Telehandler Lights: Work Lights, Beacons and Road Lighting in Ireland

A telehandler lighting setup combines boom-mounted work lights, chassis and cab roof lights, an amber warning beacon, and a full set of road-legal lamps for public-road travel. A modern factory-built telehandler usually comes with several work lights, at least one beacon, and a complete road lighting kit. Older machines often run with 2 to 4 halogen work lights and need an LED upgrade to match the visibility of a current Loadall, MLT, or Scorpion. This guide covers every light fitted to a telescopic handler, where it goes, what it has to do, and how Irish rules treat the machine on the public road.

Why Telehandler Lighting Is Different From Tractor Lighting

A telehandler boom changes the lighting demand. The boom carries the load between 0 and 10 metres above the ground, and the operator needs visibility on the load itself, not just on the area around the machine. A tractor lights the field ahead. A telehandler lights the load above and the work zone alongside.

Three structural differences set a telehandler apart from a tractor for lighting purposes.

The first is the boom itself. The boom extends and retracts, lifts and lowers, and tilts the load through 90 degrees or more. Lights mounted on the chassis or cab roof can only follow the load up to a certain angle. Above that angle the load shadows the work. Boom-mounted lights solve the problem because they travel with the load.

The second is the side-on working pattern. A telehandler often loads or unloads from the side, parallel to a wall, trailer, or stack. The operator works from the cab looking sideways or upward, not just forward. Side and rear chassis lights become more important on a telehandler than on a tractor.

The third is yard use. Telehandlers spend more hours on hard-surface yards, near pedestrians, near other vehicles, and near buildings. Beacon visibility and reverse lighting carry more weight than on a tractor that mostly works in fields.

For the broader machinery lighting context, see Lighting for Farm Machinery: Beyond the Tractor.

Boom Lights: Lighting the Load and the Lift Height

Boom lights mount on the boom itself and travel with the load. They are the single most important upgrade on any telehandler used after dark.

Many factory-built machines carry boom lights as standard or as an option, typically two or more. The exact number varies by make, model, specification and year, so check the parts list for the machine before ordering.

Mount boom lights at the boom head, near the carriage, and angle them slightly downward so the beam covers the load and the area immediately below it. A 4,000 to 6,000 lumen LED flood per light covers a stack or trailer side at full lift. Use IP69K-rated lights because the boom takes the full force of pressure-washing during clean-down and the rear of the lamp lives in dust and debris from forks, buckets, and grabs.

Anti-vibration brackets matter on a boom. The boom whips through the air every time the load drops or the carriage tilts, and a hard-mounted lamp can crack its LED chips or driver. Rubber-isolated brackets, sold by every reputable lamp brand, greatly extend lamp life.

Boom light wiring runs through a coiled cable along the boom or through an internal cable run inside the boom section. Manufacturer-fitted looms use the internal route. Aftermarket installations almost always use the external coiled cable. Use a heavy-duty Deutsch connector at the boom-to-chassis junction so the cable can be unplugged for boom service.

Aim the boom lights at the carriage and 1 to 2 metres beyond. Aiming further out throws light past the working zone and creates glare back to the cab through the boom-mounted load.

Chassis and Cab Roof Work Lights

Chassis and cab roof work lights light the area around the machine, including the wheels, the rear, the sides, and the working zone in front of the boom.

A complete telehandler chassis lighting setup uses six positions. The numbers below assume a single LED flood per position and give a typical lumen target.

Position	Purpose	Lumen target
Front grille left	Forward and left forward	3,000 to 5,000
Front grille right	Forward and right forward	3,000 to 5,000
Cab roof front	Long-range forward	5,000 to 8,000
Cab roof rear	Reversing and rear monitoring	4,000 to 6,000
Side cab pillar	Side-on loading view	3,000 to 5,000
Rear chassis low	Hitch, drawbar, low rear view	3,000 to 5,000

Total chassis output sits between 21,000 and 34,000 lumens for a complete setup, on top of the boom light output of 8,000 to 24,000 lumens. A full LED telehandler with boom lights, chassis lights, and cab roof lights runs between 30,000 and 60,000 lumens of working illumination.

Use a flood beam pattern for all six positions. A spot pattern wastes light beyond the work area on a telehandler because the operator rarely looks more than 30 metres ahead during loading work. Reserve combination beam patterns for cab roof front lights only, and only on machines that travel between yards or move at speed across long sites.

For lumen and beam-pattern fundamentals, see Work Light Beam Patterns: Flood, Spot, and Combo Explained.

For mounting bracket selection, see How to Mount Work Lights.

Beacons and Amber Warning Lights for Telehandlers

A telehandler used on a yard or near road traffic needs an amber beacon. The beacon warns pedestrians and other vehicle operators that a slow, wide, articulating machine is in the work area.

In Ireland, since 1 January 2016, every agricultural tractor and self-propelled agricultural machine must be fitted with a flashing amber beacon, and it must be switched on whenever the vehicle is in use on a public road (Road Traffic (Lighting of Vehicles) (Amendment) Regulations 2014, S.I. No. 249 of 2014). There is no speed or road-type threshold as there is in the UK. A telehandler working as a farm machine is generally treated as a self-propelled agricultural machine, so plan on the beacon being on for every road move, whether that is a dual carriageway or a county road between yards. If your machine is registered and used as construction plant rather than for farming, check the current RSA guidance for your case. Amber beacons are also allowed on road works vehicles, so a plant-registered telehandler on road works may use one for that duty.

The Irish rules also set where the beacon goes: where possible on the roof, on the centre line of the vehicle, with no part of the lit surface less than 1.27 m from the ground, a light-emitting area within a 230 mm square, and no more than 36 watts for an amber lamp.

Three beacon types fit telehandlers.

A DIN pole beacon mounts on a 28 mm or 25 mm pole, fixed to the cab roof rear or the cab front roof rail, which suits the Irish preference for a roof-mounted beacon. This is the standard factory fitment on JCB Loadall, Manitou MLT, and Merlo Roto machines. The beacon sits above the cab profile and projects 360 degrees of warning light.

A magnetic beacon clamps to any flat metal surface on the cab roof through its magnetic base. This suits a spare or back-up beacon, or a second beacon at the rear, although with the beacon required on every road trip a fixed main beacon is the more reliable choice. Magnetic beacons run from a coiled cable into the cab cigarette lighter socket or through a hard-wired feed to the auxiliary panel. See magnetic beacons for more, or the beacon range for current options.

A flexi DIN beacon uses a sprung-spring mount that bends on impact with branches or low overhead structures. Telehandlers that work in or near orchards, polytunnels, or grain stores benefit from a flexi mount because rigid poles snap under contact. The beacon flexes back to vertical without damage to the pole or the beacon itself.

Choose an ECE R65 approved beacon for any road-going telehandler. R65 is the recognised standard for warning lamp performance and good practice to buy, and RSA guidance generally advises type-approved lamps carrying the E or e mark. Check the wattage too, as Irish rules cap amber beacons at 36 watts. R10 EMC approval matters separately, especially on telehandlers built after 2010 with electronic engine management or telematics. A non-EMC beacon can cause warning lights on the dash, false fault codes, or interference with the load chart display. See ECE R65 Beacons for the full standard.

Telehandlers used near pedestrians benefit from a second beacon at the rear of the cab roof. A second amber beacon doubles the visibility from behind during reverse moves and means the warning continues if one beacon fails.

Road-Legal Lighting for Telehandlers Driven on Irish Roads

A farm telehandler driven on an Irish public road needs the same lighting as a tractor or other self-propelled agricultural machine. The rules come from the Road Traffic (Lighting of Vehicles) Regulations 1963 (S.I. No. 189 of 1963), as amended, and in particular S.I. No. 249 of 2014.

Since 1 January 2016, tractors and self-propelled agricultural machines must have a full lighting system: side lamps, headlamps, rear lamps, stop lamps, direction indicators, a flashing amber beacon and number plate lighting. That full system must be fitted and working at all times, not just during lighting-up hours (half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise). Unlike the UK, there are no exemptions for slow machines that let you leave out stop lamps or indicators. The only exemption is for older machines (pre-1980, or 30+ years old according to current RSA guidance) used only in daylight, and lamps already fitted must still work. See the RSA guide to lighting and visibility laws for agricultural vehicles.

The usual road lighting kit is listed below.

Component	Quantity	Position
Dipped-beam headlight	2	Front, symmetrical
Front position lamps (sidelights)	2	Front, symmetrical
Rear position lamps (taillights)	2	Rear, symmetrical
Brake lights	2	Rear, symmetrical
Direction indicators	4	Front and rear, both sides
Hazard warning system	n/a	Operates the indicators together
Number plate light	1	Illuminates the rear plate
Flashing amber beacon	1 or more	Roof, on the centre line where possible, at least 1.27 m high

Colours follow the usual Irish rules: white to the front, red to the rear (apart from indicators, number plate lamps and reversing lamps), and amber for indicators and side markers. Rear reflectors are red. The triangular shape is reserved for trailers; on the telehandler itself use a non-triangular red reflector.

Rear work lights deserve a special mention on a telehandler. RSA guidance says work lamps must be switched off before using the public road, and rear white lights are banned on the road because they can look like an approaching vehicle. Reversing lamps are the exception, and only while reversing.

Width matters too. RSA figures give a maximum width of 3.5 m for self-propelled agricultural machinery; anything wider needs an escort vehicle, flashing amber beacons and a “CAUTION, WIDE LOAD FOLLOWING” sign. Forks and other front-mounted attachments should be lowered and faced down on the road, as raised forks count as a dangerous projection.

Headlights on a telehandler must dip to the left for Irish roads, as traffic drives on the left. Continental machines imported from France or Germany may have headlights aimed for right-hand traffic, and these need adjustment or replacement before road use.

A telehandler with a design speed over 40 km/h used for non-agricultural work, such as construction, may also come under the fast tractor testing rules if it is a category T tractor, so check with CVRT. For more on the rules, see lighting regulations and Tractor Road Legal Lights.

Lighting by Manufacturer: JCB, Manitou, Merlo, Claas

Each major telehandler brand fits a different factory lighting kit. The differences matter when buying replacement parts or planning an upgrade.

JCB Loadall is one of the most widely used farm telehandlers. Current Loadall AGRI models come with LED lighting packages, boom lights on many specifications, an amber beacon, and a complete road-legal kit; check the exact fit for the model and year. Older Loadall models from the 526, 530, 535, and 541 series were typically halogen, and these are the machines most commonly upgraded to LED. See JCB Telehandler and Loadall Lights for the full fitment guide.

Manitou MLT models fit LED lighting on many current machines, while older machines are typically halogen. The MLT 625, 730, 840, and 960 cover the agricultural range. Manitou uses a different boom cable routing from JCB, with an internal cable run on most boom sections.

Merlo Multifarmer models are often specified with more boom lights than average. The Merlo Multifarmer doubles as a tractor and a telehandler, and its lighting kit includes everything needed for full road use plus PTO-driven implement work after dark.

Claas Scorpion telehandlers are built in partnership with Liebherr and share component design with Liebherr construction telehandlers. The Scorpion 732, 736, 741, 746, and 756 models use LED lighting throughout on the current series. Older Scorpion machines fitted halogen.

JLG, Genie, and other plant-focused telehandler brands appear on farms in smaller numbers. These machines often come with a plant-specification lighting kit that meets construction site requirements but may need additional road lighting, such as stop lamps, indicators or a roof beacon, to meet the full Irish lighting system for agricultural machines.

LED Upgrade Routes for Older Telehandlers

An older telehandler fitted with halogen work lights upgrades to LED with little effort and immediate benefit.

Three reasons drive the LED upgrade on a telehandler.

The first is power draw. A pair of 70-watt halogen work lights pull 12 amps from the alternator at full brightness. A pair of LED work lights at the same lumen output pull 4 to 5 amps. The difference matters because telehandlers often run multiple work lights, a beacon, and reversing lights at the same time, and an old alternator struggles to keep the battery charged under that load.

The second is vibration tolerance. Halogen filaments break under continuous high-frequency vibration, so a boom-mounted halogen lamp often fails far short of its rated life. An LED lamp on the same mount lasts many times longer.

The third is light output. A modern 60-watt LED work light delivers 5,000 to 6,000 lumens. A 70-watt halogen delivers 1,500 to 1,800 lumens. The LED produces three times the visible light at the same physical size and lower power draw.

EMC compliance matters for any LED upgrade on a telehandler built after 2010. Non-EMC LEDs interfere with the engine ECU, the load monitoring system, and any GPS or telematics fitted to the machine. Check for the R10 marking on every LED lamp before fitting it to a modern telehandler. For the full picture on EMC compliance, see Do LED Lights Interfere with GPS and Auto-Steer Systems.

For LED work light selection, see LED work lights and What Are LED Work Lights and Why Are They Replacing Halogen.

Wiring and Switching for Added Telehandler Lights

Added lights wire through a relay back to the cab switch panel or auxiliary fuse panel. Wiring direct from the battery without a relay overloads the cab switch contacts and risks fire.

A standard relay-based wiring layout for added telehandler lights uses six components.

A 30-amp automotive relay sits in a sealed plastic housing, ideally inside the cab or under a sealed bonnet section. The relay carries the high-current feed from the battery to the lights.

A fused supply runs from the battery positive to the relay. A 30-amp blade fuse sized for the total light load sits within 300 mm of the battery. Use waterproof fuse holders on a telehandler because the chassis sees mud, water, and pressure-wash spray.

A switched trigger feed runs from a cab switch (or from the existing work light switch) to the relay coil. This low-current feed turns the relay on and off without carrying the full lamp load.

A heavy-gauge cable runs from the relay output to the lights. Use 4 mm² cable for loads up to 20 amps and 6 mm² for loads up to 30 amps. Run the cable through existing cable looms or use a separate split conduit to protect it from chafing.

Deutsch connectors at every junction prevent water ingress and corrosion. A telehandler that lives outdoors and gets pressure-washed weekly will corrode any standard automotive connector inside two years. Deutsch connectors hold up for the life of the machine.

A common ground point on the chassis completes the circuit. The ground point should be a bolted earth tag, bare metal under the bolt, with the cable terminated in a ring crimp.

For the full wiring guide, see How to Wire Work Lights to a 12V System with a Relay.

What to Buy First If You Are Upgrading a Telehandler

A telehandler upgrade in priority order looks like this.

Boom lights come first. The boom lights deliver the biggest single visibility gain because they light the load, and the load is what the operator is paying attention to. Two LED boom lights at 5,000 lumens each transform an old machine.

Cab roof rear comes second. The cab roof rear light makes reversing safe in any work environment with traffic, pedestrians, or stacked product. A single 6,000 lumen LED is enough.

Beacon comes third if the machine does not already have one, although if the machine goes on the public road without a working beacon, fix that before anything else, because in Ireland the beacon must be fitted and on for every road move. An ECE R65 LED beacon on a DIN pole mount on the cab roof meets the requirement and gives the practical visibility for yard work too.

Side cab pillar lights come fourth. Side lights pay back fastest on telehandlers that load trailers, lorries, or stacks parallel to the cab.

Cab roof front and front grille lights come last. These are the most expensive to add because of the wiring run, and the existing factory fitment usually does enough.

A complete LED upgrade for a 10-year-old telehandler runs roughly between €450 and €1,050 in parts depending on lamp brand and quantity (free delivery to Ireland on orders over €150), plus 4 to 8 hours of fitting time. The result is a machine that lights its work as well as a current Loadall or MLT.

For the full machinery lighting context, see the machinery lighting hub and the related guide on Combine Harvester Lighting.