Foretravel Owners' Forum

Foretravel Motorhome Forums => Foretravel Tech Talk => Topic started by: Woody & Sitka on May 14, 2020, 03:06:45 pm

Title: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: Woody & Sitka on May 14, 2020, 03:06:45 pm
Just replaced all my clearance lights with LED assemblies.  I did all 10 on the cap as well as the 4 on the sides with the same model clear lens/chrome plastic trim Chinee models I found on Amazon for dirt cheap, and the amber side turn signal assemblies with Peterbuilt style dual intensity units.  Chose the clear ones as the screw hole pattern closely matched the originals by a 1/16"...metric vs. standard on all the units except the amber high side clearance lights...had to drill new screw holes for those two only.

If you haven't taken your cap clearance lights off since you owned your coach, you might want to climb up on a ladder and take a couple off.  Mine were leaking profusely for a long, long time and mold was even growing behind a couple of them.  Foretravel used white silicone to seal and lock them in place, and it looks like only one of the units had ever been removed before today.  Some time before I bought the coach 2 years ago, someone had slathered silicone on the outside joints in an effort to stop the persistent leak from the light closest to the door...see the pictures of the 2 starboard most lights (where my leak was).  NOTHING adheres to cured silicone, not even silicone.  The cured silicone must be mechanically removed and cleaned profusely to reseal.  The original gasket of the light closest to the door was half gone and in the picture you can actually see the path that water poured into the cavity behind the lens.  Whenever I went through a truck wash, I'd need a few bath towels to mop up the waterfall that came down the windshield pillar by the door.  Mystery solved.

Added a lights on and lights off shot of the ambers.  The rears look the same except they are red when on.  FWIW....Woody.
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: juicesqueezer on May 14, 2020, 03:17:48 pm
Like the lights, but not sure if white is legal.  Inquiring minds would like to know!
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: Woody & Sitka on May 14, 2020, 03:34:33 pm
They're not white, they're amber.

Like the lights, but not sure if white is legal.  Inquiring minds would like to know!
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: Pierce & Gaylie Stewart on May 14, 2020, 03:54:59 pm
Photo 1561 shows them on and amber but in 1562 they are turned off and appear white.

P
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: Jack Lewis on May 14, 2020, 04:00:03 pm
Why Some Trucks Have Five Little Lights On The Roof (https://jalopnik.com/why-some-trucks-have-five-little-lights-on-the-roof-1830914130)
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: Olde English on May 14, 2020, 04:07:31 pm
It's all a mystery to me, the guy down the road from me has a Peterbuild tractor with a 40ft frameless end dump. He ordered the tractor without clearance lights, it's been 14 yrs and no tickets, go figure?
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: craneman on May 14, 2020, 04:08:08 pm
Same lights I did, but I did the high center and the side marker also.

Clearance light up-grade (https://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=38615.msg376963#msg376963)
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: Dub on May 14, 2020, 04:47:55 pm
I run a beed of geo cel sealant across the top and down the sides of my clearance lights.. Everyone has their preferred product, what's important is run a beed of something that will turn water. I can make geocel where it isn't as visible and I know it turns water.. The lens are white on those lights but the lights themselves are colored appropriately. A number of truckers use them.
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: "Irish" on May 14, 2020, 11:35:48 pm
If you have clearance lights they must operate or it is a motor vehicle violation.
Yes lights must be amber in front and red at the rear   
Those lights are a large motor vehicle requirement.
You will notice that a lot of trucks only have the bare minimum when it comes to clearance lights while others have them all over their truck, once you add lights they must operate and you can be ticketed by an zealous highway patrol officer of the added ones do not operate.
Keep it simple, don't add lights, colors correct, bulbs all nice and bright.
Safe driving!
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: coastalbuilder on May 15, 2020, 09:28:42 am
Definitely run a bead of your preferred sealant around them.  I plan to replace mine at some point but when I gutted the overhead it was evident they were leaking.  One I could see daylight.  So I ran a bead around both fronts and backs until I can replace them.  I have WAY too many projects on the ole girl in concert at one time.  That will come later.
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: craneman on May 15, 2020, 10:58:44 am
Definitely run a bead of your preferred sealant around them.  I plan to replace mine at some point but when I gutted the overhead it was evident they were leaking.  One I could see daylight.  So I ran a bead around both fronts and backs until I can replace them.  I have WAY too many projects on the ole girl in concert at one time.  That will come later.
Like the automobile saying "get a car built on Wed" not Fri. or Mon. my lights on the same year coach as yours had the front lights caulked and sealed from the inside and everything was dry as dust in the overhead.
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: juicesqueezer on May 15, 2020, 11:50:43 am
They're not white, they're amber.

Woops!  Sorry!
Title: Re: Clearance Lights...again. You should check yours if you haven't.
Post by: GleamB on May 15, 2020, 01:24:52 pm
I had the mystery dripping inside my coach near the passenger door. No idea where water was coming from.
Thank goodness, TWIG was there. He told me to recaulk the amber light.
Problem fixed.
LISTEN TO TWIG....he KNOWS stuff!!