Marathon - New LED lights

The north mooring field - for the first time, a few empty moorings

Interior lighting has changed a lot since I bought Fleetwing back in 2004. The boat came equipped with halogen lights everywhere. They were bright but ran very hot. The reading lights were metal fixtures and they came with a warning sign that they would be very hot to the touch. In fact, I found that half of the fixtures had cracked from the heat build up - and they were made of metal!

LED started coming into their own several years ago and I converted over then. the first to go was the anchor light that used to consume 10 watts over night, it added up. The LED which replaced it consumed 1/3 as much and was actually brighter! The first generation of the inside LEDs had a distinct bluish cast, even the ones labeled as "warm white". I recent bought a new set to go in additional fixtures I had bought and found that not only were they brighter (more than even the halogens) but the light was warmer, just like the color of the halogens that first came with the boat. And, they don't get hot and cause the fixture to crack. The kind of LEDs I bought have the chips exposed, no lenses, so the light is very even, no hot spots.

Our evening entertainment - a sunset

So I spent most of the day installing the new LED lights. For Ann I installed LED fixtures that look like fluorescents but are actually rows of LEDs, much more efficient and even more light, good for kitchen work. Ann prepared thighs tonight (with all the good light!) and I was stuffed. She painted in pastels most of the day in the cockpit, very pleasant weather.