Evaluation Guide Underwater Lights -Housings-

Housing materials should be extremely durable and highly corrosion resistant. While through-hull designs may allow for a slightly lower profile, they typically require a significantly more complex installation procedure. Even under water, thermal management is a key consideration as today’s high powered emitters can easily generate heat levels that can be detrimental to gelcoats and polyester resins. Therefore housing materials should be thermally conductive. Insulating housing materials such as plastics, while lower cost, are not as conducive to proper cooling and as such should be evaluated carefully.

Lumitec
Machined from marine-grade aluminum, conversion-protected with the same technology used on the US Navy’s ultra-deep unmanned submersibles
Surface mount design installs quickly and easily
Housings have demonstrated a remarkable 10,000+ hours in salt-spray testing

Others
Lower cost plastic housings insulate heat-generating components / Alternatively, low-quality cast stainless lights are prone to corrosion
Through-hull designs require significantly more installation time and highly skilled labor

Evaluation Guide Underwater Lights -Circuitry-

Internal drive circuits do not require the installation and connection of an external driver box. Drive circuitry should actively regulate current and compensate for changes in temperature to avoid overdriving or overheating. Well engineered circuits are greater than 90% efficient, while less expensive, crude resistive circuits may waste 50% or more of the total power in the form of damaging heat.

Lumitec
All circuitry contained inside the light – no boxes to mount, fewer connections to make and maintain
Highly efficient circuit offers the maximum light output with the minimum power
Accommodates voltages from 10 to 30VDC

Others
Large bulky driver boxes must mounted separately from the light
“Overdriving” lower cost emitters can yield impressive results initially, but may reduce expected life by 80% or more.
Resistive (linear) circuits are inexpensive, but can generate excessive heat

Evaluation Guide Underwater Lights -The "WOW" Factor-

Your customers want an impressive display of light when docked, fishing, or underway. Understanding how light interacts with water, and how users perceive the light is key to delivering maximum satisfaction. Because light will travel differently through air and water (particularly water that is anything other than gin-clear) the obvious choice on the shop floor may not be the best choice in the marina. Light output should be collimated (focused) to mitigate the natural scattering effect of suspended sediments. Emitters should be carefully chosen to offer the highest output, in colors which perform best in expected water conditions.

Lumitec
Utilizes a multi-stage optical system which collimates the light output for maximum impact.
Offers the latest colors and features
Continues to innovate to keep pace with new trends and changing customer tastes

Others
Save money by omitting optics altogether
Utilize ‘me-too’ designs and low quality overseas manufacturing