My solution to awning lights

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by OldCoot

And THAT brilliant, unknown information, ladies and gentlemen, is from a retired AF pilot!

Sorry Lou, just couldn't resist!

I can see that you got the joke. Excellent.

[RVChick]

Originally Posted by OldCoot

Power the awning lights from the porch light switch with the dusk to dawn eye and the step lights on the step light switch.

Exactly!

[RVChick]

Originally Posted by JohnF

One negative I discovered with the L.E.D. lights this past weekend. They attract bugs! I turn them off about an hour before retiring and leave my amber porch light on for the night.

Exactly!! Easy said...easy done!

[ChooChooMan74]

Originally Posted by dec1952

I have gone through two sets of lights that I bought on Amazon. Both sets had white lights and they were held on to the awning bar with the double sided tape. Unfortuneately, both sets died after only a few weeks. So I then ordered the lights that everyone seems to be getting on Ebay. I was hoping to just be able to slide them into the awning track without using the double sided tape-and I was hoping for white lights. Well, my lights came today. It says white on the remote-but there is no white. I am hoping that of all you folks out there that have raved about these lights-which ones have a WHITE light setting and can just be slid into the awning rail track? Any info would be greatly appreciated!!

Did you get the weatherproof ones?

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by JohnF

One negative I discovered with the L.E.D. lights this past weekend. They attract bugs! I turn them off about an hour before retiring and leave my amber porch light on for the night.

Since the amber porch light is an incandescent light with a yellow orange lens; what is the difference between that and the LEDs set to yellow orange?

Don't have an answer; just asking...

[GlacierGus]

JohnF-our TTs are very similar. How do you power your lights? Do you run an extension cord from the outside outlet or have you hard wired them? I have purchased similar lights and now have to find the time to install them. Thanks for any advice.

[JohnF]

Originally Posted by herk7769

Since the amber porch light is an incandescent light with a yellow orange lens; what is the difference between that and the LEDs set to yellow orange?

Don't have an answer; just asking...

My guess would be that although the led set is producing a yellow orange light the individual leds are still shades of red, blue, and green and these are attractive to the bugs.

[JohnF]

Originally Posted by GlacierGus

JohnF-our TTs are very similar. How do you power your lights? Do you run an extension cord from the outside outlet or have you hard wired them? I have purchased similar lights and now have to find the time to install them. Thanks for any advice.

I found 12 volts in the pass through storage area and ran a fused wire up the side of the trailer with the wires that power the awning. No new holes and no exposed wires except at the controller itself.

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by herk7769

Since the amber porch light is an incandescent light with a yellow orange lens; what is the difference between that and the LEDs set to yellow orange?

Don't have an answer; just asking...

If I can remember, when ours come on tonight I will set them to yellow tonight and see if it works. Someone not suffering from CRS please remind me.

[dec1952]

Originally Posted by JohnF

Here are the lights I purchased.

5M 3528 RGB Waterproof Flexible Strip 300 LED 44 Key IR Remote Power Supply | eBay

White on the control will light all the lights giving you a white light. It won't look white when you look at the strip but it will be a white light produced.

I had several people stop and ask about my lights while camping at a state park this weekend. They are cool!

Does yours have the color white? I have it on the remote but no white lights on the strip. How did you put those up? Looks very nice!

[JohnF]

Originally Posted by dec1952

Does yours have the color white? I have it on the remote but no white lights on the strip. How did you put those up? Looks very nice!

There are only red, green and blue lights on the strip. However, when you call for white with the remote, all three colors light up which gives you a white light. The bottom of your canopy (mine is white) will look white but the strip will look multicolored.

I did not trust the self adhesive strip that came with the lights. I purchased some outdoor tape at Lowes and cut it to narrow strips and used it to secure the lights to the camper. Time will tell if it holds up.

[PHS79]

The lights that I ordered for our friends came in yesterday, he stopped this morning and picked them up while I was at work and decided to install them on his own. He called me tonight and said that the only color that he can get to light up is green and that the remote (with a brand new battery) doesn't work. Then I asked him if he had the arrows lined up right, he said that if he lines the arrows up nothing works. With the arrows not lined up green comes on but thats it he can't turn them off with the remote or change the colors, he just has to unplug the power.

Anyone know what may be going on here?? I wish that he would have waited for me to help install them, but he didn't want to wait...

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by JohnF

My guess would be that although the led set is producing a yellow orange light the individual leds are still shades of red, blue, and green and these are attractive to the bugs.

I'll buy that...

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by PHS79

The lights that I ordered for our friends came in yesterday, he stopped this morning and picked them up while I was at work and decided to install them on his own. He called me tonight and said that the only color that he can get to light up is green and that the remote (with a brand new battery) doesn't work. Then I asked him if he had the arrows lined up right, he said that if he lines the arrows up nothing works. With the arrows not lined up green comes on but thats it he can't turn them off with the remote or change the colors, he just has to unplug the power.

Anyone know what may be going on here?? I wish that he would have waited for me to help install them, but he didn't want to wait...

Just because the battery is new doesn't mean its "good"

[QCCowboy]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

Just because the battery is new doesn't mean its "good"

This is going to sound really silly, but did your friend pull the plastic tab out of the bottem of the remote that saves the battery from draining until ready to be used?

[Herk7769]

My money is on he hooked up the power backwards to the controller. There is a giant warning in the documentation about no reverse current protection. If he did (even momentarily), he fried the controller.

[PHS79]

My cousin is going camping with him this weekend, so my cuz is going to stop at my place and grab my remote to try that and see if mine works with his lights, since we know that mine are in working order.

He said that he pulled the plastic tab out and it didn't work, so then he took the cover off the battery and there was no battery there. His wife stopped on her way home from work and picked one up.

Originally Posted by herk7769

My money is on he hooked up the power backwards to the controller. There is a giant warning in the documentation about no reverse current protection. If he did (even momentarily), he fried the controller.

I was kinda wondering that myself once I got thinking about it a little more. But, if the power is hooked up backwards would it still light up green? But I guess it might explain why they are lit up when the arrows are not lined up...

I will call him in the morning and ask him how he wired the power up, hopefully he didn't connect black-black and red-white...

[QCCowboy]

Originally Posted by PHS79

But, if the power is hooked up backwards would it still light up green? But I guess it might explain why they are lit up when the arrows are not lined up...

I think I understand your question and the controller may not be fried (it still could be the remote), but until everything is tested you will not know. There are 4 wires that run to the lights (in the white set of wires that are already soldered to it). 12+, Blue, Red, and Green (in that order) with the 12v+ lining up with the arrow. If he hooked it up backwards he is supplying 12v+ directly to the Green LED's which is causing them to light up.

But like Herk said, he very well could have caused problems by hooking this up backwards.

**Edit** if you look at this picture closely you can see the labeling on the strip of lights 12+, B, R, G. I had to take this because I cut these wires to be able to extend them with some 4 wire in my installation.

[Herk7769]

When the controller is properly working, applying power will cause whatever was on last to come one again. (realized that yesterday when I was thinking about your problem and checked mine out).

If the controller was sent to you with the green on last, powering it up will still show green. You will need the controller working to change the colors.

[dec1952]

I have been following this thread forever. I am taking a poll and hope eveyone out there can help me out. I want the waterproof-5050 led light strip and I want to be able to install it in the track of the awning. So far, I have gone through 2 sets (they probably were not waterproof) and I am hoping third time is the charm. Who out there has these, where did you purchase them from, and are they holding up well? Originally I used the tape and put them on the awning roller. I am getting tired of trying to remove the glue everytime a set fails. Thanks to everyone out there!!