Lighting Question Upon Replaster Job

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MrLeadFoot

Well-known member
Sep 2, 2019
213
El Dorado Hills, CA
Bought 1992-built house in 1999. White plaster pool was already in the ground, with some mottling and a stain. Sine 2022 a few plaster blisters started showing up, and I am now in the midst of getting replastering quotes. I almost had a heart attack when I heard the cost of basic color-changin LEDs, at $1200 a piece and I have two lights in my pool. Not believing it, I turned to this trusty forum not only to find that that is indeed the going rate for the sealed Pentairs I've been quoted for thus far, but also to hear they don't last. In fact, my nesighbor has a new pool (within 5 years) and just mentioned that he needs a new light already. So, my question is, do I try to keep the ~30 yr. old housings that I have and try to just replace the bulbs and seals, or should I replace the entire units with some less-expensive serviceable types like the PoolTones, so I can at least just change bulbs when they fail? My gut tells me to consider that the wiring from my existing lights to switches is also ~30 yrs. old, so I should replace everything. What say you all? I am open to any and all suggestions.

Also, near my light switches are two black boxes stamped with American Products on them, which I assume are transformers. Is it possible that way back then 12volt lighting already existed and that I indeed have 12 volt lights?

Thank you all in advance.
 
You can buy Pentair Amerlite incandescent light and then replace the bulb with an LED color-changing bulb is you want. That gives you many options and maintenance for a long life at a low cost of ownership.

Lighting Basics - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
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ajw22 said:
You can buy Pentair Amerlite incandescent light and then replace the bulb with an LED color-changing bulb is you want. That gives you many options and maintenance for a long life at a low cost of ownership.

Lighting Basics - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
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Thank you for such a quick reply.

Sounds like you're suggesting I buy a new housing with incandescent bulb, then buy a new seal and an LED bulb, and retrofit the new housing before I install it. From what I can tell, the PoolTone style of light would also be a serviceable housing, but would come with the LED bulb already. Wouldn't that be cheaper for me?

If there is a specific reason you suggested the Pentair setup, I sure would like to hear it.

Edit: Just read the link you provided where PoolTones have melted. Great (read with sarcasm), now I know why you mentioned the Pentair. If I go that route, do I have to replace the seal right from the get-go by virture of simply opening up the housing, or can I just use the same seal since it's brand-new, and simply pop in an LED bulb? What do you have in your pool?

Edit - Edit: Pentair's site says those Amerilites have been discontinued. Back to the drawing board.
 
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MrLeadFoot said:
Thank you for such a quick reply.

Sounds like you're suggesting I buy a new housing with incandescent bulb, then buy a new seal and an LED bulb, and retrofit the new housing before I install it. From what I can tell, the PoolTone style of light would also be a serviceable housing, but would come with the LED bulb already. Wouldn't that be cheaper for me?

If there is a specific reason you suggested the Pentair setup, I sure would like to hear it.
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If there’s nothing wrong with the housing, there’s no benefit to replacing it, wiring in a conduit will last plenty long. It also doesn’t hurt to replace the housing.
 
Thanks for that. I forgot to mention that the lights stopped working one by one over time. Never took them out to see why because when I attempted to take the housings out of their niches, it looked like the screws and where the screws go were so old I was afraid I might not be able to get them back in. But, I guess I need to try so I can see what I am dealing with, huh?

Can anyone tell me, by my description of the two boxes near the light switch, if I indeed have 12 volt lights, or is there another way to determine this without first taking out the housings from their niches?

I also meant to include pics of my lights, which appear to be slightly different, so I have attached them here.
 

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MrLeadFoot said:
Thanks for that. I forgot to mention that the lights stopped working one by one over time. Never took them out to see why because when I attempted to take the housings out of their niches, it looked like the screws and where the screws go were so old I was afraid I might not be able to get them back in. But, I guess I need to try so I can see what I am dealing with, huh?

Can anyone tell me, by my description of the two boxes near the light switch, if I indeed have 12 volt lights, or is there another way to determine this without first taking out the housings from their niches?

I also meant to include pics of my lights, which appear to be slightly different, so I have attached them here.
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Take a picture of the black boxes.
 
People have said if you never installed the fixture you do not need to replace the seal when changing the bulb.

I still have 20+ year old Amerlites with incandescent bulbs. To me LEDs have no benefit for the small amount of time my pool light is on.
 
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ajw22 said:
People have said if you never installed the fixture you do not need to replace the seal when changing the bulb.

I still have 20+ year old Amerlites with incandescent bulbs. To me LEDs have no benefit for the small amount of time my pool light is on.
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That makes sense. I guess they wouldn't be crushed and deformed by the elements if they haven't been installed.

I live near Sacramento, where we never "close" our pools, and my pool is smack-dab in the middle of our backyard, so it's an attention-getter. I also like the ambience of colored lights in other people's pools that I've seen. Combine that with the fact that I only have lights over the back doors and haven't found a way to attractively install outside lights in the back, I was thinking I could kill two birds with one stone in that attractive pool lighting might contribute to a little more illumination and ambience out there when I'm not even using the pool, suuch as when BBQ-ing dinner or hanging out, if that makes sense.
 
ajw22 said:
Nope. They are light junction boxes connecting the pool light wires to the light switch wires.
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Thank you! So, the Amerilites are a possibility for me then. OK, so where do I get info on replacement bulbs? They don't seem easy to locate on Pentair's site.

Edit: Oops, looks like I found replacement bulbs, but not LED. Will LED, in fact, work in those housings without having to modify my junction boxes or add transformers? Is it like installing an LED bulb in the incandescent fixtures in my house? Can you point me to examples of some that might fit that Amerilite housing?
 
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MrLeadFoot said:
Thank you! So, the Amerilites are a possibility for me then. OK, so where do I get info on replacement bulbs? They don't seem easy to locate on Pentair's site.
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Pentair does not sell replacement bulbs.

There are lots of inexpensive color changing bulbs on Amazon if you are adventurous.

Lighting Basics - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com

Hayward has acquired J&J, and the ColorSplash Series is now on the Hayward website.

The J&J ColorSplash LXG Replacement 120V Color-Changing LED Pool Light Bulb replaces the ColorSplash 3G bulb. LXG bulbs cannot be used in a pool where other 3G bulbs are also installed.

The J&J ColorSplash 3G Replacement 120V Color-Changing LED Pool Light bulb is an Edison base replacement for incandescent bulbs. The ColorSplash has seven colors, multi-color blends, and five light shows, including Parisian Blue, Brazilian Red, Tahitian Blue, Miami Pink, Tuscan Orange, Arctic White, and New Zealand Green colors. Each light has a lifespan of up to 50,000 hours.
 
ajw22 said:
There are lots of inexpensive color changing bulbs on Amazon if you are adventurous.
Click to expand...
I'm not sure what you mean by "adventurous". Could you please elaborate here?

Hayward has acquired J&J, and the ColorSplash Series is now on the Hayward website.

The J&J ColorSplash LXG Replacement 120V Color-Changing LED Pool Light Bulb replaces the ColorSplash 3G bulb. LXG bulbs cannot be used in a pool where other 3G bulbs are also installed.

The J&J ColorSplash 3G Replacement 120V Color-Changing LED Pool Light bulb is an Edison base replacement for incandescent bulbs. The ColorSplash has seven colors, multi-color blends, and five light shows, including Parisian Blue, Brazilian Red, Tahitian Blue, Miami Pink, Tuscan Orange, Arctic White, and New Zealand Green colors. Each light has a lifespan of up to 50,000 hours.
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Do you know if this ColorSpash bulb fits the Amerilite housing (or whatever you call it)?
 
MrLeadFoot said:
I'm not sure what you mean by "adventurous". Could you please elaborate here?
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Unknown quality from unknown vendors who come and go. It could work out great or be a waste of money. You may need to try a few until you find a good one.

MrLeadFoot said:
Do you know if this ColorSpash bulb fits the Amerilite housing (or whatever you call it)?
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It fits.
 
I just sent those pics of my lights to a replastering company. They said those are 6" spa lights, not standard 10" pool lights. I asked how he could tell, and he said he used the 3" tile that you can see in one of the pics as reference. Would you all agree with that?

If so, looks like I need to start my search over, because the Amerilites are all the larger 10" size, correct?
 

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