Energy Efficient 12V and 24V lighting

In most off-grid power systems lighting is one of the biggest drains of power from the batteries. It's certainly one of the few things that people would want to live without! Its therefore important to make sure lighting is as energy-efficient as possible, without compromising light levels and making interiors dark and miserable.

The incandescent filament bulb, courtesy of Mr Edison, is simple, cheap and pretty effective. Filament bulbs give a lovely warm light - but unfortunately they produce far more heat than they do light. Typically, 80% or more of the energy going into the bulb is wasted! More modern halogen bulbs operate at a higher filament temperature, which makes them more efficient - but still, most of the electricity is simply lost as heat.

Low voltage fluorescents

Fluorescent lights are considerably better than filament lights at converting electricity into useful light, and are excellent for use on boats and caravans. We sell Labcraft lights, a British make which are very good value and come in a variety of styles for both 12 and 24 volt systems.

Low voltage LEDs

LED lights are the new kids on the block. Don't believe all the hype though - in fact, they are normally marginally less efficient than fluorescent lights, so for most applications its not worth rushing out and changing over. They are also still relatively expensive in sizes that give enough light to be useful for general lighting - although they are coming down in price all the time.

They do have some specialised uses though. Many LED lights have tightly focused beams, so they can make excellent 'spots' to light up a particular area. And if you need a coloured light, using appropriate LEDs is going to be way better in energy efficiency terms than a coloured filter over a fluorescent or halogen lamp. Navigation lights on a yacht are therefore a very good use for LEDs.

LEDs are also small and compact, and can be very stylish.

Whether you go for fluorescents or LEDs, you should find you make massive energy savings compared to old low-voltage filament lights - so go ahead and make the switch!