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View Full Version : I need help with a first time multichip actinic diy?


walkerbrody
12/07/2012, 10:33 PM
This will be my first attempt at a led diy. I currently have a 265g, 84x24x32 aquarium with 3x400w 20k halides. The bulbs are about ready to be changed, but I want to see how the led actinic supplimentation turns out before I decide on color of bulbs to buy next.
Im trying this as low cost as possible. I am trying to decide what led wattage and number to use. So far I am planning on using 10x 10w royal blue chineese leds. I was planning on putting these leds in two rows of 5 leds. One row on each slide of my halides.
Do you think this would be enough led lights? Not sure if having the led's a little over a foot apart would provide enough light. I am also not sure what driver(s) to use. Should I use dimmable driver(s). Obviously I dont know what im doing lol. but with a little help im sure i can make it through the build.

hillscp
12/08/2012, 09:21 AM
If I were you I would go over to the "Minimalistic multichip DIY LED" thread and post my exact requirements (tank size and what kind of stock etc). There are some experts who troll that thread (MR.WILSON for instance) and they can give you better advice than most anyone else.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2128756&page=138

HTH

Mike31154
12/08/2012, 11:12 AM
My DIY LED fixture uses exclusively 10 watt multichip emitters. Tank is much smaller than yours, 4ft long 16in wide & 24 in deep. The 27 chips are mounted on 3 rails of 9 emitters each which are spaced 4 & 1/2 inches apart. I do not use optics. This configuration with the emitters suspended 6 & 1/2 inches above the water surface provides more than adequate lighting for my photosynthetic livestock which includes anemones, LPS, softies & a few SPS. There is no spotlighting/disco effect to my eyes. Two outer rails of emitters are 4 Royal Blue (452-455NM), 5 10,000K White. Center rail is 5 Blue (465-470NM) & 4 6,000-7,000K White. Overall look is pleasing to me, not too blue.

https://ojcrhq.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pkWABwSg6NKW-zEf4Hv8WeK0kfBxnwaJpcYGedXNPjr_sBKnwGt36vUPqacE-2A37qIweS4bdn2s/P1050399E.JPG?psid=1

For your larger, deeper tank I suspect 5 emitters of 10 watts spaced a foot apart will have a difficult time competing with the intensity of your halides. I think you'll need to space them much tighter. How high you mount them & what type of optics you choose, if any, will also determine how effective (or not) they are. Also, if you're looking for actinic, you may wish to consider going with the UV chips starting to show up on the scene. I've seen a few now in the 395-397.5 range. They are more costly, but if actinic is what you're after, they may be worth the extra $$$s.

walkerbrody
12/08/2012, 11:39 AM
thanks for the sugestion hill. Great looking setup mike. I'll look into the uv chips.

daplatapus
12/08/2012, 12:58 PM
Hey Mike, what are you using for heatsinks?

hillscp
12/08/2012, 01:27 PM
As a side note, I run three 60W hybrids over my 125. Not enough light so I will be adding some.

The Hybrids are 30 chips 10000K + 30 chips 445-447nm Royal Blue.

I would say it is more on the pinkish purplish side than the smurf/mouth wash blue of the Phoenix 14K DE halides they replaced.

I am overdriving the chips with Meanwell HLG-80H-36B Power supplies (80W).

The same vendor has a 15 chips 10000K + 45 chips 445-447nm Royal Blue hybrid. It is probably pretty purple!

I am using Arctic Accelero L2 Plus heat syncs.

I gutted my old Current USA Halide fixture. It had a bad ballast and it was crap anyway.

If I had it to do again I would probably drive them at 100W or even better bought the 100W hybrids and run them at 150 or 200W. I might still do that or add some drivers in parallel. In any case, I need more light. I may still add some 420nm 10W and 465nm blues to the mix as well

As you can see I didn't get it quite right the first time. Experimenting is expensive which is why I would get good (professional) advice :)

All in all I am pretty happy. My corals are growing fantastically. It "Looks" just as bright as my old 150W halides (I'm pretty sure it is) and there is more PAR (although I don't really have a way to prove that)

Mike31154
12/09/2012, 03:31 PM
Hey Mike, what are you using for heatsinks?

Small heatsinks with built in 12 volt DC fans. They're usually available from the same vendors on fleabay that sell the LEDs. My goal was to avoid the weight of massive/passive heatsinks so popular with the 3 watt builds. My entire fixture weighs around 12 lbs IIRC. Downside is a lot more wiring to power 27 fans and they seem to be the weak link in the build so far. A couple of them have failed but luckily I have spares on hand, so replacement is not a problem. LEDs are still all good & going strong.

Here's a photo of the basic components. I only ordered 2 sets of optics just to see what they are all about. Once I had the fixture roughly slapped together, I decided not to use the optics. The way my build is configured with respect to LED spacing & height above water surface, optics are not required. In fact, they may end up promoting the 'hated' disco effect. Also, 27 glass lenses would have added a good chunk of weight & they're a pain to mount to the heatsinks.

https://ojcrhq.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pk2GHXXDEvL_BQhWdbwtP9RzQ0ISQQSgLkQx-EerbBSKhug64JmTJCUwFbFALwtRdn8sRWLUnIjA/P1040642e.JPG?psid=1

Another photo showing the top side of things, including the thin aluminum angle rails the heatsinks are screwed to. I used a bit of heatsink compound at each heatsink/rail interface in the hope of improving cooling further. As long as the fans are running, that's overkill. For the fan that failed, I have no idea how long the LED was on before I discovered the defunct fan, but it seems to have suffered no ill effect, so it's quite possible that passive cooling may be sufficient, but I'd rather err on the side of caution.

https://ojcrhq.blu.livefilestore.com/y1prK26DfqQ5dTAMpRVnCT32ZKZb9CrGB_0CVcxoRFGB5Iz8Z5Z8KvzIadLOp6QAME9n0ExUqejWBo/P1050408E.JPG?psid=1

At the risk of further hijacking the thread, here's a photo of the fixture hanging above the tank soon after I decided to ditch the MH/T5HO rig I had. Still need to finish trimming the frame & been trying to figure out how to cover the top to hide the wiring. Might finally have a lightweight solution after cutting some wood for another project.

https://ojcrhq.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pCBK7c8udbb7wmMUyee89artbAtJzUpgAMe1b7bdAqpqitniu8m_yf9TOaBpk2AEUIaje3GufYew/P1050443e.JPG?psid=1

nanolover80
12/10/2012, 01:17 AM
Mike, dude you just made my whole day .. er .. morning :) i have been looking for a wiring diagram of sorts, because i just got my multi chip leds and heat sinks and i love the way yours looks.

Mike31154
12/11/2012, 10:12 PM
Mike, dude you just made my whole day .. er .. morning :) i have been looking for a wiring diagram of sorts, because i just got my multi chip leds and heat sinks and i love the way yours looks.

Dank u. I have a LED build thread on a Canadian forum with same username if you'd like more details. PM me & I'll provide the link, although you shouldn't have a problem finding the forum using the words 'can' & reef.

nanolover80
12/11/2012, 10:37 PM
Dank u. I have a LED build thread on a Canadian forum with same username if you'd like more details. PM me & I'll provide the link, although you shouldn't have a problem finding the forum using the words 'can' & reef.

Hey Mike Nice build tread. Thanks for the link. Hey do you still have the monster reflectors from your old lights ?

Im going to be setting up a 55 gallon reef and am in need of 2 reflectors for 400W 20K Metal Halides. :)

Again nice build and thanks for the wiring pictures and build log.

Robert

Mike31154
12/14/2012, 08:41 PM
Hey Mike Nice build tread. Thanks for the link. Hey do you still have the monster reflectors from your old lights ?

Im going to be setting up a 55 gallon reef and am in need of 2 reflectors for 400W 20K Metal Halides. :)

Again nice build and thanks for the wiring pictures and build log.

Robert

Yes I still have the Halide reflectors. They are gathering dust in the basement. They are Lumenmax? type that I built out of solatube from a pattern I scored online. Not sure they're worth much any longer since they've got a good amount of salt spray & not sure it will come off anymore without ruining the mirror finish they used to have.