LED Lights on Ambulance? [Archive] - EMTLife.com - The #1 Online Forum for EMS-Related Discussion

Jon

04-18-2005, 09:10 PM

I like the LED's for brake, turn, and tail lights. I also like them for the "secondary" lights on the ambulance box. I still think the front lightbar should be a 52" MX7000 all light, clear with red filters, and the grille and fender lights should be strobe. Also, on the back beside each door should be a combination halogen / Strobe light, and all DOT lights should be LED.

Jon

BloodNGlory02

04-27-2005, 02:18 AM

Our newest rig (roadrescue) has a rear LED light bar. its bright as heck and low maintenance compared to the strobes and halogens. We're looking into ALL led's on our next squad.

KEVD18

04-28-2005, 08:44 PM

leds are great. they require less energy, are typically brighter, last umpteen million times longer plus they look badass. from personal experience, theyre also cheaper. big fan here

ffemt8978

04-29-2005, 12:45 AM

Originally posted by MedicStudentJon@Apr 18 2005, 06:10 PM
I like the LED's for brake, turn, and tail lights. I also like them for the "secondary" lights on the ambulance box. I still think the front lightbar should be a 52" MX7000 all light, clear with red filters, and the grille and fender lights should be strobe. Also, on the back beside each door should be a combination halogen / Strobe light, and all DOT lights should be LED.

Jon
I agree with this statement. It's been my experience that LED's don't "project" as well as strobes or halogens. What I mean by this is that you pretty much have to be looking at the LED to notice it. It doesn't reflect off buildings and such as well as strobes or halogens, and this is very important for blind corners. I've noticed the same problems with the law enforcement agencies around here that use them.

I'm a big fan of LED's for the DOT lights, such as brakes and turn signals, even the flashers on the rear of the ambulance. As far as the front light bar goes, give me a strobe or halogen set any day.

NJEMTB

04-29-2005, 06:05 PM

my squad purchased a new pl and it is LED everything box the brake lights to the box lights to the lightbars very nice cant complain but sometimes its just too bright when you are working right next to the lights

ECC

06-01-2005, 03:23 PM

Our two new busses have all LED set ups...They are available in full size lightbar configurations, and I like it. Looks like a UFO landing!

rdkl

06-09-2005, 12:05 PM

I am a big fan of LED lights. I run nothing but LED on my truck. That being said, I install all of the lights, radios, etc for our rigs and I have to say as far as lighting goes, nothing beats a good ol Halogen rotator bar as far as being noticed. Strobes tend to be brighter, but the movement you get on the rotators still seems to be the best in my book.

I prefer LED because if you are looking at them directly, they are very bright, but mostly because they use very little power. I already have a pretty big power drain in my truck and rather than upgrade the electrical, its easier to go LED. LEDs also tend to be a lot easier to install and wire.

MMiz

06-12-2005, 01:33 AM

The big problem I see is that LEDs are so expensive.

Our BLS Type II ambulances have the worst light bars, I can't even describe them. They look cheap and dont seem to throw off much light.

I'll take a picture when I go into work tomorrow (today).

ECC

06-13-2005, 11:59 AM

Blue is really expensive as compared to the other colors.

lukepye

06-22-2005, 12:23 PM

Our Service switched to LED lights several years ago and found them very effective. They have good visibilty a long life and pull less current than older halogen lights. The cost continues to come down and the are now comparable priced with strobes, except you don't have to have a power supply.

PArescueEMT

06-23-2005, 07:57 AM

A private company out here hav 1 truck... type 3... with all LED's. I think that it is the most hideous thing anybody could do to an ambulance.

TTLWHKR

06-23-2005, 01:10 PM

Marque & MedTech put them along the steps.

Stevo

06-23-2005, 08:12 PM

LED lighting assumes the most lumens per watt, Home Power (http://www.homepower.com/) advocated it years ago, and now that 'lectrickity is around $.13 a kilowatt hr here (http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/SavingandDebt/P87298.asp) it's gained the notice of more than just the save the whales crowd....

i like the flashlights and headlamps they have out now...

i wear one of these when i really feel like stylin'...
http://www.lampled.com/upload/2005121173453.jpg

next up~ wind powered suction on rigs! :P

~S~

TTLWHKR

06-23-2005, 11:09 PM

Never know...

They have engine powered, Vacuum pump powered, manual, foot powered and oxygen powered...

Why not small windmills on the roof?

Flight-LP

07-02-2005, 10:12 PM

I agree with ffemt8978 about light projection, especially during the day. Our trucks are all LED and they are difficult to see during the day. They look cool at night, but I'd prefer strobes anyday...............

DT4EMS

07-04-2005, 11:04 PM

I believe that as the price goes down ALL EMS vehicles will have LED's. The main reason is a low draw on the electrical system and no bulbs to replace.

At first I didn't like them when a police department I was working for went to them, but it is a funny thing to learn that when the battery can't crank the engine but will still lights up the LED's.

(Like a person leaves the radio or headlights on)

emtd29

07-16-2005, 11:06 PM

Our Newest rig has LED / Strobe Lightbars on the front and rear of the box

The new truck we're getting I think will have the same package

daemonicusxx

07-17-2005, 05:54 PM

one of our new type II's

A Sprinter

perfect example of a "vanbulance"

ffemt8978

07-17-2005, 06:02 PM

Makes me wonder how visible they are in the daytime.

Ridryder911

07-22-2005, 11:19 AM

Our new unit will have noting but strobes & LED bars... I too worry about day time & peripheral lighting...

Be safe,
Ridryder 911

trishbug

07-22-2005, 01:57 PM

We just got a new rig that has LED lights on it. I really like it - they're incredibly bright. At night there is no way a person can miss them and in day they're still clear.

ffemt8978

07-22-2005, 02:59 PM

The point was that they're incredibly bright when you are looking directly at them. They're not so noticable when you're looking at them in your peripheral vision.

Chimpie

07-22-2005, 06:31 PM

LED's mixed with strobes in the corners works very nicely. Supposedly there is a new LED lightbar that is coming out that actually throws the light out like a rotating halogen or strobe bar. I'll update this when I find out more info.

elaugesen

05-29-2009, 10:14 AM

We pioneered the use of LED's on our Pierce engine which was purchased in 2001, (We had a lot of discussion with the salesman) since then they have become standard equipment on Pierce Engines per the same salesman. I have found that if used properly they are just as bright as Halogen or Strobe lights here in Florida. The strobe lights in bright sun were dim unless you were directly in front of them, same for some of the first generation LED's. They now manufacture them to be NFPA compliant and the LED's are angled in rows from one side to the other so there is a greater coverage field for vision. We found that the expected load of 300+ amps draw on the engine was reduced to approx. 70 amps by the use of LED's and the initial cost when setting up the spec's for a unit in minimal. If the saleman tries to tell you different get hold of a rep for the lighting company. The initial difference on our units is usually around $400.00 more for LED's but the long term reduction in replacement costs can be 10 times that. We have only experienced one failure in 8 years.

mikie

05-29-2009, 11:11 AM

This thread is 4 years old...^_^

elaugesen

05-29-2009, 11:14 AM

Respectfully, you are absolutely correct, however the debat6e is still raging in some areas. My apologies if I offended anyone.:blush:

mikie

05-29-2009, 11:23 AM

Respectfully, you are absolutely correct, however the debat6e is still raging in some areas. My apologies if I offended anyone.:blush:

Doubtful you offended anyone. Personally, I don't care that the thread is 'reopened,' just pointing it out. Furthermore, I didn't realize it was still a raging debat6e.

Tincanfireman

05-30-2009, 07:22 AM

This thread is 4 years old...^_^

Wow, hadn't even noticed!

Our units use a combination of mostly LED technology, augmented with clear white rotators on the front light bar. My very unscientific observation is that traffic directly in front of the unit has a much longer warning time as compared to older units with traditional light bars. As we are in a primarily suburban/rural environment with the only "downtown" section being near the hospital, this works well for us.

lightsandsirens5

05-30-2009, 02:58 PM

Well since I wasn't even on this site when this thread started........

Our new rigs have all LED warning and rear DOT lights. Of our two older rigs, one has all Haolgen and one has combination Halogen/Strobe. Personally, I'm not impressed with the visibility of the halogen rotaters on our older rig. The flashers are okay from far away, but the beam is so focused, that they really don't do much up close. The LEDs however have blinding long-range viz and excellent, but not overly bright, close-range viz. On our newest rig we have two small white light modules on the brush gaurd. They are great! I wish we had them in the LED lightbar also. We havent used those untill now because they reflect pretty bad in the snow. (I tried suggesting that we just run all the white lights through a seperate switch, after the emercency master, that kills the white lights only. That way you can have white lights in the system, but you can also have the abaility to shut them off in the snow. We already have one for the headlight flasher. But I am just the new guy, so.............)

On the engine at my fire station, all the lights are halogen (except for two LEDs above the headlights), but there are so many of them it desent seem to matter. Also the reflector configuration is a whole lot better than on the amb. Once again however, the lightbar (halogen rotaters), with the exception of the white rotator in the center dosent seem to have the same eye catching abaility of LEDs.

What really does catch attention forward is the pre-empt/opticom module. Especally if it is one of the larger ones.

emtfarva

05-30-2009, 07:23 PM

We just recived a newer truck from AEV. All though it is a Sprinter, AEV completely went with LEDs. This truck is very, very bright. It is the only truck I have seen that the lights ping off of road signs in the broad daylight 1/2 mile away. What I like about LEDs is that they draw less current, so you can run them while you are parked and still have more power to run other equipment while attending to the PT.

cookiexd40

05-31-2009, 04:23 PM

all the lights on our frazier ambulances are LED...we love them...
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn79/jacook936/20220824E.jpg

guardian528

06-05-2009, 12:45 AM

amr here used to have a whole fleet of the standard leader ambulances, but they just got a couple of those euro sprinter looking ambulances with full LED setup's. main lightbar is extremely bright, but of course has the problem of less visibility from the sides and whatnot

exodus

06-05-2009, 11:05 AM

all the lights on our frazier ambulances are LED...we love them...
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn79/jacook936/20220824E.jpg

You're missing a lightbar!

exodus

06-05-2009, 11:06 AM

What really does catch attention forward is the pre-empt/opticom module. Especally if it is one of the larger ones.

Opticom is the big white strobe light, right? We have those on all of our rigs :]

JPINFV

06-05-2009, 11:08 AM

Not all ambulances have light bars, and too be honest, the one's I've seen that don't work better anyways. That said, the one I have seen in action had a few more lights in that strip of lights along the front side of the box.

lightsandsirens5

06-05-2009, 01:52 PM

Opticom is the big white strobe light, right? We have those on all of our rigs :]

The ones be have are pretty small: http://www.fentonfire.com/images/library/full/1314_A0520-4.jpg

The bigger ones are the size of the standard square halogen flasher on the sides of the box. Those are eye catchers!B)

exodus

06-05-2009, 11:53 PM

Ah, ours are two white strobes near the middle of the light bar, it goes like this

R-R-R-R-W-(steadyRed)(steadyRed)-W-R-R-R-R

lightsandsirens5

06-06-2009, 02:58 AM

Ah, ours are two white strobes near the middle of the light bar, it goes like this

R-R-R-R-W-(steadyRed)(steadyRed)-W-R-R-R-R

What is with the steadyRed?

On our standard lightbar it goes:

R-R-W-Opticom-W-R-R

Our LED lightbars go:

R-R-A-R-Opticom-R-A-R-R

I have some pics in my profile album. I'll try to get some of the new ambulance in there.

JPINFV

06-06-2009, 03:30 AM

What is with the steadyRed?

Per California Vehicle Code, all emergency vehicles are required to display a 'steady burning forward facing red light' when using lights and sirens. Technically everything else besides that light is extra. At my old company, that light was either the grill lights or the middle light of the three lights on the top front for the type 2 Wheeled Coach Crusaders. On the Horton Type 3s it was in the middle of the light bar and I don't remember where it was on the Leader type 2s.

Exodus, are you using Leaders?

daedalus

06-06-2009, 04:30 AM

Per California Vehicle Code, all emergency vehicles are required to display a 'steady burning forward facing red light' when using lights and sirens. Technically everything else besides that light is extra. At my old company, that light was either the grill lights or the middle light of the three lights on the top front for the type 2 Wheeled Coach Crusaders. On the Horton Type 3s it was in the middle of the light bar and I don't remember where it was on the Leader type 2s.

Exodus, are you using Leaders?

The good ol steady burn law, formulated in like the land before time. CHP is the only organization I know of that goes out of their way to follow that law (probably because they are charged with enforcing it) but it looks ridiculous when their unmarked units have only the blue lights blinking and all the red steady burning. Our lightbars have the middle most light always on, but LA city fire just switched to LED light bars which do not...

JPINFV

06-06-2009, 07:14 AM

Do LACo's grill lights blink or are they steady on the units with the LED light bars?

daedalus

06-06-2009, 07:30 PM

Do LACo's grill lights blink or are they steady on the units with the LED light bars?

Not sure, maybe that is how they meet the steady burn criteria.

JPINFV

06-06-2009, 07:37 PM

I don't even imagine CHP just giving a pass to fire departments by virtue of it being a fire department and not a private ambulance.

JonTullos

06-06-2009, 07:40 PM

I'm a fan of LEDs personally. They're so much brighter... but wowzers are they expensive!

exodus

06-06-2009, 08:12 PM

NolaRabbit

06-07-2009, 10:05 AM

My service is running LED's on all our units, and let me tell you, they are hella bright. Day or night, people see them a lot better than our old units with the strobes. The light definitely bounces off of everything. I wish I could find a photo with them on, but here are a few that at least show the configuration:

http://cityofno.com/Portals/EMS/Resources/Ambulance%20FRONT%20Small.jpg

http://cityofno.com/Portals/EMS/Resources/Ambulance%20REAR%20Small.jpg

http://cityofno.com/Portals/EMS/Resources/Ambulance%20SIDE%20small.jpg

We all seem to think the LED's are a big improvement.

We also recently put Rumblers on a few of our sprints - and that's a whole 'nother thread. ;)

EMT007

06-07-2009, 07:18 PM

The good ol steady burn law, formulated in like the land before time. CHP is the only organization I know of that goes out of their way to follow that law (probably because they are charged with enforcing it) but it looks ridiculous when their unmarked units have only the blue lights blinking and all the red steady burning. Our lightbars have the middle most light always on, but LA city fire just switched to LED light bars which do not...

Doesn't really take much "going out of the way" to program one light to be always on. An agency would be absolutely out of their minds not to follow this law, as without it, they are not an emergency vehicle and other vehicles don't have to pull over for them.

The new LAFD rigs have the two LED grill lights as steady reds (a setup I much prefer to having the steady reds in the lightbar)

JPINFV

06-07-2009, 07:28 PM

An agency would be absolutely out of their minds not to follow this law, as without it, they are not an emergency vehicle and other vehicles don't have to pull over for them.

I think that's a little harsh. I doubt very many people outside of the emergency services know that the only light that "counts" is the steady red. I bet if you showed a video of two emergency vehicles, one with a steady red and one with out, that 10 people couldn't tell which one wasn't the "real" emergency vehicle.

EMT007

06-07-2009, 08:09 PM

I think that's a little harsh. I doubt very many people outside of the emergency services know that the only light that "counts" is the steady red. I bet if you showed a video of two emergency vehicles, one with a steady red and one with out, that 10 people couldn't tell which one wasn't the "real" emergency vehicle.

Agree completely. My point is that "legally" they would not be an emergency vehicle and would be wide open from a legal liability standpoint should anything happen while running code. I guarantee you that lawyers know the law and would use it to the advantage of their client. I maintain that it would be reckless to disregard this law just because you might think it archaic. I'm a little curious who Daedalus has seen without a steady red. :ph34r:

lightsandsirens5

06-09-2009, 12:17 AM

Proud2bffemt

06-09-2009, 06:01 PM

I think the LED lights on cop cars is great. While it makes them harder to spot, I like how bright they are.

Has anyone seen LEDs on an ambulance? Whether it be the main light bar or on the sides / back, I'm wondering if such a setup exists.

My Dept runs a 2007 Osage Type I and we have All LED warning lights with the exception of a Full rotator Vector lightbar. the LEDs are BRIGHT. We Also have a Tomar Emitter Strobe in the center box light to control the traffic lights.

I like them, Brighter, Less Maintenance Less headaches.

marineman

06-09-2009, 11:09 PM

Awsome rigs! Who makes those? I so much prefer the truck chassis over the vans. They look kinda like the ones we use. Ours are North Stars made by Braun NW.

Look at the license plate in the first picture, if I had to go on a limb I'd guess it's made by wheeled coach

lightsandsirens5

06-10-2009, 12:28 AM

Look at the license plate in the first picture, if I had to go on a limb I'd guess it's made by wheeled coach

Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa................... :blush:

MedicObserver

06-10-2009, 12:30 AM

the local CO. that i ride with has 2009 Navistar Med Duty units built by TraumaHawk (i love that word, i dont know why though) and they are all LED. everything. the RapidResponse 4x4 tahoe has an LED light bar and LED red/blue flashing street-glow neon underneath. it's cool because at night you can see the colors flash on the road if you look out the window. i love the LED system. the touchpanel is easier to operate too. i used to have to use my index finger and my flip-off finger (i dont know what you call the fingers; im a freakin' observer not a doctor) but now i just use the index because it takes so little presses on the screen to get things going. all the lights and sirens are on a program and the intersection buzzer is on a foot press button that either the driver or the front passenger (me) can use. i love working with the equipment almost as much as i do helping people. a little kid with a gash on his head can tell you thank-you and hi-5 you; a portable or a touchpanel can't.

Proud2bffemt

06-10-2009, 03:29 AM

http://www.emtlife.com/picture.php?albumid=98&pictureid=467

This is my ambulance I mentioned before with the LEDs Vector bar and White Traffic controller strobe
This Picture was from Memorial Day 2008, the flags are not standard fare for the truck :-)

NolaRabbit

06-10-2009, 05:28 AM

Look at the license plate in the first picture, if I had to go on a limb I'd guess it's made by wheeled coach

DING DING DING DING! Correct!

Incidentally, I got a look at one of the new units we are supposedly getting, and amazingly, the LED's are even brighter than the ones we have now. I didn't think it was possible. The whole thing looks sweet...AND they have the Rumblers!

Rob123

06-17-2009, 02:14 PM

The whole thing looks sweet...AND they have the Rumblers!

Until this thread, I never heard of rumblers... no pun intended.

For the one or two others like me...
http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10466578

pfmedic

06-23-2009, 09:48 PM

I think blue LED's are the most visible. but LED's as a whole are the way to go. bright as all get out.

guardian528

06-23-2009, 10:43 PM

I think blue LED's are the most visible.

i agree, and if i remember correctly it's true. i looked at a comparison of different colored LED's at some point and i think blue and white were the brightest colors. too bad blue is reserved for law enforcement in CA.

jtb_E10

06-26-2009, 06:37 PM

I think the LED lights on cop cars is great. While it makes them harder to spot, I like how bright they are.

Has anyone seen LEDs on an ambulance? Whether it be the main light bar or on the sides / back, I'm wondering if such a setup exists.

All of the ambulances that my service runs has LED's instead of strobe/halogen lights. They are much brighter and people can see us so much better.

Fireguy

07-28-2009, 04:35 AM

http://www.liverpoolems.com/front%20angle.jpg You mean like this beautiful machine? www.liverpoolems.com

Sail195

07-28-2009, 10:22 AM

Both our new trucks are all LED and let me tell you it can be bright as heck out and you can see these things from a mile away!!

redcrossemt

07-28-2009, 09:57 PM

Since this thread has been brought back again, I'll add my two cents...

At my private service, our new Chevy Vanbulances are mostly LED. We have an LED lightbar with 4 red corners, 2 red front, 2 white front. There are red bumper and fender lights. The primaries (side and rear lights) on the conversion top are LED red, white, and amber. They even took away the headlight flasher (wig-wag) and replaced it with two white LED modules next to the headlights.

The load and scene lights stayed halogen. The trucks are really visible, definitely brighter than our halogen units.

The one thing I suggest for all services is to keep headlight flashers if legal in your jurisdiction. They are one of the best devices we have in our toolbox for front facing warning power.

gradygirl

07-29-2009, 01:47 AM

I think the LED lights on cop cars is great. While it makes them harder to spot, I like how bright they are.

Has anyone seen LEDs on an ambulance? Whether it be the main light bar or on the sides / back, I'm wondering if such a setup exists.

Our new Sprinters are all LED, both in all outside lights and in the dome lights in the back. You can see these trucks from a mile away, and there's nothing more painful than having a Sprinter in front of you when someone opens the back doors and the load lights spring to life at midnight.