GU10 LED Build Thread (Chinese Ebay Lights)

[cdance]

Got my bulbs in!

 

I'm going to try to get everything up and running this week. For a 19Lx19w display should I go with 3 rows of 4 or 4 rows of 3... ie: WBWB WBW

BWBW BWB

WBWB WBW

BWB

 

It's a nano-cube, so your typical AIO tank

 

I got the 60* optics as I'll only be mounting the bulbs about 5" from the surface. That should be enough light for me to be able to keep anything i want to, right?

[C.I._Reefer]

With 30º lenses you'll get 5"+ diameter of solid coverage per bulb at 10" height. Double that with 60º lenses, which would not be a bad option for a 13" deep tank.

 

Convention is to use a solid row of white bulbs next to blue bulbs in a 50:50 ratio. For a tank length of 24", that would give you two rows of twelve bulbs. I'm pretty sure I would build for a third row of sockets in the middle "just in case". You may want to supplement different colors or add intensity later, if not at first.

 

One alternative, if possible in your installation, is to keep the traditional 30º optics, but hang the lights higher than the 10" norm. At 20" high you'll get a solid 11" of spread (and color mixing) per row with only two rows and you should still get plenty of penetration.

 

I'm coming to think that on my 50 gallon (36x18x18) that I'd like to have three rows of fifteen rather than the more customary two. I'm trying to give it time in the current configuration though to see if the extra row is really warranted.

 

So far in my build I've been getting nice results with a W:W:B:W:W arrangement. The conventional W:B:W was a bit too blue for me, so I'm trying it. I think there's a decent amount of room for adjusting to taste, as long as your bulbs are close together for maximum color mixing. It looks good to me like this.

 

Just to confirm for everyone, my second row (back) is still 100% daylight bulbs. Though things are growing back there, things are also browning without the blue supplementation. I'm sure the corals are happy..who knows maybe happier, but they aren't prettier. More blue bulbs will be on the next order...just waiting on budget. As usual.

 

-Matt

 

Agree with above, i am going to add a 3rd row to my 40b also, which is what 18" wide? 2 just doesnt quite cut it

[outpost]

For a 5.5 gallon I'm thinking about 3 of these http://www.ebay.com/itm/1pc-GU10-3Watt-1pc...#ht_2151wt_1037 and obviously the sockets too

 

I'm not looking into doing anything hardcore with coral. It will be softie/LPS dominated and maybe a few sps at the top. what do you think? should I take the lenses off and thermal paste the LEDs to the heat sinks?

[C.I._Reefer]

For a 5.5 gallon I'm thinking about 3 of these http://www.ebay.com/itm/1pc-GU10-3Watt-1pc...#ht_2151wt_1037 and obviously the sockets too

 

I'm not looking into doing anything hardcore with coral. It will be softie/LPS dominated and maybe a few sps at the top. what do you think? should I take the lenses off and thermal paste the LEDs to the heat sinks?

 

I would do 4-5 if it were me

[drunkenmonk21]

Anyone have some extra lights and sockets they would want to sell?

[C.I._Reefer]

Anyone have some extra lights and sockets they would want to sell?

 

I have about 15 cool whites, a couple warm whites, and about 3 or 4 blues and 2 reds that i'm not using. Also probably have more sockets than i'll ever use. shoot me a PM with what your lookin for and i'll shoot you a price. I have sold GU10s to several guys on here now.

Edited May 1, 2012 by C.I._Reefer

[916]

I just bought a 8ft long by 4ft deep by 13" tall frag tank that is divided into 3 sections each are 4 ft by 2.7 ft by 13 tall I am gonna light one of the sections with my 6 bulb tek light and I wanted to do gu10 on one of the sections how many should I use I was thinking of 15 blue and 10 white will that be good enough to keep sps

[mini_matt]

just about to buy 3x cool white and 3x blue 4x1w with 60deg optics to go over my 16L pico

overkill??

[jm82792]

Not overkill, that seems like a good mix.

[jm82792]

They are sweet little lights.

I replaced the thermal grease on mine with arctic silver and heat transfer seems better.

I'd really like to order mine blank and add in a single Rebel ES,

although the PSU is probably like 12 volts at 300 MA.

Think of it, instead of 80 lumens a watt we'd get like 120 or so.

 

There is the potential of asking for a different driver and without LEDS, and seeing what happens,

Getting a star to fit on a heatsink designed for a PCB that's round with a hole in the middle might be an issue :/

Perhaps they could be mounted on the right star and they could be driven at a lower current so the heatsink could dissipate the heat.

Edited May 6, 2012 by jm82792

[cdance]

Done with the build!

 

Check it out here

[916]

I just bought a 8ft long by 4ft deep by 13" tall frag tank that is divided into 3 sections each are 4 ft by 2.7 ft by 13 tall I am gonna light one of the sections with my 6 bulb tek light and I wanted to do gu10 on one of the sections how many should I use I was thinking of 15 blue and 10 white will that be good enough to keep sps

Anyone think 25 gu10s will be enough

[bizzarro]

i soldered a red-white-blue for a fuge. Hopefully this combo will give some added growth.

 

They are a pain to solder. I'd definitely pay the extra .50 for the mixed bulbs he has but if he has 2W and 1B i'd get those.

Edited May 8, 2012 by bizzarro

[C.I._Reefer]

Anyone think 25 gu10s will be enough

 

I would do 3 rows of 16 at 12" off the water if you want best blend/coverage. So, 48 bulbs and i would do a 50/50 mix of blue and cool white with a couple warms mixed in maybe

Edited May 8, 2012 by C.I._Reefer

[jm82792]

So you just heated the LED up and it came off?

I thought they'd be a PITA to remove.

[gimptastic matt]

Hi guys

i need a bit of advice

ive stripped down my gu10 and put the rings (3x1w) on to a heatsink

when wired im not getting any power out of the drivers all 4 are the same

power gets 3/4s of the way thru the chip and then goes

im thinking of running the 4 of them off another driver any suggestions?

Im thinking two 8w drivers

a pic so u can see what im upto

[916]

I would do 3 rows of 16 at 12" off the water if you want best blend/coverage. So, 48 bulbs and i would do a 50/50 mix of blue and cool white with a couple warms mixed in maybe

Wouldnt it be better to spread out the gu10s more since the area is 4 ft by 2.6 ft

[TinyGiant]

Wouldnt it be better to spread out the gu10s more since the area is 4 ft by 2.6 ft

 

 

spreading them out with tight optics makes for heavy spot lighting. to get the best even blend of color its best to keep the bulbs in tight groups. if you dont group them tightly you will have to raise them off the surface of the water a good deal to get the right blend of color

[916]

spreading them out with tight optics makes for heavy spot lighting. to get the best even blend of color its best to keep the bulbs in tight groups. if you dont group them tightly you will have to raise them off the surface of the water a good deal to get the right blend of color

I already started building it it's hard to explain how I spread them out I'll take a picture of it when

I get home from work an you can tell me if it will work in my application

Edited May 8, 2012 by 916

[bizzarro]

So you just heated the LED up and it came off?

I thought they'd be a PITA to remove.

 

they were not difficult to remove but was kind of difficult for me to solder and hold it since the wires aren't long enough to let me position it in a way to do both.

 

Get something like this if you want to solder many of these, it's worth it to have something hold it steady.

 

http://www.amazon.com/HELPING-HAND-SOLDERI...7/dp/B0013MTR7G

 

If you hae a harbor freight store around you, they're $3 for the cheapest one.

 

When you start soldering the base metal plate heats up and gets hot to the touch too. Not a concern unless you are holding it wiht your hands and also trying to avoid getting burnt by the hot iron.

Edited May 9, 2012 by bizzarro

[Cheese-Lover]

they were not difficult to remove but was kind of difficult for me to solder and hold it since the wires aren't long enough to let me position it in a way to do both.

 

Get something like this if you want to solder many of these, it's worth it to have something hold it steady.

 

http://www.amazon.com/HELPING-HAND-SOLDERI...7/dp/B0013MTR7G

 

If you hae a harbor freight store around you, they're $3 for the cheapest one.

 

When you start soldering the base metal plate heats up and gets hot to the touch too. Not a concern unless you are holding it wiht your hands and also trying to avoid getting burnt by the hot iron.

 

I've done about 20 of them for different people around here. If you've got a decent iron and have done a bit of previous soldering you wont have much of an issue. With or without extra arms...

[mini_matt]

Just read all 65pages over the last few evenings! I have bulbs on order and looking forward to their arival in the UK!

one thing I haven't come across that I'm looking for an answer is will I need to aclimatise my corals at all?

I have a 16Litre Pico (3.5gal) with 2x11w arc pods with 50/50 bulbs

I'm replacing with 3 cool white 4x1w and 3 blue 4x1w all 60deg optics

 

Does anyone think I will have any problems or loose anything due to the change?

 

should I run 4 to start with for a week or so?

 

One last question on layout should I go for:

B B B

W W W

or:

B W B

W B W ?

[Cheese-Lover]

Just read all 65pages over the last few evenings! I have bulbs on order and looking forward to their arival in the UK!

one thing I haven't come across that I'm looking for an answer is will I need to aclimatise my corals at all?

I have a 16Litre Pico (3.5gal) with 2x11w arc pods with 50/50 bulbs

I'm replacing with 3 cool white 4x1w and 3 blue 4x1w all 60deg optics

 

Does anyone think I will have any problems or loose anything due to the change?

 

should I run 4 to start with for a week or so?

 

One last question on layout should I go for:

B B B

W W W

or:

B W B

W B W ?

 

If you are any good with a soldering iron, it would probably be in your best interests to move some LED's around. That is if blending is a serious issue for you.

[C.I._Reefer]

If you are any good with a soldering iron, it would probably be in your best interests to move some LED's around. That is if blending is a serious issue for you.

 

I disagree, i would just alternate the bulbs, because it is nice to be able to control whites and blues independently. If you just alternate bulbs and have the fixture high enough the tank, your blend should be just fine.

[mini_matt]

I can solder but can't really be bothered to lol i think with the 60degree lenses the blending should be okay if I angle them into the middle of the tank slightly, my tank is only about 9inches front to back so I should only need to rais the bulbs roughly 7inches for it to cover the whole top of the tank lol

and I would love to have the blues on independently, but I guess its going to be a case of try it and see.

 

My main concern is if there will be too much light and how best to let them adjust to the new lighting??