# Lighting Upgrades for Eastvale, California > LED conversion, task and accent lighting, dimming and switching rework for RV interiors, exteriors and storage bays. Source: https://ocrv.info/services/interior-and-remodeling/lighting-upgrades Lighting upgrades replace incandescent and fluorescent fixtures with twelve volt LED lighting, add task and accent lighting where it is needed, and rework switching and dimming. The work reduces battery draw substantially, eliminates heat from fixtures, and lets an interior be lit for how it is actually used rather than how it was wired at the factory. ## Pricing Range $250 to $2,500. Labor band 1 to 10 hours. Performed in shop at 23281 La Palma Ave, Yorba Linda, CA 92887. Converting a coach to LED lighting is the single best return on investment in twelve volt systems. An older motorhome running incandescent fixtures throughout can easily draw eight or ten amps with the interior lit, and that same interior on LED draws well under two. For anyone who spends time off shore power, that difference is the margin between running the generator in the evening and not needing to. The heat reduction matters almost as much. Incandescent fixtures in a coach put their heat directly into a small insulated space, and the fixtures themselves get hot enough to discolor the lenses and, in a few designs, scorch the ceiling panel around them. Fluorescent tubes avoid the heat but bring a color temperature that most people find unpleasant and a ballast that eventually hums or fails. The upgrade opportunity that gets overlooked is layout. Factory lighting is placed to satisfy a specification, not to light a galley counter where somebody is chopping vegetables or a reading position in a recliner. With fixtures being changed anyway, moving a few and adding task lighting under cabinets and accent lighting in a valance makes a coach feel considerably larger and more comfortable at night. ## What brings this in - Interior lights dimming batteries quickly overnight - Fixtures hot to the touch after an hour - Yellowed or scorched lens covers - Fluorescent tubes flickering or humming - Dark work areas on the galley counter - No switch at the bed for the last light off - Mismatched color temperature between fixtures ## How much power does an LED conversion actually save? A typical incandescent coach fixture draws somewhere between one and two amps. Its LED equivalent draws roughly a tenth of that at comparable output. Multiply across the twelve to twenty fixtures in a coach and the arithmetic is dramatic. An evening with the interior lit that used to consume forty or fifty amp hours from the battery bank consumes closer to five, which changes what a given battery bank can actually do. For owners with solar, the conversion effectively increases the size of their array without adding a panel, because the reduced load means the same harvest covers more of the day. For owners without solar, it means fewer generator hours and less deep cycling of the batteries, which extends battery service life. It is one of the few upgrades where the operational benefit is immediately obvious the first night out. Owners regularly describe it as the best money they spent that year. - Roughly a tenth of the draw per fixture compared to incandescent - Meaningful reduction in generator run time when dry camping - Less deep cycling extends battery bank service life - Lower interior heat load from fixtures in summer - Existing wiring almost always adequate for the reduced load ## How do you avoid the harsh LED look? Color temperature and quality are where cheap LED conversions go wrong. Bulk replacement bulbs sold at low prices are typically around five thousand kelvin, which reads blue and clinical, and they often have poor color rendering so food and wood finishes look wrong. Specifying warm white in the twenty seven hundred to three thousand kelvin range with a good rendering index gives light that feels like the fixtures it replaced, only better. Diffusion matters too. A bare LED array behind a clear lens produces visible hot spots and glare, especially at eye level in a small space. Fixtures with proper diffusers, or replacement panels rather than drop-in bulbs, spread the light evenly. Where a fixture cannot be made to look right, replacing the whole fixture with a modern low profile unit is often cheaper than fighting the original. Modern fixtures are also thinner, which matters under low overhead cabinets. ## What lighting is worth adding during the conversion? Under-cabinet task lighting in the galley is the first addition almost everyone appreciates, because the factory ceiling fixture puts your own shadow on the counter you are working at. A dimmable strip under the upper cabinets solves it. Reading lights at seating positions and at the head of the bed are the second, and swing arm fixtures with individual switches beat a shared ceiling light for anyone sharing a coach. Beyond task lighting, accent lighting in valances and toe kicks gives a low level option for evenings that does not require lighting the whole coach. Storage bay lighting on a switch or a door contact makes finding things at night far easier. Exterior lighting at the entry and under an awning, wired to interior switches, rounds out the list and all of it runs on very little power once the system is LED. - Dimmable under-cabinet strips for galley task lighting - Individual reading lights at seating and bed positions - Valance and toe kick accent lighting for low level evenings - Bay lighting on a switch or door contact - Entry and awning lighting controlled from inside ## What about dimming and switching? Dimming twelve volt LED requires compatible components. A household style dimmer will not work, and a standard pulse width modulation dimmer paired with a non-dimmable LED produces flicker or buzz. The fixture and the dimmer have to be specified together. When they are, the result is genuinely useful, since a coach interior at full brightness is more light than anyone wants after dark. Dimming also cuts draw further, which helps when the batteries are working. Switching layout deserves attention while the work is happening. Coaches commonly have a bank of switches by the door controlling fixtures in no discernible order, and no switch at the bed for the light you want to turn off last. Adding three-way switching at the entry and the bedroom, or moving to a simple control panel, is straightforward while fixtures are being changed and irritating to retrofit later. Switch positions get decided by walking the coach with you, not on paper. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can I just buy LED bulbs and swap them myself? For simple bayonet and wedge base fixtures, often yes, and plenty of owners do. Where it goes wrong is color temperature, since inexpensive bulbs tend to be harsh and blue, and diffusion, since a bare LED array behind a clear lens glares. Also watch for radio interference from cheap drivers, which shows up as noise on the radio or on a backup camera. ### Will my existing wiring handle new lighting? Almost always, because LED draws a fraction of what the original fixtures did. The wiring was sized for the higher load. What we do check is the condition of the existing runs, since older coaches sometimes have brittle insulation or corroded connections at fixture boxes. Those get corrected during the conversion rather than left as a problem waiting behind a new fixture. ### Can you install dimmers throughout? Yes, with matched components. Twelve volt LED dimming requires a dimmer and fixtures designed to work together, otherwise you get flicker or buzz. We specify them as a pair. Dimming is most valuable in the main living area and under the galley cabinets, and most owners find they leave the coach dimmed most evenings once they have the option. ### Is LED lighting worth it if I am always on shore power? The power savings matter less, but the other benefits still apply. Less heat in the coach on a summer evening, no more discolored lenses, better color quality, no fluorescent hum, and the chance to fix a lighting layout that never worked well. It is a smaller argument than for a dry camper, though most owners on shore power still find it worthwhile. ### How long does a lighting conversion take? A straight bulb-for-bulb conversion is often a same-visit or one to two day job. Adding task and accent lighting, rewiring switch locations and installing dimmers moves it into the three to eight day range depending on how much access is needed. Doing it during other interior work is efficient since panels may already be off. --- OCRV Center. 23281 La Palma Ave, Yorba Linda, CA 92887. (949) 799-3387. info@ocrvcenter.com. Serving Eastvale, California in Riverside County, about 20 miles from the shop. All work is performed in shop at the Yorba Linda facility. No mobile, roadside or on-site service is offered. Scope is body, paint, structural, fiberglass, interior and vehicle systems work. Engine rebuilds, transmission rebuilds, drivetrain work, DOT inspections and emission testing are not performed.