underwater LED question
 

Hey guys ... this is for the ones who have LEDs or have been on a boat with them. I just installed the Dagon 5150 transom mount LEDs on my Moomba Mojo. They are rated at 8000 Lumens per light ... so 16K TOTAL. Should be TONNES of light.

http://boatpluglight.com/products/dagon-5150

Floating without bags filled they are pretty bright. Surfing with the 1100s filled and listed makes almost no light on the wave whatsoever. All we really see is the prop wash right at the beginning of the wave. I think it is because the back of the boat is pointed down into the water with the surf weight so the lights aren't really hitting the surface ... they are pointing down into the lake.

Anyone have any experience with these lights or others? Pretty choked up right now.

I can let you know soon, I have a set mounted to my 24Ve, just have not wired them yet. Did you install a relay with them?

This makes me a little nervous as my transom is angled so the lights are pointed slighly downward into the water.

Yeah my transom is angled as well ...

One thing I did just notice is that the installer put the LED lights quite close together. Check out the pic. Where does everyone else have theirs mounted? I would assume wider would be better when it comes to surf.

https://s32.postimg.org/4ij0seutx/Full_Size_Render.jpg

Here's a pic of what it looks like @ night

https://s31.postimg.org/hysyr677f/IMG_1018.png

I would agree that the lights being narrow will work against you opposed to being further apart. Like you said, they go directly in to the prop wash. If they were out to the sides more when listed the low side would light the curl more. The high side would then light the surface of the water more.

I don't have transom lights but I would think to a degree that wider would be better. Part of the issue can just be access to mount and run wires to decide placement.

Those do seem awfully close together. I would also think the prop wash is definitely messing with the amount of light you see.

Attachment 41327

Damnnnn ... those are way wider. How is the light dispersement for surfing?

Like I said I dont have them wired up yet. I wont have a chance to use them till the middle of the month unless I can get them wired up sometime before the 4th here. I will be sure to come back here and post pictures of my results for your comparison.

ouch

if you're dis-satisfied with them because of the angle they're pointing in the water when you've got the boat slammed, then get some spacers or shims and change the angle. It's not the light's fault where they're pointed. it's the installation, and if you want it better for your application, modify your install.

more bow weight?

I'm thinking a wedge shaped shim under each light so that they're angled somewhat upward at rest and more level when sacked out for surfing.

Ok so just looked at your link. I personally think you got what you paid for. $199 a light is cheap. Lumens is not what you go buy when shopping led LED lights. Lots of threads on here that explain that. When shopping leds you look at amp draw its the best way of judging how bright the light will be. Look at the big players like shadowcaster ,lumatec, or lifefourm all list amp draw if it's not listed there is usually a reason for that.

Where is the light then? non surf side, above the water/in the air? getting hot and rolling back output due to lack of water cooling?

They are close, but not sure your boat would allow for much better. Outside the platform brackets put them somewhat behind the tabs.

@Trayson - yeah that is what we are looking at doing. These guys knew all along we were slamming it for surfing and didn't once mention anything about adding that to the install for the surfing application. Just that they were amazing lights for what I wanted to do. Would have been nice to know as now I have to haul it back out to him and have it redone.

@Harold - good to know ... I'll be switching them out for the Lifeforms next spring. If anyone is going to spend the $$ might as well do it right the first time. I obviously didn't do my research enough before buying and just took the sellers word for it.

Don't worry I did the same thing a couple boats back LOL Why not just get them to give you a price break and install one more set ?? Mount them low between the exhaust and swim platform bracket

Do you surf listed or with your surf system??

So whats the theory behind swapping out to a different brand of LEDs

Mike I agree new lights in the same location will not help they are mounted right above the trim plate so they are out of the water underway and will just shine.on the prop wash .

Just add another pair.

Yep I would bet money they are out of the water underway. They are mounted right above your trim tab. The trim tab makes adjustments pushing on the surface of the water or by changing the angle water flows off the bottom of the boat so they are just lighting up the prop wash. How do they look at rest??

Dammmmn ... they look pretty decent at rest. Not as great as I thought but they are alright. The light really only goes out double the distance of the swim platform.

http://i.imgur.com/TmuFfCN.jpg





So I know that these LEDs are never supposed to be on out of the water ... 5-10seconds max. Is that going to be a problem if they are on and they aren't actually in the water?

If they are as bright at claimed, which i doubt, then yes, out of the water can be an issue without some form of thermal protection.

I also bought a Vega but it was DOA. Im not impressed with BOATPLUGLIGHT.COM email responses either. Im going to try the 100w light from firewatermarine.com next. Im starting to think longterm the BOATPLULIGHTs aluminium plug in a brass receptacle is probably a recipe for seriously stuck.

I have reviewed the text messages from black.. one of the guys that works for us was replying to his text. What you don't see is all the threats he was making previous these texts. You can see his derogatory remarks even on the screen shots he posted here.

We have not encountered problems before with these 3 way YKNOT lights, not fitting certain boats. We did recommend the yknot to him based on what we had recommended in the past. We offered him a full refund on the purchase.. multiple times. He is extremely antagonist based on what I read and our employee had enough.

In response to his "issue" the back of a MOJO is angled... when you get the nose of the boat almost at a 40 degree angle. How on earth will that light up a wake? It's facing straight down. Our recommendations, for everyone that asks... we tell them to mount them as far apart as possible and 8" below the water line. Not everyone asks. They just buy.. we sell hundreds of these Dagons a week.. no one ever complains about them.

Go to our Facebook page, our respone to questions is 100% immediate response.. we have 53000 likes and thousands of positive comments, posts and all are our customers with their lights. Our ebay feedback has over 3360 positive feedback. Our amazon account has a 98% positive comments. You can't get any better than that and it proves we take care of our customers.

As far as the "DOA" Vega... we have 6 requests we sent to him to please send it back if it didn't work, we would test it, repair it or replace it. He filed a credit card dispute because we wouldn't send him another one first? How is that rational? We have no idea if the original didn't work nor could we trust him to send it back to us? Additionally we sell solid bronze and brass lights as well.. we are the number one selling underwater drain plug light company that exists. We take care of our customers. That is the bottom line.. and MADE IN THE U.S.A.

If anyone wants specs on our lights.. just ask. We will provide it.

I dont think they actually read customer emails and/or lie for no apparent reason...I have similar unprofessional emails and txts from these guys(boatpluglight.com) but without the death threats so far. I requested to put a full deposit on a replacement unit in hopes to swap and resolve quickly. I lost my brass plug when installing the defective light - the oil drain tube chain broke and plug dropped in the lake. I was willing to tie up $200 to keep the boat operational and it was my mistake dropping the plug. These guys clearly dont want to deal with having a dead light back, they only want to repair it. After weeks of slow responses, I requested a RMA and refund after return though paypal, not a "credit card dispute".

I have since found another 100w/8000lm light made of BRASS for cheaper. This one also has disconnects on the wiring which will be nice for oil changes. : https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This one is from Kentucky, with out the MADE IN 'MERICA texas sized attitude.

^^^^^This is the guy we replied to 6x (above comment) about the "doa vega" ^^^^^^^^

To the op. Your lights are mounted way to close and are right in the deepest part of the prop wash. They won't reflect. Even when listed they will still be buried in the water. The ideal place is spread wide and just below the water line I mean just below. Then when on plane or at speeds the light is at the surface.



I don't care who is in the right or who is in the wrong here or what started it...........Any business that talks to customers this way shouldn't be a business. End of story. The he started it excuse is about as childish as it gets.


Glad I went with a different company with a little more coin.

How many companies can you text or call anytime of day and weekends to try and help with an issue? This guy sent about 30 text of threats and vulgarity until he got what he wanted (a frustrated response) He was texting stating, after he finally got the response he was looking for, that he did it so he could put it on the forums.

We use text to send pictures of customer questions / concerns. It's a useful tool. Since I have taken the time to get involved in this post. I figure why not state our side if the story... its not "who started it" he started... and would not stop... sounds ridiculous but that's what happened. When your replying to multiple text and you have someone calling you every name in the book over and over.. it gets old..

@swatguy - thanks for the info. Given my picture above where would you suggest installing? I don't really have many options from what I can see?

Check out oceanled.com, they have some nice stuff. Super pricey but really nice stuff. Should have my install done shortly.

wow.. Ti tt le defends his douchebag salesman.... it gets old???

Where in Texas are you, I'd like to pick mine up in person.

Just wanted to give everyone an update on this situation. Gerry and I were able to connect over the phone and come to a satisfactory resolution for both parties. Everyone know thats texting and email are not a great tool for communication ... nothing can or will replace a good ol' man to man convo on the telephone. Gerry knew where I was coming from and we are now in the process of making the boat a bad ass night surf machine. I am sure I will be reporting back in the next week or so happier then a pig in **** :D

I was in a difficult spot with this deal. It has never happened before. However, I have contacted Mr. Black on the phone and made him aware of the fact that the employee that replied to his text messages won't be interacting with our customers ever again. This was an unfortunate turn of events and I want everyone to know that all of us at BoatPlugLight.com are committed to being the best out there. We have been blessed with a great business and great customers. Our ultimate goal, as with all of our customers, is to get their boat to a point that they will be happy with it. I am sure Mr. Blacks will be there soon.

Was there an option to order the stock lights that come with Moomba? Here's my old Craz and in decent but not clear water. For the price they're decent lights...

https://scontent.fsnc1-1.fna.fbcdn.n...cd&oe=57F6A77F

FWIW, I bought from boatpluglight.com and am a happy customer. All brass, much brighter than the eBay special plug light I previously had. And I didn't have to drill a hole in my boat.

@DTFR - wow those are the stock Craz lights? Pretty impressed ...

Same thing I said... WOW. Pretty sure my Supra will come with the same ones.

I have Boatpluglight as well it works just ok when swimming and bathing on my sanger that sits super low . When the boat is planed out they work very well for such a small light .
My buddy has one on his older supra and its above the trim plate which actually makes it work better when just swimming behind the boat it even works decent on plane .

My other buddy has 2 plugs in his malibu skier and it looks really good on plane with lights in both plug holes .That boat is really shallow and throws a lot of light .

I cant lie I want more for my Sanger . Something with much more light .

Tige underwater
 

Well I Think your transom are a little bit close :s . Mine came stock on my '16 tige and they are really great. The led's are really bright white and i think it cover larger because they are wider. They are not angled neither and they light well when im fully ballasted with my 900's each side.

This is mine, cool blue & price is nice, $123.98 each

https://www.imarineled.com/27w-1800-...oat-light.html

Did you and William G get yours together in a group buy? He posted in 4 threads this morning on another site, posting the same link.

I'm considering a pair of these: http://lumiteclighting.com/product/s...ication=marine

A bit pricey for something I won't use often, but there are times it would be nice. 4000 lumens is a lot, and the $/lumen seems good. I wouldn't want to go through the effort to install lights and have them be inadequate or disappointing. I see a lot of people have blue lights, but I worry about the legality of blue, red, or green so I would go with white.

It’s my second pair of lumitec. Just loved them.
I take the seablaze3 model instead. Plenty enough for me even when night surfing. (Mix with my tower light it’s perfect)
Lake water here is pretty clear and calm tho.
First was white and it came a bit yellow in the water. Really prefer the blue one. And the intensity difference is not very noticeable. Just much more beautiful.

I found lumitec the best price/lumens. Because you can’t really compares lumens it’s false facts. You got to take a look at watts that gonna give you the real intensity.

The best bang for the buck are liquid lumens but they use a transfo and I’m not so sure about that.
Life Form too.
But these 2 brand are not shipped to Canada so shipping rates are crazy instead of lumitec who have dealerships here. Took a huge deal on Amazon last winter, 38% less, it was a no brainer.

Regardless of which brand you go with, I wouldn’t worry one bit about the legality of them. I have never heard of anyone being haggled at all about their underwater lights. I’ve actually heard LEOs here in Austin say they like them as they offer more visibility for other boaters. Their only complaint was if they are mounted too high. So when on plane they shine out of the water and potentially blind someone behind you.

IMO blue seems to be the most popular because it’s the second brightest behind white and makes the water look “pretty” and inviting. Unlike white which while the brightest, will also amplify the colors of the water your in. In the Caribbean this would be awesome. In a cloudy river your light is now brownish green.

Jeremy,

Isnt it cool to know that your profile picture as well as your last pic posted above are being used by imarineled.com's Amazon sales add?

Its also cool that those pics are of two difference boats.

:rolleyes: