My solution to awning lights

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by punkaccountant

I'm thinking about getting a strand of these lights to install under the awning directly on my TT and was wondering if these get hot like the 5050 paddle lights that install in your light fixtures? Those can get pretty hot. If so, 1) will this eventually affect the sticky tape and 2) will that heat hurt the gelcoat or sides of the TT?

They don't seem to get even warm, but mine are mounted to the alum. flange under the awning. Evidently my homemade alum box for the controler is waterproof as we have had hard blowing rain (over 4.5")for the last 48 hrs and the lights are still working.

[nowait]

I put mine on the aluminum awning tube. They roll right up inside the awning. The maiden voyage will be this weekend. I have figured out what I can use to waterproof the controller and power supply, I'm interested in any of your ideas.

[Coops1]

Originally Posted by nowait

I put mine on the aluminum awning tube. They roll right up inside the awning. The maiden voyage will be this weekend. I have figured out what I can use to waterproof the controller and power supply, I'm interested in any of your ideas.

I would grab a couple of these then find some place that will cut 18/4 stranded wire to the length you need to install the controller some place dry & safe.

[indy]

Originally Posted by dunnnc

Now, if they just make a circular contact so you didn't have to disconnect the wires.

I too have been thinking how to do this mod... Would really like to have the lighting on the roller so that the light shines further away from the trailer (typically where we put the table up). But, wanted to find a way to not have to run and connect/disconnect the 12V feed every time the awning gets put away. I'm thinking about trying one of these two vendors (Speaker Wire or The Original Adhesive Flat Wire - Taperwire -420-WT/CL/BLK-)
for something called "flat wire". It looks like its essentially the same stuff the LED strip is made of, but without the LEDs. I can solder this to the strip lights and run it up the length of the awning material so that it can be permanently adhered to the awning material and wired to the trailer. Then it should just roll up with the awning. I'm figuring this would be easier than trying to engineer a slip ring, the technical term for a "circular contact". Anyone have some thoughts on this? I don't want to spend the money on the wire if it won't work - that stuff ain't cheap I'm wondering if adding the wire + a layer of awning repair tape along one edge will make the awning roll up crooked or cause other issues.

[Rsgtivr6]

If mine ever get here, I am designing a slip ring set up for the tube. My dang lights went to my old address and the new owners said they sent them out last week. Still haven't got here
It should be a fairly easy set up. I wont do a full slip ring just a quarter-third ring and the brush will just rest on it when stopped at full extended. I will make it out of poly round stock and just run the wires to small copper plates mounted in rails in the poly. The brushes will just be peices of copper bent to a cam with small springs behind them to just push onto the other plates. Will see how it works out. Might change to metal wheels from contact limit switches to see if they wear better, but conductivity may be questionable for this application.

Pics to follow if i ever get the stupid things lol.

[cyclepuck]

You can get slip rings on ebay for pretty cheap. slip ring | eBay

[Jeep4Two]

Originally Posted by Len & Cheri

I think the numbers represent the brightness of the LED. The 5050 being brighter than the 2038. I could be wrong, it's happened before.

You ate on the right track. The numbers are the size of the LED itself in mm. First two digits are length and the last two at width.

Higher numbers will yield brighter lights as the LED is larger. That of course comes at a cost of more current draw. I put two 8' strips in my AFrame using the 3528 LEDs. The light output is perfect and we never use the dome lights anymore.

[leanne]

Originally Posted by ammdrew

my led installed under the awning on the wall. hooked into the front spot light so that switch turns them on and we can still use the porch light Amber for late night. really does a great job lighting the whole area.

Where did you mount the box and ir sensor? I am thinking that I love the idea of tapping into the porch light to use the switch to power them on and off...

[Herk7769]

How I did the re-wire with the control box inside and the IR sensor outside.
To kill power to the LED strands I just pull the plug out.

[Rsgtivr6]

Originally Posted by cyclepuck

You can get slip rings on ebay for pretty cheap. slip ring | eBay

Rotating connectors would not work with a power awning. You would have to be running it to the center of the drum and the connector would take the weight of the awning. Aside from the pain in the butt that would be to set up, I doubt they would be designed for that. It would have to be external to the awning tube and just be brushes on outer mounted contacts.

[TURBS]

Did I miss this or did someone
Figure how to make your own pattern and save it?
With the 44 remote

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by leanne

Where did you mount the box and ir sensor? I am thinking that I love the idea of tapping into the porch light to use the switch to power them on and off...

Mounted it in the corner of the awning rail and the arm support. I caulked all corners on the inside and then sealed it to the side of the camper. It is also held in place with one of the arm support rail screws. It has now withstood 4 days of constant rain here in Orlando, FL.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

Did I miss this or did someone
Figure how to make your own pattern and save it?
With the 44 remote

Not pattern. Custom Color.

[punkaccountant]

I am jumping on the bandwagon here and am going to get a string of the 5050 LED's and mount them under the awning so I can turn them on when the awning is in.

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by herk7769

Not pattern. Custom Color.

Ooooh ok
So Lol how do you do that? Cause I can't figure out directions!

[OldCoot]

Most of the buttons work on my 44 button controller. The ones I get no response to are the up & down arrows on all 3 colors and with respect to the DIY buttons, they all make it go the same color. Don't know what you do to make each of the DIY buttons remember a different color or sequence or how to make the up & down buttons do something. The instructions are totally useless.

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by dunnnc

Most of the buttons work on my 44 button controller. The ones I get no response to are the up & down arrows on all 3 colors and with respect to the DIY buttons, they all make it go the same color. Don't know what you do to make each of the DIY buttons remember a different color or sequence or how to make the up & down buttons do something. The instructions are totally useless.

Appears a 3 grader wrote them.

[ammdrew]

Originally Posted by leanne

Where did you mount the box and ir sensor? I am thinking that I love the idea of tapping into the porch light to use the switch to power them on and off...

I did not buy the multi color. Just bright white so no box. But the box is small and water proof You could mount just behind awning rails up high and it should blend nicely.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

Appears a 3 grader wrote them.

The problem with translation programs and language.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by dunnnc

Most of the buttons work on my 44 button controller. The ones I get no response to are the up & down arrows on all 3 colors and with respect to the DIY buttons, they all make it go the same color. Don't know what you do to make each of the DIY buttons remember a different color or sequence or how to make the up & down buttons do something. The instructions are totally useless.

On my controller, the up/down buttons control each color's brightness.

By adjusting the colors you can custom blend a color that is perfect for your camper's mood. Once you get a color you want to save, holding a DIY button down for 10 seconds should save that color to the button.

Oh, other than the pre-programmed on/off sequences, (Flash, etc), there is no way to make them do anything else. The individual colors have control lines. The individual LEDs do not. There would need to be a matrix of wires to the LEDs, and no way to trim the length without destroying the matrix.