Splumph Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Hello eveyone. I have been posting about an LED fixture I've been working on for some time now, and now I have it in place over the tank. The light really looks good, but time will tell on how effective it is. Right now all my liverock is cycling in a bucket while I waterproof my shelf/stand. Figured it was gonna take a little while to seed/cycle (bought dry rock) So I could get it started while I constructed everything else. Anyways, the LED fixture consists of these components. 5x Cree blue Emitter 5x Cree Q5 White Emitter 1x Big heat sink 2xLightech LED25 24v Driver 1x 120mm computer fan I had laying around, and a 12vdc power supply (15$ for the two?) lol I used the drivers because I was able to get them for pretty cheap, that 45$ cost is waaaay marked up. So the cost of all the major components are 48 for the LEDs, 35 for the heat sink, and potentially 45 for each driver (makes the buckpuck/power supply combo seem alot more reasonable). Probably add about 20 more for wires, thermal compound, cooling fan etc. So estimate 200$ for this project in materials. I ended up buying a soldering iron with solder...15$, and a tap for the screw holes 8$. The rest of the tools I had on hand. Only real tool required was a drill press, but you can use a regular drill with a block of wood to keep your holes straight. Here are the pics, quality isn't that great since my camera has a focusing problem Unit turned off, those aren't scorch marks, just spots where some of the arctic silver got on the sink. (yeah my soldering skills aren't that great, It's been 14 years, lol) Turned on...f'in bright! FTS of my empty ass tank And a pic I took ealier on with my dry live rock. The color separates because i did a row of white and a row of blue, but suspended 5" above the tank, they mix nicely. I ended up using 10/32 screws since they were the smallest I could find at Home Despot, but they give real good clamping pressure. Without the fan on the sink starts to get warm to the touch after about an hour, with the sink there is no heat at all. Color actually looks close to 14k, but not as blue as the pics would allow you to think. The fixture is suspended above the tank, and is hinged for when I want to mess around inside the tank. The next fixture I am going to build is going to use a boom arm like you see on the magnifying hobby lamps. I still plan to add UV and a red LED for night viewing to this. WIth any luck I'll be able to add water to the darn thing in a few weeks Link to comment
nannodad Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Hello eveyone. I have been posting about an LED fixture I've been working on for some time now, and now I have it in place over the tank. The light really looks good, but time will tell on how effective it is. Right now all my liverock is cycling in a bucket while I waterproof my shelf/stand. Figured it was gonna take a little while to seed/cycle (bought dry rock) So I could get it started while I constructed everything else. Anyways, the LED fixture consists of these components. 5x Cree blue Emitter 5x Cree Q5 White Emitter 1x Big heat sink 2xLightech LED25 24v Driver 1x 120mm computer fan I had laying around, and a 12vdc power supply (15$ for the two?) lol I used the drivers because I was able to get them for free...that 45$ cost is waaaay marked up (I know what the cost is direct from the vendor, I sell these at work ). So the cost of all the major components are 48 for the LEDs, 35 for the heat sink, and potentially 45 for each driver (makes the buckpuck/power supply combo seem alot more reasonable). Probably add about 20 more for wires, thermal compound, cooling fan etc. So estimate 200$ for this project in materials. I ended up buying a soldering iron with solder...15$, and a tap for the screw holes 8$. The rest of the tools I had on hand. Only real tool required was a drill press, but you can use a regular drill with a block of wood to keep your holes straight. Here are the pics, quality isn't that great since my camera has a focusing problem Unit turned off, those aren't scorch marks, just spots where some of the arctic silver got on the sink. (yeah my soldering skills aren't that great, It's been 14 years, lol) Turned on...f'in bright! FTS of my empty ass tank And a pic I took ealier on with my dry live rock. The color separates because i did a row of white and a row of blue, but suspended 5" above the tank, they mix nicely. I ended up using 10/32 screws since they were the smallest I could find at Home Despot, but they give real good clamping pressure. Without the fan on the sink starts to get warm to the touch after about an hour, with the sink there is no heat at all. Color actually looks close to 14k, but not as blue as the pics would allow you to think. The fixture is suspended above the tank, and is hinged for when I want to mess around inside the tank. The next fixture I am going to build is going to use a boom arm like you see on the magnifying hobby lamps. I still plan to add UV and a red LED for night viewing to this. WIth any luck I'll be able to add water to the darn thing in a few weeks How big is the Tank? Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 Forgot that little detail. It's a 7 gallon Minibow. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Looks nice there Splumph. I see you took my advice about bolting them down. How is the color temp with the 50/50 mix? Link to comment
coolwaters Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 lol looks like a action shot. nice LED set up. Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 My guess would be 12-14k its quite a bit bluer than a 10k MH. I had a little issue earlier today, I had to unplug the thing for a sec, when I plugged it back in, the blues flashed, like a blinker on a car. Unplugged it for like 2 minutes, and the problem went away. Seems to only happen if its unplugged for a brief time. Link to comment
coolwaters Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 i have the WG which is a little warmer then your WC. im doing 4white/7blue and it looks like yours. im using P4s instead since Q5 wasnt out at the time. wished they updated the blue LEDs on that site... My guess would be 12-14k its quite a bit bluer than a 10k MH. I had a little issue earlier today, I had to unplug the thing for a sec, when I plugged it back in, the blues flashed, like a blinker on a car. Unplugged it for like 2 minutes, and the problem went away. Seems to only happen if its unplugged for a brief time. wait is that a constant current regulator? the site doesnt give out the important specs like amperage.... if its a regulated voltage driver then its going to damage your LEDs because the current isnt regulated thats what the flashing was about. happened to me when i wasnt using a current driver. Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 I'll see what info I can dig up on it, its actually an older driver than the one in the pic. I don't have the problem with the whites, I'm assuming because they run at a different current (1000ma, compared to 700ma, right?) Found it on the website, clicked constant voltage, and bang, it popped up ...think it would be ok for the whites? I have a 100w24v Xitanium as well, Just didnt want to use it because its larger. Put in the Xitanium, dont have the flashing problem, when unplugged and plugged in immediately. I turned the exposure value waaaay low to get this shot. (ignore that dingy filter on the back, its just there for my measuring purposes, lol. It will eventually be scoured and turned to a fuge though.) Link to comment
thedoogan Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Awsome! Cant wait to start mine now. Link to comment
cparka23 Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 That's a nice build. Any plans on adding lenses? Looks like the light spills over the edges a bit. Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 Not sure about lenses yet, gonna see what it looks like with water in it. I know it will still spill over, but I don't mind it. I have a 39 gallon FW tank about 3 feet away from it with a 70w 10k HQI over it, and when they are both on, the room is pretty well lit up I am going to add some kind of light baffle to it, as wife gets a bit of glare when she sits at her computer desk across the room. The build actually took maybe 3 hours, most of the time was spent tapping...tedious but worth it. Evil or CW, would I be able to run my constant voltage power supplies into a current regulator like the buckpuck? When I was building this thing, I was wondering how the power supply was going to know to send 700ma vs 1000ma to the LEDs, turns out it doesn't. If I'm understanding this right, at 1000ma a 24v driver will run 8 3w LEDs if they are rated at 1000ma, and at 700ma it would run 10(since the blues are rated at 3.2-3.4v)? I understand ohms law and all..but it's still a little confusing. I understand transformers supplying wattage to a fixture at different voltages, but current supply is pretty new to me. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 You can use the CV supplies to run the Buckpucks. I don't see any issue with that. I saw the data sheet for what you are using and it didn't look good to me, but it seems like you have figured that out too. That same company sells constant current drivers too. Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 Looks like I'm going to be ordering buckpucks this weekend Hopefully they don't take as long to get here as the LEDs. So I need 1 1000ma and 1 700ma, and they wire in after the power supply. Would I be able to dim them or not? I've seen a few posts about dimming this thing, but I've missed how its done. I'm assuming some kind of controller. Found it! Was I right about how many LEDs could be run on each PS? (I'm trying to learn as much as I can through this experience) *Just looked up the buckpuck info...It is the limiting factor moreso than the PS, 6 at 700ma. Things are starting to mesh together and make sense, lol. Link to comment
Zombo Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 DIY LEDs are becoming a HOT NEW FAD! All hail our cult leader, evilc66! :bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown: Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 Yup, pretty simple (once you understand the basics), and pretty cheap in the long run, plus its actually a fun project to boot. The WTF is that reaction by other people is great too. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Would you guys be down with a banner for your sig for the DIY LED Club? Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 17, 2008 Author Share Posted October 17, 2008 Just ordered the two buckpucks w/ wiring harnesses that I needed, along with 3 royal blue LEDs. Now im trying to come up with a creative way to skin my shelf/and light....I'm thinking of trying something with black acrylic. Link to comment
Zombo Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 WHERE IS THE BANNER, EVILC66?! CHOP, CHOP! Link to comment
evilc66 Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Paybacks a b!tch, right? Link to comment
NanoReefGuy Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 Banner? BANNER??BANNER!?! I thought we were getting T shirts Well OK a banner would be cool too Splumph Nice job on getting into the LEDs! It looks cool. Want to see the FTS when the residents are home in your tank! Cheers NRG Link to comment
crrichey Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 How many watts are ur LEDs? Link to comment
Splumph Posted October 18, 2008 Author Share Posted October 18, 2008 I believe it totals out to 25w at the moment (whites are 3w blues are 2w) but i'm not 100% sure. Yeah I can't wait to get some life in this tank too. I've kept alot of FW tanks, but this will be my first reef. Might be a little while though, since the LR is seeding. Has anoyone ever done this before? I was checking all params about a week ago, but lately I've just been checking ammonia, and it at 4ppm, and has stayed there consistantly for a week. I guess its just waiting for the bacteria to build up enough to get rid of it. I am really happy with the rock I got. I went with 5 lbs of mixed ecorox from bulkreefsupply. It came in 3 pieces, 2 of which fit pefrectly together to form that mountain in the back. I threw in 3 pounds of small cured rock pieces to seed it. On the right side there is a large flat area which will be great for corals, and then there is a small bump that sticks out in the middle which will make an interesting spot for something...I'm thinking GSP, but I worry about that trying to take over the whole rock. Link to comment
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