LED Combine Lights: Solid Reasons To Use LED Lighting On Farm Machinery

So you’re looking for information on LED combine lights? Great. You’ve come to the right place.

In this article, we identify the benefits of using LED lighting on farm machinery, with a special focus on LED combine lights.

Combine harvesters take care of three operations in one machine. They do three things: they reap (harvesting the crop), they thresh (separating the grain) and they winnow (removing the chaff). These powerful work horses will set the farmer back 6 figures for a usable second hand model, all the way up half a million dollars and beyond for newer units. So it’s important to get the best value possible from these capital investments, which is where LEDs come in.

So let’s look at how LED lighting is a financially savvy choice for the modern farm business.

SAFETY

Although it’s not often thought about by city dwellers, the work schedule on many farms continues well into the night. Expensive agricultural equipment needs to be used well after sunset, and that is where powerful lighting is a valuable adjunct.

Operator of tractors, combines and other big machines need to be able to see well ahead of where they are, for safety reasons (and for productivity purposes). The driver needs to be able to see rocks, tree stumps and any other hazard that may be ahead, in time to avoid costly and time-consuming impacts.

INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY

On the farm, the work day doesn’t always end when the sun goes down. Planting and harvesting have to be done when the weather is right. Farm work is not by the clock and it’s not done just when the sun is shining. Mobile flood lighting means the work can go on all through the night, when that’s needed.

It’s also critical to amortize the huge cost of these farm mega-machines over the largest possible number of working hours. High performance agricultural lighting means the farm owner can achieve that.

FARM EQUIPMENT IS WIDER THESE DAYS – AND FASTER

As agribusiness becomes more sophisticated, farm machinery is getting wider and wider. Harvesters, planters, tillers, chemical applicators, etc are not the narrow width they used to be.

Machine operators need to be able to see beyond the outer edge of their wider equipment, especially considering they are also moving along faster than they did in years gone by. With advances in farm machinery, there is a clear need for improved forward visibility after dark.

BENEFITS OF LED LIGHTING TECHNOLOGY

Lighting technology has been revolutionized since the invention of the incandescent lamp. More recently we’ve seen halogen, then HID, and now LED which stands for light emitting diode. It’s a highly energy-efficient technology which means you don’t overload the electrical circuit when you add LED lighting to an older machine.

And LEDs also turn on instantly, with no warm-up period.

LED lamps use 80% of the current they draw to generate light. Contrast that with halogen and incandescent lights which use 90% or more of their current to generate heat (not light). It’s a massive efficiency boost in favor of LED.

Additionally LEDs work better in cold temperatures.

GREATER LIGHT OUTPUT

As the replacement for a conventional sealed beam light, an LED tractor light or LED combine light will deliver twice the output of light, compared to the older sealed beam lights that were factory-installed on many machines. With a lifespan of more than 50,000 hours and no warm-up, your LED combine lights will deliver a massive amount of instant light on your work area from the moment you switch them on.

NATURAL LIGHT IS EASIER ON THE EYES

Compared to other forms of artificial light, LED is more like sunlight. More natural. That means farmers and farm workers will experience less eye strain and can therefore work longer hours, which can translate into greater farm productivity.

LOWER POWER CONSUMPTION

The lower power consumption of LED lighting means there is less wear and tear on batteries and alternators.

THEY LAST LONGER

The figures are surprising the first time you read them but LED lights can be expected to last more than 50,000 hours. That’s 50x longer than halogen lights. This is because have no bulbs, no filaments and no ballasts. With heavy duty assemblies they will give years of trouble free service. After that, replacing them is as simple as plugging in the new unit.

EASY TO RETROFIT

LED lighting units can be designed to easily retrofit to all major brands including Chalmers, Case, David Broom, Ford, Gleaner, International, John Deere, and Massey Ferguson. It’s the way they are designed, of course. And that is true whether we’re talking about tractors, swathers and windrowers, skid steers, combines, cotton pickers, industrials, forage harvesters, garden tractors, sprayers, skid loaders, or other farm machinery.