Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 03-28-2018, 06:08 PM   #1
Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: Gold Bar, WA
Posts: 125
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: TC 2000
Engine: 5.9 L Cummins Turbo
Rated Cap: 28
wiring original bluebird dc lights

Hi. I want to keep my bluebird dc lights, and will be switching them to run off my solar battery rather than through the bus's electrical system. So they have one wire going to them, positive. They were ground via a screw into my metal ceiling. I will no longer have a metal ceiling, so for bayonet type lights, can I run normal +- black and white wires to each one and have them plug into the dc panel? Can bayonet type lights have two wires, or should the connection point on the bulb only touch the positive and I need to wire the negative to the metal light box rather than the bulb? They have LED bulbs now, do you need to add a resistor or something to tweak down the 12 volt current? Thank you.

druidwood is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-28-2018, 07:09 PM   #2
Bus Nut
 
Rivetboy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Huntington Beach CA.
Posts: 939
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: T/C 2000 28 foot Handy Bus
Engine: Cummins 5.9 Mechanical
Rated Cap: 2
Black and white wire sure
plus to the lamp negative to the metal fixtur or the wire that goes to the shell of the lamp
Modern bayonet LED bulbs are plug and play no resistor required.
I have the exact same bus play scary music now
Rivetboy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-29-2018, 05:21 AM   #3
Bus Crazy
 
JDOnTheGo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: The West
Posts: 1,210
Year: 1998
Coachwork: MCI
Chassis: 102 EL3
Engine: DD 60
You may already know this but just in case...

LED/SMD lights are polarity sensitive but incandescent bulbs are not. When you install the LED lights/bulbs into existing fixtures, you may find that some do not work. This is usually due to the fixture being wired backwards. Easily fixed by switching the wires around (correcting the polarity).

Edit: Oh.. sorry. You said they have LED lights now so this should not be an issue. Back into my hole....
__________________
JD - Full timer out west
Missy - 1998 MCI 102-EL3 - 1.7kW Solar - 10kWh Lithium
My Adventures & Build
JDOnTheGo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-02-2018, 03:46 PM   #4
Bus Crazy
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: SW New Hampshire
Posts: 1,334
Quote:
Originally Posted by JDOnTheGo View Post
You may already know this but just in case...

LED/SMD lights are polarity sensitive but incandescent bulbs are not. When you install the LED lights/bulbs into existing fixtures, you may find that some do not work. This is usually due to the fixture being wired backwards. Easily fixed by switching the wires around (correcting the polarity).

Edit: Oh.. sorry. You said they have LED lights now so this should not be an issue. Back into my hole....
I would encourage you to keep and respect the black-is-ground, white-is-hot convention should you be installing or transplanting incandescent bulbs. It'll keep things easier and more understandable down the line, should you desire to change something. Of course, we never do that here.
dan-fox is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-02-2018, 03:52 PM   #5
Bus Crazy
 
JDOnTheGo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: The West
Posts: 1,210
Year: 1998
Coachwork: MCI
Chassis: 102 EL3
Engine: DD 60
Quote:
Originally Posted by dan-fox View Post
I would encourage you to keep and respect the black-is-ground, white-is-hot convention should you be installing or transplanting incandescent bulbs. It'll keep things easier and more understandable down the line, should you desire to change something. Of course, we never do that here.
Of course, or even better white/red is hot. That doesn't change when swapping the connections on the fixture though.
__________________
JD - Full timer out west
Missy - 1998 MCI 102-EL3 - 1.7kW Solar - 10kWh Lithium
My Adventures & Build
JDOnTheGo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-02-2018, 04:08 PM   #6
Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: Gold Bar, WA
Posts: 125
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: TC 2000
Engine: 5.9 L Cummins Turbo
Rated Cap: 28
Thanks for coming out of the hole JDOnTheGo. Lights with LED were briefly tested before I ripped out ceiling and all the wiring - worked then, but who knows when I reinstall. I have figured out AC, but haven't done any DC wiring yet. Lights just have positive going to them, so don't think it is possible to reverse polarity? In terms of wire color, I find my bus uses a wide assortment of colors for hot (and ground) - so I will be consistent with the colors I use in my separate DC and AC system and chart it out for posting in my electronic's cabinet.
druidwood is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
bayonet, dc lights, led, wiring

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:54 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.