Diy led lighting for sps biocube 29

[Xgame2k]

I was thinking of ordering... http://www.rapidled.com/servlet/the-32/48-Premium-LED-DIY/Detail

Would these be equal to a 250w mh?

What degree of lenses should I get?

Where can I get a good heatsink and fans?

Is there anything else I would need and do you think i could fit all this into the stock canopy?

[der_wille_zur_macht]

See this thread for some thoughts:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1788744

Plus of course the big 'un:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1678127

I was thinking of ordering... http://www.rapidled.com/servlet/the-...LED-DIY/Detail

That's gonna be A TON!! of light on a tank your size. I'd probably aim for 30 - 35 LEDs, max. FWIW, Soundwave's original build was 48 LEDs on a 75g tank.


Would these be equal to a 250w mh?

That's a very tough question to answer, but probably more like a single 400w MH in a good reflector.

What degree of lenses should I get?

How tall is your tank? How high above the water will the fixture be mounted?

Where can I get a good heatsink and fans?

Depends on what you mean by "good." The standard-issue is a heatsink from heatsinksusa but those are very large. Fans - just use your favorite computer fan.

Is there anything else I would need and do you think i could fit all this into the stock canopy?

I'm not familiar with the stock canopy, can you get some measurements and/or photos?

[Xgame2k]

the tank dimensions are 20.8" L X 19" W X 20.1" H. im not sure how high it will be placed because i dont have one yet but i would think it would be no higher than 4 inches from the water.

[Xgame2k]

i was going to get http://www.nanocustoms.com/product_info.php?cPath=30&products_id=212 but it says they are only equal to a 150w mh.

[der_wille_zur_macht]

$450 for 30 LEDs is a pretty steep price for "DIY" LEDs. And there is NO bin info given on those emitters! I'd stay far away.

Again, don't try to compare LEDs to a particular wattage of MH - it's good in a general sense but there are several important variables that can swing the result a few hundred percent in either direction.

[customcolor]

my thought is on that short of a tank i wouldnt use optics and also your going to try to have the leds close to the water so unless you like narrow beams of light showing high in the water line i would stay away from optics for that nano....

i was thinking about doing something along the line to my wifes nano also :)

[JaredWaites]

$450 for 30 LEDs is a pretty steep price for "DIY" LEDs. And there is NO bin info given on those emitters! I'd stay far away.

Again, don't try to compare LEDs to a particular wattage of MH - it's good in a general sense but there are several important variables that can swing the result a few hundred percent in either direction.

You'd dang sure be able to keep SPS on the sand with that in a BC29.

There is bin info given. Click on detailed description.

* 24 Cool White Cree Q5 XR-E LEDs

* 24 Royal Blue Cree XR-E LEDs

* 48 Cree XR-E Lenses (Choose from either 40, 60 or 80 degree lenses!)

* 4 Mean Well ELN-60-48P dimmable drivers

* 1 Arctic Alumina Thermal Adhesive

* 8 water resistant wire nuts

* 4 power cords to attach to the drivers

[der_wille_zur_macht]

I was referring to the second link the OP posted, later on in the thread - to the "modular" DIY fixture for $450, featuring Edison LEDs. That fixture has no bin information.

[Xgame2k]

so i should get the 36 w/q5's? even the 48 w/q5's could be dimmed, then it would run cooler and would have more even light throughout the tank.

[Mustang Boy]

I was referring to the second link the OP posted, later on in the thread - to the "modular" DIY fixture for $450, featuring Edison LEDs. That fixture has no bin information.


i believe evil helped to design that setup so i would have no problem trusting it and im betting if u PM'd him he would happily send any info about the LEDs you could ever hope for

also if you dont want to go this route for a kit i would look into buying the heat sink from them because it is designed to fit in the hood so it would make things a ton easier on you since you want to keep it all in the hood

[Xgame2k]

Yeah, I was thinking about getting it from him.

[der_wille_zur_macht]

so i should get the 36 w/q5's? even the 48 w/q5's could be dimmed, then it would run cooler and would have more even light throughout the tank.

If it were me, I'd go with 36 LEDs. I'm guessing you'll still need to dim them if you try to run them at typical currents. 48 - well, if you REALLY wanted to, but I don't see the point - efficiency and temperature aren't going to be THAT different, and 36 will give pretty much perfect coverage over a tank sized like yours, so there's no need to spread the light out more evenly.

[Xgame2k]

Allright 36 it is!

[Xgame2k]

With the 36 I would not be able to control the whites and blues separately correct? And also when other people make theirs, do they make it all connect to one power cord? I am confused looking at how others are doing theirs, like needing a power source.

[der_wille_zur_macht]

The "36 Premium" kit from rapidLED comes with three LPC-35-700 drivers (or three PLC-60-48's for the dimmable version) - that means you'd end up with 12 blues on one driver, 12 whites on one driver, and a third driver with 6 blues and 6 whites. So you'd still have a large degree of control, since you could turn on/off the "pure" drivers separately.

For a configuration with three drivers, you'd typically have a separate power cord for each, and plug each power cord into it's own timer to turn it on/off. If you wanted a single power cord, you COULD connect them all together, but IMHO you'd be losing functionality that way.

[Xgame2k]

ok. so whats the power house a lot of people are using?

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Not sure what you mean by a power house.

[Xgame2k]

i ment power supply. is this like a mean well or what? http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=16854+PS

[der_wille_zur_macht]

That's a DC power supply. It supplies a regulated DC voltage. You CAN'T hook that up directly to LEDs like you can a meanwell LED driver.

Meanwell drivers include two major components:

1) circuitry to convert the 120v AC from your wall outlet to a low(er) voltage DC,
2) a DC-DC constant current switching regulator to regulate current to the LEDs.

Other types of drivers - namely buckpucks - include JUST the switching regulator, and cannot be run on 120v AC, they require you to use your own DC power supply of the correct voltage. It's basically splitting the meanwell's two functions out into separate devices.

So, if you use meanwells, you just need the driver. If you use a buckpuck, you need the drivers and a DC power supply like the one you've just linked to.

[Xgame2k]

k that was confusing me. Is there a way to dim the lights with some knobs i can put into the hood?

[der_wille_zur_macht]

You need dimmable drivers to do that. Meanwell ELN-60-48, dimmable buckpucks, etc.

[Xgame2k]

I was going to get the mean well dimmable drivers. So there is a way to hook some up then? I know nothing about them so i thought you would have to dim the lights on the drivers themselves.

[der_wille_zur_macht]

The dimmable drivers REQUIRE a signal on the dim circuit, otherwise they won't turn on. So you'll have to rig something - they won't light the LEDs without it. The easiest is probably to get a few big pots and a 12v wall wart, and wire them up. It's been covered in pretty good detail in a few of the build threads, so you might want to check it out.

[hllywd]

From all the reading I've done even 36 sounds like a lot of light! You could always start with 24 and if designed right add an additional 12 if you really needed them.

I just ordered half of what I'd like to put on my 120 eventually... 48 with 4 of the ELN-60-48D drivers. I ordered 60° and 40° optics to help keep light off the glass and in the tank where it belongs. I'll be mounting 24 on separate heatsinks to further adjust the aim. Assuming I like the performance of the first two modules I build (and when I save up some more money...), I'll build two more this summer.

I think I'd still do some optics, even in that size tank to try to keep more of the light inside the tank. At 80° your light circle from each LED should be ~34", 60° would give a ~24" circle, based on 20" depth. The bare LED is something like 120° and would light most of your glass wasting a lot of light outside the tank. The lenses aren't so much you couldn't experiment a little.

The "D" model of the Meanwell has a 0-10vdc dimming input. I don't know how far you're going with that, but it could be as simple as varying the voltage from a wall wart, to elaborate as using an APEX or other controller with a 0-10vdc output as I found out recently!

Tim

[Xgame2k]

I have looked through many led builds and threads on leds. I get lost in all the electrical talk and how there is so many ways to get the job done. I would need a step by step process on exactly what else i would need to get and how to put it together. I understand that i will need to get a heatsink and whatever they use to keep it in the hood, buy the 36 w/ dimmable drivers kit (maybe mess with some lenses) and fans.

[Xgame2k]

i think im understanding it now but what exactly would i need to dim the lights other than buying a crazy, expensive and unnecessary controller?

[der_wille_zur_macht]

You need a way to generate a 0-10V DC signal if you get an ELN-60-48-D. The easiest way is to wire a big pot on a 12v DC wall wart.

You need a way to generate a PWM signal if you get an ELN-60-48-P. The easiest way is to use a controller, or build a circuit with a 555 and a pot.

The -D model is definitely easier to work with if you're not in to electronics.

[Xgame2k]

Do you have any specs or an exact model that would work?

[Names Brucey]

I did a DIY led fixture for my BC 29 using the stock hood. Just gutted it out and cut the heatsink to fit. I also cut the top of the hood to accomodate a fan. Never had even a slight heat issue so I don't know that this is really necessary. I strongly suggest taking a look at some of the build threads on Nano by the likes of C Jerome and others that have already done this.

I used 24 led's, mixture of 50/50 blue and white. I used the MPJA power supply with 4 buck pucks. I have no problems keeping any SPS with that set up. I don't use any optics as of now but I have them if I ever decide to change. I don't think I would go for anymore than 24 led's as the light put out by my 24 is more than powerful enough. I actually have them still turned way down after running them for over 5 months now.

[Xgame2k]

Can you tell me what power supply and buck pucks would I use for 36 (50/50 xr-e q5s and royal blue) or 30 (50/50 xr-e q5s and royal blue) if that would work?

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Do you have any specs or an exact model that would work?

Sorry, specs or exact model of what? A 12v wall wart is a 12v wall wart - search ebay, or check on mpja, Radio Shack, or other common sites.

Can you tell me what power supply and buck pucks would I use for 36 (50/50 xr-e q5s and royal blue) or 30 (50/50 xr-e q5s and royal blue) if that would work?

You'd be able to do 6 LEDs per buckpuck, and need a 24v power supply rated around 30% above the current pulled by the drivers (at least.) If you wanted to do 36 LEDs, that would mean 6 buckpucks, and a power supply like this:

http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=16855+PS

30 LEDs would require 5 buckpucks and the same power supply, or this one:

http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=16854+PS

Buckpuck choice will depend on drive current and wether you want them dimmable or not. I would suggest 700mA dimmable buckpucks.

[jonnybravo22]

I was going to do the same thing, then my AI order became available so I'm selling the LEDS. have CREE XPGs and XREs for cheap:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=16497461#post16497461

[ecomdesign]

what about the kit from rapidled, which is designed for the 29g biocube???

http://www.rapidled.com/servlet/the-71/20-Ultra-Premium-LED/Detail