Lighting Up the Blackwatch

Nowhere has there been more advancements in the marine industry in the last five years than in marine lighting. LED’s and underwater lighting have been the rage in recent years.

LED lighting offers longer lifetimes. LED lights are estimated to last around 40,000 to 50,000 hours, whereas fluorescent lamps are rated 10,000 to 15,000 hours and incandescent bulbs are rated 1,000 to 2,000 hours. These lights produce more light per watt than incandescent and halogen bulbs, making them an eco-friendly lighting solution too. LEDs do not suffer from vibrations or shocks that would damage traditional sources, and in the marine environment, when you’re cruising at 30 knots in 3-footers there is going to be some shock and vibration.

Underwater lighting is another area that has seen tremendous growth in recent years. Initially, these lights were designed to attract squid and baitfish in offshore fishing situations, and I have to admit they look pretty cool at the dock too. I’m looking forward to getting the boat in the water by April this year as our dock space is near the entrance to Falmouth Harbor. In the spring the squid come into the mouth of the harbor at night, and I’m looking forward to catching the squid I’ll be using later in the season out in the canyons when we put those same lights to good use.

Here’s some of the lighting products I chose for our project:

Illumadeck

These compact LED lights were just what I was looking for. Under the new hardtop we needed, I was hoping to put both red and white lighting for the helm area. If you fish at night in a boat, you know how blinding and disorienting a white light can be. Red lights allow you to see without the blinding effect when you turn them off. That being said you also have times back at the dock when you’ll need that bright white light too. Illumadeck offers compact LED lights that would allow me to switch between red and white lights as needed. The “EYE,” as they call it, is a powerful 1-inch diameter LED, while the EYE mini LED will surprise you with its .4-inch compact yet powerful lighting ability. It would be almost impossible not to find a use for either light. With 12VDC direct connect and no additional power drivers, installation is a snap. In marine applications you can use them in live wells, consoles, cabins, or anywhere low-power lighting is desired. Each of the EYE lights draw only 10 milliamps of current, so battery power is not an issue.

Shadow-Caster Under Water Lighting

These are high-intensity underwater LED lights that provide light output of over 2000 lumens while keeping power consumption low with a current draw of only 3.5 amps at 12 volts.

There were no extra modules to install, as the light was entirely self contained. One of the most attractive things to me was the surface mounting; the SC-10 model needs no major hull penetration below the waterline, only two mounting screws and a small hole for the wire. Other lights I looked at in some cases had to have 2-inch holes drilled through the transom. The Shadow-Caster is made of rugged 316 stainless steel and polycarbonate housing designed by engineers with years of experience in military product design. The LED is shock and vibration resistant, which is important because of where they sit in relation to the prop wash. Stainless steel bezel prevents any damage to the light during installation. The light can actually flex to conform to up to 3/16-inch hull curvature over the length of the light, which was nice because the transom of the Black Watch does have a slight curve.

ITT Jabsco Flush Mount Halogen Floodlight

ITT Jabsco was really helpful with this project, and from pumps to lighting, they were great to work with. Another company with ties to the Northeast, ITT’s Jabsco/Rule marine division is right in Gloucester, Massachusetts. With our new cored hardtop featuring a molded area to mount spreader lights to illuminate the cockpit, the ITT Jabsco Flush Mount Halogen Floodlight was just what I was looking for. Halogen lamps have long been used in the industry and provide certain advantages over conventional incandescent lamps. For example, the light emitted from the halogen lamp has a higher color temperature, is generally whiter, and the lamp can be made in much smaller dimensions than conventional lamps while still producing an equivalent or greater amount of light. Furthermore, the intensity of the illumination from halogen lamps remains virtually constant throughout the life of the lamp. In addition, halogen lamps exhibit a significantly longer working life than conventional incandescent lamps.

ITT Jabsco Remote Controlled Searchlight

The Jabsco Remote Controlled Searchlight is designed for the saltwater environment with a chrome brass housing and base along with a sealed beam. I have to say that this was the best looking unit I found. The complete drive unit is contained in the light head and has a single-lever remote control mounted in the helm for vertical and horizontal light movement. Features include an auto-sweep mode that cycles light side-to-side. The light will also transmit an “SOS” distress signal automatically. It’s also offers two types of light output, a spot at 200,000 candlepower and a 50,000 candlepower floodlight, at the flick of a switch.