If you're driving in poor visibility situations, especially at night where you can't see what's ahead of you, there's a pretty good chance that either things aren't gonna end well or you're gonna end up driving way slower than any of us have the patience for. Whether it's dust being kicked up by vehicles in front of you or it's thick, fluffy snowflakes coming down, having functional lights on the front of your vehicle can make all the difference in the world in those types of poor-visibility situations.
Now, what do we mean by "functional?" We're referring to having lights with the proper amount of degrees Kelvin for the exact environment or conditions that you'll be driving in or through. Basically, it breaks down to knowing when or if you need amber lights for your rig, so today we'll show you how to determine which types of lights you should be installing!
So, how does an amber-colored light work better in poor visibility situations compared to white lights? Here's the interesting thing about lighting - on the lower side of the Kelvin scale we'll find our warmest, orange-tinted colors at around 1700K. Closer to the higher numbers of the scale, around 9500K, we'll find our coolest or bluish colors of the scale.
Amber-colored lights from brands like KC HiLites will reside around the 3000K mark, whereas non-colored lights will be closer to 5000K, and once you get past the 6000K or 7000K mark, you'll start getting into blues and violets. So, the advantage of running amber lights in low visibility situations is that they can offer a better contrast in defining what our eyes are seeing out in front of us.
This is all because amber lighting is a lot less reflective when compared to a white or blue light. Amber lighting has longer wavelengths which allow it to cut through airborne particles much better than white lights can. White or blue lights, meanwhile, have shorter wavelengths, which lead to more refraction, and more glare when fog, snow, dust and rain are in the way.
Another helpful tip is that whether you have white or amber lights, it's important to properly aim your lighting for use in the corresponding conditions. When driving in poor visibility, you'll want to have your fog lights or lower mounted lights pointed or aimed a bit downwards closer to the ground, as this'll help prevent the light from shining up into the airborne particles at eye level as much.
Obviously, this is gonna reduce the distance that you're able to see out in front of you, but for the majority of us that aren't racing in crappy driving conditions, it should still work out just fine. It may take a few adjustments to get the aims just right, but combining the proper amount of aiming with amber lighting will end up with a drastic improvement.
If you've determined that amber-colored lights are beneficial for your particular environments and driving conditions, there are two ways of achieving that color. One of them is to cover the white lens with an amber cover or stick-on amber colored vinyl, and the other is to purchase a fixed amber light.
If you're not sure whether you're going to use the amber lights often, then the cover or vinyl is the best way to go, as they're less expensive and temporary solutions that can be removed - of course, the drawback here is that because the light was not originally designed as a fixed amber, covering the light will reduce its output and lead it to be less potent.
Some of the best off-road lights in the business are in our inventory right now, so whether you're looking for blue lights, amber lights, standard white lights, or anything else, you can find them at TrailBuilt from leading brands like KC HiLites, Baja Designs, and more. Check out our lighting store today and get the set that best fits your rig!
For more information led amber lights, please get in touch with us!