What is the Current Consumption in Amperes of the LED Light Bar

What is the Current Draw, in Amperes, of a 120-watt Light Bar?

In order to get the amperage amount, you should divide the wattage by the voltage. For instance, you have to divide 120 watts by 12 volts to get 10 amps.

So if you plug your light bar into the power source, you have to divide 120/120 to yield 1 amp. Here is a video we tested

  • Theory Power: 120 Watts
  • Real Power: 75.44 Watts
  • Current Amp: 3.22A @ 23.43V
  • Length: 20 inches

What are the Details you Should Know?

It’s good that you have decided to select LED. However, you need to know a few things before you go ahead with it. Some of the things are as below:

You can also check out our article about 3-wire LED light bars – Black, White, and Blue. You can find out what each color stands for.

How many amperes does the led light bar consume

You will see the AMP Draw of 40 Inches LED Light Bar 240W (Real Power 160W). 14 Gauge & Current is 12.5 A @ 13V

Polarity is Essential

The thing with Polarity in electronics is that it decides whether the circuit components are placed symmetrically or not. LEDs have single-direction current flow as they are diodes. If there’s a lack of electricity flow, there will not be any light.

Thankfully, back-plugging doesn’t damage LEDs because of this nature.

There is a positive and a negative electrode in LEDs. The positive electrode is called an anode. The negative electrode is called a cathode.

The electricity flow is usually from the anode to the cathode, and it never happens the other way. So a reverse LED stops the whole circuit from running. This is due to stopping the flow of electricity.

When you add LEDs If you experience a disconnection in your circuit, don’t worry. You just have to flip it.

You will see the AMP Draw of 30 Inches LED Light Bar 180W (Real Power 122W). 14 Gauge & Current is 5.2 A @ 23.43V

Molar current is just like molar light 

The LED’s level of brightness varies as per the electricity consumed. This means two factors come into consideration. 

 

  1. So if you see bright LEDs, know that the batteries will drain fast because of the extra brightness. The extra brightness is derived using more power.
  2. You can adjust the level of LED brightness by adjusting the electricity consumption.  

Excessive power is a concern 

If you wonder what might happen when you link an LED bar to a direct source of current, it’ll dissipate as much as power needed.

As the saying goes, too much of anything is good for nothing, so it will disrupt the whole system, leading to failure. 

Hence, allowing only the necessary amount of current flow through the LED bar is vital. To make this happen, a resistor is needed.

A resistor will manage the current flow to the circuit, protecting the LED bar from absorbing too much power. The good news is that you don’t have to squeeze your brain with complex mathematics to find the best resistance value. 

You will see the AMP Draw of 50 Inches LED Light Bar 300W (Real Power 214W). 14 Gauge & Current is 8.98 A @ 23.77V

Summary 

We have given the answer to your doubt about the amount of amps a 120-watt LED bar could consume in a regular situation.

However, as you have read above, the light consumption of an LED will increase as much as it needs, unless you manage it tactfully.

If you don’t, there will be serious damage, this is why it’s important to adjust the electricity flow that an LED can draw. 

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