DIY LEDs

[dan10342]

This might be a pretty general question.. but to keep things simple ill leave it general for now.

How difficult would it be to replace 2 of my actinic 22k t5 tubes in my 6 bulb t5 unit, with DIY leds in their spot.(like a row of 10-20 LEDs mounted to the reflector where the t5 bulb was)?

I definitely miss the ultra pop my corals had with powerbrites, but at the same time, i wasnt a fan of the intense spotlight effect the powerbrites made being so close to the water. (hence why a DIY might be more fruitful here)

Has anyone done anything DIY with LEDs locally?

 

[Jacwil]

I'm no help with the diy led question but I will let you know that I have a powerbrite and a stunner strip and i totally prefer the stunner over the pb...I notice no spotlighting.

 

[superkat]

I know there's a couple of ya out there...Twin...forget who else...

 

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Has anyone done anything DIY with LEDs locally?

I've played with them a little bit. :lol:

I'm sure you've seen the various LED threads in DIY, but just in case, here are some of the more informative:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1678127&page=67

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1662682

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1751598

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1672708

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1759758

What you're asking about is entirely possible and not that difficult. A few users have done similar builds, but I'm struggling to find the exact references. I know stugray has done a few "tube style" LED builds that you could essentially put in a T5 fixture if you were so inclined.

The problem with some of the commercially-available "supplement" LEDs (powerbrites, for instance) is that they're really only appropriate for a VERY narrow set of circumstances. The LED choice, drive current, and optic choice prevent them from being more widely applicable. The good news is, if you DIY, you can change those variables to suit your needs.

For instance, if the powerbrites were producing spotlight effect in your tank, it's probably because the optics on them are too narrow for the dimensions of your setup - so just build something with wider optics.

Any pics of your tank or the T5 fixture you're using? What are the dimensions of the tank? How high off the water are the LEDs going to be?

 

[Twinpanther]

That's a lot of great info within those threads. Should be able to answer most of your questions. They are a lot of fun to build and there is never a better feeling that something DiY for your own tank. I recently finished a 6' - ten LeD strip for Jetsum's 220. Tried Arctic Silver Thermal Adhesive this time and I like it SO much better than screwing them down to the heat sink. So far it's working fantastic.

It's not difficult and a lot of fun. Ask questions, take your time, remember expensive does not always equal better and you will love the look and be happy in the end.

Twin

 

[dan10342]

Its a wide tank. pic below... i just miss the look of the extra "poppage" from the corals. I was using powerbrites... but it took 4 of them, and they were very close to the water. corals were burning up.

here is a current pic (bad white balance... colors are a bit off) just to show that its hard using powerbrites over this tank... i didnt want to ceiling mount them.

i will read up on those links. thanks

Twin,
You still making those LED strips?

 

[superkat]

i get weak every time i see that tank, Dan.

 

[Twinpanther]

I love the look of your tank. To me, minimalistic always makes for a beautiful tank.

I hadn't been making any since my last order of parts took well over a month to arrive (before that, a week was the norm). Be more than happy to work on something with you although I'm not very close to you. BTW, is that a 40 breeder? 20 LeD's with maybe 60 degree optics surely would put some nice color in there.

Twin

 

[inkmates]

point the powerbrites at the reflectors in the t5 setup the t5 reflectors will difuse the light for you without having to replace/remove any of your bulbs

 

[dan10342]

I love the look of your tank. To me, minimalistic always makes for a beautiful tank.

I hadn't been making any since my last order of parts took well over a month to arrive (before that, a week was the norm). Be more than happy to work on something with you although I'm not very close to you. BTW, is that a 40 breeder? 20 LeD's with maybe 60 degree optics surely would put some nice color in there.

Twin

Thanks!

Its a 30breeder

Nah webster isnt too far away. (the indo-pacific is far away haha). It would be awesome if we could work together on DIYing LEDs into the fixture!:bounce2: :bounce3green one too) The reading is very interesting.

coral poppage wise... do high powered LEDs make the corals pop more?

oh:

I removed the powerbrites: To help visualize, I would like to get the LEDs in the 2 t5 slots between the outside bulbs and the two inside bulbs.

 

[Twinpanther]

My take is Corals "pop" due to the 465nm color which is why they look so good under actinics over full lighting. Powerbrites are simply 1w 460nm (blue) High Power LeD's. The reason corals look so good under them is due to the directional "beam" they give off. However, due to that concentrated beam some have seen bleaching if the corals are too close. The strips I've built also use 1w High Power LeD's but with the use of Collimaters/Optics you can diffuse a little of the light spreading it out and reducing any chance of damage. The drawback of course is an extra couple lights to make up for the little bit of light lost.

Toss me a PM if you'd like to try to work something out with this. I can give you the site I buy from and you can get an idea of material cost. I see you've invested in 4 Powerbrites already. Materials are most likely going to cost you a little more that those did. Just a heads up.

Twin

 

[zooman72]

I have seen a few tanks on RC and at Nano-Reef.com using the Stunner strips - they are smaller than the PowerBrites, with 24 LED's instead of just 4, so the spotlight effect is gone. They are 12 inches, same as Powerbrites, but only 1/2" wide and thick - would probably fit well in your fixture, and they are linkable up to 6 strips on one power source (24V transformer) They also come in 453nm actinic and 403nm UV, although I am not sure which would look better for fluorescence. I am actually thinking of trying one or two in the near future to replace my PowerBrite - the spotlight effect is too noticeable for me.

Just a thought.....:spin3:

 

[Bluephish13]

did anyone mention the ice cap t5 tube leds. just seen some blues lit up over at Salt water paradise, they looked nice.

i think this is what they had. But they had the single bulbs not the entire fixture.

http://www.aquacave.com/detail.aspx?ID=2756

can i post that link if not i am sorry.



I am thinking of dropping one of my middle blue bulbs and just tossing this in its place.

 

[superkat]

nice!