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We’ve just returned home from 11 days in the caravan without electric! We were amazed that we didn’t need to top the battery up, other than with our solar panel. Previously we have managed 4 days but then had battery going in to red, even with a solar panel topping it up, and then have had to borrow a generator to top up with.

This time we still had the same solar panel, but had changed the halogen light bulbs for LED’s. We had been considering getting a new solar panel but decided having looked at them, we decided changing the bulbs was cheaper to start with.

Our 6kg bottle of gas lasted a week before it needed changing and that we used for all our cooking and powering the fridge during a very hot spell, not to mention heating water for washing and showering.

We even occasionally watched TV on battery (just a 10”) and we were also able to change batteries and a mobile phone from the 12V battery.

Yes, these second generation LED's are so much better than the first ones we got for our home kitchen (in terms of light out put). We also like the fact that unlike the halogen they are cool so I think a lot safer. We chose warm white for the living areas and the bright white for the washroom.

We still have 4 fittings we couldn't get in to change them! So just used the ones that we had been able to change.

I think we have just a 20 amp panel which is about 10 years old

We got ours from Aten Lighting http://www.atenlighting.co.uk/home.php they do a lot of the caravan shows and also you can order from them, he seamed to really understand and explained what he sells. We are very pleased with them.

We went for mainly the 6 LED versions, which we found more than bright enough for replacing the 20w halogen.

Still haven’t worked out how to get in to the outside lights (but we have solar fairy lights in the awning so don’t use them), the shower light or the bunk lights! - if you work them out can you let us know?

Forgot to say when we are off electric we have a battery carbon monoxide detector – for my piece of mind, plus torch and spare batteries in case we loose battery power in the middle of the night!

Now we also have a meter to check the battery which is reassuring – this last time we were impressed how much charge we were getting form the solar panel.

Exactly why we changed ours.

Re the LED's you got were they the new type with yellow dots or the old style?

Quote: Originally posted by steveiem on 08/8/2011

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when you say the new type with the yellow dots , how are these distinguishable ?,,

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The new ones have what look like yellow squares on like this http://www.atenlighting.co.uk/home.php?cat=269 and the first type of LED's have what look like little glass bulbs in like the thrid picture down on right of this page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light-emitting_diode

We posted at the same time the above explaines it too!

Hi Eco camping

If your Geist is the same as ours in the shower, you just pull down the actual silver part round the light and it is on like a sprink clip you just have to keep pulling, slide your finger in and push spring up,You then untwist the outer shell of the light and you can get to the bulb, However these bulbs are like the little filament bulbs you get in cabinet lights etc.

Hope that helps.