Wiring 12v lights in series

[sunking]

Originally Posted by Sergio

Be careful, if these 12v lights are using led drivers (meaning they have a wide input voltage like 9v-30v) then you cannot wire them in series.

The series wiring is just for resistive loads like a halogen bulb, not for electronic circuits.

Ding Ding we have a winner with the correct answer. In order to work the way you want, you would have to use 4 x 12 volt headlights of equal wattage wired in series. Incandescent light electrically are nothing more than a passive resistor.

It will not work with LED Lights using an ACTIVE ELECTRONIC DRIVER made to work over a wide range of voltages.

What you can do and would work, and I would not recommend it is to wire say headlight #1 across Battery 1-3, and headlight #2 across battery 4-6. In effect you wire the two headlights in series, and center tap the battery so each light is on a 24 volts of battery. Same could be done on a 36 volt cart except center tap would be 18 volts.

[WalterM6]

But Slinky said he had ordinary 12v LED's. Not the 9v-30v LED's you're talking about.

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by WalterM6

But Slinky said he had ordinary 12v LED's. Not the 9v-30v LED's you're talking about.

There are no "ordinary 12V" LEDs... All common LEDs operate at a voltage below 6V, depending upon the coler, and they are not voltage driven devices. They are rated at a specific operating current. Each and every LED is unique, in that variables during manufacture cause minor differences that cause the actual voltage across the LEDs junction (it really IS a diode) to vary, when driven at the rated current. This is why LEDs are driven by current regulators. You cannot just pick an arbitrary resistance value to even out the voltage drop, because the voltage dropped by the regulator is the actual LED voltage, subtracted from the applied voltage. To further complicate this, the voltage across the dode junction varies with temperate, and as it heats up from operating, junction voltage drops. Without current regulation, current rises, causing more heat, causing more voltage drop... on and on until thermal runaway ends with burnout. This is the reason for current regulated operation. Simple indicator LEDs are typically operated at a fraction of their rating, allowing a simple resistor. But illumination LEDs are more powerful, requiring regulation.

The four pole single throw switch is the best option to allow all 4 lights to be switched together, while being driven by the pack. With each LED connected to a seperate 12V battery...

[tyhuck]

Well, my lights must be rated for 48v or more then, because I have been running them in series so far and no problems. (Knock on wood)

[sunking]

Originally Posted by WalterM6

But Slinky said he had ordinary 12v LED's. Not the 9v-30v LED's you're talking about.

I repeat it again. You cannot wire 12 volt LED lights in Series. LED's use ACTIVE ELECTRONICS to make them work. Incandescent lighting is PASSIVE EQUAL RESISTANCE.