LED lighting in my pico reef

[JxMetal]

instead of setting them in a square pattern, couldn't you fit more by using a sort of cross-thatch pattern? Having each row slightly offset, so you can place the LED's closer together?

 

[Chelsey]

I don't want to place the LEDs closer together...16 per square inch is already almost double the amount that anyone else has tried and I only ordered 700 LEDs!

 

[chadscamaro]

That route looks much better and cleaner . Should definately light up that tank and then some !

 

[Chelsey]

I think so too...I like that it's a lot easier to put the LEDs in and I'm sure that it will be easier to wire! I'm hoping that the lighting will be somewhere around the equivalency of a MH...the LEDs are super bright.

 

[dela]

Good call on the spacing. Cooking the LEDs will get you nowhere.

So what are going to do for heat control? We had a rep in the office yesterday presenting some LED products. One was a 60W (total) downlight and one was an exterior wallwasher. They both were 90% alumunum to dissapate heat.

I don't remember how much the wallwasher was, but the downlight was $500 to a distributor. ($650 to an end user).

 

[Chelsey]

I think we'll be installing a bunch of fans. LEDs don't give off THAT much heat, do they? Another option would be to further drill the back of my canopy so that I have more airflow to the LEDs.

 

[Mykayel]

What are you using to power them?? I don't know much about eletronics, but I know that you can get them brighter and last longer by pulsing them (but I don't know how to do that) instead of running straight current through them.

 

[Chelsey]

I'm using a computer power supply. Lost Marbles is in charge of the wiring and electrical since I'd blow myself up :lol:

 

[dela]

I would think that fans could work, but I would think about how the air flows, so that you are not just re-circulating a bunch of hot air!

 

[Chelsey]

I'm thinking about using teeny tiny fans on the front part of the canopy blowing the air out the back part of the canopy where it's open.