DIY Full Spectrum LED build..

[zoaguy]

Hi all,

 

After using DIY LED's for a couple of years with a combination of 1:1- CW:RB, with good growth and decent colors, i want to try something different, so Full Spectrum's struck my eye,

 

Tank - 30''L X 21''W X 18''T

 

LED's should support LPS, and some SPS only on higher rock structures.

 

LED's i am leaning towards Luxeon Rebel ES, but can go with different brands also if they are better, i am not stuck to any brand.

 

Drivers will be Meanwell Dimmable, 'P'

 

i am unable to decide on color combinations, as more i read more i am getting confused. and also to go with linear distribution or cluster arrangement , and i don't want to invest on too many LED's and dim them very low, i feel it is waste of resources. so i am willing to run LED's @ 70% of their maximum power which i feel is right balance for LED reliability also.

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[zoaguy]

what do you guys think about this combination and number of LED's

 

16 - Rebel ES NW @ 700mA - 1 driver

32 - Rebel ES RB @ 700mA - 1 drivers

6 - True Violet @400mA- TV +DR- 1 driver

2 - Deep Red @400mA-

 

all using 90 degree optics

 

but still confused about cluster or linear LED arrangement..

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[Milad LEDGroupBuy.com]

what do you guys think about this combination and number of LED's

 

16 - Rebel ES NW @ 700mA - 1 driver

32 - Rebel ES RB @ 700mA - 1 drivers

6 - True Violet @400mA- TV +DR- 1 driver

2 - Deep Red @400mA-

 

all using 90 degree optics

 

but still confused about cluster or linear LED arrangement..

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

 

 

Thats not full spectrum.

 

FYI you want to do something like:

32 RB

12 NW

12 True Violet

5 OCW

 

That would be full spectrum, must better color than your original idea.

[zoaguy]

thanks Milad,

 

So revising my plan,

 

32 RB

12 NW

12 True Violet

4 or 6 OCW, because i will be going with two panels over the tank.

 

i suppose this gives a 18000k to 20000k look.

 

so can we drive OCW(all three emitters wired in series) using the same driver @ 400mA ?

 

can these many LED's support this tank ?

Tank - 30''L X 21''W X 18''T (water level 16''), softy and LPS dominated, few SPS ONLY on higher rock structures.

 

 

regards

Zoaguy

[jedimasterben]

thanks Milad,

 

So revising my plan,

 

32 RB

12 NW

12 True Violet

4 or 6 OCW, because i will be going with two panels over the tank.

 

i suppose this gives a 18000k to 20000k look.

 

so can we drive OCW(all three emitters wired in series) using the same driver @ 400mA ?

 

can these many LED's support this tank ?

Tank - 30''L X 21''W X 18''T (water level 16''), softy and LPS dominated, few SPS ONLY on higher rock structures.

 

 

regards

Zoaguy

12 NW is an awful lot to cover that tank. 8x would be plenty, with 16x RB giving you 14K and 20x RB giving you 18-20K. Stick with fewer violet, you don't realize how strong they are until they've bleached your corals. Your original number of 6x was spot on for that tank size. Anything more is a waste, as you'll be dimming them down far.

 

And FYI, LEDs are binned at certain amperages for reliability reasons - they are made to emit light at 100% for the advertised amount of time if cooled properly (which is simple to do in this day and age of cheap heatsinks galore). Running fewer at 100% is about the same as running more at 50-75%, but simply costs a bunch more upfront.

[Milad LEDGroupBuy.com]

so can we drive OCW(all three emitters wired in series) using the same driver @ 400mA ?

 

can these many LED's support this tank ?

Tank - 30''L X 21''W X 18''T (water level 16''), softy and LPS dominated, few SPS ONLY on higher rock structures.

 

Yes and Yes

[zoaguy]

Thanks jedimasterben and Milad,

 

how many more LED's will be necessary if i want sps, asking just because if it is a little bit more, i can put them on and dim, so i don't need to revisit the tank lighting,

 

 

 

regards

Zoaguy

[Adrnalnrsh]

Thanks jedimasterben and Milad,

 

how many more LED's will be necessary if i want sps, asking just because if it is a little bit more, i can put them on and dim, so i don't need to revisit the tank lighting,

 

 

 

regards

Zoaguy

 

Milad's suggestion would give you what you want for SPS with the possibility of frying them, so acclimate slowly by ramping the light each week. Like Jedi said, it could be overkill as well.

[jedimasterben]

Milad's suggestion would give you what you want for SPS with the possibility of frying them, so acclimate slowly by ramping the light each week. Like Jedi said, it could will be overkill as well.

ftfy

 

More LEDs aren't needed, too much of a good thing is a bad thing.

[zoaguy]

so this solved most of my confusions, LED count is as below

30 RB

10 NW

8 True Violet

4 or 6 OCW

 

how shall i arrange these LED's Linear or Cluster ?

 

my rockscape has two mountain kinda things, so i plan on having two panels- one on each side,

 

i was thinking of 90 degree optics, what do you guys suggest ?

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[Milad LEDGroupBuy.com]

so this solved most of my confusions, LED count is as below

30 RB

10 NW

8 True Violet

4 or 6 OCW

 

how shall i arrange these LED's Linear or Cluster ?

 

my rockscape has two mountain kinda things, so i plan on having two panels- one on each side,

 

i was thinking of 90 degree optics, what do you guys suggest ?

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

 

 

Cluster

80-90 degree optics 8" from surface

[louie101086]

i seen some philips royal blue that is said to be brighter than cree xte on same ma output you may want to look at these

 

http://shop.stevesleds.com/Philips-Luxeon-...-royal-blue.htm

[Milad LEDGroupBuy.com]

i seen some philips royal blue that is said to be brighter than cree xte on same ma output you may want to look at these

 

http://shop.stevesleds.com/Philips-Luxeon-...-royal-blue.htm

 

Its all marketing smoke and magic. They are actually about the same if you consider the top binned XTE Royal Blue. The philips LEDs are speced at 25c which is not a real world scenario. when you consider their efficiency drop once they make it up to about 85c (what the CREE are speced at) then you noticed the numbers get very close.

[zoaguy]

here goes my final counts and arrangement

 

30 RB

10 NW

8 True Violet

4 OCW

 

arranged in two panels - Clusters, will post cluster arrangements before i go ahead..

 

so the final hurdle is deciding between Rebel ES or XT-e...

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[jedimasterben]

Are you sure you want that many royal blue? A 1:3 ratio is gonna get you at least 20K right off the bat, and 30x RB over that tank is a crapton.

[zoaguy]

Are you sure you want that many royal blue? A 1:3 ratio is gonna get you at least 20K right off the bat, and 30x RB over that tank is a crapton.

 

jedimasterben,

 

i want a 20k ish look, if it is too much i can reduce it to 28 RB,

 

can you suggest any cluster arrangement which is good for my build? i will be having two panels over tank BTW.

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[jedimasterben]

If you really want the 20K look, I would consider reducing your numbers to to 6x NW and 18x RB (yes, that far down). LEDs put out more light than most people think, and if you're not planning on keeping SPS on your sandbed (which you pretty much could even with the reduced numbers), there is no point in having more LEDs. I would also bump violet down to 6x, they are the most misleading LED we use because they look so dim to us, but it's only because we can't really see all the light they put out - PAR from these things should be astronomical, but we can't really even measure them properly because most PAR meters do not read well below 460nm.

[zoaguy]

If you really want the 20K look, I would consider reducing your numbers to to 6x NW and 18x RB (yes, that far down). LEDs put out more light than most people think, and if you're not planning on keeping SPS on your sandbed (which you pretty much could even with the reduced numbers), there is no point in having more LEDs. I would also bump violet down to 6x, they are the most misleading LED we use because they look so dim to us, but it's only because we can't really see all the light they put out - PAR from these things should be astronomical, but we can't really even measure them properly because most PAR meters do not read well below 460nm.

 

jedimasterben,

 

so you say,

 

6 NW

18 RB

6 TV

4 OCW

 

in two clusters on two halves of tank ?

 

enough for a 30L X 21W X 18T tank ? some sps like 8'' from bottom ?

 

if it is, i will save some big bucks...

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[bdevillier19]

i would take what jedi has to say very seriously. he knows his stuff, just look at his 80 gallon tank with full spectrum. good luck with the build.

[zoaguy]

i would take what jedi has to say very seriously. he knows his stuff, just look at his 80 gallon tank with full spectrum. good luck with the build.

 

 

thanks bdevillier19,

 

just waiting for confirmation from jedi, so i can order stuff.

 

going through cluster arrangements, will post my findings here,

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[jedimasterben]

It looks good to me!

[zoaguy]

It looks good to me!

 

thanks to all you guys.

 

ordered LED's all luxeons, with some extras,

 

any options for clustering are welcome,

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[zoaguy]

i am now left with drivers,

 

what would you suggest, ELN 60-48P or D, i would be controlling with a typhon controller, but read that 'P' drivers wont even turn on without PWM.

 

 

regards

Zoaguy

[zoaguy]

what length heat sink should i consider for a tank of length 30'', and what width ? tank width is 21''

 

i will be placing LED's 6'' above water line,

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy

[zoaguy]

guys,

 

at what current are you running rebel ES ? i think max is 1A, am i right ??

 

 

Regards

Zoaguy:)