DIY LEDs - The write-up

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Makes sense. Where is the best place to get royal blues?

BTW, I have a 24 LED strip that i bougth off ebay a couple years ago.. it was like 50 bucks and I'm assuming its using crap leds. I think they are just standard 1w leds attached to a silicon board and enclosed by a clear plastic, square tube. I might use them to supplement if needed. They have a nice dimmer on them.

Also, does anyone using LEDs for their fuge, do you have any problems growing caulerpa?
 
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$50 for 24 LEDs (especially a few years ago) pretty much assures that they are very low efficiency (lumens/watt). FWIW, it's pretty easy to put a nice dimmer on any of the drivers out there right now.

Maybe you could use that old unit as a moonlight or something?

I don't have any longterm results to report, but don't see why LED won't work for a refugium on a reef tank. But get back to me in 6 months! IMHO while it's arguable that some of the advantages of LEDs don't matter for a refugium, the fact that they're so compact is awesome for a small 'fuge on a nano, where space is limited. I'd hate to try and cram one of those big spun alum. clip-on reflectors people commonly use into the stand for my nano.
 
It'll grow fine. You may want to mix in a small percentage of medium-white instead of some of the cool-whites.

There are a bunch of really good articles out there on spectral requirements for marine algae if you're really keen on being 110% sure - you can compare graphs from some of this research to spectral plots from the LED vendors, for instance. I have some of these articles bookmarked on my personal PC, but unfortunately that's in a storage container until I'm done moving (next month!)
 
Indeed, though if you want to be geeky about it, the kelvin rating is extremely subjective and over-simplifies things to a dangerous level. In theory, you could have two light sources with vastly different spectra, rated with the same kelvin value. This is especially true when working with LEDs, since they tend to produce an intense light over a very narrow wavelength, vs. other reef-lighting technologies (MH, for example) which produce pretty wild curves with peaks and valleys all over the place.

Though, as we've concluded, you're really gonna be fine trying to grow caulerpa with LEDs! The medium-white and cool-white LEDs people are using are probably much closer to natural light than many other light sources used in reef keeping.
 
halfround layout

halfround layout

131376leds.JPG


I would like some input from you guys on the layout above. There are a total of 72 leds and they are 2" on center. I was considering the 45 degree optics as this will be a total sps tank. The tank is a 76 half round and is 45" left to right and 22.5" front to back and 23" deep.
Thanks David
 
I have been getting PMs lately regarding the wiring of the MeanWells. I drew this ultra-high-tech diagram to show how I did it.

wiring.jpg


On the Left
Brown AC live
Blue AC neutral

On the Right
Red DC +
Black DC -
Blue Dim +
Grey (White) -

On the ALC
Red Dim +
Black Dim -
 
I have a question:

Would it be cost efficient to DIY the powerbrite's made by Current? Has anyone done this? Do the buckpucks have to be placed on a heatsink or can i just glue cement them onto my tek fixture?

A link would be very helpful!!

TIA!!!
 
Andy, your schematic is awesome, lol. My one question is this, if you don't have the dimmable meanwells, but do have the ALC module or equivalent, is dimming still possible?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15745750#post15745750 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cutnup
I have a question:

Would it be cost efficient to DIY the powerbrite's made by Current? Has anyone done this? Do the buckpucks have to be placed on a heatsink or can i just glue cement them onto my tek fixture?

A link would be very helpful!!

TIA!!!
Click to expand...

You asked about DIY'ing the powerbrites - can you elaborate on what you meant? They're just a little bar with 4 LEDs in them. It would most likely be easy to make your own version that was cheaper, more efficient, and more powerful, if you wanted. You could use them to moonlight a big tank, or light a really small nano.

Buckpucks shouldn't get hot enough to need a heatsink. If they are, you're doing something wrong! That said, I wouldn't glue them to anything, in case you want to rework later. Use zipties or something semi-permanent instead.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15746949#post15746949 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wesley6610
if you don't have the dimmable meanwells, but do have the ALC module or equivalent, is dimming still possible?
Click to expand...

No, you need one of the two dimmable versions if you want "external" dimming. All meanwells come with trim pots inside the case to adjust the output, but they're meant as a limited-use, set and forget adjustment - not something you'd tweak constantly, or control with an external controller.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15744998#post15744998 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jtl2
Anybody know if the Cree xp-g leds will come out in a 5K-6.5K color temp?
Click to expand...

Almost certainly will, since every other X-series LED does, though I haven't seen any official announcement stating anything about color availability or binning.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15743985#post15743985 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by grouper therapy

I would like some input from you guys on the layout above. There are a total of 72 leds and they are 2" on center. I was considering the 45 degree optics as this will be a total sps tank. The tank is a 76 half round and is 45" left to right and 22.5" front to back and 23" deep.
Thanks David
Click to expand...

Looks good. If you really wanted to up the ante, you could probably get away with narrower optics (something in the 20 degree range) since you've got a pretty tight spacing, though it would depend a bit on how high above the tank the fixture was, and how high up in the water column you have corals.
 
Looks very nice, but how can we be sure it does what it says that it does? Does anyone on that forum use the light to back up its claims?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15747734#post15747734 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by der_wille_zur_macht
You asked about DIY'ing the powerbrites - can you elaborate on what you meant? They're just a little bar with 4 LEDs in them. It would most likely be easy to make your own version that was cheaper, more efficient, and more powerful, if you wanted. You could use them to moonlight a big tank, or light a really small nano.

Buckpucks shouldn't get hot enough to need a heatsink. If they are, you're doing something wrong! That said, I wouldn't glue them to anything, in case you want to rework later. Use zipties or something semi-permanent instead.
Click to expand...

The reason I want to DIY the powerbright is I love them as a moonlight, they really make the corals glow, and maybe to get a little shimmer. I have a 120 gallon tank. So I am really not sure how many I would need. I guess I would need to use the Royal Blue Cree XR-E Star 450nm? That is the closest wavelength I could find to the powerbrites.

After I find out how many I would need then I guessthe next step would be to find out more about buckpucks and how to wire them, and how many I would need???

Everyones projects here are so big they get confusing!!!
 
Looks good. If you really wanted to up the ante, you could probably get away with narrower optics (something in the 20 degree range) since you've got a pretty tight spacing, though it would depend a bit on how high above the tank the fixture was, and how high up in the water column you have corals.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the feed back. Iwill look into the 20 degrees as well. I build custom stands and canopys so I can raise the fixture as high as I like, well with in reason.
 
Does anyone here make LED lights for those of us with weak DIY/electical skills?
I just need two strings just bright enough to light two 60'' lengths for my hatching system. Nothing fancy at all... I just need some simple illumination.
I currently have four single T5's over this system that need to be replaced due to moisture issues.
Please PM me!
 
Whoever PM'd me, please send again. I did not have a chance to reply before RC upgraded and now the PM is gone. Thanks!
 
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