Key Aspects to Look out for in LED Lightbars
The LED lightbars are highly energy efficient, cost effective and effective lighting solutions that one can find today. To ensure you purchase the best ones from the available variety, learn about certain aspects to look out for when shopping for them.
While purchasing your LED lightbars whether for decorative lighting or for emergency vehicle lighting, it is a good idea to check the various parameters to find out what you can expect from your light bar. For example, the fact that the light bars use light emitting diodes means that you can get greater cost effectiveness and value for money. This is because LEDs usually consume less energy for similar output compared to halogen or xenon lights. LED lights are cheaper and they also provide you about 50,000 hours of lighting activity, which is rarely seen in other light sources. If your LED modules use Generation III LEDs, you can be all the more confident about the quality of your lighting and its reliability.
When you are comparing LED lightbars, check for the available flash patterns. The number of flash patterns could vary from half a dozen to more than couple of dozen. Apart from the number of inbuilt flash patterns, the ease with which you can toggle from one pattern to another is also important. This is because at the time of emergency you should be able to alter the number of flashes per minute or use special sequences to send cautionary messages to other vehicles following your cue. The housing is another important attribute. High quality light bars usually have extruded aluminum casing for better heat dissipation. High quality lenses are generally made of polycarbonate and are long lasting.
The mount type is another attribute that you should check in the LED lightbars. Mounting can be permanent or temporary. You will come across different mounting mechanisms including magnetic mounting, bolt fixing and swivel bracket mounting. Some light bars have special mounting hardware for installing the lights on the front, side or rear portion of the vehicles. In spite of the mounting hardware and the LED modules configured together, you must make sure that the LED light bars weigh below 10 – 20 pounds. If they are too heavy then their portability will become affected.
The power supply used by the LED lightbars is another parameter you would want to check. 12V and 24V DC power supplies are mostly used. You will find power ports with internal fuse and protection against short circuiting, high voltage and reverse polarity issues. Sometimes, a 12V cigarette lighter plug is used for connecting. The kit also includes 10 – 20 ft power cables and interconnecting wires for easy and flexible installation. The warranty varies from one manufacturer to another and often is a good indicator of the quality of your product. For example, the warranty for some light bars could be just 3 months, while in some cases you might get extended warranty for up to 5 years. Sometimes you get warranty which includes only free servicing. You have to note that depending on the construction and materials used, some light bars are virtually maintenance free. Sophisticated light bars might also come with expensive spare parts and accessories in which case it could be difficult finding replacement for malfunctioning components.
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