights/merchant.cfm?pid=326&step=4

I ended up having to order an additional 4' and splicing the line together. All in all, it was a simple install.

 

[Sluggo33]

I'm getting ready to tackle this project myself. I ordered some lights from CBDesigns off ebay. They're BLUE rope lights, and they have one LED per inch. I ordered (4) 6'6" lengths. I plan on running two down each gunnel then wrapping them underneath the the dash. I plan on wiring with a 3way toggle on a separate switch so I can do 50% lighting (one strip on each side) or 100% lighting (both strips on each side). I'll be installing this week and try to post pics when I'm done. I'm super excited!

 

[Sluggo33]

Texas A&M,

How many LED's per inch is your lighting? That looks super bright!

 

[TexasA&M]

I believe it is every 1", but I'd have to confirm. It is pretty bright in the pictures, and when looking directly at it, but with it tucked up out of the way, the ropes provide the perfect amount of light.

 

[Sluggo33]

Here are some pics. I took them from my Pre, so they aren't very good. The lights are actually much brighter than they appear on here. You can pretty much see the entire floor of the boat which is what I wanted.

I really liked the Stingerz product, but it was just out of my budget. I have about $60 and 3 hours of my time sunk into this. I'll try and see if my actual camera gets better shots.