Minimalistic multichip DIY LED build

[Landsailor]

Rick, you could probably crimp them by hand for as low volume as you'll be doing. Just take some contacts with you to the hardware store and see if you can find a cheap wire stripper (like http://www.harborfreight.com/5-inch-wire-stripper-36901.html) that you could use to round over and crimp the wire and insulation crimps. The trick is getting them small enough to fit inside the connector and still be removable.

A slightly more expensive solution (but still cheaper than a proper crimp tool) is a set of these:

http://octopart.com/1829471-phoenix+contact-856403
http://octopart.com/1851371-phoenix+contact-859900

You might be able to save a few bucks if you can find the screw version of the connector instead of the pushbutton.

joeogio,

Same heatsinks here! I'm going to be loading them up with 10W chips.

 

[007Bond]

Thanks for the input. I have Rigid stake on tool. It's probably a little bit bulky for these little pins, but I'm sure I can get it to work. Question, how often or why do you need to remove a pin from a connector body?---Rick

 

[Landsailor]

Stakons or quick disconnects are much larger than the tabs you're going to crimp. I just got several "*** are you doing?" looks from my shop guys as I did a few experiments to see how to get a halfway decent crimp without the proper tooling. I used a Mate-n-Lock terminal which is probably pretty similar to yours.

There are two crimps to these (and most other) stamped contacts: the wire crimp and the insulation crimp.

is a micrograph of proper wire crimp. Notice how the individual strands of wire fuse into a more or less, gas tight crimp. That looks like about 30 strands of wire, so that's probably 18AWG or so.

Poor crimps lead to increased resistance in the connection, loss of conductors, and a range of issues with the connection from "no big deal" to "sparks". That photo was from a crimping press that hits the terminal with over three tons of force.

The wire crimp alone should be able to take the force of you pulling on it with a signficant force without coming off. The insulation crimp keeps the insulation from pulling back off the wire. The main strength of the crimp comes from the wire crimp.

Stakon crimper: far too big to crimp it tight enough, however it gave the tabs a nice start to be rounded. Terminal falls right off.

Cheapo wire stripper: mangles it since the notches are v-shaped. However, if you are careful, you can use the crimp started by the Stakon and tighten it up without cutting it in two.

Nose of Wire Strippers: Probably the best bet to finish the job started by the Stakons. I actually broke the terminal before I could pull it off when I used this to complete it.

(I have photos on my phone.)

Become very familiar with the retention springs on the contacts before you insert them into the housing, especially since you won't have the removal tool. Those have to be depressed to remove the contacts. If you pull the wire out of the terminal, you'll need to remove it to insert the new one. (If you have to heatshrink the wires to keep them from coming off the contact, that is a very poor connection.)

Remember, if your LED is up and running and your wiring is intermittent, you risk blowing the LED and driver. It's the same thing as trying to wire it hot.

I would highly recommend using terminal strips or a similar pluggable solution instead of improperly crimped connectors.

The hair you'll save will be your own.

 

[BeanAnimal]

For years I tried to crimp TE and other small terminals without the proper tool... rarely is it worth the time, trouble or crummy result.... I now purchase quality terminal crimpers for the terminals I commonly use

 

[007Bond]

Landsaylor, Sounds like good advice. I understand how loose connections can cause heat, as a electrician I have seen plenty of lugs burnt from loose wiring due to heat expansion and contraction.

With the correct crimping tool, does it crimp the insulation connection at the same time?

Starting a job in two weeks building control panels for large conveyor systems,...I'm sure I'll find the correct tool.---Rick

 

[BeanAnimal]

It depends on the style of connector and the tool... but most of the time the insualtion and electrical crimp are done at the same time if the proper tool is used.

Thre is some specialization, but you can get a generic tool from ebay that will in most cases work if you do some research. There is no need to pay $300 or whatever the OEM charges for the tool. In fact, they often sell the same tool under a dozen differnt part numbers to make it appear specific to a particular terminal.

 

[007Bond]

Kind of hard to believe the Chinese aren't flooding the market with 20 dollar knock offs. Should look into some importing.

 

[cubanazo83]

I don't have any experience with 20w multi chips, but 20w of PAR 38 LED is more than enough for your 12 gallon tank so it should be adequate. You probably want a dawn and dusk blue colour, so a second royal blue, blue and UV chip would be an asset. The more simple solution is a mixed chip with several colours in it (blue, royal blue, violet & white). Some vendors call these "hybrid chips".

Due to the low clearance, you will not be able to use or need optical lenses, but you will need some sort of splash guard. The 120˚ lenses are low profile and may fit.

The other concern is the structural integrity of the black plastic lid that came with your tank. It may not be able to withstand the heat radiating upwards from the chip. It appears to be vented with several fans so that may not be an issue.

Mr. Wilson thanks for your help. Can you please check the link below and let me know if that LED is the same you are telling me?

Ebay link removed~dc

 

[tomservo]

Bean: thanks for the tip on the cheap crimpers, I managed to find some that look suitable, $30 shipped from china. Anything is better than spending 20 minutes building a connector soldering all the bastards on!

 

[007Bond]

Tom, on your DS18B20's did you say your controller has a port, or where are you running them to?

 

[joeogio]

joeogio,

Same heatsinks here! I'm going to be loading them up with 10W chips.

cool man cant wait to see what it looks like

 

[mr.wilson]

Mr. Wilson thanks for your help. Can you please check the link below and let me know if that LED is the same you are telling me?

Ebay link removed~dc

Yes, that one will work fine. You need the chip, driver, VGA cooler, lens, power source for fan and some electrical connections. If you can live without the black plastic lid, you can use a PAR 38 LED for about $50.

 

[fleerdee]

Lots of great information here. I'm in the process of replacing my T5 light fixture with a DIY led fixture. Just got my first set of 50w 452-455nm royal blue leds in today and was curious as to who was the manufacturer. Anyone know who makes these? They don't look like Epistar or Epileds.

AC-RC advised it most likely is EPILEDS 30mil chips

 

[Landsailor]

As long as the terminal and wire is similar, most of them are interchangeable. The Tyco crimpers we use handle 90% of our work. It's the smaller ones that get really picky about having the right tool. Heck, I've spent up to $900 for one hand tool because a manufacturer added their own terminal locator to someone else's tool. A miniapplicator for an automated press costs $2,000 and up. Sometimes, you can't just switch out the crimpers and anvils to move to a new terminal, so instead of $400 worth of parts, you're buying a whole new one.

Terminal crimpers almost always crimp both conductor and insulation crimps at the same time. If you look at the datasheet linked from this Mouser page http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail...=/ha2pyFadugqiAqRCIgfVFshrr6xwV9dBT9bVN2ZjZs= it might make more sense.

http://www.pinrepair.com/connect/ has lots of info about tools and crimping.

 

[007Bond]

Landsailor, Good info on crimping. Will the BCT-1 hand tool do the job?? +- $30.00

 

[bdevillier]

lasse mention a couple of pages back that a 2nd gen dream chip is coming? is there any hybrid chips available besides the usual blue/white mix?

 

[cubanazo83]

@ Cubanazo83

Its difficult to mount anything in a thin canopy. A method I have used with 10 and 20 watts chip is to use a square tube. Place the square tube across the hood with its ends at the air intakes on each side. On the upper side of the square tube (in the middle), you make a square hole so you can put a fan there. The fan will blow air through the tube and out through the hood side. You might have to do an air intake on the the hood top. You can put 2 pcs square tubes (50 mm * 25 mm) in your hood and have two pieces of 20 watts per tube.

The picture shows the general idea - even if this tube is larger.

I would perhaps work with 6 pieces (3 per tube) 10 watts in this case. 2 x 445, 2 x 455 and 2 x 16,000 K white. Possibly replacing one of the blue with a 420 nm. They are only 20 watts but you can run them so they provide 10 watts.

I would also invest in dimmable drivers

The LEDs I use are of the "20W 420nm UV LED Panel", "10W 16000K High Power 800LM LED Lamp Blub for Aquarium", "New 40mil 10W 450nm-452nm Royal Blue LED Panel for Aquarium".

Should you decide to remove your hood, I think two of these would fit nicely over your tank "85-265V 18W Actinic Blue LED E27 Spot Light"

This lamp uses the same configuration as the dream chip.



Color Configuration:

• EPILEDS 45mil 10000K x 3
• EPILEDS 45mil 15000K x 3
• EPISTAR 45mil 6500K x 3
• EPILEDS 45mil 455nm x 3
• EPILEDS 45mil 445nm x 3
• EPILEDS 45mil 430nm x 1
• EPILEDS 45mil 420nm x 2

PAR Reading in air (Instrument: Apogee MQ-200):

• away 30cm: 1802
• away 50cm: 843
• away 70cm: 443
• away 90cm: 206

Sincerely Lasse

Hello Lasse, thanks for everything. First of all I do want to apologize if I ask the same question maybe towice, but inglish is not my first language and electronic neither..lol...:headwally:. I'm trying to understand everything you explain to me. But do you thing that due to my tank dimentions the idea that Mr. Wilson gave me a few post ago will fit better?

Ok Im going to tell you what I have in mind that way you can give me your opinion. In the link below I found two different LED, can you please tell me wich one you think is better? Because I dont have enough knowledge to differenciate which one is better.

Ebay link removed~dc

And apart I would like to put 3 LED x 3w white, and 3 LED x 3w blue. These LEDs I'm going to put it on the aluminum piece show on the picture below. Three in front of the fan and the other three on the back of the fan.

Do you think all those watt that I'm thinking to put would be enough for my tank or I'm going to need more watts?

Thanks

 

[cubanazo83]

Yes, that one will work fine. You need the chip, driver, VGA cooler, lens, power source for fan and some electrical connections. If you can live without the black plastic lid, you can use a PAR 38 LED for about $50.

Hi Mr. Wilson can you please go and check the last reply that I did to Lasse and give your opinion? Thanks

 

[hugh ngo]

60w multichip

60w multichip

Is it ok to run this 60w multichip Ebay link removed~dc

I'm thinking of getting 4 and running it at 100w or 150w.

 

[firefightered66]

sorry guys but I'll be getting a 75gal (48" x 18w x 18L ?) sooner than I thought. So the question is..... Will 3x20w 16-20k whites and 6x 10watt RB work for tank this size. Can I put 9 leds on a 10"x36" heatsink with 3 fans (above the 20w leds)? What PWM dimmable drivers will I need?
Thanks Ed