Anyone upgrade the bulb in a Fiberstars fiberoptic light tower?

[NeedCoffee]

Hey all,

Like most people who have these, my fiberoptic lighting system has always been pretty dim. This is despite my best efforts to clean the lens. And now it looks like the bulb socket had an arc in it as the bulb I just removed had a melted pin. Looks like I need to cut off the bulb socket and rewire another. So since I need to wire in a new socket anyway, I thought I'd attempt to find a brighter bulb type, maybe LED if that's possible. Has anyone tried this? Thanks!

 

[NeedCoffee]

And I should mention, I'm aware of the available upgrade kits. But I'm looking to avoid swapping out the fiber optic cables and draining my pool just to install the new lights. I just want to wire a stronger bulb into the control tower.

 

[DrewLG]

Like most people who have these, my fiberoptic lighting system has always been pretty dim. This is despite my best efforts to clean the lens. And now it looks like the bulb socket had an arc in it as the bulb I just removed had a melted pin. Looks like I need to cut off the bulb socket and rewire another. So since I need to wire in a new socket anyway, I thought I'd attempt to find a brighter bulb type, maybe LED if that's possible. Has anyone tried this?

Probably everyone who owns one of those systems has tried to find a compatible LED bulb. Unfortunately, there's no LED replacement that produces anywhere near the halogen bulb's 900-lumen output.

If your lights seemed dim, it might have been from the corrosion on the socket contacts. So you may find that the lights are brighter after you replace the socket.

It's also possible that you were using an 800-lumen bulb; those trade brightness for longer life (800 hours vs 500 or so).

 

[Bperry]

I wired in an automotive LED headlight bulb on my light tower. It worked ok, but not sure it was any brighter than the halogen bulb it replaced. I’ve since pulled the fiber around the pool but still have two side lights. Was debating on replacing them with LED.

 

[1poolman1]

Hey all,

Like most people who have these, my fiberoptic lighting system has always been pretty dim. This is despite my best efforts to clean the lens. And now it looks like the bulb socket had an arc in it as the bulb I just removed had a melted pin. Looks like I need to cut off the bulb socket and rewire another. So since I need to wire in a new socket anyway, I thought I'd attempt to find a brighter bulb type, maybe LED if that's possible. Has anyone tried this? Thanks!

One of the most often overlooked issue with fiber optics is the fibers themselves. You can take the bundle in the tower (if you have enough slack in the conduit), tightly wrap the very end with electrical tape, use a very sharp utility knife to cut (break) off a very small portion and your brightness will increase greatly. The ends seem to get clouded over by the heat from the bulb and this very often helps.

 

[NeedCoffee]

One of the most often overlooked issue with fiber optics is the fibers themselves. You can take the bundle in the tower (if you have enough slack in the conduit), tightly wrap the very end with electrical tape, use a very sharp utility knife to cut (break) off a very small portion and your brightness will increase greatly. The ends seem to get clouded over by the heat from the bulb and this very often helps.

Thanks for this tip. When you wrap it in electrical tape, do you then cut through the tape, or do you want to make the cut below the tape? I think the fiber cable is coiled up in the tower so should have plenty.

 

[NeedCoffee]

Probably everyone who owns one of those systems has tried to find a compatible LED bulb. Unfortunately, there's no LED replacement that produces anywhere near the halogen bulb's 900-lumen output.

If your lights seemed dim, it might have been from the corrosion on the socket contacts. So you may find that the lights are brighter after you replace the socket.

It's also possible that you were using an 800-lumen bulb; those trade brightness for longer life (800 hours vs 500 or so).

How do you know the difference in the bulbs? Nowhere I've seen the bulb advertised has the lumens been specified.

 

[DrewLG]

How do you know the difference in the bulbs? Nowhere I've seen the bulb advertised has the lumens been specified.

900 lumens, <500 hour life (for units built after 1998, or for any unit operated at ambient temperature below 100F): PF220 PF220/1 19.7V 220W Fiberstar Pool Replacement Light Bulb, Lamp
800 lumens, ~800 hour life (for any unit): HI-111 19.7V 200W Fiberstar Fiber Optic Pool Lamp, Replacement Light Bulb

 

[NeedCoffee]

900 lumens, <500 hour life (for units built after 1998, or for any unit operated at ambient temperature below 100F): PF220 PF220/1 19.7V 220W Fiberstar Pool Replacement Light Bulb, Lamp
800 lumens, ~800 hour life (for any unit): HI-111 19.7V 200W Fiberstar Fiber Optic Pool Lamp, Replacement Light Bulb

Thanks. I reached out to an online bulb specialist in parallel and found the PF220. Also, in speaking with them I learned that they offer the complete socket. They claim that the socket is bad if the bulb burns out easily, which mine have. So I ordered it and a PF220 and I'll report back once these are installed.

QLV-1 TP41 TP40 Replacement Lamp Socket for MR-16 Lamps, GX5.3, GU5.3

QLV-1 Lamp socket lampholder for GU5.3, GX5.3, MR16

www.replacementlightbulbs.com

 

[Woody007]

FYI, I found that you can use a 24v lamp instead of the specialty 19.7v bulb. They are significantly cheaper and seem to work just as well.
I think mine could do with the ends of the fiber trimming, but being >20yrs old I feel like I could do more damage messing with it than it's worth.

 

[NeedCoffee]

So the PF220 finally worked. I had to replace the socket, but the bulb that arrived with it was faulty. After the supplier sent another I have light again, and it does seem brighter.

 

[Pete from UK but in Vegas]

I have been looking into this for a good while and have eventually found a well manufactured 7w landscape bulb, which takes voltage from 8-25v ac/dc, with USA support, in the same MR16 style with same connection pins, up to date technology, including temp monitoring and cooling with 750 lumens output @5700k (I have the 200w HI-110 19.5v 800 lumen halogen in there now) so almost the same lumens but 28 times less watts and a 50000 hour life, plus 5 year warranty!!!. Cost me $37 shipped including a $2.99 All State 3-year warranty which I though was worth having as a back up!

After speaking to the manufacturers technical team and sales rep they suggested their smallest angle of beam spread model of 30 degrees so as much light as possible goes straight down into the optic bundle. Its in the post arriving Monday so I'm excited to try it and will report how I get on.

 

[Pkhpool]

Sounds great please post a pic of progress I found a Philips equivalent which appears to work but the mirrors need a clean and the remote unit is a dud

 

[Pete from UK but in Vegas]

Sounds great please post a pic of progress I found a Philips equivalent which appears to work but the mirrors need a clean and the remote unit is a dud

Thank you for the reply. Oohh!!! I didnt know about the remote control - I guess if I have that RM6000 that means I may have remote control capability and I would need to get a remote control to try it? Will take a look inside when I change the bulb over see if its there.

Good to know about the Phillips bulb but I'm trying to go the LED way so I can use the lights at night on a timer without worrying about the power costs!!!

When I cleaned the unit out I noticed that maybe a fifth of the fibers were cut off about a foot from the emitter but the light still seemed decent when I tried it at night. I have noticed that the lens on the pool wall is a bit yellowed - Can that be removed and cleaned/replaced without draining the pool or causing a leak in the niche?

 

[1poolman1]

Thank you for the reply. Oohh!!! I didnt know about the remote control - I guess if I have that RM6000 that means I may have remote control capability and I would need to get a remote control to try it? Will take a look inside when I change the bulb over see if its there.

Good to know about the Phillips bulb but I'm trying to go the LED way so I can use the lights at night on a timer without worrying about the power costs!!!

When I cleaned the unit out I noticed that maybe a fifth of the fibers were cut off about a foot from the emitter but the light still seemed decent when I tried it at night. I have noticed that the lens on the pool wall is a bit yellowed - Can that be removed and cleaned/replaced without draining the pool or causing a leak in the niche?

NO! You must drain the pool down if you are going to replace the lens in a fiber-optic system. There should be no water in the conduit or algae will grow and completely block the fibers. Each lens is sealed with a gasket. Part 2 in the diagram:

 

[Pete from UK but in Vegas]

Well the new bulb fitted great and worked ok but I'm not sure if its as bright? - when its a total cloud cover night light like tonight is here in Vegas, we get a lot of reflected light from the strip bouncing off the clouds like this. so the sky doesn't really go fully dark enough to judge the power. eg its still light enough to walk around the pool right now with no other light.

I will report back another night when I can make a direct comparison of the two but a bit disappointed so far with the 750 lumen LED vs the 200w Halogen. I thought getting the 30 degree spread might make it much better but Ive no idea what the spread is on a Halogen bulb.

Point noted about the fibre cable lens thanks but if I drain the pool I might as well fit a Treo LED or something that suits this niche at that time.

Couldnt see an RM1 unit in the housing but there was a square white box with a blue sticker on that i believe may be a remote sender as there was a black wire antenna looking part coming out of it?

 

[Pete from UK but in Vegas]

Soooo..... Here are a few photos of it up and running with the new 7w LED bulb. Camera makes it look a bit brighter than it is I think and neighbors bright yard light doesnt help! Overall, I'm pretty happy, don't think its quite as bright as the old halogen but at least I can use it without worrying about the power bill!!! Maybe get a photocell/timer for it next......

Lets see how long the rest of the set up lasts, kinda don't want the throw too much $$$ into the Fiberstars tower, as its over 20 years old, but $34 on a bulb with a 5 year warranty and using 28 times less watts is money well spent. Cant understand why their LED replacement tower is $1500 with 1 Treo light!!! Think if I was going to drain the pool (which I will soon) would look at alternatives to the SR Smith PT-6001 solution. Maybe I can have a go at recutting the fiber ends to brighten it more?

On another note - is the white and blue electrical box I've shown a remote control receiver? There are no part numbers on it - It was fixed to a piece of perspex that slotted into the left side of the tower in front of the fan. If so I will be looking for the RM1 remote with two buttons on for "power" and "color wheel" is anyone has one spare or knows where I can get one?

Let me know what you think?????

Here is the ebay link to the bulb I purchased if it helps anyone else out, or you can buy it from the Sprinkler guys website direct

Brilliance MR16 LED 7 Watt (50W Halogen) 5700K 30° 12V Landscape Lighting Bulb | eBay

BRILLIANCE LED LED LAMP MR16-7 7W 8-25V 600mA 60Hz 5700K 30°. MR16; 7 Watt; 30 Degree Spread; 5700 Kelvin. High Quality Professional Series. 7 Watt, 5700 Kelvin, 30 Degree Spread. Replaces 50 W Halogen.

www.ebay.com

Thanks for all your input on this subject guys

i

 

[NeedCoffee]

Looks nice. Brighter than my 200W halogen ever was, though my system splits the light 6-ways.

 

[1poolman1]

Soooo..... Here are a few photos of it up and running with the new 7w LED bulb. Camera makes it look a bit brighter than it is I think and neighbors bright yard light doesnt help! Overall, I'm pretty happy, don't think its quite as bright as the old halogen but at least I can use it without worrying about the power bill!!! Maybe get a photocell/timer for it next......

Lets see how long the rest of the set up lasts, kinda don't want the throw too much $$$ into the Fiberstars tower, as its over 20 years old, but $34 on a bulb with a 5 year warranty and using 28 times less watts is money well spent. Cant understand why their LED replacement tower is $1500 with 1 Treo light!!! Think if I was going to drain the pool (which I will soon) would look at alternatives to the SR Smith PT-6001 solution. Maybe I can have a go at recutting the fiber ends to brighten it more?

On another note - is the white and blue electrical box I've shown a remote control receiver? There are no part numbers on it - It was fixed to a piece of perspex that slotted into the left side of the tower in front of the fan. If so I will be looking for the RM1 remote with two buttons on for "power" and "color wheel" is anyone has one spare or knows where I can get one?

Let me know what you think?????

Here is the ebay link to the bulb I purchased if it helps anyone else out, or you can buy it from the Sprinkler guys website direct

Brilliance MR16 LED 7 Watt (50W Halogen) 5700K 30° 12V Landscape Lighting Bulb | eBay

BRILLIANCE LED LED LAMP MR16-7 7W 8-25V 600mA 60Hz 5700K 30°. MR16; 7 Watt; 30 Degree Spread; 5700 Kelvin. High Quality Professional Series. 7 Watt, 5700 Kelvin, 30 Degree Spread. Replaces 50 W Halogen.

www.ebay.com

Thanks for all your input on this subject guys

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The fiber ends in the pool seldom need to be re-cut. The heat from a halogen bulb "dulls" the end in the tower. The ones at the tower are usually the ones that, by cutting a small amount, about 1/8", will brighten the output considerably. Don't use a hot knife. A sharp knife, like a utility knife, will snap a small piece off and leave a clear portion. Wrap the end with electrical tape and go slow.

 

[Pete from UK but in Vegas]

As you can see from the 2 photos below, someone has made a mess of the fibers at the tower end or maybe they've just worn out and I'm losing about a 1/4 of the possible light I think? (the blue portion is the working fibers reflecting the pool water), The missing fibers are chopped off maybe two inches down the cable so I'm thinking either:-

A) see if there's enough slack to pull through further into tower. beyond the severed fibres and recut the whole lot there?
B) If not enough slack, dig up and relocate the tower slightly closer to the pool therefore releasing enough fiber cable slack to do the above?
C) be happy its working at all and leave it be until I drain the pool and find up with another up to date system to replace this worn out one!

Let me know your thoughts and thanks again for everyones help?

The fiber ends in the pool seldom need to be re-cut. The heat from a halogen bulb "dulls" the end in the tower. The ones at the tower are usually the ones that, by cutting a small amount, about 1/8", will brighten the output considerably. Don't use a hot knife. A sharp knife, like a utility knife, will snap a small piece off and leave a clear portion. Wrap the end with electrical tape and go slow