Green fishing lights

I need to know from those who have them, what type are you using and how has it worked for you? Details, details, details please! Good parts, bad parts, options you wish it had, what you like about it and don't...ect.

I'm in the process of building one myself (2 ft with 40 ft cable) and in for about $150 including battery. Found 3 part youtube video on how to build it, and making slight modifications such as better LED's and clear pvc outer cover, but so far till my other parts arrive this is what I got...

I made one of these last year and didn't get to use it much. Made mine around 4 feet long and it has a 25' tether and wire that does the trick. I put the clear sleeve polycarbonate on it to try and make it water tighT. As it turn out, water got inside anyways, and probably was a good thing since it got hotter than expected. Using the waterproof led lights reassured me that it didn't matter. My kids use it as a light saber now but I hope to use it later this year for its intended purpose.

Question, what battery are you using? I'm using a simple 12v battery from the local electronics store. And all things considered, I spent around 50 buck for everything, but I had some stuff laying around before hand.

I just had a 12v deep cycle 35 amp battery delivered for it today. $60 Amazon. I'm using 5050 size led strip, which are some of the largest square ones availible now. The LEDs do seem to get a little hot near the connection side of it, but I got a clear 2ft pvc sch 40 pipe coming tomorrow for the outside.

I wish I could make a longer one, but I would need 2 5 meter strips to cover 4 ft. This is pretty much a tester for durability, then I can go larger if it tests well. The main cost was the battery, but I can use that on another rig as well when that time comes.

My clear pvc just came in and cable glands for the top to close the wire through the pvc tight and waterproof. Much gluing needed now and then letting it cure for 72 hours.

Here is part 1 of the video in case anyone is interested, the series is 3 parts long and it's pretty cheap but slightly time consuming to make one.

http://youtu.be/MqIv992HrGk

Use acrylic tubing and a flat piece of acrylic, use acrylic glue to glue them together then put a coat of epoxy around the seals for piece of mind.

I got some E6000 from Home Depot for the seals on the pvc. I went with the clear pvc just to make it more durable since I'll basically be tossing it from the banks or suspending it from bridges submerged. The extra weight should help it sink easier too.

Mine gets a little warm around the connector side, seems like it might warp thin acrylic?

I wrapped 32' of 5630 LEDs around 2" PVC after spraying with 3M adhesive. Sealed the entire thing with clear flex seal. The lights will start to dim near the end of the strip when it is that long so I ran the power to the middle of the PVC and then wrapped my two 16' strands of LEDs from the middle of the PVC towards the ends.

How are the 5630's? Those are the rectangular ones, right?

Very cool that you ran power to light both strips evenly. I thought I might run into the dimming issue, but since I only have 5 meters it is pretty even. I was ready to run the power down the center of the pvc and connect both ends of the led strip if it became an issue.

Thanks for your input!

The 5630 are brighter than that 5050. That's why I chose them.

Cool! Appreciate the input.

Alright, I screwed up on the 2 ft light. I already glued one 2 inch pvc end on the light while waiting on a 2 inch x 2 ft clear pvc from ebay. Received clear pvc pipe a few days ago and the inside diameter was 2 inches, not the outside diameter. Guy had it listed on ebay without full in/out dimensions, so I got screwed. So now I ordered another that explicitly stated 1.9 inch outside diameter and waiting on it.

In the meantime, I started a new 4 ft light. This time I started with the outside clear tube and am working my way inside, so I know it will fit.

Going to try a 4 ft clear CFL protective tube instead of clear pvc. It is thinner and hope it won't get too hot. Ordered (2) 5630 green led strips and will run power to both ends of tube to help keep from dimming, that's 32 ft of strip. Got 3/4 pvc tube for the light strips to wrap around on the inside. If the outside casing holds up, this is going to be one bright bad boy!

Keep you posted on the progress for any that are interested.

How long does it freaking take to cut a 2ft piece of pvc and get it shipped? Ordered that shyte on the 27th and they haven't even shipped the thing yet...

What diameter are you looking for? I have a few pcs of clear PVC lying around in my shop. I got away from using it due to poor clarity. I didn't like buying the brightest LED's I could find then placing them behind a filter.

I now use polycarbonate (lexan) tubing for my submersibles. More durable, has UV stabalizers, and clarity is MUCH better than "clear" PVC. Only drawback is you have to tool PVC fittings to fit due to Poly tubing being "true dimension" where PVC is not. Acrylic tubing is just as clear as lexan, and cheaper, just not as durable.

PVC lens on left, Lexan on right.




As for heat, my lights will run a short time out of water, but testing has shown mine usually fail on cooldown when the lens contracts at a different rate than the core, which results in a cracked lens. But even then, I have to run them extended periods of time to get them so hot they'll fail. As long as I keep them in the water they'll run indefinitely without failing.

I power my strips from both ends on the lights I build. This results in even lighting over the length of the strip. Slightly more amp draw, but not enough to worry about on such a low current device.

Thank you very much for the offer! I already have 1 2ft clear pvc I ordered, but it was 2 inch ID instead of 2 OD. I ordered another from someone else and it is 1.9 OD which is what I need to fit the 2 inch couplers, just waiting on it to arrive. This one is for my short 2 ft light and you're right...the blue tinting will dim them, which all the clear pvc seems to have on it.

As for the 4 ft, I'm using the brighter 5630 leds (32 ft) and just waiting for them to arrive as well.

Since the 2ft one was delayed because the outer pvc situation, I started the 4ft one from the outside in. I got a clear CFL 4ft tube protector (acrylic I think) and am using a 3/4 pvc on the inside to wrap the leds around. Much thinner than the 2ft and I hope as durable but the CFL tube seems really thin. Hoping it can handle the 5630's heat. I'll have to only run it submerged as well to disipate the heat, I'm sure they'll be much too hot out of water.

If stuff goes south with these orders, I'll definitely give you a buzz. The battery alone was more than 1/2 my investment, so I'm in till these things get done right.

Very nice lights by the way!!! Look really nice!

In testing my 4' models on the water, I discovered that having 100% coverage on a 4' light is not necessary (not really necessary on a 2' model either). I have tested them, 100% coverage on one end of the boat and 50% coverage on the other end of the boat, and both attracted bait equally. My advice, save some money and build 2 lights out of those two 5 meter strips. I rarely catch anything in the bright area anyway, most fish come on the edge of the light.

That's a good thought, because running two 5 meter strips is going to need to be powered at both ends also because the dimming situation. Appreciate the input! Looks like I still have more research to do...

Also, if you don't mind sharing...what species fish do you usually catch while using the lights? Crappie?

I'm going to be using mine off the banks since I don't have a boat. Basically tossing them out in the water so I'm sure they will just lay down on the bottom and not hang upright like if they were suspended. I am using 40 ft of power cord for them so I can hang them from bridges if neccessary too.

I've caught a bit of everything using them. Mostly use them to catch sand bass and hybrids on Tawakoni, but quite a few crappie too. You really never know what is going to swim through and bend a rod. It's really fun to have 3-4 lights down, 4-6 rods out, and hook a nice hybrid. Chaos ensues! Usually followed by re-tying several rigs.

Here's my boat lit up too. Using submersibles with the boat lights I can black out my fish finder with bait from top to bottom in 30' of water.

WOW! Nice rig! That took some hard work.

I hear you about having to re-tie several lines. With that many poles down they sometimes hit in 3's and then it's lines tangled everywhere. Good to know the lights will attract sandbass and hybrid though, or at least the baitball will. They are fun fish to land!

Thanks for your help!

5630 strands just arrived! I don't think they look much brighter than the 5050's...hmmm.


(5630's on top, 5050's below)

Maybe once wrapped around the inside pvc we'll see a difference? Good thing forecast calls for rain next 4 days, it'll give me something to do and time for glue to cure!

These strands are definitely much more waterproof than the 5050's I previously ordered...



Heavy half moon clear rubber lining on the outside with the 5630's inbedded...



Look very durable and waterproof, but not much "brighter", maybe because the waterproof lining? We'll soon find out!

On a side note: I do know now why some companies charge $200-300 dollars for these type lights...It takes a bunch of time and does make your fingers hurt from all the tedious repetitive wrapping and pulling to get the strands tight, but I just don't want to pay the money for something I can probably do myself....

Alright, 4ft light almost complete except for additional time for glue curing and a few details that might be needed like the addition of counterweights, ect. Anyways, here's an update on the progress...


Here you can see the top end pvc cap. I had to use a coupler and then an inside end screw top because for some reason my Home Depot didn't have normal cap ends in the CFL tube size, so I improvised what would work. Sealant is inside pvc coupler and beaded on around CFL/pvc outside joint for waterproofing. Also around pvc coupler and screw in end for waterproofing as well.


Here is the end from a deeper angle to show the 18 gauge power wire running through the gland to power the light and keep water from leaking in. I'll probably bury the gland in sealant as well just to guarantee waterproofing and add more strength when dropping/pulling up the light to the water. The pvc end was drilled 3/4 inch to seat the gland into the end piece.


This is the bottom pvc end, same as the top but no gland. I can seat additional weight into the end cap if needed to help it sink, then bury it in sealant as well to stay if neccesary. Sealed inside, outside and beaded where it meets the CFL tube as well.


And the finished product! Pretty bright, really clear and doesn't seem to get as hot as my 2ft 5050 led stick at the top of this post.

And what I'm most fond of, is my fabricated battery housing. Like $10 from Walmart with a few modifications...

Normal housing with jumper cable type small clamps on power posts on the inside, 18 gauge wire to 10A fuse and then run through the side of cover by way of waterproof gland. Quick connects for positive/negative and toggle switch built in also.

All in all, a pretty easy little project. Power source (battery, cover, toggle switch, monkey clamps, and wire) might run you about $100, but designed for easy application to power other things if neccesary as well. 4ft light (LEDs, 3/4 inch pvc inside, CFL protector tube, pvc ends, cable glands, sealant) might run you $50. Not too bad for a power source that can be used for multiple applications and a 4ft submersible led light.

If you are thinking of trying this out, I say go for it. Build was of medium difficulty due to fabrication (drilling) of pvc ends and assembly, which requires you to have it planned out at least 4 steps ahead before final assembly (sealing and running power through cable glands). If you need any help or questions if you are interested in trying this, give me a hollar and I'll do my best to try and help any way I can. Thanks!

Looks great! Much more professional looking than the one that I built.

Thanks! Not really that tough with proper tools and time. Definitely have to plan several steps ahead though, or you could easily get yourself in a postion where you glued the wrong part at the wrong time.

Which is better--float or weight for sinking ?

You want it to sink, or suspend it in the water a few feet down to create a baitball.

https://youtu.be/30uppH3nrec

The 4ft green light was a success, after just an hour I had a small amount of bait circling it from minnows to small shad. You can actually see them attacking the light. Sealed and waterproof, but had to tie a 5lb rock onto the bottom of light to get it to sink. Very bouyant!

https://youtu.be/GqkAjkO_ECI

On a side note, the plastic CFL protector tube used on the outside did have some inverse pressure on it after several hours of being submerged (I don't know what the word is, maybe concave? But it did start to fold in on itself slightly, mostly around the middle, from the water pressure on the outside of it and the heat from the lights softening the tube a little). Maybe some sort of plastic or metal (keyring type) sustainer rings mounted on the insides would help? I think because of the length being so long (4ft), if there was a little inside support towards the middle holding the outside then that would drastically help the outside from trying to fold in on itself.

Just a thought. Shouldn't be a problem with 2ft lights. Too short.

Okay, 2ft light with clear PVC cover was a dud. Worked fine, is waterproof, but the blue tinting and thickness of the PVC turned the light WORTHLESS for attracting fish. It was either the blue tinting or how dim the pvc made the light trying to get through, but after several hours it only attracted a few water bugs and 1 minnow. Going to have to disassemble it (probably by breaking the outer covering) and try another clear CFL protective tube for the outer shell. They work on my other 4ft light, so a 2ft model should at least do something once replaced. Trial and error...

Wrap some 2' thick walled PVC w/ your lights. Glue and clamp the ends of the strips until the glue cures. Then spray the entire light w/ several coats of clear Flex Seal. The light will sink w/ much less weight and will hold up just fine. I have been using mine for several years w/o any issues.

If you are wrapping your LED's around an internal PVC core, then fill the core with sand to make it sink. Just that amount overcomes the buoyancy of my lights and they sink without the need for external weighting. Depending on mow much air/void you have in your lights, results may vary.

That's also why ready made custom lights cost what they do, R&D takes time and money.

Both very good ideas. I expected a few issues, the only one I have now is a $15 fix and then both lights will be up and running. Still coming out less than 1/2 cost of retail, so I'm satisfied.

These work awesome LED Strips

Damn, that's bright!

What did you use to adhere the strips to your boat ?

How well you reckon they would work below the water line ?

I have the strips on my boat too, stuck under the gunnels pointing down at the water. They do a great job of drawing bait down to about 15-20' deep at times.

New on here but wanted to share my new find , after looking for a bright portable light, Although a bit on the pricey side. I saw this company at the Houston fishing show , this guy was actually throwing this light on the floor and had a picture of them running it over with a truck and it still worked and looked brand new. Instead of using the LED tape lights they embed high powered led 3 watts each , this thing is brighter than my Underwater Dock light . at a reported 14,000 lumens . I am extremely happy with this a wanted to share it with the group. It is hard to find a good underwater light that is small and bright , most are too bulky for me . We are going to trying some nigh fishing at the S . Jetty’s in Galveston , if anyone know of a better night fishing spot I welcome your help.

Check them out http://underwatergreenfishinglights.com/products-services/100-watt-portable-drop-light/