To save from hi-jacking Darell`s topic about the LED christmas tree any more, I`ll start another one.
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Ropelight has become so very popular in recent years for holiday decorating, whether in straight lengths for edging rooflines, windows, etc, or pre-fitted to frames in various seasonal figures. However it has some serious problems, not least the fact that the miniature bulbs are sealed in to the translucent plastic rope and cannot be replaced. No matter what the packaging might try to tell you, sooner or later those bulbs *will* need to be replaced, and since you cannot do that easilly if at all, instead a whole chunk of rope will need to be cut out and replaced. Given the effort to replace the tube on a silhouette frame, it`s usually easier just to buy a new one. Other minusses are the hideously large amount of power most of the stuff takes, the vast heat given off when used indoors and the fact that whether it`s coloured bulbs in a clear tube or clear bulbs in a coloured tube, it always fades eventually and looks washed-out.
For the longest time I had wondered just why it couldn`t be made with LEDs, especially since the introduction of ForeverBright and the like. They would be perfect - very low power, cool running, long lasting, bright vibrant fadeless colours. This Festive Season got me thinking again so I hit Google and went looking. And hit the jackpot! No idea when it was first introduced, but it can`t have been all that long ago, now "neon" ropelight is avaliable with LEDs, just like regular miniature lights and even C7s are. Looking at various vendors, there are a multitude of different types. From simple round single-channel stuff in a selection of colours for seasonal silhouettes, to flat multicolour multichannel stuff for dynamic colour-changing architectural effects.
I ordered some "domesticated" stuff (pre-packaged) from
http://festive-lights.com to see what it was like, and hopefully include in my
lights display too. One 8-meter length of white and two blue "Spiral Trees", cos I like spiral trees [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] It arrived today and here are some preliminary photos and impressions.
The rope is about 1/2 inch diameter, clear and uses small milky diffused 3mm LEDs that are wired in two circuits (every other LED alternating). Controlled by a pushbutton multi effect controller, and thank goodness these are slowly being updated with one or two better patterns and *memory* so they stay where you set`em from one day to the next. Though the LEDs are diffused, they are still quite directional, and since they lay lengthwise along the tube, they appear brighter on one side of the coil than the other:
Laid along in a line, the effect is less pronounced and just as good as the regular filament-bulb type. A close-up of the LEDs:
And as with all good series-wired mains-powered LED lights, there`s resistors in there to keep the current down. It gets a little warm after a while but not excessive and nowhere *near* as hot as the ordinary bulb-based stuff does. Plug in an unwrapped spool of that and it will melt in minutes with a horrible stink [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif[/img] ...
Colour is on the purple side but that`s good, it`s a cold icy white that stands out a mile. Clear filament-bulb rope isn`t really white either, it`s usually a horrid orangey yellowy colour.
You`ll have to wait until next week to see the Spiral Trees as they are outside already and the lights don`t go on till Monday. When first unpacked they were in a dreadful mess, lopsided and uneven. A half hour spent fiddling with the guy-wires adjusting the spacing from one coil to the next and they look good now. The blue LEDs are a nice deep intense colour, same milky-diffused 3mm as the whites and in clear tube too.
The only downside to this LED rope light is the cost. 8 meters of white was £60 (~US$115!), as were the Trees. On the plus side, the power consumption is minimal, the colours are great and won`t fade, the LEDs should last ages and if they blow over in the winter storms (or I trip on a power cord), nothing`s going to break and leave a dark section.
In the UK:
http://festive-lights.com have a small selection of 240 volt powered type. In the US, most sites I found sold it by the drum for many many $$$ but
this place has it in shorter lengths, in a choice of colours and voltages. Note that I do not know if it is the same or similar to mine.
If you like ropelight but hate all the negatives it has, I`d wholeheartedly recommend the LED variety.
Wasn`t sure where to put this. It isn`t really a review, it isn`t a LED flashlight, guess here is as good a place as any since it`s more of a general lighting product. After all, you can use it all year round for a bit of architectural mood lighting....
[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
LED Ropelight
Linear Mode
