Automotive LEDS specified as 6v-36V required 9 or 12v… why?

Is 12V too much for LED lights?

Quite intuitively, providing more than 12V DC on a 12V LED strip is not a good idea, because you may cause the LED strip to be over-driven, burning out the diodes or causing excessive heat buildup that can damage both the circuit and on-board components.

How many LEDs can a 12V power supply handle?

A 12V battery wired to four 3V LEDs would distribute 3V to each of them. The same 12V battery wired to four 3V LEDs in parallel would deliver the full 12V to each of them. A single low voltage power supply can be shared by many LEDs.

What is the voltage of LED bulb?

between 1.8 and 3.3 volts

Typically, the forward voltage of an LED is between 1.8 and 3.3 volts. It varies by the color of the LED. A red LED typically drops around 1.7 to 2.0 volts, but since both voltage drop and light frequency increase with band gap, a blue LED may drop around 3 to 3.3 volts.

Do LED lights need power?

LED strips, unfortunately, are not as simple as traditional incandescent light bulbs when it comes to installation and set up. Because they run on low voltage DC, they require a power supply device that converts 120V/240V AC (depending on your location) into the voltage signal that LED strips can use.

Will a 12V LED run on 6V?

A 12 V LED should NOT work on 6V as all ‘white’ LEDs require 3.2V to run. Typically a 12V LED will be 3 LEDS in series + a current limiting resistor.

Do LEDs need a specific voltage?

LEDs often require a certain amount of volts, depending on the type and color of the LED. Most experts recommend 2-3 volts for LEDs. However, you can look it up to be certain. This article explains what happens if you put too much voltage through an LED and how to prevent such a situation.

How many LEDs can a 6V battery power?

This chart shows you that all visible light LEDs require at least 1.8V. A red LED will drop about 2.2V, so like you saw it can be powered from a 3V battery. Two LEDs in series require at least 4.4V, so it won’t work with the 3V battery, but the 6V is OK. That three LEDs are weird.

How many LEDs can I connect to a 9v battery?

To ensure full current over a reasonable range of battery voltages – 9.5 V down to 8 V – you can only have two LEDs in series on a 9 V supply.

How do I choose an LED power supply?

Make sure the total wattage of your LED strip lighting is at least 20 percent less than the power supply’s rated wattage. For example, if you have an LED strip light that requires 80 watts of power to run, you’ll need a power supply that’s rated for at least 96 watts.

How many amps does a 12V LED use?

With 12V systems, the lower voltage means more current must be supplied to compensate. For example, a 120V LED system will pull 1 Amp in a 120 Watt system, while a 12V LED system will need to pull 10 Amps to power the same 120 Watt system.

Can high voltage damage LED lights?

First off, an LED is a current driven device, not a voltage driven device. That is, it doesn’t really care what the voltage is, but it does care what the current is. Of course, too much voltage will kill it – but too much current, regardless of the voltage, will kill it.

How many amps does an LED use?

When Dave connects incandescent bulbs to an amp meter, they draw up to 1.6 amps, but when LED lights are used, they only pull about . 26 amps.

What is the max voltage for an LED?

LED V/I characteristics

Characteristics Unit Maximum
Forward voltage (@350mA, 85°C) V 3.48

Do LED lights work on AC or DC?

In most applications LEDs are driven by a DC power supply. LEDs consume DC current to produce light; with AC current the LED will only be lit when current flow is in the proper direction. AC applied to an LED will cause it to blink on and off, and at high frequency the LED will appear to be lit continuously.

What resistor do I need for LED?

Basics: Picking Resistors for LEDs

Power Supply Voltage LED Color Resistor (rounded)
4.5 V Blue, Green, White, or UV 51 Ω
5 V Blue, Green, White, or UV 68 Ω
5 V Red, Yellow, or Yellow-Green 150 Ω
5 V Red, Yellow, or Yellow-Green 56 Ω

Do 12V LEDs need resistors?

LEDs can be ran off multiple voltages, but a series resistor is required to limit the current in the circuit. Too much current in an LED will destroy the device. As with all diodes, LED’s will only allow current to flow in the direction from the anode to the cathode.

What does adding a resistor to an LED do?

The ballast resistor is used to limit the current through the LED and to prevent excess current that can burn out the LED. If the voltage source is equal to the voltage drop of the LED, no resistor is required. LEDs are also available in an integrated package with the correct resistor for LED operation.