I just bought a house with a pool. Not our first pool, but the first with colored light. Unfortunately, several of the bulbs were not working, so I needed to change them. I couldn't find much out there about this obsolete light, so I wanted to post here in case what I learned could help someone else.
My light is a JandyColors digital fading light (CPHV series light). This light uses 8 - 75 watt halogen bulbs to generate the colors. All bulbs are the same 12 volt 75 watt MR16 EYC halogens. The Jandy light uses 12V halogen bulbs and supplies them AC current (both 12 V and 120 V lights use the same 12V bulb, the 120 V light has a transformer in it). Two bulbs are unfiltered to give the white light setting. The other six bulbs use dichoric filters to change the colors of the light (two each, red green and blue).
The light works in two modes: 1) Arctic white uses both unfiltered bulbs or 2) some combination of two of the eight bulbs to give the designated colors. Some of these colors use three bulbs, with one being roughly 1/2 brightness.
My filters were cracked, so changing the dead bulbs wasn't going to be the solution to get the colors back. The filters are no longer available from Jandy and no vendors had them in stock. I found some 2 inch dichoric filters, but couldn't find a vendor with all 3 colors. Plus, I wasn't positive at the time if the colors would be OK, it's hard to tell if the filters were red, green, blue or cyan, magenta, etc.
I had some experience using colored LEDs on boats for night vision protection, I decided try to switch to LED bulbs for the colors. At the time, I was guessing they dimmed to get broader color range. But, I also needed a much wider spread of light than the EYC bulbs were giving me (pool is 15x30 with the light on the long edge).
I bought these lights: 12V/24V GU5.3 MR16 Red LED Spotlight, Aluxcia GU5.3 GX5.3 Bi-Pin Base Recessed Light Bulb 120 Degree Beam Angle 50W Halogen Replacement Bulb for Landscape Accent Track Lighting, Red, 2-Pack - - Amazon.com
They are 120-degree beam angle 5 W LED MR-16 bulbs that run on AC or DC (most MR16 LEDS run on AC/DC, but some don't). They are dimmable, even though it doesn't say so in the listing. White, red, blue, and green are available.
I removed the filters from the holder. The filter holder also helps hold the bulbs, so make sure to re-install it after removing the filters. The bulb locations were stamped by color (W1, W2 for white, R1, R2 for red, etc) near the bulb sockets.
Install bulbs and carefully fit the filter holder to help stabilize the bulbs. Reassemble with a new lens gasket.
Mine turned out fantastic. Easily as bright as my neighbors Pentair LED, except the red bulbs are dimmer than the others (red doesn’t penetrate water well). We don’t like the red tones, so that is not an issue for us. If you like red, search for 7W or 10W LEDs for those (I saw a few out there, but not as many).
I now have a color LED light that lights up my whole pool better than the halogens due to wider bean angle. It also pulls a max of 16 watts (measured) vs the rating of 165 watts. For less than $70 including gasket, blubs, tax and shipping, a good solution to avoid $700+ replacement.
My light is a JandyColors digital fading light (CPHV series light). This light uses 8 - 75 watt halogen bulbs to generate the colors. All bulbs are the same 12 volt 75 watt MR16 EYC halogens. The Jandy light uses 12V halogen bulbs and supplies them AC current (both 12 V and 120 V lights use the same 12V bulb, the 120 V light has a transformer in it). Two bulbs are unfiltered to give the white light setting. The other six bulbs use dichoric filters to change the colors of the light (two each, red green and blue).
The light works in two modes: 1) Arctic white uses both unfiltered bulbs or 2) some combination of two of the eight bulbs to give the designated colors. Some of these colors use three bulbs, with one being roughly 1/2 brightness.
My filters were cracked, so changing the dead bulbs wasn't going to be the solution to get the colors back. The filters are no longer available from Jandy and no vendors had them in stock. I found some 2 inch dichoric filters, but couldn't find a vendor with all 3 colors. Plus, I wasn't positive at the time if the colors would be OK, it's hard to tell if the filters were red, green, blue or cyan, magenta, etc.
I had some experience using colored LEDs on boats for night vision protection, I decided try to switch to LED bulbs for the colors. At the time, I was guessing they dimmed to get broader color range. But, I also needed a much wider spread of light than the EYC bulbs were giving me (pool is 15x30 with the light on the long edge).
I bought these lights: 12V/24V GU5.3 MR16 Red LED Spotlight, Aluxcia GU5.3 GX5.3 Bi-Pin Base Recessed Light Bulb 120 Degree Beam Angle 50W Halogen Replacement Bulb for Landscape Accent Track Lighting, Red, 2-Pack - - Amazon.com
They are 120-degree beam angle 5 W LED MR-16 bulbs that run on AC or DC (most MR16 LEDS run on AC/DC, but some don't). They are dimmable, even though it doesn't say so in the listing. White, red, blue, and green are available.
I removed the filters from the holder. The filter holder also helps hold the bulbs, so make sure to re-install it after removing the filters. The bulb locations were stamped by color (W1, W2 for white, R1, R2 for red, etc) near the bulb sockets.
Install bulbs and carefully fit the filter holder to help stabilize the bulbs. Reassemble with a new lens gasket.
Mine turned out fantastic. Easily as bright as my neighbors Pentair LED, except the red bulbs are dimmer than the others (red doesn’t penetrate water well). We don’t like the red tones, so that is not an issue for us. If you like red, search for 7W or 10W LEDs for those (I saw a few out there, but not as many).
I now have a color LED light that lights up my whole pool better than the halogens due to wider bean angle. It also pulls a max of 16 watts (measured) vs the rating of 165 watts. For less than $70 including gasket, blubs, tax and shipping, a good solution to avoid $700+ replacement.
