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Sat Apr 24, 2010 10:33 am

Does anyone know of a source for exterior rope/tiki lights that I can plug into the 12-v power outlet and hang from my vans awning?
I've searched to no avail.....

Sat Apr 24, 2010 10:47 am

Try looking at those RV stores. Good luck

Sat Apr 24, 2010 1:09 pm

Hey: regular xmas lights (l.e.d probably best) will plug into an inverter to make your van standout,attract mating subjects,guide ufo's,etc. :wink:

Sat Apr 24, 2010 1:17 pm

I bought some of these they work pretty well.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ICE-FISHING-12-VOLT-battery-po...2eac80379d

Sat Apr 24, 2010 1:22 pm

Look up the lighting that Rocky Mountain Westy sells.

Tue Apr 27, 2010 10:42 am

check out this web site. I haven't used them, but it looks like what you might need.
www.superbrightleds.com

Tue Apr 27, 2010 11:22 am

This thread

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=408332&highlight=camping+lights

has some good ideas. I just ordered a set of these, thanks to a post from the aforementioned thread:

http://www.christmas-light-source.com/12-Volt-LED-Light-Set-Warm-White-Green-Wire_p_1566.html

They plug into a cigarette lighter outlet. I'll report back when they arrive and I get a chance to use them.

Tue Apr 27, 2010 11:38 am

Amazon has some interesting ones. :)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=sr_nr_i_1?rh=i...1272392694

Here's some christmas style 12v lights.

http://www.imaginarycolours.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=12vStrings

Search for "12 volt string lights" on the web and a lot comes up.

Tue Apr 27, 2010 4:26 pm

Google up "World Aglow", I buy all my Burning Man lighting from them, lot's of 12 Volt stuff

Tue Apr 27, 2010 4:43 pm

We just used off-the-shelf LED christmas lights plugged into an inverter. Very little power draw... No UFO's took notice though ;)

Wed May 19, 2010 8:31 am

These came in last week; very fast shipping:

http://www.christmas-light-source.com/12-Volt-LED-Light-Set-Warm-White-Green-Wire_p_1566.html

They give off a yellowish glow and are pretty bright. They appear to be well-made and the plug actually fits well in the original accessory outlet under the passenger's seat (the one on all Wolfsburg Westies.) I've had problems plugging in a few other accessories, namely phone chargers and and inverter, due to that outlet being more shallow than the one on the dash.

I bought two sets. Each set comes with a 15-foot removable extension before the lighted part begins. They're set up so that you can use one extension and run multiple lines of lights plugged in together in series.

I haven't used them anywhere other than my driveway yet, but at this point, they appear to be a good purchase. After I've beaten them to death over the summer, I'll let y'all know if they're still standing.

Wed May 19, 2010 9:31 am

I installed LED Christmas lights in my van a bit ago. Here is what I did.

I used warm white C6 LED string lights like these:
http://spectrumsuperstore.com/browse.ihtml?pid=744502&step=5&prodstoreid=9363
These strings lights come with a removable 12V DC cigarette lighter adapter. By removing the adapter you can plug them together end-to-end to form a longer string and using the cig adapter on the last string to power them all.

I made magnetic holders which can be moved around if need be but are strong enough to syncro around Hollister:

The clips are for LED rope lights and they are epoxied to a magnet:

Clips:
http://www.orangetreetrade.com/shop/2-wire-3/8%22/38heavy-duty-mounting-clips-screws-p-371.html

Magnets are 1/2" x 1/8" x 1/4" Ring where the hole is 1/8" and I got mine off ebay from magnet4us (you might need to special order them but mine were 20pcs for $10 plus $7.50sh):

The screws are just there so the epoxy has something to grab onto.

The magnetic clips grab the C6 LED lights nicely and are strong enough to mount in many, but not all, areas of the ceiling and any other ferrous materials:

I also used a 12V dimmer:

Kick KR6 dimmer these guys:
http://www.kicklighting.com/PWM-dimmer-switch-for-LED.htm

Mounted in the ashtray space:

I have about three strings which use between 6-362ma (4.34W max) from most dim to fully on.

I like that this system does not screw into the van itself and that they are not only movable but I can add on another string or two outside by just plugging them in. Hope that gives others some ideas.

Wed May 19, 2010 3:12 pm

I just purchased (literally 20 min. ago) 60 cool white led's, set up as a stand alone solar unit. Can be used anywhere, and moved around easily. $25 from home hardware no less! Should be just the thing, I'm going to set it all up with magnetic mounts, so it can go all over the interior, or stuck to the outside of the van as well.....

and no, I did'n steal the magnet idea from the previous post. I have EVERYTHING on magnets! Nothing you can't do with hot glue and magnets... :o

pics to come....

Wed May 19, 2010 3:56 pm

I had an 84 Westy Wolfsburg but I didn't have a 2nd 12V outlet. Interesting.

Thu Jun 24, 2010 5:12 pm

I don't think these light clips are UV rated as they have all broken in less than a month. I'm looking for nylon replacements.

Thu Jun 24, 2010 5:58 pm

The wife bought me two strings of the 12v christmas LED's for fathers day and they work great!!
I got a chance to try them out this week and though you wouldn't read
by them the certainly gave off enough light to brighten the campsite.

Thu Jun 24, 2010 6:23 pm

What would happen if you plug the household LED string lights directly into a 12 volt socket? Or regular incandescents? I have a few strings but my wife won't like it if I clip the AC plug off for experimentation.

Thu Jun 24, 2010 6:27 pm

You probably need the 12V inverted to 120V for the household lights to work.

Thu Jun 24, 2010 6:50 pm

I just tried a 12 volt jumper pack with some test leads. It won't light a normal 50 light set at all, and an 8-light tiki set just barely glows(both incandescent). I forgot about the shunts in the bulbs as well if that matters.
I won't even dream of going into the garage attic and looking for a string of LED's. I think they would have resistors wired in. I'd like to take a look but they are stored away. 12 vDC should be plenty to get a string of them going.

Thu Jun 24, 2010 10:21 pm

Party what?

Ikea $19.99