I'm pretty sure that I mentioned in an earlier post that The numbers were compared to measurements taken by Mark Levenstien (Melev of Melevsreef), with 250W Reeflux 12K bulbs with Lumenbright reflectors.

I haven't done any comparisons to T5, mainly because I don't know anyone that has a decent setup to compare it to.

I also would love to hear the a recommendation as I have the same tank. Doing massive research & reading now.

Thanks
Scott

Whats the area inside the splash sheild?

I just stumbled upon this driver, pt4107 on ebay... Seems cheap and usable for multiple purposes.. Dimmable too

3 units, including shipping for $9.99

http://cgi.ebay.com/3-high-brightness-LED-...Z360137248969QQ

Datasheet:
http://www.electro-bay.com/LED_Driver/date...7_DS_EN_1.1.pdf


Anyone tried that one out?

I had thought about possibly using one of those. Still has potential, but will be relatively expensive to build a driver in small quantities (big inductor and other high voltage parts). You will be limited to about 20 LEDs (total vf needs to be at least half of the rectified source voltage), which is a lot better than the Buckpucks, but there are some DC drivers that can get close, and can be built for half the price.

I might end up playing with one at some point.

Quick question there Evil. I've researched building a constant voltage PSU, I've got a link for a 14v @ 10A schematic floating around, which could be built for relatively cheap depending on supplies. It could also be modded slightly to increase voltage.... but I havn't found a method to regulate the current, any ideas?

Are you trying to set a constant current, or just an upper limit?

constant current would be nice, but limit to about 1400mA would work as well.

BTW Evil, found this useful gem if we are able to find a board to fit or someone can etch one out for us.
http://www.linear.com/pc/downloadDocument....4,P21733,D14958

It can handle 8 LEDs, (16 if you run it 1.5mA and parallel the LEDs) which is more than a buck puck, and 16 isn't shabby either,

EDIT: Found a PCB board........ ok, yes, pins are quite small, but I've seen this kind of soldering done before and I'm almost positive I could duplicate the process.

http://fcpcb.ecrater.com/product.php?pid=1750534 Allows for SMD components to be installed, wires or headers could also be installed as well. This could be my new project. What would probably wind up happening is I install the chip on to one of these boards, solder in headers, then mount some how to a proto-typing board. tricky work, and I could easily put in 5hrs worth of work to finish it to. Question becomes, is it worth it for just 6 LEDs....... I dunno, but would be nice fer my 29g FW that can't seem to reach full current. Is it worth it to further LED drivers for reefers, probably.

How much are these drivers catfishboy? There's alot of parts involved in getting this to work, I can imagine cost catching up with buckpucks quickly..

I'd suspect about the same price as puck, maybe a little more. Where it shines though is being able to drive 16 (more?) LEDs, more than twice of any puck out there. I'm gonna call the company and try and get some tech support on that one to see how many LEDs it could drive.

Looks to me there's a considerable amount of DIY involved, and quite a few parts you'd need. I'm guessing just getting 2-3 buckpucks might end up at a similar price as building this yourself.

It's a pity tho - I would like to get some solution similar to this that can drive ~15 LEDs at 700-1000mA... If it was DIY, the price sweet spot for me would be around ~$15 including all parts. Doesn't look like this one can break that.

There are some drivers out there that can support a LOT more LEDs than that if you look. Honestly, I wouldn't want to go with a dual driver in a single package for thermal reasons. While it's only a max 72W, it's probably a small package. A single driver would only be 36W on the same amount of copper, making less of a thermal hotspot. Many times, it's easier to lay out multiple smaller setups.

If you can find the right power supply, you could try the National LM3406HV. 75v @ 2A will support 40 LEDs, but big thermal considerations.

Hey Clive,

I was just revisiting one of your previous threads ('come on in...') and was wondering if you have any updated growth pictures with your led array ? Maybe I missed some on a different thread ??

Thanks.

That tank is currently going through a reset right now. I had a big algae problem recently that just overran the tank. Not sure why either as I was pretty good about water changes and parameters were good. I was also running a fuge, carbon and GFO. I think the black sand was partly to blame. Typical live sand will be going in it this time.

I did have too much light though. That many LEDs at 700mA was way too high PAR for a tank that small. I ended up cutting it down to 350mA and the levels are far more reasonable.

Things did grow though (before the algae). The sps seemed to like the light. the milli was encrusting it's plug really well. The rics split really fast too. Only thing was that everything stayed really small from all the light.

Shame about the algae !

That's good to know about too much light, I'm going to have to put quite a bit of thought into the transition and acclimaton from mh to led once my build is complete (FYI, my EE came back to me with another idea on the driver, so he's prototyping right now, all looks good so far, using boost circuit this time from 12v, 30A cctv psu). I also switched the K2 blues for Rebel royal blues.

Simon

I am thinking of using LED for my 10 gallon tank. currently I have a 70W MH over it but it seems to be too dim for my BTA. would 12 (6 white and 6 royal blue) Cree XR-E 3W watters without optics be enough for this tank? trying to go for 150W 12k MH look. Thanks! awesome thread!

I've got all my parts in and ready to drill and tap my heat sink and start mounting the LED's. I'm a little concerned about the soldering. Should I be worried about overheating the LED's? Would appreciate any tips.

50% more LEDs, and 60 degree optics to hit the targets you want.




High wattage soldering irons are the key here. I recommend 40W+, but you can get away with less. The longer you have to keep the iron on the pad to melt the solder, the more the LED is heating up. More wattage will heat the area faster than the LED can heat up.

Hehe. I'm guessing my POS one from harbor freight won't cut the mustard.

Edit: Had to go to Lowes anyway to pick up drill and tap bits. Picked up one of the pistol-style irons... 100/140 watts. That should do it.

What's a tap bit used for? This has been bugging me for a while, English is not my native language so pardon my ignorance.

A tap puts threads into the metal so you can use screws to hold the LEDs down.

This past weekend, I tapped my heat sink for my LED project. It was my first experience with tapping, and I was so stoked to see how well it worked. Felt like I had learned a whole new skill set.

Tips: Use a drill press to drill the starter hole. Use cutting oil (or some other lubricant). Back out the tap every half-turn or so.

Cutting oil is your friend.

I recently set up an Eclipse 12 FOWLR. Looking for a lighting solution so I can turn this guy in to a reef tank I came across this awesome forum. I have not been able to get any help from my LFS and trying to figure out how to retrofit and safely fit lighting has been vexing. This thread has brought me some hope.

To get me started in planning, my questions are:

What sort of lights should put under the factory hood and in what configuration?

Can/should I keep the standard filter assembly? I am afraid it is going to get in the way but I thought I would ask anyway. I can post a picture if you need.

I have really enjoyed following this thread. Thank you for your help!

I'm no expert by any means, seeing as how I'm in the process of building my first LED retro, but I would recommend 6 cool white LED's on one 1000 mA buckpuck and 5 royal blue LED's on another 1000 mA buckpuck for lighting.

I don't know anything about the dimensions of the Eclipse 12, but some variation of Waterproof's BC14 LED Build would probably fit your lighting needs. It depends on how big of a heat sink you can put in the hood.

No doubt about that. But it does need some clean-up afterward, leading to a conversation such as the following:

"What are you doing with my hair dryer?"

"I just finished wasking my heat sink, and I'm drying it so the LED's don't absorb moisture and get fried while I'm soldering them."

...awkward silence...

6 cool whites and 6 royal blues will just about do it. The 21" length on the tank will stretch things out a bit, but it should be ok.

Ditch the stock filter and go with an Aquaclear HOB filter. They are much better suited for reefs than the in hood biowheel filter. The back chamber can easily be modified for a refugium, and to keep your heater and other equipment.

Added new Recom RCD-24 driver to the driver list on the first post. Go check it out.

Thanks guys!

So evilc66 Im looking at making a custom rimless tank that would be a 9 inch cube a little over 3 gallons. how many LEDs would i need to give good coverage over that area and what size heatsink would you recommend? thank for all the info.

3x3 (9 LEDs) on 2"-2.25" spacing should be plenty. Get HeatsinkUSA to cut you a square heatsink 8.5"x8.5" (thats their "large" heatsink width).

Thanks Evilc66. I was thinking the XR-E 4 royal blue 5 cool white and two LUX Drive 3021 D-E buckpucks one 700 and one 1000. or do you think 5 blue 4 white?How do i figure out what i need for a power supply? any recommendations on where to get a power supply. Thanks for the help.

Hi Clive (et al),

I'm almost ready to start building my array (and I'll create a seperate thread when I do with pics & schematics), but wanted your thoughts on led placement...

My aquarium is 48" x 18" footprint, I have 18 white P7's and 20 royal blue Rebels to fit on an aluminum plate 36" x 12". Initially, I will try it without optics (approx 22" deep) to see how it looks, all of my sps colonies are in the upper half of the tank, currently under 250w se mh and 150w de mh.

Thanks for your help.

Evil we love you!!!

Sounds fine, but you can run the blues at 1000mA if you want.

http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=16854+PS




The P7's could be interesting, but also a pain. The increased intensity will make it harder to offset the blues. Think of a P7 as 4 P4's/Q5's (same die)

Thanks again evilc66

This guide still isn't finished!

Don't you start with me

To appease you a little, I added the Meanwell ELN series drivers to the list today.

I had to chuckle a little and share with you guys. Reef Central is so behind us on LEDs it's not even fair. Soundwave has a thread going where he is showing off his fixture (and it does look very good, not bashing on him), and the discussion has turned to people asking recommendations. No-one there has the balls to give any kind of suggestions, because "the technology is too new" and "we don't know enough about setting these up yet".

I guess we are doing things wrong then

yeah RC doesn't have the GAWD!

3 cheers for EVILC66!
oops have to be a on this. they maybe spying!

First off i want to say it's amazing what you guys have done!! I don't have a reef tank yet, i've been preparing for the last few months reading and learning and soon i will be converting my 26 gallon bowfront to a nano-type reef. But i was also thinking about something a little smaller. As of right now I have 2 High Tech planted aquariums the 26 gallon and a 55 gallon discus tank. I also have a Eclipse 12 i might want to convert to a nano reef for a peacock mantis as well.

All my tanks are hooked up to the Digital Aquatics Reef Keeper Elite controller and i have a question about dimming. The RKE controller has an advanced light module that can dim t5 and led light arrays. It has 2 ports for 0-10v outputs and a serial connector to interface with aqua illumination LED system.

Do any of you DIY'ers have any knowledge about the 0-10v dimming ports or the aqua illumination serial ports so DIY LEDs can interface with this controller to implement dimming capability? To me it seems like this wouldn't be very hard for basic dimming using the 0-10v ports if it were something that could easily be made DIY, but i don't exactly know how they work. The advanced light module can also control things like Kelvin color, but this might be getting too complex. Any thoughts? And this is my first post and i just found this forum a few days ago and have been glued to it ever since!

Thanks,

Stevie D

You just have to get a driver that is compatible with a 0-10v signal. The Xitanium and Meanwell drivers are compatible. The Meanwells are a little hard to get in the analog dimming version that you would need.

Finally read the entire article. Nice post. Thanks for the information.

Evilc66 i need to ask you about one test i received today 3 of this led's http://www.led1.de/shop/product_info.php?p...bceea1c1099c2f6

so i will like to make a short test about the light of this led's, i have a adapter input 220 volt output 9volt 1A
i can use only 2 leds i parallel without driver? and i don't have a heat shink and without led star PCB so i need to do a quick test?

Thanks!!!

See the other thread. Answered there.

This is interesting schematic http://pdfserv.maxim-ic.com/en/an/AN3532.pdf

A buck-boost driver like that is great when the voltage varies, like automotive applications. 16.5v max input doesn't get us very far though when high voltage power supplies are readily available.

Thanks for the answer, can you tell me about this schematic from your post http://www.instructables.com/id/1.5A-Const...-for-LEDs-for-/ how can be modified for 1A. And how can be changed every component with non SMT parts

Setup for that circuit is explained in the datasheet.

http://www.st.com/stonline/products/litera...13415/stcs1.htm

You can't completely build this cicuit out of through hole parts. The IC and the sense resistor are only available in surface mount parts.

SMT is not exactly hard to work with, you just need patience, something alot of people don't have.