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If you do a lot of boondocking (no hookups while camping), then you know battery life is one of the most important things you must plan for, especially if you have a small battery bank. One great way to save a lot of power is to convert your existing incandescent lighting to LED lighting. LED stands for light emitting diode and provides light in a very different way than incandescent or fluorescent lighting sources. The biggest benefit for a boondocker is that LEDs require very little power to operate, so you won't have to be so conscious of switching off lights when you don't need them.
Just how much power can you save by going LED? In a typical travel trailer of say 27 feet with a super slide and a couple of bunk beds, you may have upwards of 20+ 12 watt incandescent bulbs. If you were to have all of these on at one time, you would be drawing around 20 amps of DC power. In a few hours, your single group 24 12-volt battery would be near dead. Even if you had two batteries, you wouldn't have much left to finish out a 2-day weekend without a battery recharge.
Now if you were to replace every interior incandescent bulb in this fictitious travel trailer with a 24 LED array warm color lamp, each drawing 190 mA, the total power consumption drops to 3.8 amps, over 5 times less power consumption. You wouldn't likely replace every incandescent bulb with a 24 LED array lamp but you could and if you did, you would be using 5 times less power, even if you had every light switched on.
There are several different routes you can take when doing the LED lighting mod: individual lights, such as a night or reading light, all or some interior lights, interior and exterior, storage compartments, etc. Much will depend on you budget and coolness factor you are trying to achieve. Replacing every incandescent bulb may just break your piggy bank, but doing a few can still help save some battery power.
Using a single LED for a night light, like in the bathroom, can be a real life saver. Well, it may not save your life but if you have to get up at 2am to go, you won't be blinded by the light and you should be able to go right back to sleep. A single LED connected through a SPST toggle switch mounted on the bathroom light fixture can provide just enough light to do your business.
Perhaps you just want to change a few lights out, like the lights over your bed, that are generally too bright to read by. There are direct replacement LED lamps that require no modification to the lighting fixture, other than swapping bulbs. For this type of LED lamp, use the "warm white" type. The cool white LEDs provide a bluish tint to the light color and may not appeal to your reading tastes. The warm white LEDs provide a yellowish light color very similar to that of a normal incandescent bulb.
If you plan on replacing the main lights inside the RV and have the type of fixtures that contain two bulbs with a switch in the middle, you can replace just one of the bulbs to reduce cost. This way you not only save money, but you also can still provide more light when you need it by switching on the second bulb. For this case, you should consider LEDs that have a wide beam angle, at least 120 degrees. This is the angle at which light is projected from the lamp. The wider the better if you're trying to light up a large area. These lamps are typically configured in a flat package with many LEDs, as many as 36 in some cases. They simply affix to the fixture with Velcro and plug in just like a standard bulb.
Another cool LED mod is to fit a LED rope light under your RVs countertop. Many upscale RVs have this feature as a standard option but there is no reason you can't have this classy look either. First, have someone help you test fit the rope for length, ensuring you have enough for the whole countertop. Then get some double-sided tape and stick it to the cabinet or under the countertop where you want the rope to run. If you have any left over rope, drill a hole the size of the rope's diameter and run the excess through the hole. Just stick the rope to the tape and press firmly. You can also add a switch to control the rope power as well.
A step light is also another easy LED mod that consumes very little power. If you forget to turn it off, you don't have to worry since it can be on for days and still be easy on your battery. You can use a courtesy light or an amber side marker light. These mount with a couple of screws to the underside of the stairwell. Power can be run to an inconspicuous switch inside. Some even have light sensors so they can automatically turn on when it gets dark and turn off in the morning.
Outside compartments are also a great candidate for LED lights. These can be powered through a pin switch so that when you open the compartment door, the light turns on, and then off when you close the door. The color of the LED light is not so important as is the placement of the light. Compartments are usually rectangular in shape, so try and place the LEDs near the corners of the compartment. This way, you will get the most light to all parts of the storage area.
Finally, upgrading your RVs exterior lighting can make for a very clean look as well as improve safety going to the road. LED porch, marker, clearance, backup, turn, and running lights are all candidates for LED replacement. Fortunately for you, many companies, like Bargman for example, now make direct replacement fixtures that include everything you need to perform the upgrade. Just be sure to budget enough since total exterior lighting replacement can run in to the hundreds of dollars.
Tip: LED brake/tail lamps may not work with some older thermal flasher units found on some vehicles. An LED brake/tail lamp will require an electronic flasher/blinker unit which is commonly available at your local auto parts store. Just ask for the electronic equivalent of your thermal flasher.
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Many people think that hydroponic tomato growing is too complex and expensive and only very experienced gardeners should attempt it. I'm here to tell you that is not the case and with the proper instruction it is no more difficult than regular container planting. I'll show you how the average gardener can make their own systems very quickly and cheaply.
Hydroponics Overview:
Growing tomatoes hydroponically can be very convenient. You can grow them indoors all year round and you don't need large outdoor spaces - which is something of a rarity if you live in a city. In a nutshell hydroponic gardening involves growing plants in a non-organic material known as the "medium" instead of soil and using a flowing liquid nutrient solution to feed the plants. The purpose of the medium is just to support the plant roots and provide drainage with protection. Common mediums include gravel, perlite and rock wool. Hydroponic tomatoes can be grown in several locations which include: outdoors in the garden, on walls and patios, in greenhouses and in enclosed rooms using plant lights.
Hydroponic Systems
There are many hydroponic systems available ranging from small kits for the hobbyist to full-scale commercial modules. As a beginner you can buy hydroponic kits from specialist suppliers - you can find these by searching on the internet and they can deliver by mail order. These will consist of containers and irrigation systems along with any other essentials. It is also perfectly possible to make your own. I'll cover two simple homemade solutions that don't require pumps and are self feeding.
Method #1 - Self Watering Pot
This is a pot with a reservoir at the base filled with a nutrient solution. The pot draws on the solution using capillary action (where water molecules move by attracting each other) this means that feeding and watering occur over a longer period of time. The nutrient solution only needs to be topped up from time to time when it runs low.
Method #2 - Wick System
This system uses a combination of gravity and capillary action to feed the plant. A nutrient solution reservoir is placed at the same level as the plant and connected with an absorbent wick of string or rope to the roots of the plant. Nutrient solution will be slowly drawn down the wick by the plants and the gardener only needs to keep the solution levels topped up.
Many hydroponic systems recycle the nutrient solution and it is important to test and maintain the correct PH balance as this will alter as the plant feeds off the solution.
Mini-light strings, the marvel of modern decorating, can be difficult to repair when their bulbs begin to burn out, especially if a whole set of them goes dark at once. To help find and replace these small incandescent candle-shaped bulbs gone bad, here is a description of how they work.
Starting from the basic 3-wire whole string and working outward to the bulb sockets from there, these bulbs and their sockets are installed and work as follows.
Main sockets. These sockets are the permanent ones attached to the main wire that holds them and their bulbs in series. The bulbs themselves, which are seated in their own small plastic bases, fit into these main sockets where contact is made with the wire. The inner cores of these sockets are somewhat rectangular in shape. The final string of lights, which includes this main wire of sockets and their bulbs, are twisted together with the two extension-cord-like 120-volt circuit wires in a rope-like manner.
Bulb set. The bulb set is the bulb wire above, which usually contains 50 bulbs connected in series on one wire. Each end of this set is connected in parallel to the two circuit wires that plug into an electrical outlet or into each other to make the strings longer. Often, a single string of 100 mini-bulbs consists of two 50-bulb sets, each one connected separately in parallel to the two circuit wires. Thus, each set operates separately from the other one in the same string.
Bulb base. To confuse things a bit, the bulbs are held by two sockets so to speak: 1) the small plastic rectangular base holding the bulb itself, and 2) the permanent one on the bulb wire into which the bulb and its base are seated. Thus, before a bulb can be seated into its main socket, its two bare wires must first be inserted through the two holes in the bottom of the plastic base, and then wrapped vertically around the two grooves on the outer side of this base. This bulb and its base are then seated into the main socket where the two bare wires make contact with the bulb wire.
Bulb. When a new candle-shaped glass bulb stands alone, it has two bare lead wires protruding straight down from its lower end. These are the ones that wrap around its plastic base. From there, upward within the sealed bulb, these leads become small posts held steady buy a glass bead attached between them. Just above this glass bead a small wire is wrapped horizontally around both posts several times. It is called a bypass shunt. Above the shunt, the two posts protrude further up into the bulb where they are connected together by a fine-wire filament.
The filament produces the light when the string is plugged in or turned on. In time, however, the filament will burn itself out. At that moment, the current or electricity to the bulb starts crossing through the shunt instead to keep the rest of the bulbs in the series set lit. However, if that shunt goes bad after the filament does, the entire 50-bulb set will go dark because this bulb is no longer allowing electricity to pass through it properly. In this case, to repair the bulb set, one needs to find that bulb having the bad filament and shunt, and then replace it with a new one. Normally, a new one will be rated near 2.4-volts for a 50-bulb set.
Finding the bad bulb. Unless one buys a special bulb-set testing device, the fastest way to find a bad bulb with a broken or missing filament is to look at each bulb with a magnifying glass in front of a background light. The background light enhances this process for the colored bulbs whose filaments can be hard to see with naked eye. Also, a darkened or color-changed bulb might indicate a burnt-out filament, which will be easier to spot outright than by using the magnifier.
Otherwise, to locate the bad bulb, the repair person might have to remove and replace each bulb in the set one at a time temporarily with a new one known to be working okay while the string is plugged in. Normally, one or two extra bulbs already mounted in their bases come with a new string of mini-lights. When the bad bulb has been replaced with a good one, presto, the light set comes back on.
Conclusion. Much repair time can be saved by replacing a bad bulb soon after it goes out, i.e., before the whole set goes out. That is, this dark bulb is much easier to spot and replace while its shunt is still passing electricity to the rest of the set, which is still lit.
For information and diagrams on incandescent mini-lights and the testing of their bulbs, see the following sites.
Most highly acclaimed decorating stuff for outdoor space is the fancy lighting which suits your style and is appreciated by guests. There are numerous shapes and sizes of different varieties which are available in the market and you can also place an order according to your custom tastes. Outstanding residential lighting will enhance lovely outlook of the house. It not only serves purpose for beautification but also leads to give protection and security to your house.
Before installing residential outdoor lighting, you should examine the courtyards and pavements while walking in daylight and at night. This will make you realize where you need to incorporate lightings which will give reasonable illumination. While considering the fittings of the lights check out the darker areas of the corridor where you can do marking for particular area. Keep an eye on the area where you find difficult in stepping so you can make marking on the path. Ultimately, this will really give enhancement for the installing appropriate residential outdoor lighting.
You can give fascinating look by using different varieties of lights. Make use of spot or flood lights which is facing upwards towards trees. And for downward pathways use subdued light which collectively gives amazing look of the house. Soft lights behind small shrubs and plants should be exhibited into a straight line of lights which will further add the attraction for the house design.
Study the Area to be Lighted Closely
Before you introduce any changes in the lighting formation, create sketch for the design you want to employ. This will make your work easy and you can work accordingly with the desired plan. Planning must include amendments for pathways, stairways, garden and courtyard etc. Examine how many fittings you will require and also fill the details regarding the wiring structures as well. This will give you additional support before starting your residential outdoor lighting.
Before commencing check out for the local rules and regulations regarding residential outdoor lighting, make sure that you do not face any problems after your lighting completes. If required take the opinion of the officials. If you are planning to conceal electric wires by burying them , scrutinize if there is any gas lines or plumbing lines are not passing through. So it is advisable to call on the community number for details regarding the covered lines.
Subdued lights are appropriate for residential outdoor lighting, depending upon the locality of the house. It might be possible that in some areas high volt lights works best. For example, for subdued lights you can go for 12 volts bulbs and for bright light try out 120 volts.
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