As popular as LED lighting technology has become, it seems as if everywhere you look, there is something new, or somebody else selling various forms of LED lighting. LED lighting is great and, depending on the application, can offer MANY advantages over standard incandescent, fluorescent or halogen lighting. Including but not limited to:
- Energy Efficiency
- Design flexibility
- Decreasing cost
- Long Life
HOWEVER, not all LED lamps are made with the perceived quality features as noted above. Stellar has been selling flexible LED strip lamps for over 5 years. We have developed our UL52 series flexible lamps to meet or exceed the requirements of our markets, while at the same time, standing up to rugged production environments.
We recently performed a water submersion/element dry test on two IP65-rated LED flexible strip lamps. One of the lamps was a leading competitor’s IP65 rated strip, and the other was our IP65 UL52 series lamp. Our test was done by supplying 12 volts to both strips submerged in a water tank for 72 hours. The strips were powered off and then set outdoors on a flat surface for 168 hours. Although IP65 is not a rating for submersion, we wanted to test the most extreme conditions. Below are pictures taken showing condition of our strips during and after the testing.
12 volts applied to both strips and submerged for 72 hours
Competitor’s strip (left) clearly shows moisture under the epoxy coating. Our UL52 strip has no visible signs of moisture damage.
Our competitors strip after 168 hour dry element test – in the sun
Our UL52 series lamp after 168 hour element dry test – in the sun
As you can clearly see from this test our UL52 comes out with nearly no signs of damage and complete functionality. Our competitor’s strip has a degraded circuit due to extreme exposure to moisture and has hardened and cracked after only a week of being outside in the elements. This lamp has failed our basic environmental test that mimics the extreme conditions that our customers can be involved in.
So next time you are thinking about using LED accent lighting in and outside of your vehicle, think STELLAR UL52!
http://www.stellar-lighting.com/UL52-Series-LED-Flexible-Strip-Lamps