12V Systems
Interior Lights and Dimmer
The interior lights are all incandescent, not LED. They are all connected to a common dimmer, so replacing some fixtures with LED lights could cause inconsistent lighting.
Dome Lights
The original parts are
Perko Surface Mount Dome Light - 5" O.D. (4" Lens) - Chrome Plated. Part
#0300DP1CHR.
The bulb is a standard 12V 1004 with a BA15D base. The original bulb was 11.28W, but the
fixture will take up to a 17W bulb.
Companionway Lights
The original parts are Perko 1044DP1WHT White Flush Marine Utility Light with Snap on Cover.
Dimmer
The interior lighting has a common negative and a switched positive. Most dimmers will not work with this arrangement as they require isolating the negative side of the circuit going to the lamps. For this reason, you need a dimmer designed for RV or Marine purposes where a common ground is normal.
Our boat has an Imtra ILDIM-ROT10 dimmer, which has a panel-mounted
potentiometer wired to a dimmer box.
This dimmer
from PCA Electronics is advertised to work with lamps on either the positive or negative
side, so it should work (I have not tried it). I don't know the diameter of the panel hole,
which you should note when ordering a replacement part.
The power requirements for our dimmer are modest.
| Light | Volts | Amps | Watts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dome 1 | 12 | 0.94 | 11.28 |
| Dome 2 | 12 | 0.94 | 11.28 |
| Companionway 1 | 12 | 0.25 | 3.00 |
| Companionway 2 | 12 | 0.25 | 3.00 |
| 2.38 | 28.56 |
