Ryan110484 Posted January 24, 2009 Share Posted January 24, 2009 Alright, so I started messing around with LED lighting for my aquarium over a year and a half ago. I built a little test design in January of 08' and it did quite well until the LED's popped off the heat sink. I have been following pretty much every single LED thread on here. Had everything planned, had the cost of everything figured out and all the parts ready to be ordered. I was going to use 60 luxeon rebel whites and 48 royal blues. (75 gallon) After figuring out the costs for everything it was going to run around 800 not including optics or casing which I was fine with. I've been sitting on this for months now because whenever I do DIY it has a tendency to not work and 800 is a lot to lose out on. (I'm sure over the years I have wasted way more however.)Now I finally go to order them and luxeon has raised the price of the luxeon 90's by almost 2$ a piece. Do ya'll think that I should bite the bullet and spend the extra 120 on the led's? Or do you think I should switch to a different LED? I need some input because I don't know what to do now and I am really angry with myself. Link to comment
Marteen Posted January 24, 2009 Share Posted January 24, 2009 Shop around a bit where have you been looking for LEDs? Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted January 24, 2009 Author Share Posted January 24, 2009 Shop around a bit where have you been looking for LEDs? Future electronics still has the cheapest LEDs after them is luxeonstar.com\ future was 3.30 and is now 4.95 and luxeonstar is 5.35 I knew I should have bought them when they were 3.30 Link to comment
coolwaters Posted January 25, 2009 Share Posted January 25, 2009 wow thats a lot your buying. but if you want something really good go to cutter electronics. they have the best BINs that you wont find anywhere else. and that to me is worth every penny. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted January 25, 2009 Share Posted January 25, 2009 Your not going to find any cheaper than Future. You could switch to Cree XR-E LEDs. Try calling ETC Tech to see what kind of price they will get you that number of LEDs for. You can get them mounted directly by them, and get the optics you need too. Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted January 25, 2009 Author Share Posted January 25, 2009 Can someone give me the link to ETC tech? Thanks Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted January 30, 2009 Author Share Posted January 30, 2009 Alright I need some input on cost and some final decisions before I decide to go ahead with this.... 75 gallon mixed reef. Still trying to figure out the exact number but am thinking between 96-108 total LEDs 50/50 mix Which cool whites? Do you think the difference in cost is worth the extra lumens? XREWHT-L1-0000-00D01 Q5 4.75 each XREWHT-L1-0000-00C01 Q4 4.00 each Same question for the royal blues. XREROY-L1-0000-00A01 425mW 5.00 each XREROY-L1-0000-00901 350mW 4.15 each How much wire (length) do you think I will need to solder all of the LEDs together. I was thinking 100ft would be enough. Does anyone know of a quality cheap place to order this? I found a really good website a few months ago but can't find it now. Optics will be from ETG at 1.10 each. (40 degrees) Do I need anything to mount these? Bolts for attaching LEDs to Heatsink- http://www.boltdepot.com/product.aspx?cc=1...m=7&cd=1452 Where can I get plastic washers in order to electrically isolate the bolts from the LED PCB? How much arctic silver should I order? Will this 14g tube be enough? it says it will cover 192sq in http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16835100015 Fans- total of 4 (maybe more?) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16835168006 As for powering I am still deciding if I want to use the STCS1 or am waiting to see how the meanwell power supplies turn out to be. Thanks for all of the input in advance. If anyone knows of a cheaper cost for any of the supplies/items that are needed please let me know. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 For the cost, it's up to you whether you want to spend the extra $81. I guess after all is said and done, it's a drop in the bucket compared to the total cost. Is it worth it? For the whites, maybe. For the blues, definitely. Getting as much out of the array as you can though will always help. 100ft of wire should be enough. Check with places like Digikey, Mouser and Newark for wire. They tend to have good quality stuff. Hardware: Highly advise going with stainless steel, not zinc plated. Zinc will oxidize in saltwater environments. McMaster Carr is a great source for a lot of stuff like this. You can also get nylon washers there to insulate. A single tube of AS is more than enough. You use the stuff sparingly. You only need a thin film between the star and the heatsink. Anything more than that and you actually make the thermal transfer worse. I'm sure the fans you linked to will be more than adequate, but if you want absolute dead nuts silent, look at SilenX fans. Little pricey, but quiet. Link to comment
Ocean Flyer Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 Your not going to find any cheaper than Future. You could switch to Cree XR-E LEDs. Try calling ETC Tech to see what kind of price they will get you that number of LEDs for. You can get them mounted directly by them, and get the optics you need too. What is Future URL? Thanks. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 http://www.futureelectronics.com Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 1, 2009 Author Share Posted February 1, 2009 What is the average cost to build the STCS1 circuit? Buckpucks in my mind are a waste of money for how many I will need and the meanwell LED PS seems to be a little pricey now if I want to be able to dim it. Which in the future I think I will. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 Build cost is about $5 each when you by in multiples. With them being surface mount, they aren't the easiest to build though. Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 4, 2009 Author Share Posted February 4, 2009 So my plan is to go with the STCS1 chip to drive my LEDs. My plan is to run them at either 1.4-1.5A and then splitting the output current to two strings of LEDs. This way each LED is receiving 700-750mA. I will have a 36v dc power supply to drive the LEDs. First question... Should I do series of 10 leaving 1v extra or should I do series of 9 leaving 4.5v? The driver only needs .5v overhead. Then for the parts list- (If someone could just make sure I am not going to fry anything, it would be much appreciated) Capacitors- CDRAIN CBYP Diode- Does anyone know where I can get this diode in a through hole version. I can't find one with the same specs. Diode As for resistors, I will need a 100ohm for Rin and a .067ohm resistor for Rfb. What wattage should these be rated at? As for the PWM do I need to wire anything to it if I just want a simple on/off? If I were to dim it, could I just use a simple pot? or would I need to build the 555 timer that evil made on the meanwell PS thread? Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Try and have the total vf and the input voltage as close as possible. It will cut down on heat. For the caps, there is no need for large electrolytics. Standard ceramic caps will work just fine. You can use any schottky diode in place of the BAT46ZFILM. That part is specified only because ST Micro makes both parts. Just make sure the voltage rating is higher than your input voltage (50v is common). One issue you are going to have with the FB resistor is finding one that small in a through hole package. I have only found them in surface mount in small, inexpensive packages. The radial ones tend to be very expensive and large. This is probably your best bet. Run two in parallel to get 0.06 ohms. 1/16W will be more than enough for both resistors. To control by just on/off, you can do it two ways. You will either tie the EN pin to you source voltage and swithc the PWM pin, or do the opposite. Both will have the same effect. The chip will still be on if you switch the PWM pin though. If you want to dim it, you will have to make one of my 555 pwm circuits. This chip will not take an analog input. Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 4, 2009 Author Share Posted February 4, 2009 Thanks for such a fast reply! Would this diode work? http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch...e=497-2512-1-ND Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 16, 2009 Author Share Posted February 16, 2009 Is there anyone in the Milwaukee area that is interested in building LED? I was thinking it would be nice to share on shipping costs/bulk rates. If I can get the total of LEDs up to 100 I can save a whole 10-15 cents/LED. Woohoo! Every little bit counts! Let me know. Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 16, 2009 Author Share Posted February 16, 2009 Why are the majority of people running their whites at 1000mA and their blues at 700? Is there a reason why the blues can't handle it? Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 The returns aren't as high going from 700mA to 1000mA on the blues as it is the whites. Just help reduce the heat. Plus, some of us run UV LEDs on the same circuit, and they don't like being pushed much past 700mA. Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 17, 2009 Author Share Posted February 17, 2009 Graph of the costs to run T-5, LED and MH on my tank. (Does not include the cost of the chiller.) Breakdown of Costs- Quantity Cost Total Heatsink 20" 2 38.33 76.66 Power Supply 36V 2 40.75 81.5 Bolts 100/box 2 3.74 7.48 Arctic Silver 1 6.99 6.99 Plastic Washers 100/box 2 2.48 4.96 22g Wire 100ft 1 4.75 4.75 Fans 4 3.99 15.96 Cool White LEDs 50 4.75 237.5 Royal Blue LEDS 50 5 250 Optics (40 degree) 100 1.1 110 Current Circuit @ 1.5 4 4.45 17.8 Current Circuit @ .7 2 5.69 11.38 Total 824.98 Would appreciate some input as to what array I should use. This is how the whole array will be arranged I think. I plan on putting fans on both sides blowing into the middle with a vent for the air to exit in the top center. I would like to have the power supply mounted inside. Good idea or no? and I just realized I am going to have a difficult time fitting 5 rows of leds on 8.5" of heatsink. What a headache. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 I think the first pattern shoes the most promise. It has the least chance of banding the colors. You should be able to get away with just four rows without seeing any issues. Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 17, 2009 Author Share Posted February 17, 2009 I think the first pattern shoes the most promise. It has the least chance of banding the colors. You should be able to get away with just four rows without seeing any issues. Seriously?! you think I could cut it down to 80 LEDs total? That would be awesome! Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 The minor change in spacing isn't going to make a dramatic difference to the appearance of the tank. You won't be losing any intensity from removing the LEDs, just a little overlap front to back (Remember quantity is for coverage, power and optics are for intensity). Link to comment
Ryan110484 Posted February 18, 2009 Author Share Posted February 18, 2009 what is everyone using for moon lights? Should I use the high power leds (4 total) or should I use a bunch of 5-10mm LEDs in between the high power crees? Link to comment
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