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Old 02-24-2016, 08:35 PM   #1
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LED bulbs popping the fuse?

The Hill Country HCT26RB is advertised to have full LEDs in the interior. Not the case -- the three bulbs over the dining table are 1141/1156 incandescent lights like the ones they used in cars and trucks for decades.

These same 1141/1156 incandescent bulbs were standard in my 2011 SOB 5th wheel and I replaced them all with the 1141/1156 LED bulbs. When I traded in the SOB, I pulled the LEDs and replaced them with the old bulbs I had pulled out.

So....thought I'd take the LEDs that I owned and know work well and put them into the dining table light. Immediately blew the 15 amp fuse. Thought maybe I did something wrong so I replaced the fuse and tried three different LEDs bulbs of the same type. Nope, blew the fuse again.

Why is this light fixture not accepting the LED bulbs?
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Old 02-25-2016, 06:38 AM   #2
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Maybe because it's wired for AC not DC?
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Old 02-25-2016, 06:55 AM   #3
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Nope, it's a DC circuit. Same circuit that powers the two LED lights over the sofa.
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Old 02-25-2016, 07:43 AM   #4
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The Leds don't use much current but maybe the base is somehow shorting out across the socket. As soon as you flip the switch it will blow the fuse
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Old 02-25-2016, 07:48 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lloyd View Post
Maybe because it's wired for AC not DC?
Quote:
Originally Posted by TxCowboy View Post
Nope, it's a DC circuit. Same circuit that powers the two LED lights over the sofa.

The reason I posted that was they use to place the only AC light fixture in the whole trailer--over the dinette.
Apparently that isn't the case any more.
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Old 02-25-2016, 07:55 AM   #6
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I was really surprised when I discovered these bulbs. I had to remove the lamp shade because the seam was facing the wrong way and you have to remove the bulbs to remove the shade. They are definitely the old style automotive 1141/1156 bulbs because I still have a package of them from my old Ford truck days. LOL

Still not sure why the LEDs aren't working or why they're popping that fuse. Not that it's a big deal but I really like these LEDs because of the quality of the light they produce, particularly over the dinette because my wife and I will be using that as our computer workstations.

I'm planning on more troubleshooting but I need to go buy another package of 15 amp fuses because I don't have any left now.
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Old 02-25-2016, 01:10 PM   #7
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Jeff,

If you find a solution please post back. I have the same fixture and would like to change the bulbs to LEDS as well, for the same reason, light quality.

Thanks much

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Old 02-25-2016, 01:30 PM   #8
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why not try swapping the leds in another fixture with the 1156's . Or could be something that happened when you took the shade off . Could be a crossed wire in the fixture.....you know how they assemble these elec appliances..hard to get it right when you are working 100 mph.
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Old 02-25-2016, 02:06 PM   #9
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Harley, good advice. At this point, I've only found that the dinette lamp has 1141 bulbs. Everything else in the RV appears to have LED bulbs.

And short of replacing the lamp assembly, there's really not much I can do. I'm not electrically inclined so troubleshooting electrical connections and/or rewiring the lamp isn't something I know how to do.

Just strikes me a "strange" that, in my 2011 SOB 5th wheel, I had 100% success upgrading the 1141 lights to LED on the first try. Fast forward to five years later and my new TT is blowing fuses when I'm trying to do the same thing.

But there's a lot I don't know about 12vDC current.
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Old 02-25-2016, 06:10 PM   #10
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Is the lamp shade connected to the socket in any way? Have you tried turning it back around?
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Old 02-28-2016, 06:58 PM   #11
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LED's ( lite emitting diode) are polarity sensitive, If you reverse the polarity on an LED it will act like a direct short.
An incondest buld does not care which direction the current is flowing.
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Old 02-28-2016, 07:28 PM   #12
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Quote:
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LED's ( lite emitting diode) are polarity sensitive, If you reverse the polarity on an LED it will act like a direct short.
An incondest buld does not care which direction the current is flowing.
So how can you tell which way to put it in?
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Old 02-28-2016, 09:43 PM   #13
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light bulb trouble

New to this forum.

We blew 3 fuses also when trying to swap some LED bulbs in our dinette light fixture. Turns out we ordered the correct shape bulb but the ones we got (1156) had a single contact base and the incandescent bulbs we were replacing are double contact base (1076). We're pretty sure that caused the blown fuses. We only tried 2 of the new bulbs because we thought we might have a bad one.

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Old 02-29-2016, 04:53 AM   #14
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Quote:
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LED's ( lite emitting diode) are polarity sensitive, If you reverse the polarity on an LED it will act like a direct short.
An incondest buld does not care which direction the current is flowing.
As an electrical engineer, in fact one that worked with LEDs beginning in the '70s, I can tell you that you are wrong on your conclusion. They will never act like a direct short. When hooked up correctly, they have a voltage drop of around 0.7 volts and will draw minimal current to emit light. If wired backwards, they have near infinite resistance and will draw no current. Now, the additional circuitry that is used might cause a problem, but even that is unlikely, since in many cases, that circuitry is specifically designed to automatically switch polarity if the bulb is wired backwards.
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Old 02-29-2016, 08:43 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KampKoda View Post
We blew 3 fuses also when trying to swap some LED bulbs in our dinette light fixture. Turns out we ordered the correct shape bulb but the ones we got (1156) had a single contact base and the incandescent bulbs we were replacing are double contact base (1076). We're pretty sure that caused the blown fuses. We only tried 2 of the new bulbs because we thought we might have a bad one.
Since you're having the issue with your dinette light as well, maybe it's something unique with that light fixture.

Like I mentioned in the OP, I replaced almost two dozen 1141/1156 bulbs in my old fifth wheel with these LEDs (pulled the LEDs when we traded the FW in) and they all worked so why this specific light fixture won't accept the same LED bulb is puzzling to me.
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Auggie (our beer-loving English Cocker Spaniel)
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Our home base -- 2018 Grand Design Solitude 375RES -- The "Uno Mas!"
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Old 02-29-2016, 12:06 PM   #16
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maybe like one poster said, the polarity issue. take the fixture down and switch wires going to unit. wont hurt.
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Old 02-29-2016, 01:25 PM   #17
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^^^^ Future weekend project with a couple of cold ones.
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Angus (55 pounds of attitude in a 5 pound chihuahua body)

Our home base -- 2018 Grand Design Solitude 375RES -- The "Uno Mas!"
The mobile office -- 2016 Crossroads Hill Country HCT26RB -- The "Poquito Mas!"
Gone but not forgotten: 2015 Heartland Landmark 365 Key West (lost to Hurricane Harvey)
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Old 03-01-2016, 10:01 AM   #18
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Talking

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^^^^ Future weekend project with a couple of cold ones.
Will have to be a really short weekend or some huge drinks to surround that project.
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