Camping during the winter is possible in Oregon as we typically don't have severe weather conditions that require an RV to "winterized" with RV Antifreeze. This means we can leave after work on Friday and come home Sunday afternoon! However, camping in the winter months usually means we are arriving to campsites in the dark. Arriving to the campsite in the dark is not so bad....it's the parking that provides its own set of challenges and struggles. We determined that using a flashlight to help just wasn't enough.
More light was needed! After doing a bit of research, we decided to add 4 LED lights to our trailer. Once we considered all the possible locations to add the lights, we settles on adding two lights towards the front of the RV (along the frame pointed backward) and two lights positioned on the back bumper. With the lights now installed, we have a remote control inside the truck to turn on the lights when needed. We can now EASILY see behind the Bighorn when backing into a site. Using the Furrion Reverse Camera (a future blog entry) I can now see iluminate area behind the RV, even if it is pitch dark. No more ity-bity flashlight!
Important to note: We used "flood" lights for this setup vs "spot" lights. Flood lights will give a larger area behind the RV vs spots lights. Spots lights can go a LONG way back, but that is not what we need when backing in the Bighorn.
In order to control these lights we purchased a 15 amp wireless controller. The main lights in the back draw 3 amps each, so a total of 6 amps. The smaller lights on the side will draw 1.5 amps each, so 3 amps for the pair. This brings the total draw to 9 amps, so the 15 amps wireless controller is well within specs.
Items Needed for this RV Upgrade:
I consider this a "must have" for this install. I was able to lay down on my back, while pulling the wire for this install, while simply rolling along on the creepers wheels.
Optional Smaller Light for Side of RV