AquaStyleOnline Club

[overhal]

Would you all recommend those LEDs? Has anyone had a problem with them yet?

 

Thank you!

[sticks]

What programs are people using to draw their lighting layout? i Cannot figure out sketch up for the life of me!

[uglybuckling]

Paint works fine. =) Really it doesn't have to be anything fancy, just drawing a few circles and whatnot.

 

As a for-instance, here's one of mine:

 

 

As it turns out, circles closest-packed is almost equivalent to hexagons closest-packed, so you can come pretty close in terms of visualizing a cluster layout using just circles. If you really want hexagons, though....

 

Sketchup is the way to go, although it can be a bit of a pain to learn the first time.

 

I'm sure there are other graphics programs out there (I'm looking in the general direction of gimp here) that would work well too.

[rrr757]

Ok, so got the used lighting system in and here is what I know.

 

3 Maxwellen 12-20 LED drivers

 

Driver 1 = 16 RB's

Driver 2 = 16 10K whites

Driver 3 = 6 RB's and 12 UV's ( I asked for clarification the seller said they got the actinic violet and not the epileds UV) is there any easy way to tell if it is really actinic and not the epileds UV. I have attached an image of just Driver 3 on - not sure if you can tell by the pic or if that can help determine if its the actinic violet or UV. At this point will just have to believe the seller and get the other replacement LEDs.

 

The original number of LED's per driver that was recommended would not meet the 12 LEDs required

Original Suggested Colors per driver:

8x Whites on one driver and

9x mix of Cyan, CB, and Deep red on another driver

16x RB on the another driver. (like more blue)

 

Included a picture of the current setup and clusters with color.

 

Questions:

1. So need to know exactly how many led's on which drivers. Need at least 12 on each right?

2. Best way to take off the old led's that I am switching out as well as removing the wire and re-soldering?

3. So I have read its best to run the whites at 500ma, but the drivers say 680ma is just turning the potentiometer down the way to reduce the ma?

4. Do I need to redo the whole layout, re-soldering, clustering etc?

 

Its a nice little unit that was put together, much better than I could do. Temporarily going to put it on over the tank until I get everything I need to redo based on your recommendations.

 

And reminder this will go in a BC 29 hood.

 

Thanks.

 

 

 

 

Current heatsink can fit in the biocube hood with some modifications.

 

Thanks for the response. Let me get the drivers that I have, believe its the maxwellens

 

I want to use 16x RB for sure. I like the more blue color.

 

Will talk then about layout in clusters and if I need to switch colors on drivers if its the 12-20 led per driver.

 

Thanks

[jedimasterben]

Questions:

1. So need to know exactly how many led's on which drivers. Need at least 12 on each right?

2. Best way to take off the old led's that I am switching out as well as removing the wire and re-soldering?

3. So I have read its best to run the whites at 500ma, but the drivers say 680ma is just turning the potentiometer down the way to reduce the ma?

4. Do I need to redo the whole layout, re-soldering, clustering etc?

1) The drivers need roughly 12x per, minimum, so right.

 

2) Pop them off with a chisel or putty knife (won't take much force), sand the old thermal adhesive off, and desolder and resolder.

 

3) You can run all the LEDs at 700ma as long as they are kept cool. I don't know about keeping them in the BC29 hood, smells like a bad idea to me. The built-in fans move very little air.

 

4) I would. Cluster, cluster, cluster.

[rrr757]

1) The drivers need roughly 12x per, minimum, so right.

 

So 12 LED's per driver min. What colors and amount do you recommend now for drivers 1 and 2 the whites, cyan, violet, deep reds, blues. I will have one driver with 16x RB

 

Driver 2 = 12x NW?

Driver 3 = 4Violet, 3Cyan, 3CB, and 3Deep red? OR add 4 Violet to driver 1 with the 16 RB? and if I do that, what 3 or 4 extra led's do I add to driver 3?

 

2) Pop them off with a chisel or putty knife (won't take much force), sand the old thermal adhesive off, and desolder and resolder.

 

Thanks will do that (what grade sandpaper do you recommend?)

 

3) You can run all the LEDs at 700ma as long as they are kept cool. I don't know about keeping them in the BC29 hood, smells like a bad idea to me. The built-in fans move very little air.

 

If I want to keep it in the existing hood like the other retrofit kits I see, what suggestions can you offer to try and keep it in the existing hood - add a fan on the heatsink, change out the factory fans?

 

4) I would. Cluster, cluster, cluster.

 

After we determine the colors, can you help me figure out the cluster pattern based on the size of the heatsink?

[rrr757]

Sorry added my responses in the quoted sections.

 

1. So 12 LED's per driver min. What colors and amount do you recommend now for drivers 1 and 2 the whites, cyan, violet, deep reds, blues. I will have one driver with 16x RB

 

Driver 2 = 12x NW?

Driver 3 = 4Violet, 3Cyan, 3CB, and 3Deep red? OR add 4 Violet to driver 1 with the 16 RB? and if I do that, what 3 or 4 extra led's do I add to driver 3?

 

2. Sounds good what grade sand paper do you recommend.

 

3. If I want to keep it in the existing hood like the other retrofit kits I see, what suggestions can you offer to try and keep it in the existing hood - add a fan on the heatsink, change out the factory fans?

 

4. After we determine the colors, can you help me figure out the cluster pattern based on the size of the heatsink?

 

BTW -from that picture could you tell if they looked more like the actinic violets?

 

Thanks

 

1) The drivers need roughly 12x per, minimum, so right.

 

2) Pop them off with a chisel or putty knife (won't take much force), sand the old thermal adhesive off, and desolder and resolder.

 

3) You can run all the LEDs at 700ma as long as they are kept cool. I don't know about keeping them in the BC29 hood, smells like a bad idea to me. The built-in fans move very little air.

 

4) I would. Cluster, cluster, cluster.

[rrr757]

Ok, so for now I just retrofitted the setup that I bought and like the colors. Over time I will probably start swapping out the 10K's for the NW's etc. They are dimmable so I can tweak it to how I like it. So far the temps in the hood are a little less or the same then with the PC lights before. Granted I am not running my LED's at 100% since its totaling 50 LED's. Anyways thought I would attach a picture. I used an old adapter to reroute power for the fans.

 

I am pretty happy with the aquastyleonline led's on my bc29. So far the corals seem to be adjusting well to them.

 

[sticks]

How does this layout look for my BC29? how should i hook up the drivers?

[Reefgeek]

I'm setting up a 16 gallon bowfront and am using spare aquastyle LEDs I have left from two other lights I built. I was planning 4 NW and 8 RB on a single driver but reading this I wonder if that will be enough. I only plan to keep softies and a few LPS. On a side note, I'm on my second Maxwellen driver and that one fried the other night too.

[jedimasterben]

How does this layout look for my BC29? how should i hook up the drivers?

Looks good, but no love for cyan? NW on one driver, royal on another, exotics on another, violet on another if you can, if not, string them with royals.

 

I'm setting up a 16 gallon bowfront and am using spare aquastyle LEDs I have left from two other lights I built. I was planning 4 NW and 8 RB on a single driver but reading this I wonder if that will be enough. I only plan to keep softies and a few LPS. On a side note, I'm on my second Maxwellen driver and that one fried the other night too.

What are the dimensions? For LPS you might be ok with that number depending on hanging height.

 

And yeah, the Maxwellen drivers are garbage. :/

[Reefgeek]

Sorry! 20" x 13" x 18". I'm toying with the idea of going with two dimmable drivers and adding a couple exotic LEDs. Hanging height will be very low, no optics.

[sticks]

Sorry I forgot to list the deep red. The cyan is in there. here is the new scetch up layout .

[jedimasterben]

Sorry! 20" x 13" x 18". I'm toying with the idea of going with two dimmable drivers and adding a couple exotic LEDs. Hanging height will be very low, no optics.

May want to add another pair of NW and four more RB, and if you want to keep it simple with the exotics, just add 3-4 true violet (not UV) and it will give you some incredible color pop.

 

Sorry I forgot to list the deep red. The cyan is in there. here is the new scetch up layout .

Looks good. At this point, I would suggest getting another pair of whites and RB to go on it. Until I get my PAR meter, I don't want to suggest too little. Other than that, looks perfect!

[Reefgeek]

Okay, slight revision. Kept it at 4NW 8RB and added 1C 1DR 1CB and 3V. Good? I'd run the RB and V on one driver and the rest on the other, dimmable. On a MakersLED 6" heatsink.

 

[hobbzz]

I'm ordering a 48 kit as soon as Ray gets back to me. I like a 20k look, and I'll be mixing a lot of colors to get a good spectrum. I could most likely get away with 36, but I can put 24 on each driver, so I'm just going to go with 48 to avoid the disco ball effect without having to do clusters and get a little better coverage, and dim them if I need to. I've skimmed through the thread and there's a lot of great info!

 

So for a 20k look I was thinking (22) royal blue, (6) blue, (4) 420nm actinic not uv, (4) 10k, (6) 6500k, (4) 4500k and either (2) red or (2) 2800k. The red vs 2800k will depend on whether or not I can mix leds of differevt vf on the same string, still trying to find out if I can.

 

Now for a few questions. Would that mix be good for 20k? I'm thinking the look of a Ushio or XM, not a whiter 20k like radiums. I like blue so long as it doesn't look like windex lol.

 

Can I mix leds with a different forward voltage on the same string when running parallel? If I can I would get the reds, if not I'd get the 2800k to bring out the reds and orange etc.

 

Lenses...I can hang the heatsink anywhere between 15 and 19 inches above the water line. With that height shoudl I do 60's or 80's? I need to cover a 2 foot by 2 foot area. With 48, I'm not worried about par, mainly covering that area as good as possible.

 

I read you can pay an extra $10 +/- and they will wire everything for you? If that is still true, what will that entail? You just tell them what you want and they do anything?

 

Lastly, in case I can't get a hold of Ray before I need to order these, has anyone had luck ordering a custom kit and just specifying led mix and such using the comments box at the end of the ordering process? I can't wait a couple weeks for him to respond. Thanks in advance.

[jedimasterben]

I'm ordering a 48 kit as soon as Ray gets back to me. I like a 20k look, and I'll be mixing a lot of colors to get a good spectrum. I could most likely get away with 36, but I can put 24 on each driver, so I'm just going to go with 48 to avoid the disco ball effect without having to do clusters and get a little better coverage, and dim them if I need to. I've skimmed through the thread and there's a lot of great info!

 

So for a 20k look I was thinking (22) royal blue, (6) blue, (4) 420nm actinic not uv, (4) 10k, (6) 6500k, (4) 4500k and either (2) red or (2) 2800k. The red vs 2800k will depend on whether or not I can mix leds of differevt vf on the same string, still trying to find out if I can.

 

Now for a few questions. Would that mix be good for 20k? I'm thinking the look of a Ushio or XM, not a whiter 20k like radiums. I like blue so long as it doesn't look like windex lol.

 

Can I mix leds with a different forward voltage on the same string when running parallel? If I can I would get the reds, if not I'd get the 2800k to bring out the reds and orange etc.

 

Lenses...I can hang the heatsink anywhere between 15 and 19 inches above the water line. With that height shoudl I do 60's or 80's? I need to cover a 2 foot by 2 foot area. With 48, I'm not worried about par, mainly covering that area as good as possible.

 

I read you can pay an extra $10 +/- and they will wire everything for you? If that is still true, what will that entail? You just tell them what you want and they do anything?

 

Lastly, in case I can't get a hold of Ray before I need to order these, has anyone had luck ordering a custom kit and just specifying led mix and such using the comments box at the end of the ordering process? I can't wait a couple weeks for him to respond. Thanks in advance.

If you do not cluster, you will get disco, doesn't matter how many LEDs you have. Don't use any cool white, and don't need to use warm white. Stick with all 4500k, or you'll regret it over time, even if you add back to the spectrum.

 

 

You say the tank is 24"x24", how tall is it?

[hobbzz]

It's actually 4' x 2' x 16" tall. I'm just replacing one halide at a time so I can figure out what mix and layout I like. So the 4500k will bring out all the red/orange/yellow? No need for reds or a few warmer ones? Also would I even be able to do clusters with that many leds on a 6x20 heatsink?

 

Forgot to mention that I'll be using two drivers, running in parallel.

[jedimasterben]

It's actually 4' x 2' x 16" tall. I'm just replacing one halide at a time so I can figure out what mix and layout I like. So the 4500k will bring out all the red/orange/yellow? No need for reds or a few warmer ones?

Still need red, you just won't get the ####ty look that cool white gives out.

 

I have the exact same size tank. I use 12x NW, 24x RB, 6x DR, 6x Cy, 6x CB, and 9x violet, all Luxeon Rebels (violet is Epistar). I have SPS and two clams (a crocea and squamosa) on my sandbed. For Bridgelux, you'd need 18x NW, 36x RB, 8x DR, 8x Cy, 8x CB, and 9x violet. Since you want a 20K look, you can either dim down the white string a bit, or add more RB chips, you'd need quite a few more to do it, though, and the output would increase significantly so you run the risk of burning corals more easily.

 

As for the rest of your questions, yes, you can definitely mix LEDs of different vf, that's not an issue, but you need to know pretty exactly what their combined vf is and make sure not to exceed the driver's capabilities, the generic 'Maxwellen' drivers are really not even able to perform how they are specced, much less if you push them slightly over. Also keep in mind if you decide on Meanwell drivers, each string will have a different forward current, so you will need to either purchase fast-blow fuses at 700ma and put one on each string, or purchase different drivers, as if one LED blows, the other string will receive all the current and blow every LED, and possibly take the driver down with it. I would highly recommend getting ELN-30-48D drivers from here: http://store.bravoelectro.com/ledpowersupp...able-p-211.html . They are much cheaper and you won't run the risk of destroying the LEDs. You'd need 2x for the NW string, 3x for the RB string, 2x for the DR/CB/Cy string, and 1x for the violet string. In the end, you'd be paying the same amount but would have much less risk.

 

I don't run any optics on my setup, and you most likely will not need to on yours. If you do, only put optics on the NW and RB, and use 80 degree only. Even then, you'll get an incredible amount of disco.

 

I've never heard of them finishing the kits before. Someone asked once, but the answer was no.

[hobbzz]

Ok thanks. I'll was actually going to do the eln 60-48d drivers so I can control them with my apex. Up to 24 leds on each driver in parallel. Two channels per heatsink. All the blues on one and the other colors on the other. But I'll look into the 30-48's. I'm assuming they're disable on the apex just like to 60-48's? And really no optics when they're 19" above the water?

 

And would i be able to cluster that many leds on a 6x20 heatsink? I'm still looking for cluster diagrams but so far none are using that many leds. Thanks.

[jedimasterben]

Ok thanks. I'll was actually going to do the eln 60-48d drivers so I can control them with my apex. Up to 24 leds on each driver in parallel. Two channels per heatsink. All the blues on one and the other colors on the other. But I'll look into the 30-48's. I'm assuming they're disable on the apex just like to 60-48's? And really no optics when they're 19" above the water?

 

And would i be able to cluster that many leds on a 6x20 heatsink? I'm still looking for cluster diagrams but so far none are using that many leds. Thanks.

Yes, they are 0-10v dimmable.

 

And you shouldn't need optics, but like I said, get some 80 degree just in case.

 

I would not run only two channels. Minimum of three, recommended four.

 

Just keep the nw and rb together and the exotics together (touching) and you'll be fine.

[hobbzz]

I'm only doing two channels because going to four would require another vdm which is another $100. As Mich as I'd love more control over colors, it's not worth $100 to me.

 

So when you say keep like colors touching, are you talking about clusters or just keeping them close together in a grid because they'll already be so close together because of the # of them on the heatsink?

 

Thanks for all the help. I don't mind playing around and figuring it out myself to get the right results once I get the stuff, but I atleast need to know what items to order so that I can play around.

[jedimasterben]

I'm only doing two channels because going to four would require another vdm which is another $100. As Mich as I'd love more control over colors, it's not worth $100 to me.

 

So when you say keep like colors touching, are you talking about clusters or just keeping them close together in a grid because they'll already be so close together because of the # of them on the heatsink?

 

Thanks for all the help. I don't mind playing around and figuring it out myself to get the right results once I get the stuff, but I atleast need to know what items to order so that I can play around.

Clusters, not grids.

 

I think you will want to get the extra dimming thing, use the money you save by using Bridgelux vs Cree or Luxeon.

[hobbzz]

Three might be doable. Whites on one dimmable, blues on another dimmable, then I could get a third non-dimmable driver for the exotics and just not dim them. I have to say I've never seen anyone recommend so many reds though. I thought they were pretty overpowering?

[jedimasterben]

Not when combined with cyan and cool blue.