Boating USA — January 2018

BOAT DOCTOR ///WHAT TO L OOK F OR

28 | BOATINGMAG.COM | JANUARY 2018

BOATDOCTOR///WHATTOL OOKF OR

SCAN ME

Realizing huge energy savings with illumination that also lasts

longer makes LED lighting tough to ignore. As a commercial

lighting contractor in the real world and a charter-boat captain

and outdoor writer in my other lives, I’ll make the connection

between these benefi ts and your boat. — Capt. John N. Raguso

CLEARLY BETTER LED

lighting uses signifi cantly

less battery juice. Let’s take

the recent conversion to LED

lighting aboard my 2006 Edge-

Water 228CC, for example.

The existing lights all used

the same incandescent bulb

rated to consume 10 watts and

0.8 amps per hour at 12 volts.

Noting the specs of a typical

series 24 lead-acid dual-

purpose battery reveals that

it will run for 11.6 hours under

a 5-amp load, and so can

probably power the 3.2-amp

load of these incandescent

nav lights for 16 hours on a

single charge.

I replaced the incandescent

lights with a Hella Marine

LED masthead light and side-

lights, all of which burn less

than 1 watt and 0.08 amps

per hour at 12 volts; the total

power consumption on the

LEDs is 3 watts and 0.24 amps

per hour. That means these

LEDs use 92.5 percent less

energy than their old-school

predecessors and will run a

long time on that same 24M

12V battery before the battery

needs a recharge. An added

benefi t of the Hella LEDs is

that the 1-watt LED nav lights

are equal to the brightness of

a 25-watt incandescent bulb

and are visible for up

to 2 nautical miles,

which is twice the

U.S. Coast Guard re-

quirement for boats

under 12 meters

(39.4 feet).

Additionally, the

cool LEDs don’t accel-

erate the degradation,

and resultant cloudiness,

of the plastic lenses the

way hot-burning incan-

descent bulbs do.

SEE THE DIFFER-

ENCE There are quality

marine LED lights, and

there are others. I reached

out to Hella Marine’s

Duncan Stirling for addi-

tional insights. According

to Stirling, “well-con-

structed LED nav lights

off er boaters increased

vibration and shock resis-

tance, reduced heat, and

long-term reliability. When

comparing LED products,

be sure to select those that

meet the IP67 waterproof

standards and employ ultra-

durable materials, such as

marine-rated wiring, to resist

harsh marine conditions and

UV radiation. For naviga-

tion lights specifi cally, make

sure the lights meet

U.S. Coast Guard re-

quirements or don’t

buy them.” Also,

look for CE certi-

fi cation on LED

products, which

ensures that they

will not create electro-

magnetic interference

with electronics such

as your VHF or fi sh-

fi nder screen.

MAKE THE SWITCH

LED lighting provides

energy-effi cient, longer-

lasting lights that are

more vibration- and

water-resistant than

incandescent lights. Be-

sides navigation lights,

LEDs can replace cour-

tesy lights, reading lights,

cabin lights or virtually

any light aboard. They

are a bright idea.

MARINE LED

LIGHTING

Powerboats under 12 meters (39.4 feet) in length must have separate or combined red

and green sidelights covering 112.5 degrees and visible for 1 nautical mile. The white

masthead light must cover 225 degrees, be 1 meter above the sidelights and be visible

for 2 nautical miles. The white stern light must cover 135 degrees and be visible for

2 nautical miles, or you can substitute one 360-degree all-around white light. For larger

boats, the sidelights must be visible for 2 nautical miles and the masthead light for

3 nautical miles. For more Coast Guard navigation-light information, scan the tag. — J.N.R.

U.S. COAST GUARD

REGULATIONS FOR

NAVIGATION LIGHTS

PHOTOS: (FROM TOP LEFT) COURTESY WEST MARINE (2), COURTESY HELLA MARINE

BRIGHT

LIGHT

Nav LEDs

must meet

USCG

require-

ments.

NAVIGATION-LIGHT

COMPARISON

(SIDELIGHTS; MASTHEAD LIGHT)

VOLTAGE WATTAGE AMPS/HOUR

INCANDESCENT 12 40 3.20

LED 12 3 0.24