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Baggage compartment light

D

Desert Rat

Well Known Member
With the G3x and optional rotary potentiometers from Stein, I've got the built in capability to control 3 different cabin light circuits.

I debated how and where to install lights and elected to go with a white LED strip for the baggage compartment and both a blue strip and a white strip under the glare shield.

Wont have the glare shield done for some time, but today I finished up the one for the baggage compartment. The light strip is in the seat back cross bar, which is bare aluminum on the inside, so it acts as a reflector.

I'm sure that there are fancier installations out there, but this was super easy to install. Just ran two wires with the wire bundle going to the flaps, and stuck the LED strip up with it's own peel and stick tape (which I don't have much confidence in) followed by a couple of strips of duct tape to keep the ends from peeling up right away, then a few dollops of E6000 to encourage it to stay in place.

I elected not to go with the almost a 14 mod. This is just the factory crossbar.

The white LED is shining on gray primer, which is the reason it has a blue hue to it.
 

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Just me

So i did what you did, but i put my baggage light on the turtle deck. Also I ran a separate switch and fusible links directly from the battery. The reason being is that I want to be able to turn the baggage light on without the master switch being on. That way a passenger can go to the plane, turn on the baggage lite, get something off, and turn it off. It becomes like a dome light in your car. I figure it will take forever to drain the battery if left on.
 
PilotjohnS said:
So i did what you did, but i put my baggage light on the turtle deck. Also I ran a separate switch and fusible links directly from the battery. The reason being is that I want to be able to turn the baggage light on without the master switch being on. That way a passenger can go to the plane, turn on the baggage lite, get something off, and turn it off. It becomes like a dome light in your car. I figure it will take forever to drain the battery if left on.
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Or you could just put a simple timer on it, just in case.
 
Simple?

Mel said:
Or you could just put a simple timer on it, just in case.
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How to design a simple timer that is single fault tolerant that has no ( as in zero) current draw when off so it wont drain the battery?

Yup it is called a switch and a Mark 1 brain to remember to turn it off before walking away from the plane.
 
PilotjohnS said:
How to design a simple timer that is single fault tolerant that has no ( as in zero) current draw when off so it wont drain the battery?

Yup it is called a switch and a Mark 1 brain to remember to turn it off before walking away from the plane.
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I guess my Mark 1 brain needs a software update. I've been leaving airplane master switches on after exiting the plane for several decades now... :)
 
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Terry,

Could you clarify "almost a 14 mod" for those that are not aware of the details. I still need to figure something out for my baggage area lighting.
 
Ok somehow in the context of the initial posting I was thinking it had something to do with lighting.

Do others have other approaches to lighting the baggage area? To me it seems like the lighting should be up higher to be effective in the baggage area.
 
Picture

So I mentioned in a previous post that i did a similar thing but put mine on the turtle deck. Here is a picture of mine all lit up.

But I really like the idea in the channel. That is a very clever place to put it; and makes the wiring easier too.
 

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rapid_ascent said:
Ok somehow in the context of the initial posting I was thinking it had something to do with lighting.

Do others have other approaches to lighting the baggage area? To me it seems like the lighting should be up higher to be effective in the baggage area.
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Ray- I only mentioned the almost a 14 mod in the original post because I didnt do it and I'm unsure how well this location would work for a light strip on that smaller crossbar for the guys that did.

I debated on the benefit of having the light higher up. I've seen guys put them under the turtle deck or tuck two shorter segments under the F-6111 curved skin reinforcing ribs.

I decided that in this case, the simplicity of this location outweighed the benefit of either of those, but it seems like either one would work okay.

You could also run them under the longerons if you went going to put in sidewalls.
 
Carry a flashlight

Lighting that baggage area looks cool in the picture. Having flown for 5+ years, I can say I’ve never needed a light in my baggage area. I added a couple of things that added build time and weight, but this isn’t one of them. I do carry flashlights which I consider better in or outside the plane. NO chance of leaving your master ON because of these lights, if u don’t have them.
Would be interested to know what others with a lighted baggage area in their 6, 7 or 9 think. Did u install them ? Do u use them? Have u left your master ON ?
 
I put one of the Aveo touch-sensitive dome lights on the fore-aft upper support (tip-up canopy, so aft canopy has that box support structure thingie, which I fully enclosed to use for stuff like this)...something like this:

https://www.aveoengineering.com/eyebeam-dome/

and I have *never* used it since. LOL! It looks cool, works great, just have never, ever needed it.
 
I agree that a baggage light isn't exactly a necessity. In fact I would call it completely unnecessary, if for no other reason than I always have a flashlight at night.

However, like so many other features, Garmin boxes support it whether you use it or not, so I find myself saying; "well, I need lights under the glare shield anyway, so for just the cost of some #22 wire and a strip of LED tape, I can have one back here as well, so why not?

I'm finding that stuff like this has really added a ton of time to the build, but hey, it's what the cool kids are doing...
 
Really hurts

Desert Rat said:
I'm finding that stuff like this has really added a ton of time to the build, but hey, it's what the cool kids are doing...
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Ow that really hurts. It is very true, but hurts nonetheless. Although this probably added 10 hours to my build, the G3x design and wiring added probably 9 months. Hoping the baby is born soon. This labor is killing me.
 
Very Nice. We were concerned about someone accidentally leaving the light on and draining the battery so I built a controller/sw combo so the light will automatically turn off after 5 minutes. Still creating the final design in a 3d printed case or I would post a picture.
 
georgemohr said:
For those considering a baggage light, you might opt for something much simpler. A touch sensitive AAA battery driven LED cabinet light was our choice. There's no power to run, no need for reaching the panel, no possibility of main battery drain. Something like this...

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I think the convenience of having the light off the main battery is helpful, one of my partners was concerned with leaving it on and draining the battery so I built a controller that if left on will turn the light off after 5 minutes or what I ever I set the timer too, up to an hour. The controller itself uses less than 10 micro amps so would take a LONG time to drain the battery but I also put in a hard switch so the timer is really just protection against the light being left on.
 
georgemohr said:
For those considering a baggage light, you might opt for something much simpler. A touch sensitive AAA battery driven LED cabinet light was our choice. There's no power to run, no need for reaching the panel, no possibility of main battery drain. Something like this...

Click to expand...
Yep. The cheap LED battery operated lamp I stuck in the luggage bay will last longer than my Class 3 medical will, for the number of times I’ve used it.
Messa Flea Market special, package of 3, $9.95. The extra 2 went into the camper van. Triple A’s not included.
 
georgemohr said:
For those considering a baggage light, you might opt for something much simpler. A touch sensitive AAA battery driven LED cabinet light was our choice. There's no power to run, no need for reaching the panel, no possibility of main battery drain. Something like this...

Click to expand...
This is exactly what I did in the rear baggage area of my RV-8. Industrial strength velcro holds it in place and it’s plenty bright enough. I got it at either Home Depot or Lowe’s. It’s been in there a couple years now so battery life doesn’t seem to be an issue. It’s simple, it works and took maybe 5 minutes to install. Figuring out where to put it took longer than actually installing it. Push ON - Push OFF
 
rgaynor said:
Very Nice. We were concerned about someone accidentally leaving the light on and draining the battery so I built a controller/sw combo so the light will automatically turn off after 5 minutes. Still creating the final design in a 3d printed case or I would post a picture.
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In case anyone is interested in seeing the controller here are some pics. Light off draws 9 micro amps, tested a couple different leds including Van’s dome light and when on they draw .05 amps or less.
IMG_2880.jpeg
 
Looks good. I put lights under the cross bar and in the turtle deck stiffeners. Works prefect. I also put a white strip on the bottom of the instrument panel. Both forward and baggage lights are on a 3 position switch on a hot buss. Both locations the lights are hidden so they can't get damaged loading and unloading. The light under the instrument panel is really nice for working on things.

Light strips are from Oznium.com. Great service and prices.
 
Didn't draw out a wiring diagram but it is a 12v delay relay board, available on amazon. Add molex connectors, a two pole switch, a momentary switch and a 3d printed case.
 
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