DIY LEDs - The write-up

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sorry to jump ahead my eyes are goin blurry from all the reading :hmm4: ...i havent found anything similar to what im wanting to do...if someone could give me some pointers it would be greatly appreciated!...i have about a 2 ft canopy over my 144 gal half round tank and im wanting to build an entire led setup in the shape of the hood mines a few inches for clearance....what do you suggest using for basic base to mount things to...next i fwas looking at the ledsupply.com and wasnt sure what i need to order to build my lights tank is 29 in tall and i will be growing mostly sps a few lps and 2 or 3 clams thanks -Gary
 
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Islander what are the dimension of the aquarium. Your probably going to want around 100 LEDs (maybe more). I would mount to the existing hood and just cut each heat sink a little short to form a stair step.

Some one started a thread (that I can't find) on the best prices for LEDs. IMHO find or start a group buy with your local club. You can get your XP-E RB down to around $3 and then XP-G CW to around $5. ELN-60-49D can be gotten for $25-$26.
 
Islander84 said:
sorry to jump ahead my eyes are goin blurry from all the reading :hmm4: ...i havent found anything similar to what im wanting to do...if someone could give me some pointers it would be greatly appreciated!...i have about a 2 ft canopy over my 144 gal half round tank and im wanting to build an entire led setup in the shape of the hood mines a few inches for clearance....what do you suggest using for basic base to mount things to...next i fwas looking at the ledsupply.com and wasnt sure what i need to order to build my lights tank is 29 in tall and i will be growing mostly sps a few lps and 2 or 3 clams thanks -Gary
Click to expand...

You found the right thread Islander. These guys will be able to help you better than I could.

Here's more info on his tank from the T5 thread.

half round tank 144 gal 57" long 29"tall 29" deep at the middle of tank
 
there is about 22 inches from top of my hood to water surface would that be a problem with light getting to bottom for clams or acans? i saw on the led supply some pin type leds for .55 what are those 5mm high power... should i get 1 up or 3up sorry fishman all this led is outta my knowledge thanks for your help.
TheFishMan65 said:
Islander what are the dimension of the aquarium. Your probably going to want around 100 LEDs (maybe more). I would mount to the existing hood and just cut each heat sink a little short to form a stair step.

Some one started a thread (that I can't find) on the best prices for LEDs. IMHO find or start a group buy with your local club. You can get your XP-E RB down to around $3 and then XP-G CW to around $5. ELN-60-49D can be gotten for $25-$26.
Click to expand...

Thanks Grim!!
The Grim Reefer said:
You found the right thread Islander. These guys will be able to help you better than I could.

Here's more info on his tank from the T5 thread.

half round tank 144 gal 57" long 29"tall 29" deep at the middle of tank
Click to expand...
 
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o m wow!!! just looked it up on led supply so if i did my math correctly its going to cost approx $210.00..... for mean well eln-60-48 x (7)@ $28.13 ....... $350.00 for 50 xp-e @ $7 ....$350.00 for 50 xp-g @ $7 ....approx $50 for aluminum sheet for heatsink unless something diff is recommended ....thats almost $1000.oo ...hmmm....maybe i should get a second job temporarily.... will i need anything else to power this ?
 
Islander84 said:
o m wow!!! just looked it up on led supply so if i did my math correctly its going to cost approx $210.00..... for mean well eln-60-48 x (7)@ $28.13 ....... $350.00 for 50 xp-e @ $7 ....$350.00 for 50 xp-g @ $7 ....approx $50 for aluminum sheet for heatsink unless something diff is recommended ....thats almost $1000.oo ...hmmm....maybe i should get a second job temporarily.... will i need anything else to power this ?
Click to expand...


Or find another vendor like Cutter...
 
o m wow!!! just looked it up on led supply so if i did my math correctly its going to cost approx $210.00..... for mean well eln-60-48 x (7)@ $28.13 ....... $350.00 for 50 xp-e @ $7 ....$350.00 for 50 xp-g @ $7 ....approx $50 for aluminum sheet for heatsink unless something diff is recommended ....thats almost $1000.oo ...hmmm....maybe i should get a second job temporarily.... will i need anything else to power this ? sorry for double post my connection was lagging didnt know if it went through....
 
Google "cutter electronics" for 500mw XP-E royal blues the price is currently $3.22 for 50 or more. Their website can be a little funky to navigate but once you figure it out it's not too bad. cdiweb might be the best option for the drivers.
 
k found it thanks what about the xp-g
wfournier said:
Google "cutter electronics" for 500mw XP-E royal blues the price is currently $3.22 for 50 or more. Their website can be a little funky to navigate but once you figure it out it's not too bad. cdiweb might be the best option for the drivers.
Click to expand...
 
Islander84 said:
ok found cutter......have you seen there shipping....
Click to expand...

Yes it is free if you spend $99.99 or more right now.

To find the correct listings for the LEDs:

Click products> Cree LEDS> Cree Leds on Printed Circuit Boards> Leds on 20mm MCPCB> Leds on 20mm Star PCB

Once there you will find a listing of leds on stars, they do not have everything on their site here but this section seems to be the most up to date with the best pricing. Be sure to click on the "click here for volume pricing" links as they will give you the pricing in the quantities you are talking about. I'm seeing XP-g CW for $5.25 for 50+
 
Ok so roughly the area is 57 * 29 * .5 = 3306 square inches. For SPS figure 1 LED per 14 square inches. So 3306 / 14 = 236 LEDs. Kcress you sure I am doing tis right? I have 48 or a 75 and things are doing alright (ok not great so maybe I am a bit short), this is twice the water so shouldn't it be twice the LEDs which is where I got my original 100 from.

Has anyone built using the 14 Hard Coral, 16 soft, 18 FOWLR numbers? Are you burning the corals?
 
Assuming the 57 is the width at the back, and it's truly an approximate half circle you would have

0.5(pi*28.5^2) = 1275 square inches => ~84 LEDs
 
I must have hit mupltiply rather than divide - thanks all. So Islander 84 would probably be a good number. Where did you get 23968.5 - your math must be worse than mine :)

84 LEDs is probably around $600 for LED and driver. Add heat sink material, thermal paste, solder, wire, etc. I would guess less than $700 plus what ever heat sink you use. You could use U channel. You may also find something at your junk yard or recycle place. That is what I did.
 
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