Strobe bulb placement 09 Silverado

[BenMidTenn]

I'm not sure this is the right place to put this, but we do some emergency lighting for customers who have it and I had to put 4 corner strobes on a 09 Silverado (which I haven't done so far this year.) Here is a basic diagram where to drill. I'm sure it may not be clear to some so please feel free to give me an opportunity to clarify.

Ben

[jparks29]

drill the hole, drill a smaller hole above to vent heat... Caulk?! WTF kind of tubes are they?

Stick to major brands...Whelen, FedSig, etc...

On smaller enclosures LEDs will work better,,, More light out and no heat generation...

[llllllllll]

dam if your a pro emergency light installer u shouldnt be asking us

[izzyj4]

I have done installs with both Whelen strobe tubes and also the new LED hid-a-ways (these are also in my new SUV) I have never heard of anyone putting a "vent" in the plastic. usually with the operations, the tubes do not make the lenses any more warn than when running lights are on. The only problem I see if you do "vent" is getting water into the lens.

With that in mind, sealing the tube to prevent water comming into the lens from the back side would really be a defeated purpose as water would ceom in from any opening. Whelen, Federal, Galls, Nova and Code-3 tube all come with a gromet for a seal and they were great!

Thias really sounds like some aftermarket "Pep-Boys" style tubes your placing in. Of course I am only guessing on this. What make are the tubes you are installing?

[jparks29]

Have you seen the enclosures on the Silverado?

They're barely big enough for a regular bulb, let alone a bulb AND a strobe tube putting out 3x more heat.

The small hole is to vent heat.

Ever see a vehicle with a melted lens? I have, from crappy strobe installs with no vents and improper tube mounting.

[mr_tunz]

Covince ur customer to ditch the strobe idea and go with led strobe he will be better of in the long run. I melteed my lens on my 08 from strobes. Very expensive.

[mr_tunz]

Also just fyi make sure if you caulk them that you use a silcone that has a heat rating on it. Also I have done probley 50 to 75 strobe install and never caulked a one we only use some vasaline. No problem other then build melting the lens and the burnt out builds. I do them for a construction comapny and they are very rough on them and no problem.

[izzyj4]

Originally Posted by jparks29

Have you seen the enclosures on the Silverado?

Yes I have.

Originally Posted by jparks29

They're barely big enough for a regular bulb, let alone a bulb AND a strobe tube putting out 3x more heat.

The small hole is to vent heat.

I understand that and never have seen a vent hole placed in an install. This is mainly because depending on the location of the lens and how it is housed up to the body, water may or may not get into the lens which causes a whole different problem with the housing and let alone with water in the lens + heat from all the lights = steam production when the lights are powered on for any length in time. I haven never had an install where I had to place in a vent hole.

Originally Posted by jparks29

Ever see a vehicle with a melted lens? I have, from crappy strobe installs with no vents and improper tube mounting.

Yes I have and that was because of a person placing the tube in the wrong place up against the outside of a lens instead of measuring the inside and taking the time to properly locate the tubes in an area that gives the best amount of space between the lens housing and also the existing light bulb. Not once did any install that I have done required a vent hole and the person who had taught me to perform these install has never done so either (BTW he has over 10,000 installs in several police vehicles and never had a problem).

[FFPM571]

I have been installing for over 12 yrs I have yet to melt a lens or drill a vent hole. We seal the hole so water dont get into the housing.

[jparks29]

Originally Posted by FFPM571

I have been installing for over 12 yrs I have yet to melt a lens or drill a vent hole. We seal the hole so water dont get into the housing.

Local PD was melting reverse lenses ont heir vics (Both -98 and 98+) with their tubes....

I upfitted their new ones, redid some of their old ones, drilled a hole directly above the tube (that area is pretty well sealed against moisture, so no issues there), and completely eliminated the issue.

These were 6/90 unregulated power supplies with 4 tubes... 22.5W/tube...


Nowadays I say go LED, as I mentioned, the smaller enclosures actually appear to put out more light because it's focused in one general direction.

I always drilled vent holes when installing in the reverse lens of the silverado/avalanche/escalade/Tahoe...

The turn signal enclosures usually have enough room though... Not sure bout the '09s, havent done any yet...

[rcvmo]

That's where I put them on our 3500's.
I configured the fog lamps to wig-wig instead. Go figure, big truck, the fog lamps are near eye-level.
Caulk you might ask? With the amount of HV supplying the strobes, ANY open connection, specifically at the connections where the strobe head meets the cable, do the following:

Make your connection. If using the 3 pin Amp connections, coat the crap out with clear silicone. Then wrap the connection in a piece of plastic. I cut up a plastic sandwich bag. Coat the crap out of each end and secure with a tie wrap. Do this at each strobe head connection.

I just stripped a Ford F-250 I built in 2002. The head and tailight strobes were still working. To remove the heads I had to cut the tie wrap, and just peel the plastic wrap off, and unplug. Believe it or not, the HV electrical connections were just as good as new. They were re-installed on the 2009 F-250.

rcvmo

[FFPM571]

If they were melting the reverse lights on a PI then they were installed wrong and too close to the lens. We have been doing them since 1998 when the new style reverse lights came out. In 11yrs and hundreds of installs later we have yet to have any melt.