DIY LEDs - The write-up

[widmer]

Anyone on board here who has a fixture just running Cree royal blue and Cree neutral white emitters? I keep hearing such good things about this combo I think I will be giving it a try. If we revisit the spectral distribution:

We can see that basically it is shifting energy away from the green part of the spectrum and more toward the yellow-orange-red. Heck, I am almost tempted to try a warm white/royal blue combo because this seems to come close to some of the bulbs (ie radium) that we love so much with the deep blue and then spike in the red and not a whole lot else...

Thoughts?

 

[mkart]

Has anyone used the cree's on a 30" deep tank? I need lights for a 210g but am worried about penetration to 30". Thinking about ordering 1 250w mh with lumenarc reflector for the center and diy LED for the sides.

 

[kcress]

Has anyone used the cree's on a 30" deep tank? I need lights for a 210g but am worried about penetration to 30". Thinking about ordering 1 250w mh with lumenarc reflector for the center and diy LED for the sides.

You're kidding right?

You can reach deeper with LEDs than you ever could with MH.

If you are going to use any LEDs don't bother with the MH at all. That train has already left the station.

 

[katchupoy]

Mkart,

I believe what will happen is that if you have a deeper tank, then you will need a closer spacing between leds (density) and use optics. Im sure dept wont be a problem.

 

[katchupoy]

Widmer, to add on your spectral distribution...

This is what XP-E royal blue

XP-G Cool White.

You can see more graph here...
http://www.aquashoponline.com/29-maxspect-3w-high-power-led-bead-red.html

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Anyone on board here who has a fixture just running Cree royal blue and Cree neutral white emitters? I keep hearing such good things about this combo I think I will be giving it a try. If we revisit the spectral distribution:

We can see that basically it is shifting energy away from the green part of the spectrum and more toward the yellow-orange-red. Heck, I am almost tempted to try a warm white/royal blue combo because this seems to come close to some of the bulbs (ie radium) that we love so much with the deep blue and then spike in the red and not a whole lot else...

Thoughts?

I'm running cool, neutral and warm whites. I'd say the Neutrals are a clean ivory color. I think it's a good bet. In my early T5 days I ran a Blue Plus/Aquablue mix of lamps and it came up short like the Cool White/Royal blue does. Adding a GE Daylight which was a little more ivory colored but it made all the difference in the world. I think the neutral/royal blue mix will look good.

 

[kcress]

That does sound good! We're all dazzled by the substantially higher lumens put out by the CW and reach for them. But I agree we should probably be reaching in the warmer end of the cupboard.

 

[yeldarbj]

I built a couple of linear strings with mixed XR-E neutral whites and RB's. I used 2:1 ratio of RB:NW. While it looks good, it's a touch too blue for my taste. If I did it again, I would probably go with closer to a 1:1 ratio or 1.5:1 and separate the colors on dimmable ballasts.

I just changed one string that had 6 RB and 3 NW, replaced 1 NW and 1 RB with CW. It made it much brighter overall.

I tried a couple of the warm white XP-E's mixed in with CW's. They almost look orange compared to the CW's.

 

[Islander84]

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

 

[TheFishMan65]

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.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

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

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

 

[Tomasko]

:smokin:

 

[Islander84]

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.

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.

Thanks Grim!!

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

 

[Islander84]

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 ?

 

[wfournier]

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 ?

Or find another vendor like Cutter...

 

[Islander84]

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....

 

[Islander84]

ok found cutter......have you seen there shipping....

Or find another vendor like Cutter...

 

[wfournier]

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.

 

[Islander84]

k found it thanks what about the xp-g

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.

 

[wfournier]

ok found cutter......have you seen there shipping....

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+