Adding good Area/Work Lights - What do you use/suggest?

[rontaki]

A,B or C?

Hard to find UVC LEDs, especially powerful ones. Besides, UVC is probably harmful to insects.
Most UV LEDS probably make both A and B, so would cover both bases.
A warm-spectrum visible LED light probably attracts insects a lot less than the bluer/cold ones.

Side-fact: White light LEDs are really high-frequency blue with a phosphor to convert that into "white" light, much like fluorescent lights do. The color of the white light depends a lot on the phosphor used. The blue light that does not get converted is what attracts insects and makes some things appear especially bright. Many laundry detergents have some UV dyes in them to make your clothes appear to be "whiter than white", as does office paper.

 

[TCowner]

I think we all have the same problem with the front end loader blocking the lights. John Deere, and I'm sure others as well, offer loader mounted lights as an option on their bigger ag tractors. I've been thinking of trying to add a set of lights like on this tractor.

 

[jigs_n_fixtures]

Better LED assemblies don't produce much of the UV which attracts insects. And they do make UV a/b bulbs specifically for attracting insects.

 

[I Piddle]

The lights I mounted aren't that high of a wattage since they are LEDS. Probably less than 15 watts each so less than 4 amps total. I used 14gauge wire because it's what I happened to have handy, smaller gauge would have sufficed. The method to wire the lights to power depends on wants and needs.

1) Constant power - If you want to use the lights for some reason when the tractor is off then wiring to constant power with proper fuse protection. Add a switch so they can be turned off. The problem is if you leave them on by accident...

2) Basic switched power - If you want the aux lights to only operate when the tractor is running then you could locate an existing ignition based power circuit with a high enough amp rating and tap into it and add a switch to turn them off when not needed. (this is what I did)

3) Relay powered - There can be a few different advantages to using a relay. If you want the aux lights to be controlled by the head light circuit for example you could power the lights with a relay to the battery and use the headlight circuit to trigger the relay and they would turn on whenever the headlights turned on. Add a switch to the trigger circuit and you add another level of control so they can be turned off, but they will still only turn on if the headlights are already on. Or you could use any other power circuit of your choice to trigger the relay. It doesn't need to be a high power circuit since it is only acting as a trigger for the relay.

I'd guess there are a metric ton of DIY diagrams on the internet showing basic wiring options. Key points to remember is all power MUST be properly fused. That's your get out of jail free card from burning up your tractor from mistakes during install or wiring related shorts in the future.

Thanks for the info. Helped me a lot in determining how I decide to wire the lights. One of my primary concerns was wire gauge. I had an extension cord lying around with one plug broke off. I thought I might be able to use that. I was thinking I could use two strands. I am not positive, but I think it is 16-gauge, three-wire. I suppose I could use all three wires if need be, as the ground for the light would be to the frame. The total run for the wires would be less 6 or 7 feet. I can hear the comments now. "Do it right." Thanks again.

 

[chim]

There aren't many requirements for tractor light wiring. As long as the wire is large enough for the load and has overcurrent protection and isn't subjected to excessive wear the rest is just for aesthetics. I'm not aware of any wire that isn't insulated for more than the 12V it'll see.

 

[prairiegirl]

All,
I need to add lights to my tractor - Kubota LX2620, ROPS. My intent is to get 360deg of lighting so I can see well around be when I'm working. The OEM headlights are blocked by the loader and loads so they don't help much, but they do offer good lighting when they are able to shine through.

Thoughts?

My intent is to have many lights wired in sets - front, rear, sides - so I can turn them on and off as needed/as work conditions require.

we put an LED light bar on the turnover protection bar. (sorry, the right term escapes me for a moment). Put another one on the back and you would have 360.

 

[D&D]

we put an LED light bar on the turnover protection bar. (sorry, the right term escapes me for a moment). Put another one on the back and you would have 360.

Or you could use one like this that has 360 lighting

33” Razor Extreme LED Lightbar|LED LIGHT BARS|LED Outfitters

LED outfitters is your online source for all LED products. Check out our 30” Razor Extreme LED Lightbar

ledoutfitters.com

 

[Oaktree]

The "wattage" of led lamp assemblies is greatly exaggerated. When I put lights on my tiny truck, I sized wiring, switches, fuses and relays based on the "wattage" of the lamps. When I got the whole thing together and actually used a DC ammeter to discover the lights were only pulling about a fourth of the "wattage".

I'm thinking this is more of a marketing thing, a wattage equivalent so to speak, much like LED light bulbs used in the home. Almost no one thinks in terms of lumens.

Side-fact: White light LEDs are really high-frequency blue with a phosphor to convert that into "white" light, much like fluorescent lights do. The color of the white light depends a lot on the phosphor used.

Learned that the hard way. Thought it would be a good idea to replace the third brake light bulb on a previous vehicle with LEDs. Turns out, the "white" LED had almost no red component to them, so no light passed thru the red lens.

 

[dnw64]

All,
I need to add lights to my tractor - Kubota LX2620, ROPS. My intent is to get 360deg of lighting so I can see well around be when I'm working. The OEM headlights are blocked by the loader and loads so they don't help much, but they do offer good lighting when they are able to shine through.

Thoughts?

My intent is to have many lights wired in sets - front, rear, sides - so I can turn them on and off as needed/as work conditions require.

Key points:

Lumens
Beam spread (vertical and horizontal)

There are a billion or more combinations. It's nowhere near rocket science.

First off, see what lumens your existing headlights have, and approximate the beam spread. Is it sufficient? If so, that's your starting point. Want more light, more width, more height? You have a baseline.

One thing you almost certainly don't have to worry about with LED is power draw. I would probably go at least one step higher than you think you "need"/want.

 

[crazyjake8493]

On my ROPS I added a cheap LED bar facing forward and two small square LED's facing rearward.

Then I added a soft cab so the forward facing light is mostly blocked, so I need to fabricate a way to mount the LED bar in front of the cab for winter. No good way to mount it to the soft cab without putting a hole in the fabric.

 

[rontaki]

On my ROPS I added a cheap LED bar facing forward and two small square LED's facing rearward.

Then I added a soft cab so the forward facing light is mostly blocked, so I need to fabricate a way to mount the LED bar in front of the cab for winter. No good way to mount it to the soft cab without putting a hole in the fabric.

As for mounting lights on the soft cab, one idea is to attach (glue?) magnets or a steel plate that is thick enough for the job to the lights, and strong (neodymium) magnets on the other side of the fabric, or vice-versa.
One good source of magnets that I recommend is: Strong Rare Earth Neodymium Magnet Supplier | Low Prices - Fast Shipping - Huge Inventory | K&J Magnetics

 

[crazyjake8493]

As for mounting lights on the soft cab, one idea is to attach (glue?) magnets or a steel plate that is thick enough for the job to the lights, and strong (neodymium) magnets on the other side of the fabric, or vice-versa.
One good source of magnets that I recommend is: Strong Rare Earth Neodymium Magnet Supplier | Low Prices - Fast Shipping - Huge Inventory | K&J Magnetics

That could work. My other idea was something that mounts to the loader arms on each side and goes up across in front of the cab, like an upside down "U".

The cab frame is only 1/2" EMT so it's not the most sturdy, but maybe I'll try something with magnets before proceeding.