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Whenever we go away even for a few days, I come home with a snagging list of repairs/modifications to be carried out before the next trip. Today I've fitted a new rear fog light replacing the original that had corroded terminals and an awning light as the one I modified some years ago with LED bulbs was as dim as a TocH lamp when needed recently.

The square fog light was easy apart from finding the correct replacement. It is a Jokon model SN 3009 and the only place I could find one was at Yorkshire Coast Caravans, Bridlington via eBay. At £23 it was expensive compared with a Maypole brand lamp at about a fiver but fitting was a doddle so I'm not complaining.

Having already fitted one original spec replacement awning light I decided to look for a more modern replacement but in the spirit of the original, and that's where Colin comes in. I did a search of 'awning light' and found a link to this unit on eBay that Colin had fitted to one of his vans back in 2013 and recommended to another member a couple of years ago.

Werbung: Awning Light

Here's my old one:

Awning Light01.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

The problem with these is that over time the retaining clips on the base become brittle and then break before releasing their grip on the lens. You then need a replacement unit and they are not easy to find or cheap. When we were away only the right hand bulb was working and I found that one leg of the left hand bulb had rusted off. I bodged it with solder but then only some of the LEDs on the bulb illuminated.

Awning Light02.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

On the above picture you can see that two of the LEDs on the left bulb are not lit while some of the others are. Weird.

One of the problems is that there are four wires coming out of the van wall and all are the same colour so after cutting the old wires off I used a multimeter to find two that were showing 13.7 volts and then taped off the other two. You then have to ensure the correct polarity when connecting to the new unit otherwise the LEDs won't light.

A couple of minutes with a soldering iron and two new holes drilled and the new light was fitted. The mounting screws are located under the end covers which themselves are located to the light unit by two screws.

Awning Light03.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

I'm well pleased with the result and all that now remains to be done is to run a bead of suitable sealant around the top edge. I won't need much so any advice regarding a cheap alternative product anyone?

PIR sensor? You must be joking.

These fittings used 2 x 5W max halogen bulbs and each bulb holder had a separate feed, hence the four cunningly all white wires emerging through the bodywork.

In France in 2011 one of the bulbs blew so I fitted two 10W bulbs to increase the illumination and ended up melting the plastic lens. The replacement lens was lost in transit one day due no doubt to failure of the fixing tabs which is why I had fitted a complete new unit using LEDs.