Using hot glue to protect from shorts on LEDs? Okay or no go?

[Simulated Fish]

As the title says I'm looking for some help on the best way to test my leds. I have everything done and ready but I need to wire up the 3up boards. I tried using my multimeter but I couldn't get it to do anything. I haven't used one before, bought it for this DIY and future builds. So I could very well be using it wrong.

I don't want to solder the LEDs up without confirmation they are all working g first.

Thanks in advance guys.

[evilc66]

AA battery holder with wires. A pair of fresh AA batteries will provide a little over 3v, which will light most LEDs. With lower voltage LEDs like red, use old used up AAs if you have them, otherwise, keep the time that they are applied to the LEDs short. You will know if they work pretty quickly as they blind you 3v will not damage most LEDs if you connect it backwards, so this is a fairly safe approach.

 

The diode check on most multimeters will not light up LEDs, as the voltage that is applied for that test is probably no more than 1.5v. That's not enough to light most high power LEDs, but it's plenty to bias a diode that has a 0.7v or 1.4v forward voltage, which is what the diode check is intended for.

[Simulated Fish]

AA battery holder with wires. A pair of fresh AA batteries will provide a little over 3v, which will light most LEDs. With lower voltage LEDs like red, use old used up AAs if you have them, otherwise, keep the time that they are applied to the LEDs short. You will know if they work pretty quickly as they blind you 3v will not damage most LEDs if you connect it backwards, so this is a fairly safe approach.

 

The diode check on most multimeters will not light up LEDs, as the voltage that is applied for that test is probably no more than 1.5v. That's not enough to light most high power LEDs, but it's plenty to bias a diode that has a 0.7v or 1.4v forward voltage, which is what the diode check is intended for.

 

 

That makes sense, I was really getting frustrated last night that it just kept reading OPEN and would give any feedback

[Simulated Fish]

AA battery holder with wires. A pair of fresh AA batteries will provide a little over 3v, which will light most LEDs. With lower voltage LEDs like red, use old used up AAs if you have them, otherwise, keep the time that they are applied to the LEDs short. You will know if they work pretty quickly as they blind you 3v will not damage most LEDs if you connect it backwards, so this is a fairly safe approach.

 

The diode check on most multimeters will not light up LEDs, as the voltage that is applied for that test is probably no more than 1.5v. That's not enough to light most high power LEDs, but it's plenty to bias a diode that has a 0.7v or 1.4v forward voltage, which is what the diode check is intended for.

 

Okay so I picked up a double battery holder and tested the voltage, it is kicking out 3.06v. None of the LEDs lit up. Am I crazy? They are Steve's LED 3up separate circuit led stars.

[jedimasterben]

You would need to test the LEDs separately, or get another four batteries.

[Simulated Fish]

You would need to test the LEDs separately, or get another four batteries.

Even though they are on "separately" circuits? They on the same board but the boards have 3 +/- connections so they can be put on different channels.

[jedimasterben]

Even though they are on "separately" circuits? They on the same board but the boards have 3 +/- connections so they can be put on different channels.

OH. In that case it should work. Very odd that it doesn't.

[Simulated Fish]

OH. In that case it should work. Very odd that it doesn't.

Yeah... I could see getting 1 or 2 bad LEDs even though that is unlikely. But I can't seem to get anything to light up.... Only thing I have done is attach them to the heat sink.

[jedimasterben]

Just to humor me, you are testing using the pads on each side of the LED and not two that are right next to each other, right?

[Simulated Fish]

jedimasterben, on 12 Apr 2016 - 06:46 AM, said:

 

Just to humor me, you are testing using the pads on each side of the LED and not two that are right next to each other, right?

 

thank you Jedi..... I feel like a fool! I assumed it was the connections side by side.... No one every mentioned what the correct wire orientation was on the board.

 

I was so frustrated it wasn't working that I didn't think to try other pos/neg combos and thought it was my testing gear.

 

So yes they all work,and yes I am slightly blind now LOL.

Hopefully this post can help others who Google the same problem.

[Marc.The.Shark]

Yeah... I could see getting 1 or 2 bad LEDs even though that is unlikely. But I can't seem to get anything to light up.... Only thing I have done is attach them to the heat sink.

IMG_20160410_125213-1200x1617.jpg

Something in this pic looks eerily familiar to me, just can't put my finger on it! Lol

[Simulated Fish]

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you agian guys! Got them all soldered and working like a charm. Now I just need to hook them into my driver, wire in my typhoon controller, and attach the power.

 

I'll post up a more detailed DYI build tomorrow once I finish

 

Wish I had 8 different color wires (one for each channel) but the only solid core wire I had was white and red, so excuse the apparent wrong pos/neg colors.

 

[jedimasterben]

Looks like you have a couple of bridged solder joints, there, might want to clean those up if you can

 

 

What solder are you using?

[evilc66]

Man, that long strip length is giving me the heeby-jeebies. It's just asking to be shorted to the star and heatsink. There are some solder joints that are looking a little questionable too.

[Simulated Fish]

Man, that long strip length is giving me the heeby-jeebies. It's just asking to be shorted to the star and heatsink. There are some solder joints that are looking a little questionable too.

The only one I'm worried about is the bottom star on the right, I had to go to work but plan on cleaning it up.

 

The long strips were for me to easily soder them, I plan on hitting them all with heat shrink. Although it was suggested to me to use a hot glue gun. Is that okay to do? Sure would be quicker since I already plan on hotglueing down the wires so the are not hanging loose. Even though it is solid core and pretty stiff it gives me peace of mind to secure them.

Looks like you have a couple of bridged solder joints, there, might want to clean those up if you can

 

 

What solder are you using?

 

I can't recall the brand, it was "mid grade" price wise. Not the cheapest but not the most expensive. It is lead free though, I'm paranoid about it because of the baby lol.

[Halo_003]

The only one I'm worried about is the bottom star on the right, I had to go to work but plan on cleaning it up.

 

The long strips were for me to easily soder them, I plan on hitting them all with heat shrink. Although it was suggested to me to use a hot glue gun. Is that okay to do? Sure would be quicker since I already plan on hotglueing down the wires so the are not hanging loose. Even though it is solid core and pretty stiff it gives me peace of mind to secure them.

 

I can't recall the brand, it was "mid grade" price wise. Not the cheapest but not the most expensive. It is lead free though, I'm paranoid about it because of the baby lol.

 

 

How would you heatshrink when those are already soldered up?

 

(not sarcasm)

[Matteo]

thank you Jedi..... I feel like a fool! I assumed it was the connections side by side.... No one every mentioned what the correct wire orientation was on the board.

 

I was so frustrated it wasn't working that I didn't think to try other pos/neg combos and thought it was my testing gear.

 

So yes they all work,and yes I am slightly blind now LOL.

Hopefully this post can help others who Google the same problem.

The emoji you used was perfect

[Simulated Fish]

 

 

How would you heatshrink when those are already soldered up?

 

(not sarcasm)

 

Well I plan on cleaning up the soldering, so I would just remove the wire and wrap it. It had been about 2 years since my last small scale job and I was rushing. Rookie mistake but I just wanted to confirm it all worked when wired up after a couple days fighting to get them tested.

The emoji you used was perfect

 

Lol thanks. Some days you get so focused on a problem you miss the obvious solution!

 

 

Here is a FTS of the little 2.5g planted I made. This is what the light is going over.

[Simulated Fish]

IT LIVES!!

 

Man I love this light, don't mind the rogue wires and clutter this was purely for a temperature test before I finalise the build.

 

Cleaned up the soldering and hotglued the contacts and raw wire. It runs so cool I can't imagine it having any issues.

 

Still need to wrap the wires and find a way to power the fans, 2 in the driver box I made and one on the heat sink. Ran all the fans on a 6v DC during a hour test, even at 1/3-1/2 power they all kept the system very very cool!

 

I'm really happy with the light and extremely proud of it. It wasn't the cheap way to go but damn it does everything and is reef capable if I decide to scrap the planted tank.

 

I'll post up a detailed build thread once I finish tomorrow... Er today damn it is 4am... I need to sleep! LOL

[jedimasterben]

I can't recall the brand, it was "mid grade" price wise. Not the cheapest but not the most expensive. It is lead free though, I'm paranoid about it because of the baby lol.

Never use lead free solder for projects like this IMHO, it is just too difficult to work with since the temperature requirement is so much higher. 63/37 FO LIFE

[evilc66]

Agreed. Lead free solder is a pain to use, and has a higher melting point than 60/40 or 63/37 solder. The higher temperature requirement isn't all that hard to overcome if you have the right soldering iron, but it has to be a temperature controlled unit. Most fixed output irons and the ones that have variable power won't have tip temperatures high enough to properly work with lead free solder. It's a common mistake that wasn't helped by idiot companies like Radioshack that included lead free solder with an iron that wasn't ever capable of melting it properly.

 

And why the concern about leaded solder with baby? Are you planning on having him/her lick it?

[Simulated Fish]

 

And why the concern about leaded solder with baby? Are you planning on having him/her lick it?

 

Haha yeah what else would I do with it?

 

No but seriously I have a temp adjust unit and it only is a difference of about 40° IIRC

[evilc66]

Well, even if you do have an iron that is capable of lead free work, leaded solder is so much easier to work with. It whets betters (it's ability to flow across a surface), and is easier to identify a cold solder joint (leaded solder always looks dull, making it harder to tell if you have a bad joint).

[Halo_003]

Agreed. Lead free solder is a pain to use, and has a higher melting point than 60/40 or 63/37 solder. The higher temperature requirement isn't all that hard to overcome if you have the right soldering iron, but it has to be a temperature controlled unit. Most fixed output irons and the ones that have variable power won't have tip temperatures high enough to properly work with lead free solder. It's a common mistake that wasn't helped by idiot companies like Radioshack that included lead free solder with an iron that wasn't ever capable of melting it properly.

 

And why the concern about leaded solder with baby? Are you planning on having him/her lick it?

Well I used Radioshack lead free (I think) solder with my build and it worked out fine, just takes a high temp like you said to get it nice and flowy. I have an adjustable temp iron, the kit one from Radioshack sort of works but it takes SO LONG to do anything, had to replace it with an adjustable one to get anything done in under 2 hours.