Brass Rain
Member
What about those clicky lights they used to advertise on TV? You stick it up somewhere and push on the dome to turn it on and off.
Gun Safe Lighting help please
- Thread starter seanYsean
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Stevie-Ray
Member
No. Best recommendation is a 15 or 25W incandescent bulb, which are going to be quite hard to find in the future.
Regarding LED lights, that depends on the string. You need to get an idea of the wattage of the string, then realize that the LEDs are something like 22% efficient at most, so 78% of the input power is waste heat. If the LED string was a 20W string, then it would be providing nearly 16W of heat.
I personally have a 16' regular incandescent string light in my safe and I believe it puts out more overall heat than a Goldenrod.
Also note that a Goldenrod provides a concentrated heat source at the bottom of the safe. A string light (LED or otherwise) will provide heat from the entire front area of the safe.
I personally have a 16' regular incandescent string light in my safe and I believe it puts out more overall heat than a Goldenrod.
Also note that a Goldenrod provides a concentrated heat source at the bottom of the safe. A string light (LED or otherwise) will provide heat from the entire front area of the safe.
wmeSha
Member
Actually all of the light that strikes a surface turns into heat too. So if the doors are closed and the string is using 20W, then you're getting 20W of heat no matter how efficient or inefficient the LEDs are.
Grumpyoldman
Member
I have used an incandecsent rope light in my safe for 10yrs. I have it wired to a timer and have it on for 4 hrs a day. I use the on/off switch on the timer to turn it on when I need to see inside. I have never had any rust problems, and it puts out plenty of light.
AmmoEqualsGold
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Gun Safe Lighting On the Cheap
Trust me man...LightMySafe.com has awesome LED lights and they're simple to install including the automatic door switches. They have both battery and A/C and you can't tell a difference in which is brighter. For real, how many thousands do you have in your gun safe and you're using "As Seen On TV" sticky lights or rope lights...yall crack me up. You're probably reading this in your Snuggie! LOL
Trust me man...LightMySafe.com has awesome LED lights and they're simple to install including the automatic door switches. They have both battery and A/C and you can't tell a difference in which is brighter. For real, how many thousands do you have in your gun safe and you're using "As Seen On TV" sticky lights or rope lights...yall crack me up. You're probably reading this in your Snuggie! LOL
Sheepdog1968
Member
I saw in a recent Bass Pro Shop or Cabella's catalog a light designed for safes that runs on AA batteries and is motion activated to turn on. Don't have it handy and my memory is fuzzy.
ColtPythonElite
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I've got an 13" flourescent light in my safe. It uses the mini-tube kind of bulbs. I simply fastened the fixture in the roof of my safe with with a couple of screws. I put velcro on the fixture first and stuck it up. I guess that would have held it alone. Anyway, then I used a screwdriver to tuck the cord in the corner of to hide it, ran it down and out the hole in the back of the safe. The light has a rocker switch on it to flip it on. If you wanted, you could link another light to it via a cord that comes with each light and mount a second one under the top shelf. Both would come on with the same switch....It set me back less than 15 bucks.
I tried leaving the light on to raise the temp in my safe and used an indoor/outdoor thermometer to monitor the temps. The light would not raise the safe temp. I put a Dri-Rod it to control humidity. The indoor/outdoor thermometer tells me the temp in the room, the temp in the safe, and the humidity level in the safe.
I tried leaving the light on to raise the temp in my safe and used an indoor/outdoor thermometer to monitor the temps. The light would not raise the safe temp. I put a Dri-Rod it to control humidity. The indoor/outdoor thermometer tells me the temp in the room, the temp in the safe, and the humidity level in the safe.
rfwobbly
Member
My wife just ordered an LED closet light that might work for you. She bought it off Amazon and it's got a motion sensor, lamp, and battery pack all about the size of a common smoke detector. The LED light s blindingly bright and it runs of several C cell batteries. It can be mounted in any position using a handy adapter plate, just like a smoke detector.
The one she purchased is called Mr Beams. RIGHT HERE
The one she purchased is called Mr Beams. RIGHT HERE
clamman
Member
OK here's a weird thought,,,,,,,,,,,,Christmas lights?
sig228
Member
Like Scott30, I also use a puck lighting kit. Mine has a touch dimmer similar to this:
http://www.homedepot.com/Lighting-F...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
Works perfect.
http://www.homedepot.com/Lighting-F...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
Works perfect.
ColtPythonElite
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Here's my 13 buck fluorescent light bar at work. If the area under the shelf is too dark, you can add a second light to the first one with a connector wire that comes with them. They both come on with one switch...........Yeah, I thought about rope lights and snag them in clear after Xmas for all kinds of lighting....My family room's ceiling is lit up with 'em, I use 'em on my camper awning, ect. I just didn't want to screw a bunch of clips the safe's liner.
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RainDodger
Member
I lined the corners of the safe with rope lighting and put in a contact switch that turns them on when I open the safe door. Works great and looks really nice. I mounted the contact switch the the underside of the rifle rack shelf. The switch extends out from under the shelf and contacts a small metal plate that I epoxied to the door to keep it from wearing the upholstery on the inside of the door. Wiring runs on the underside of that shelf.
I also stuck one of those battery powered halogen lights above the safe door on the ceiling of the closet, so when the power is out, I can hit the light and see the safe lock.
I also stuck one of those battery powered halogen lights above the safe door on the ceiling of the closet, so when the power is out, I can hit the light and see the safe lock.
AmmoEqualsGold
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Gun Safe Lights - Gun Safe Lighting
seanYsean....
Trust me man, you can't beat these lights. I could understand rope lighting if I had a $200 shoe box safe from the local sporting goods store but these are meant for real gun safes, to light up real guns, and provide adequate light to see your collection, not just one gun who happens to be sitting in a loney aluminum bunker that someone calls a safe.
I have nothing against rope lighting...they use them in movie theatres everywhere and they're just bright enough to keep you from falling into the crowd but not bright enough to let you see the wad of bubble gum you're about to step in. It all comes down to getting what you pay for. I just don't think people realize that one individual LED light (not the entire light strip) from LightMySafe.com produces more light compared to the entire 6ft strand of LED rope lights you can buy. They're simply for decoration.
I paid $150 for the battery operated...they have cheaper kits if you have power running to your safe and they have specials from time to time. Besides, even if the lights go out, I can easily open my safe and grab the necessary tool for the job
At the end of the day....you get what you pay for!
seanYsean....
Trust me man, you can't beat these lights. I could understand rope lighting if I had a $200 shoe box safe from the local sporting goods store but these are meant for real gun safes, to light up real guns, and provide adequate light to see your collection, not just one gun who happens to be sitting in a loney aluminum bunker that someone calls a safe.
I have nothing against rope lighting...they use them in movie theatres everywhere and they're just bright enough to keep you from falling into the crowd but not bright enough to let you see the wad of bubble gum you're about to step in. It all comes down to getting what you pay for. I just don't think people realize that one individual LED light (not the entire light strip) from LightMySafe.com produces more light compared to the entire 6ft strand of LED rope lights you can buy. They're simply for decoration.
I paid $150 for the battery operated...they have cheaper kits if you have power running to your safe and they have specials from time to time. Besides, even if the lights go out, I can easily open my safe and grab the necessary tool for the job
At the end of the day....you get what you pay for!
lightman
Member
My Ft Knox came with a fluorescent strip on each side of the door,that come on when the door is opened.The top shelf(72 inch safe) is the only thing that is not well lit.I'm an electrician,and if I were going to do it myself,I would look hard at those rope lights,and a closet door switch.Lots of good ideas here,good luck with your lighting project. Lightman
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