Tyron's 10g DIY LED Build

[Tyron]

After countless hours of looking through other builds and asking a whooole bunch of questions. i finally stepped into a big mass of LED funk. The whole point of me building this was to light a 10g frag tank and to get some experience with Leds. I would like to thank My Mom(lol), Evil, Andru24,waterproof, everybody who has their build listed on LED list, and everyone who answered any questions for me.

 

equipment list

6-CW xre

6-RB xpe

2-Buckpucks with Pots (700ma)

2-Protrans PS's

2-Plugs from my old BC8 hood

Misc.-BQ pads,solder(63/37),40w soldering iron from RShack, wirestrippers, 22awg wire,knobs,heatshrink etc

 

Well lets just get into it

here are some of the supplies

 

these are the CWs, disaster99 helped me get these a whiiiilllee back from china. he had an awesome hookup

 

these are the RBs XPEs

 

The 700ma Bucks

 

Got the BQ pads stuck on. Man everything looked straight and right up close, you back away from it and well...not too aweful lol

 

Leds Stuck on the BQ pads

 

Soldering 1 Chain

 

Both Chains getting soldered

 

Closer shot

 

Another

 

Both Protrans in a project box(7x5x3)

 

Another Shot

 

whites down low, need to adjust my knobs, but i might get rid of these idk yet

 

another shot

 

Blues down low

 

Both Chains

 

Another shot of both chains

 

i also tried to use dc power connectors to connect the lights to the box but i dont know what i was doing wrong but i couldnt get it to work. i tried switching wires and hookups but i just scrapped the idea. that why you see the hole where the wires go into the box. Now all i have to do is figure out some kind of fixture for this and hang it.

 

to wire this up i just followed waterproof's schematic on the second page of his build thread. but it was still easy to figure out.

 

I would like to say that i am by no stretch of the imagination good with electronics and projects like this. BUT with patience you can do this. Of course mine is not the prettiest girl at the prom, but she still can dance.LOL. So if you're on the fence about doing one, just jump into it with both feet, the water isnt that bad.

 

thanks yall

[porksoda]

Nice build!

This is exactly what I want to do!

Thanks for simplifying this build for me.

[evilc66]

I would suggest adding some ventilation holes to that box to let the power supplies breath a bit. Also, why lenses on the whites and not the blues?

[Tyron]

Yea that's the plan for today. Drilling holes in the box and making a wood fixture for the heatsink. And I still need to order the other lenses. I overlooked it when I ordered before.

[MiReef]

Congrats Tyron,

Looks cool. Post some pics with the tank once you get everything setup. Like Evil said add a small fan to push air put from the box with power supplies as these Potrans power supplies get quite hot and you have two of them. I have them outside under my couch open and still warm to touch.

Very good job though.

[evilc66]

I don't think a fan is required, but hot air needs to escape.

[Tyron]

how hard is it to drill and tap holes in heatsinks? how long does it take, i only need to do four

[evilc66]

It's pretty quick, but take it slow with this being your first time. Rushing will only lead to broken taps and drill bits.

[Tyron]

So you just drill a hole with a drill, then tap the threads by hand?

[evilc66]

Pretty much. I would advise getting the tap kits from places like Home Depot that have the drill and the tap in one package. Drill size is important to getting good thread formation. Too large, and the threads are almost non-existant, and will strip easily. Too small and it will be a b!tch to tap, and you run greater risk of snapping the tap. Use a cutting lube while drilling and tapping. Aluminum is soft, and will grab the bit if allowed to. WD40 works. Cooking oil too in a pinch.

[Tyron]

Wheew the holes are drilled. No broken bits. Do I Tap from the bottom or top or it doesn't matter

[Tyron]

Wheew the holes are drilled. No broken bits. Do I Tap from the bottom or top or it doesn't matter

[Tyron]

Anybody

[evilc66]

Whatever is more accessable.

[Tyron]

Well they are all threaded. Man that was a task. The eye bolts I have are 1/4 but I had to tap 5/16 threads. Could I just hang it with the 1/4 eye bolts even though its a Tad smaller. Or should I just buy the 5/16ths ones. It'll be like the heatsink is resting on the bolts and not supported with the threads

[bensanders]

Do you mean that the heatsink will be resting on the nuts that are threaded onto the bolts that pass through the heatsink? If so, you'll be fine.

[Tyron]

Yea that's what I meant. That's what I thought to. Thnx.

[IrieReefer]

Sweet! Great Pics.......I am using par38 bulbs now but always wanted to try a DIY project with LEDs

[Tyron]

Yea that's what I was going to do. But I had the CWs just sitting here so I just DIYed this bish

[Tyron]

Well here's a little update. I painted the back and bottom black.

Got the fixture hanging on a PVC fixture I made

 

You can see how I completely botched this corner piece. Cuz I can't cut straight for shizz. I'm going to do it over though. It will sit midway at 6in.

 

And here's the other corner piece. This one will sit higher at 9in.

 

I guess I'm ready for water. . .

[Tyron]

i just bought some more dc power connectors. i think the last ones had to have been duds because they looked like they were used or something. anything special i should know about wiring them up?

[evilc66]

Wire both sides the same

[Tyron]

Well I got the new jacks wired up. I knew the others were bad

 

Got water in the tank and threw some pellet food in there to start the cycle

 

I got my Pico evolution in there now until I get my tunze 6015. Huuuh lets go cycle... I guess I could redo that frag shelf while I wait

[evilc66]

I guess I could redo that frag shelf while I wait

Might be a good idea

[Tyron]

Updated the frag shelves. One of my legs got a little off but oh well. Its a frag tank.