# LED Lights on Ambulance?



## MMiz

I think the LED lights on cop cars is great.  While it makes them harder to spot, I like how bright they are.

Has anyone seen LEDs on an ambulance?  Whether it be the main light bar or on the sides / back, I'm wondering if such a setup exists.


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## Jon

Philly's newer rigs have LED's instead of Halogen on the box. I like I like...


I've also seen LED brake lights. - really cool when they do a quick flash before coming on...

Jon


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## eightonesix

our trucks have led turn signals, brake lights and pancake lights on the back.  additionally, the rear lightbar is all led.

they're very effective from a distance and during bright sun.  i find they do better than the halogens in almost all conditions.


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## KEVD18

my rig has dual led/strobes on the fenders, but everything else is just strobes

now my personal vehicle.....thats another story. all led's.


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## Jon

I like the LED's for brake, turn, and tail lights. I also like them for the "secondary" lights on the ambulance box. I still think the front lightbar should be a 52" MX7000 all light, clear with red filters, and the grille and fender lights should be strobe. Also, on the back beside each door  should be a combination halogen / Strobe light, and all DOT lights should be LED.

Jon


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## BloodNGlory02

Our newest rig (roadrescue) has a rear LED light bar. its bright as heck and low maintenance compared to the strobes and halogens. We're looking into ALL led's on our next squad.


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## KEVD18

leds are great. they require less energy, are typically brighter, last umpteen million times longer plus they look badass. from personal experience, theyre also cheaper. big fan here


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## ffemt8978

> _Originally posted by MedicStudentJon_@Apr 18 2005, 06:10 PM
> * I like the LED's for brake, turn, and tail lights. I also like them for the "secondary" lights on the ambulance box. I still think the front lightbar should be a 52" MX7000 all light, clear with red filters, and the grille and fender lights should be strobe. Also, on the back beside each door  should be a combination halogen / Strobe light, and all DOT lights should be LED.
> 
> Jon *


 I agree with this statement.  It's been my experience that LED's don't "project" as well as strobes or halogens.  What I mean by this is that you pretty much have to be looking at the LED to notice it.  It doesn't reflect off buildings and such as well as strobes or halogens, and this is very important for blind corners.  I've noticed the same problems with the law enforcement agencies around here that use them.

I'm a big fan of LED's for the DOT lights, such as brakes and turn signals, even the flashers on the rear of the ambulance.  As far as the front light bar goes, give me a strobe or halogen set any day.


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## NJEMTB

my squad purchased a new pl and it is LED everything box the brake lights to the box lights to the lightbars   very nice cant complain but sometimes its just too bright when you are working right next to the lights


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## ECC

Our two new busses have all LED set ups...They are available in full size lightbar configurations, and I like it. Looks like a UFO landing!


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## rdkl

I am a big fan of LED lights. I run nothing but LED on my truck. That being said, I install all of the lights, radios, etc for our rigs and I have to say as far as lighting goes, nothing beats a good ol Halogen rotator bar as far as being noticed. Strobes tend to be brighter, but the movement you get on the rotators still seems to be the best in my book.

I prefer LED because if you are looking at them directly, they are very bright, but mostly because they use very little power. I already have a pretty big power drain in my truck and rather than upgrade the electrical, its easier to go LED. LEDs also tend to be a lot easier to install and wire.


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## MMiz

The big problem I see is that LEDs are so expensive.

Our BLS Type II ambulances have the worst light bars, I can't even describe them.  They look cheap and dont seem to throw off much light.  

I'll take a picture when I go into work tomorrow (today).


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## ECC

Blue is really expensive as compared to the other colors.


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## lukepye

Our Service switched to LED lights several years ago and found them very effective.  They have good visibilty a long life and pull less current than older halogen lights.  The cost continues to come down and the are now comparable priced with strobes, except you don't have to have a power supply.


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## PArescueEMT

A private company out here hav 1 truck... type 3... with all LED's. I think that it is the most hideous thing anybody could do to an ambulance.


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## TTLWHKR

Marque & MedTech put them along the steps.


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## Stevo

LED lighting assumes the most lumens per watt, Home Power advocated it years ago, and now that 'lectrickity is around $.13 a kilowatt hr here it's gained the notice of more than just the save the whales crowd....

i like the flashlights and headlamps they have out now...

i wear one of these when i really feel like stylin'...






_next up~ wind powered suction on rigs!_  

~S~


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## TTLWHKR

Never know...

They have engine powered, Vacuum pump powered, manual, foot powered and oxygen powered...

Why not small windmills on the roof?


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## Flight-LP

I agree with ffemt8978 about light projection, especially during the day. Our trucks are all LED and they are difficult to see during the day. They look cool at night, but I'd prefer strobes anyday...............


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## DT4EMS

I believe that as the price goes down ALL EMS vehicles will have LED's. The main reason is a low draw on the electrical system and no bulbs to replace.

At first I didn't like them when a police department I was working for went to them, but it is a funny thing to learn that when the battery can't crank the engine but will still lights up the LED's. 

(Like a person leaves the radio or headlights on)


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## emtd29

Our Newest rig has LED / Strobe Lightbars on the front and rear of the box

The new truck we're getting I think will have the same package


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## daemonicusxx

one of our new type II's

A Sprinter

perfect example of a "vanbulance"


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## ffemt8978

Makes me wonder how visible they are in the daytime.


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## Ridryder911

Our new unit will have noting but strobes & LED bars... I too worry about day time & peripheral lighting...

Be safe,
Ridryder 911


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## trishbug

We just got a new rig that has LED lights on it.  I really like it - they're incredibly bright.  At night there is no way a person can miss them and in day they're still clear.


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## ffemt8978

The point was that they're incredibly bright when you are looking directly at them.  They're not so noticable when you're looking at them in your peripheral vision.


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## Chimpie

LED's mixed with strobes in the corners works very nicely.  Supposedly there is a new LED lightbar that is coming out that actually throws the light out like a rotating halogen or strobe bar.  I'll update this when I find out more info.


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## elaugesen

*LED Lights on units*

We pioneered the use of LED's on our Pierce engine which was purchased in 2001, (We had a lot of discussion with the salesman) since then they have become standard equipment on Pierce Engines per the same salesman.  I have found that if used properly they are just as bright as Halogen or Strobe lights here in Florida.  The strobe lights in bright sun were dim unless you were directly in front of them, same for some of the first generation LED's.  They now manufacture them to be NFPA compliant and the LED's are angled in rows from one side to the other so there is a greater coverage field for vision.  We found that the expected load of 300+ amps draw on the engine was reduced to approx. 70 amps by the use of LED's and the initial cost when setting up the spec's for a unit in minimal.  If the saleman tries to tell you different get hold of a rep for the lighting company.  The initial difference on our units is usually around $400.00 more for LED's but the long term reduction in replacement costs can be 10 times that.  We have only experienced one failure in 8 years.


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## mikie

*That's all fascinating but...*

This thread is 4 years old...^_^


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## elaugesen

Respectfully, you are absolutely correct, however the debat6e is still raging in some areas.  My apologies if I offended anyone.:blush:


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## mikie

elaugesen said:


> Respectfully, you are absolutely correct, however the debat6e is still raging in some areas.  My apologies if I offended anyone.:blush:



Doubtful you offended anyone.  Personally, I don't care that the thread is 'reopened,' just pointing it out.  Furthermore, I didn't realize it was still a raging debat6e.


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## Tincanfireman

mikie said:


> This thread is 4 years old...^_^



Wow, hadn't even noticed!  

Our units use a combination of mostly LED technology, augmented with clear white rotators on the front light bar.  My very unscientific observation is that traffic directly in front of the unit has a much longer warning time as compared to older units with traditional light bars. As we are in a primarily suburban/rural environment with the only "downtown" section being near the hospital, this works well for us.


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## lightsandsirens5

Well since I wasn't even on this site when this thread started........

Our new rigs have all LED warning and rear DOT lights. Of our two older rigs, one has all Haolgen and one has combination Halogen/Strobe. Personally, I'm not impressed with the visibility of the halogen rotaters on our older rig. The flashers are okay from far away, but the beam is so focused, that they really don't do much up close. The LEDs however have blinding long-range viz and excellent, but not overly bright, close-range viz. On our newest rig we have two small white light modules on the brush gaurd. They are great! I wish we had them in the LED lightbar also. We havent used those untill now because they reflect pretty bad in the snow. (I tried suggesting that we just run all the white lights through a seperate switch, after the emercency master, that kills the white lights only. That way you can have white lights in the system, but you can also have the abaility to shut them off in the snow. We already have one for the headlight flasher. But I am just the new guy, so.............)

On the engine at my fire station, all the lights are halogen (except for two LEDs above the headlights), but there are so many of them it desent seem to matter. Also the reflector configuration is a whole lot better than on the amb. Once again however, the lightbar (halogen rotaters), with the exception of the white rotator in the center dosent seem to have the same eye catching abaility of LEDs.

What really does catch attention forward is the pre-empt/opticom module. Especally if it is one of the larger ones.


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## emtfarva

*OK. This is an old post, so what.*

We just recived a newer truck from AEV. All though it is a Sprinter, AEV completely went with LEDs. This truck is very, very bright. It is the only truck I have seen that the lights ping off of road signs in the broad daylight 1/2 mile away. What I like about LEDs is that they draw less current, so you can run them while you are parked and still have more power to run other equipment while attending to the PT.


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## cookiexd40

all the lights on our frazier ambulances are LED...we love them...


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## guardian528

amr here used to have a whole fleet of the standard leader ambulances, but they just got a couple of those euro sprinter looking ambulances with full LED setup's. main lightbar is extremely bright, but of course has the problem of less visibility from the sides and whatnot


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## exodus

cookiexd40 said:


> all the lights on our frazier ambulances are LED...we love them...




You're missing a lightbar!


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## exodus

lightsandsirens5 said:


> What really does catch attention forward is the pre-empt/opticom module. Especally if it is one of the larger ones.



Opticom is the big white strobe light, right? We have those on all of our rigs :]


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## JPINFV

Not all ambulances have light bars, and too be honest, the one's I've seen that don't work better anyways. That said, the one I have seen in action had a few more lights in that strip of lights along the front side of the box.


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## lightsandsirens5

exodus said:


> Opticom is the big white strobe light, right? We have those on all of our rigs :]



The ones be have are pretty small: 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




The bigger ones are the size of the standard square halogen flasher on the sides of the box. Those are eye catchers!B)


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## exodus

Ah, ours are two white strobes near the middle of the light bar, it goes like this

R-R-R-R-W-(steadyRed)(steadyRed)-W-R-R-R-R


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## lightsandsirens5

exodus said:


> Ah, ours are two white strobes near the middle of the light bar, it goes like this
> 
> R-R-R-R-W-(steadyRed)(steadyRed)-W-R-R-R-R



What is with the steadyRed?

On our standard lightbar it goes:

R-R-W-Opticom-W-R-R

Our LED lightbars go:

R-R-A-R-Opticom-R-A-R-R

I have some pics in my profile album. I'll try to get some of the new ambulance in there.


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## JPINFV

lightsandsirens5 said:


> What is with the steadyRed?



Per California Vehicle Code, all emergency vehicles are required to display a 'steady burning forward facing red light' when using lights and sirens. Technically everything else besides that light is extra. At my old company, that light was either the grill lights or the middle light of the three lights on the top front for the type 2 Wheeled Coach Crusaders. On the Horton Type 3s it was in the middle of the light bar and I don't remember where it was on the Leader type 2s.


Exodus, are you using Leaders?


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## daedalus

JPINFV said:


> Per California Vehicle Code, all emergency vehicles are required to display a 'steady burning forward facing red light' when using lights and sirens. Technically everything else besides that light is extra. At my old company, that light was either the grill lights or the middle light of the three lights on the top front for the type 2 Wheeled Coach Crusaders. On the Horton Type 3s it was in the middle of the light bar and I don't remember where it was on the Leader type 2s.
> 
> 
> Exodus, are you using Leaders?



The good ol steady burn law, formulated in like the land before time. CHP is the only organization I know of that goes out of their way to follow that law (probably because they are charged with enforcing it) but it looks ridiculous when their unmarked units have only the blue lights blinking and all the red steady burning. Our lightbars have the middle most light always on, but LA city fire just switched to LED light bars which do not...


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## JPINFV

Do LACo's grill lights blink or are they steady on the units with the LED light bars?


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## daedalus

JPINFV said:


> Do LACo's grill lights blink or are they steady on the units with the LED light bars?



Not sure, maybe that is how they meet the steady burn criteria.


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## JPINFV

I don't even imagine CHP just giving a pass to fire departments by virtue of it being a fire department and not a private ambulance.


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## JonTullos

I'm a fan of LEDs personally.  They're so much brighter... but wowzers are they expensive!


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## exodus

JPINFV said:


> Per California Vehicle Code, all emergency vehicles are required to display a 'steady burning forward facing red light' when using lights and sirens. Technically everything else besides that light is extra. At my old company, that light was either the grill lights or the middle light of the three lights on the top front for the type 2 Wheeled Coach Crusaders. On the Horton Type 3s it was in the middle of the light bar and I don't remember where it was on the Leader type 2s.
> 
> 
> Exodus, are you using Leaders?




Yup! We got Leaders.


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## NolaRabbit

My service is running LED's on all our units, and let me tell you, they are hella bright. Day or night, people see them a lot better than our old units with the strobes. The light definitely bounces off of everything. I wish I could find a photo with them on, but here are a few that at least show the configuration:

















We all seem to think the LED's are a big improvement.

We also recently put Rumblers on a few of our sprints - and that's a whole 'nother thread.


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## EMT007

daedalus said:


> The good ol steady burn law, formulated in like the land before time. CHP is the only organization I know of that goes out of their way to follow that law (probably because they are charged with enforcing it) but it looks ridiculous when their unmarked units have only the blue lights blinking and all the red steady burning. Our lightbars have the middle most light always on, but LA city fire just switched to LED light bars which do not...



Doesn't really take much "going out of the way" to program one light to be always on. An agency would be absolutely out of their minds not to follow this law, as without it, they are not an emergency vehicle and other vehicles don't have to pull over for them. 

The new LAFD rigs have the two LED grill lights as steady reds (a setup I much prefer to having the steady reds in the lightbar)


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## JPINFV

EMT007 said:


> An agency would be absolutely out of their minds not to follow this law, as without it, they are not an emergency vehicle and other vehicles don't have to pull over for them.



I think that's a little harsh. I doubt very many people outside of the emergency services know that the only light that "counts" is the steady red. I bet if you showed a video of two emergency vehicles, one with a steady red and one with out, that 10 people couldn't tell which one wasn't the "real" emergency vehicle.


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## EMT007

JPINFV said:


> I think that's a little harsh. I doubt very many people outside of the emergency services know that the only light that "counts" is the steady red. I bet if you showed a video of two emergency vehicles, one with a steady red and one with out, *that 10 people couldn't tell which one wasn't the "real" emergency vehicle*.



Agree completely. My point is that "legally" they would not be an emergency vehicle and would be wide open from a legal liability standpoint should anything happen while running code. I guarantee you that lawyers know the law and would use it to the advantage of their client. I maintain that it would be reckless to disregard this law just because you might think it archaic. I'm a little curious who Daedalus has seen without a steady red. h34r:


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## lightsandsirens5

NolaRabbit said:


> My service is running LED's on all our units, and let me tell you, they are hella bright. Day or night, people see them a lot better than our old units with the strobes. The light definitely bounces off of everything. I wish I could find a photo with them on, but here are a few that at least show the configuration:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> We all seem to think the LED's are a big improvement.
> 
> We also recently put Rumblers on a few of our sprints - and that's a whole 'nother thread.



Awsome rigs! Who makes those? I so much prefer the truck chassis over the vans. They look kinda like the ones we use. Ours are North Stars made by Braun NW.


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## Proud2bffemt

MMiz said:


> I think the LED lights on cop cars is great.  While it makes them harder to spot, I like how bright they are.
> 
> Has anyone seen LEDs on an ambulance?  Whether it be the main light bar or on the sides / back, I'm wondering if such a setup exists.



My Dept runs a 2007 Osage Type I and we have All LED warning lights with the exception of a Full rotator Vector lightbar. the LEDs are BRIGHT. We Also have a Tomar Emitter Strobe in the center box light to control the traffic lights. 

I like them, Brighter, Less Maintenance Less headaches.


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## marineman

lightsandsirens5 said:


> Awsome rigs! Who makes those? I so much prefer the truck chassis over the vans. They look kinda like the ones we use. Ours are North Stars made by Braun NW.



Look at the license plate in the first picture, if I had to go on a limb I'd guess it's made by wheeled coach


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## lightsandsirens5

marineman said:


> Look at the license plate in the first picture, if I had to go on a limb I'd guess it's made by wheeled coach



Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa................... :blush:


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## MedicObserver

the local CO. that i ride with has 2009 Navistar Med Duty units built by TraumaHawk (i love that word, i dont know why though) and they are all LED. everything. the RapidResponse 4x4 tahoe has an LED light bar and LED red/blue flashing street-glow neon underneath. it's cool because at night you can see the colors flash on the road if you look out the window. i love the LED system. the touchpanel is easier to operate too. i used to have to use my index finger and my flip-off finger (i dont know what you call the fingers; im a freakin' observer not a doctor) but now i just use the index because it takes so little presses on the screen to get things going. all the lights and sirens are on a program and the intersection buzzer is on a foot press button that either the driver or the front passenger (me) can use. i love working with the equipment almost as much as i do helping people. a little kid with a gash on his head can tell you thank-you and hi-5 you; a portable or a touchpanel can't.


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## Proud2bffemt

This is my ambulance I mentioned before with the LEDs Vector bar and White Traffic controller strobe
This Picture was from Memorial Day 2008, the flags are not standard fare for the truck


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## NolaRabbit

marineman said:


> Look at the license plate in the first picture, if I had to go on a limb I'd guess it's made by wheeled coach



DING DING DING DING! Correct! 

Incidentally, I got a look at one of the new units we are supposedly getting, and amazingly, the LED's are even brighter than the ones we have now. I didn't think it was possible. The whole thing looks sweet...AND they have the Rumblers!


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## Rob123

NolaRabbit said:


> The whole thing looks sweet...AND they have the Rumblers!



Until this thread, I never heard of rumblers... no pun intended.

For the one or two others like me...
http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10466578


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## pfmedic

I think blue LED's are the most visible. but LED's as a whole are the way to go. bright as all get out.


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## guardian528

pfmedic said:


> I think blue LED's are the most visible.



i agree, and if i remember correctly it's true. i looked at a comparison of different colored LED's at some point and i think blue and white were the brightest colors. too bad blue is reserved for law enforcement in CA.


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## jtb_E10

*Led*



MMiz said:


> I think the LED lights on cop cars is great.  While it makes them harder to spot, I like how bright they are.
> 
> Has anyone seen LEDs on an ambulance?  Whether it be the main light bar or on the sides / back, I'm wondering if such a setup exists.



All of the ambulances that my service runs has LED's instead of strobe/halogen lights. They are much brighter and people can see us so much better.


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## Fireguy

You mean like this beautiful machine?   www.liverpoolems.com


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## Sail195

Both our new trucks are all LED and let me tell you it can be bright as heck out and you can see these things from a mile away!!


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## redcrossemt

Since this thread has been brought back again, I'll add my two cents...

At my private service, our new Chevy Vanbulances are mostly LED. We have an LED lightbar with 4 red corners, 2 red front, 2 white front. There are red bumper and fender lights. The primaries (side and rear lights) on the conversion top are LED red, white, and amber. They even took away the headlight flasher (wig-wag) and replaced it with two white LED modules next to the headlights. 

The load and scene lights stayed halogen. The trucks are really visible, definitely brighter than our halogen units.

The one thing I suggest for all services is to keep headlight flashers if legal in your jurisdiction. They are one of the best devices we have in our toolbox for front facing warning power.


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## gradygirl

MMiz said:


> I think the LED lights on cop cars is great.  While it makes them harder to spot, I like how bright they are.
> 
> Has anyone seen LEDs on an ambulance?  Whether it be the main light bar or on the sides / back, I'm wondering if such a setup exists.



Our new Sprinters are all LED, both in all outside lights and in the dome lights in the back. You can see these trucks from a mile away, and there's nothing more painful than having a Sprinter in front of you when someone opens the back doors and the load lights spring to life at midnight.


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## gradygirl

P.S. Sprinter mods make me cry.


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## HotelCo

This whole thread seems so quaint now...


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## ffemt8978

Another code save...


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## RamonWebster

pfmedic said:


> I think blue LED's are the most visible. but LED's as a whole are the way to go. bright as all get out.



Yes they do. Thats why they are most popular and widely used..Even I am using blue color lights


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## exodus

ohhai hotel.

We don't have wig wags on our new rigs. exodus is sad


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## Mariemt

We have LED lights, I am a bit mixed on them. I think they are bright and pretty, but have you ever been dispatched 2 ambulances at once and followed one at night? Its horrible to see, you can't see where command is trying to park you. And it is literally a hazard when coming to intersections and trying to get the spots out of your eyes to clear it safely.

However when I am in the lead it is no problem for me, I just try to go first,  then listen to the others complain later


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## Chimpie

Mariemt said:


> We have LED lights, I am a bit mixed on them. I think they are bright and pretty, but have you ever been dispatched 2 ambulances at once and followed one at night? Its horrible to see, you can't see where command is trying to park you. And it is literally a hazard when coming to intersections and trying to get the spots out of your eyes to clear it safely.
> 
> ...



These issues need to be addressed with your leadership staff. If a safety item ends up causing a hazard, it's no longer a safety item.


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## Tigger

We can turn off most of our rear lights when responding at night and are "leading the charge" so to speak. Such a cutoff switch might be an option.


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## socalmedic

Mariemt said:


> We have LED lights, I am a bit mixed on them. I think they are bright and pretty, but have you ever been dispatched 2 ambulances at once and followed one at night? Its horrible to see, you can't see where command is trying to park you. And it is literally a hazard when coming to intersections and trying to get the spots out of your eyes to clear it safely.
> 
> However when I am in the lead it is no problem for me, I just try to go first,  then listen to the others complain later



there is a very easy way to fix this.... are you ready.... don't drive so damn close!!! you are probably blinding the driver of the ambulance in front too...


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## Mariemt

socalmedic said:


> there is a very easy way to fix this.... are you ready.... don't drive so damn close!!! you are probably blinding the driver of the ambulance in front too...



Do you realize how bright these are? We have more LED lights than a Griswold Christmas . Definitely not driving close.  

90% of our calls are not hot responses but usually if 2 are going together its a bad accident


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## socalmedic

Mariemt said:


> Do you realize how bright these are? We have more LED lights than a Griswold Christmas . Definitely not driving close.
> 
> 90% of our calls are not hot responses but usually if 2 are going together its a bad accident



yes, over the last decade I have taken notice of how bright the lights have become. that is why my following distance has increased to one city block, about 1/8 mile. this allows me to see what is happening in front of me, and allows other drivers to realize there are two vehicles coming through the intersections.

if you think the LEDs on the back are bright, you should have seen when we had wig-wag headlight flashers on the high beams... its a bad idea to blind the people who are driving toward you:unsure:


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## Tigger

Socal is right, if they are too bright then you are following too far behind. It's actually probably a good thing all things considered. Brighter lights=greater following distance. 

We have wig wags where I work on the ambulances, I don't use them at night.


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## DesertMedic66

Tigger said:


> Socal is right, if they are too bright then you are following too far behind. It's actually probably a good thing all things considered. Brighter lights=greater following distance.
> 
> We have wig wags where I work on the ambulances, I don't use them at night.



Same here. Only use the wig wags during the day (if my unit has them). If the lights from the emergency vehicle in front of you are too bright then hang back because you are probably a little too close.


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## Mariemt

I drove long before getting my license,  I am aware of the safe driving distance, I don't care how far you follow, it is still very bright. Not to mention trying to see where they are parking you on scene.


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## Joe

All we have on the rigs are LED's


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## ffemt8978

DesertEMT66 said:


> Same here. Only use the wig wags during the day (if my unit has them). If the lights from the emergency vehicle in front of you are too bright then hang back because you are probably a little too close.



But what does that do for the civilians who must drive by the rigs with their lights on and are stopped on the road?

Granted, they should slow down and move over but if the lights are blinding them, it is an accident waiting to happen.


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## DesertMedic66

ffemt8978 said:


> But what does that do for the civilians who must drive by the rigs with their lights on and are stopped on the road?
> 
> Granted, they should slow down and move over but if the lights are blinding them, it is an accident waiting to happen.



If the lights aren't on then traffic does not have to move over (CA has a law for drivers to move over a lane on the highway if they can when emergency lights are on.

On city street it still provides a warning for driver to watch out. The doors on out ambulances have no lights so it can be easy for traffic to hit a door which in turn could take me out (often we have to park in the middle of the street for medical aids for one reason or another).


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## socalmedic

DesertEMT66 said:


> If the lights aren't on then traffic does not have to move over (CA has a law for drivers to move over a lane on the highway if they can when emergency lights are on.
> .



the law is new and most drivers don't even know about it. it also says nothing about the lights having to be on. it states that drivers must move over OR slow down if safe for any stopped emergency or maintenance vehicle.

key words are OR and IF SAFE, meaning that they really don't have to do either.


/tangent/

back to the topic, the lights we use are much easier on the eyes when not directly in front of or behind the rig. additionally we have a lot of reflective on the ambulance, and I mean A LOT, if I don't back right into the patients driveway I kill the lights and throw on the hazards on city streets.


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## DesertMedic66

socalmedic said:


> the law is new and most drivers don't even know about it. it also says nothing about the lights having to be on. it states that drivers must move over OR slow down if safe for any stopped emergency or maintenance vehicle.
> 
> key words are OR and IF SAFE, meaning that they really don't have to do either.
> 
> 
> /tangent/
> 
> back to the topic, the lights we use are much easier on the eyes when not directly in front of or behind the rig. additionally we have a lot of reflective on the ambulance, and I mean A LOT, if I don't back right into the patients driveway I kill the lights and throw on the hazards on city streets.



http://www.chp.ca.gov/pdf/media/09-44.pdf
http://www.ci.seaside.ca.us/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=307
http://drivinglaws.aaa.com/laws/move-over-law/

The law is 3 years old now (so not extremely new in my book). 
And yeah the emergency/warning lights do have to be on.


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## JPINFV

DesertEMT66 said:


> http://www.chp.ca.gov/pdf/media/09-44.pdf
> http://www.ci.seaside.ca.us/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=307
> http://drivinglaws.aaa.com/laws/move-over-law/
> 
> The law is 3 years old now (so not extremely new in my book).
> And yeah the emergency/warning lights do have to be on.




I would argue that the secondary lights (which are generally less flashy) would be sufficient to make that section operative.

Also, just as a quick side note, that "$50" fine is really more like $250-$300 after adding penalties, assessments, and court costs. Add an extra 70-80 overall if you want to take traffic school ($60 state fee plus how ever much traffic school costs).


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## socalmedic

DesertEMT66 said:


> http://www.chp.ca.gov/pdf/media/09-44.pdf
> http://www.ci.seaside.ca.us/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=307
> http://drivinglaws.aaa.com/laws/move-over-law/
> 
> The law is 3 years old now (so not extremely new in my book).
> And yeah the emergency/warning lights do have to be on.



I stand corrected.


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## jeepdude911

I worked most recently in the S.F. bay area on a CCT rig (2008 Dodge Sprinter) with LEDs. One thing for sure, in a congested city, those LEDs get results. In fact I liked the lights more than the rig they were mounted on.


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## dcemr7

All the new units the county and cities bought are all LED. The only ones with strobe lights are the reserve trucks. Most of the fire trucks and police cars are LED also.


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