Mast Lights

[ljholt]

I have a CD 25D and have power to Mast boot but no Mast Navlight or anchor light. Bulbs probably gone. Are there standard bulbs to buy prior to going up mast and then heading to Marina store?

Thanks

Lee

[matane]

Sorry I cannot help- but it is one of the many things I think about at night when I cant sleep! What if?
Not exactly like changing a lightbulb in the house!

[Neil Gordon]

I have a CD 25D and have power to Mast boot but no Mast Navlight or anchor light. Bulbs probably gone. Are there standard bulbs to buy prior to going up mast and then heading to Marina store?

Thanks

Lee

I had the same thing last year, put a multi-meter on the mast wires and found resistance across the bulbs. A little brightening up of some corroded connections at the mast base solved my problem. With both bulbs failing to light the odds go down it's the bulbs.

That said, there's no standard. (Do the next owner a favor and make a record once you find out!)

[John Martin]

If you are lucky, you will only have to go up just 2 times. Have some good help on deck with necessary tools that can be sent up in a bucket. Consider changing the incandesent bulbs to LED bulbs. We have changed all of the bulbs on Carina, inside and outside. The last one was the anchor light, and now it is 2 1/2 times brighter than the old incandesent. Now our anchor light can be seen from a long way off.

[Klem]

Can you post a pic of the light? Someone might be able to identify it and tell you the type of bulb. Many boats this age have some form of aftermarket light. It may save a trip aloft.

[ljholt]

If you are lucky, you will only have to go up just 2 times. Have some good help on deck with necessary tools that can be sent up in a bucket. Consider changing the incandesent bulbs to LED bulbs. We have changed all of the bulbs on Carina, inside and outside. The last one was the anchor light, and now it is 2 1/2 times brighter than the old incandesent. Now our anchor light can be seen from a long way off.

Thanks,

Will do, Pass your way on way to to Bainbridge GA. and Slapout Al.!

Have great holiday

Lee

[Steve Laume]

When you say you have power to the mast boot, how are you determining that? Connections at the mast base are always a trouble spot. If you do have a connector there, I would clean all contacts, or replace the connector and trim back the wires on both sides to get to clean wire before I climbed the mast. If you do need to go up the mast make sure to bring a full compliment of screw drivers and a scotch bright pad. It may just be a matter of cleaning the contacts but replacing the old bulbs would not be a bad idea anyway.

I don't believe our boats came with mast head lights so whatever you have up there is something that is not original equipment so it would be hard to advise just what bulb you would need, Steve.

[John Martin]

Hi Lee,
How close do you pass Lake Lanier or Atlanta? When? Where are you coming from? Maybe we could meet?

[ljholt]

Hi Lee,
How close do you pass Lake Lanier or Atlanta? When? Where are you coming from? Maybe we could meet?

love too..I am down rt 85 what town are you all in..I was born in Bainbridge many Brocks still there

Lee

[John Martin]

Hi Lee,
I sent you an PM e-mail. Maybe we can link up.

[Dixon Hemphill]

I have a question for the Martins:

How much did it cost to change all your lights from incandesant to led? I would like to do this on my CD28 but I"m afraid the cost is pretty steep. Also was it a difficult job?

[Steve Laume]

These are the only bulbs I found acceptable for our light fixtures.

http://doctorled.com/p22.htm

They are very bright and use very little power. Then you can keep the old bulbs for spares.

One of the first things I did on Raven was to replace the lenses in the bow and stern lights. The 20 some year old ones were very dull and slightly crazed. Fresh lenses will make a huge difference in how much light any bulb will project. With the LED bulbs and fresh lenses my running lights are very bright. I am never reluctant to leave them on as the power drain is negligible.

I also mounted a OGM LED masthead light for offshore and the price of that beautiful piece of engineering makes bulbs for the original lights seem pretty reasonable, Steve.

[John Martin]

LED replacement cost more than I care to admit. We replaced our bulbs a couple of years ago, over many months, to spread out the cost. I am sure you can find better deals today and with much better variety.

My main driving force was power conservation. Quite often we spend long weekends aboard Carina. Many Friday, Saturday, Sunday, weekends. We are members of two very active sailing clubs here on LL. Lots of raft-ups, sailing, racing, anchoring overnight. In general very heavy use of DC systems (interior lights, VHF, AM/FM, anchor light, and engine starting).

Things I considered were "wattage", color of light, socker/pin configuration. For reading/interior lights I like ~15W, warm white. The interior LED's are from Dr. LED.

The deck light, is under-powered at 10W, to preserve night vision. It provides just enough light to move around the deck in the dark.

Our anchor light is a Davis Mega Light. We attach it to the back-stay about 5'-6' above the deck. I found it at LEDtronics, $10. It is a bluish white to stand out against the background.

The bow and stern Nav LED's are from Ancor. Steve made a good point, replace those crazed lens, if needed.

My current project is to design and build better light for the galley counter. I have 3 strips of LED lights (2 white, 1 red) that I am going to mount in a fixture with 2 switches, to give red/white light where I need it.

My inspiration for this project goes back many years ago to a CDSOA meeting, I don't remember where. Bruce Halley ("Realization") had a nice demo of LED technology. Lots of things have changed since then, but this is a very do-able project, with definite savings.

Hope all of this helps. JM

[John #126]

My new-to-me CD25D came with Aquasignal series 25 lights all around, including the masthead and anchor light. The bulb is a 'special festoon' meaning dimpled festoon (or dimfest). Defender carries them, in packs of 2. Here's a link to the series 25 page that shows the lights and replacement bulbs. Water intrusion into the masthead light appears to be the culprit, according to the previous owner.
http://search.defender.com/?Action=3&Pa ... b690ecf410

I'm thinking about replacing the anchor light bulb with an LED just to save the trip up the mast. I'm also replacing the masthead fixture to one that is more watertight, the combination light made by Hella Marine.

John
#126

[Bob Ohler]

Slightly off topic, but LED related... I just completed conversion of the three dome lights in the cabin to LED. I looked at replacement fixtures, but none were made as well as the brass with glass lenses that came with the boat. Imtra makes an adapter that fits the socket. To these adapters, I added 15 LED bulbs (also made by Imtra) that "just" fit inside the glass lenses. I had previously tried 10 LED units that were just too dim. Now, we can be on the anchor and not worry about these three lights consuming too many amp/hours.