# LED DIY



## mow said

Here is my diy led fixture it Took me a week to complete . It's a 81w fixture.

Here are the tools and items i used to build this fixture.
1.Black diabond sheet 960mm x 260
2. 1mm aluminium sheet 960x260mm
3.3mm perspex 960x.260mm
4. 2mm cast acrylic 50x 600mm
5. u channel i do not remember the size but its for holding the pieces together
6. m3 screws ,2.5mm drill bit and m3 tap
7. 90 led chips 1w epistar(20 full spectrum 30 10000k and 40 6500k)  and three 18-36w 1w led drivers from china .
8. 3 DC power jack female to male 2metre
9. 100 Heat sink base plate
10. acrylic cutter blade tool
11.22awg black and red wire
12. thermal conductive heat sink plaster
13. 12mm drill bit to drill the holes on the perspex

Any questions please ask i will try my best to answer


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## mow said

1.sheets bought in the uk




2.measure with a ruler where the holes are to be drilled on the perspex




3.half of the holes drilled




4.Drill bit used is from b&q i think it was 12mm u can used waterver drill but size you want but be careful and use a flat surface to drill the perspex as it can crack



5.All drilled


 







6.Glued clear acrylic on the side of the aluminium sheet so that i can have space for the leds and the wires when the u channel is put on




7.Bought these from china led heatsinks






8.Making sure all fits perfect and drilled holes with a 2.5mm drill and used an m3 tap so that i can screw the fixture




9.here is the screw inserted




10.Glued all the heatsink and led chips together , i do not have a picture showing wiring diagram but you can ask if you have any questions




11>Booom and it lights up





12.Here is the dc wires i used . each wire has its own channel. you can use one two or all three channels if you want




13.And here is the final product


 





Tank size: optiwhite 100x40x40 . I understand that i am missing allot of things in this DIY tutorial but do not hesitate to ask i will try my best to help.


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## markk

Nice build.

How hot does it get after running a few hours? I'd be slightly worried that there isn't much of a heat sink and very little airflow - and the dilite sheet might act as an insulator.

Cheers, Mark



Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk


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## mow said

hey mark, 
im using 1mm aluminium plus diabond on top which acts like a heat sink too. i have run this for 24 hours and it does not get hot at all. And i have also placed the led chips far apart . I used 1w led so these dnt produce that much heat as 3w led chips. And for the air there is holes drilled so its oki that way. I have one built on my old juwel and i only used diabond sheet and its been running for a year with no issues.


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## zozo

Nice build..  But might want to take a look at COB led units if you ever want to build one again. Those 1 and 3 watt cree high powers getting outperformed and out of date by now.  COB led also is more cost effective, need less units for same performance.


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## mow said

hey zozo thanks and i am using epistar not cree and look at this guy  he is using COB led chips and epistar leds together. And on his other videos his only using epistar chips and his aquariums look amazing. Its about mixing lights together to get the best colour. In my fixture i have used full sprectrum /10000k and 6500k leds. And there is not much difference between cob and high power led chips in aquarium use .http://www.cob-led.com/COB-LED-Advantage-Chip-on-board.html


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## zozo

Yes that's a nice looking tank..  I guess best color is a personal preference. But i mean, cree or epistar doesn't make much a difference regarding model. Constructionaly you would already have an advantage with the cob units.. E.g. currently building me a little fixture for a nano tank. With 2 COB led units each + 2000 lumen. If i would have taken highpower cree or epistar on a star PCB i would have needed to fix a lot more units to it to get same output, than just 2 cob units.   1 watt high power has maybe 100 / 120 lumen each, that would have been around 40 leds etc. And COB can save a lot of work and probably cost. So i was not refering to beter light and or color mixture. Just cost effective building..

Not yet all ordered material arrived, but when it does and the build is ready. Planning a little journal for it..

Thanks for the link thats interesting..


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## mow said

i get your point now can i see your cob build   . How much is your budget i built one for my nano tank as well 2 months ago.


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## zozo

Yes sure you can see, as said not all material i need arrived but is ordered. I'll make a journal about it. With al materials used. Regarding cost about $20 maybe less for a 40cm light stand completely made out of aluminium with 4000 lumen output. (without controler and PSU ofcourse) It's only half way finished now. I was out of M4 blind rivet nuts and some M3 stand off columns i need to finish it..

You know ebay orders  can take e few weeks.. Ordered it last week. So have to wait. But once i have it all it'l be finished in about 2 hours work.


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## mow said

nice this cost me around £70 but as you can see i wanted to build a nice fixture for the optiwhite tank. Made sure it matches the cabinet rather than splashing more than £100 for a brand one which you can't even upgrade or control. Let me know once your done with your build so i can see the end progress and i know those ebay orders are a pain


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## mow said

here is the pic matching the cabinet


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## zozo

Looks realy nice..  great job..


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## mow said

following up on this thread after a week and a half of planting using co2 and the led that i made my self. Plants are growing no signs of algae yet . The led is 81 watts total . First channel i have 36 leds second channel is 26 and the third is 19 watts . First week i used the first and third channel which is a total of 55 watts on my second week i am using first and second channel which is a total of 62 watts. light are on from 20:00 to 00:30 so 4 hours and half and co2 from 18:00 to 23:00 which is 5 hours.Using a bazooka diffuser atm as i am waiting on an inline diffuser .I live in london and i use 100 percent tap water nothing else.The scape is not finished i will put hair grass in coming weeks and I am also using ei salts and magnessium too Any questions please ask .


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## mow said

after a little trim


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## mow said

following this thread up. Leds are working fine as i said before i am going to play with the channels. currently i am using only 2 channels out of three which in total is 55 watts power. I tried to use the other channel and one i am currently using which is 65 watts and started to get green spot algae on the glass. Overall i had little but of diatoms which got taken care of in a day by amano shrimps. Little bit of bba on one java fern which is now gone i am sure it was because of co2 fluctuation but now my co2 levels are stable. The light is 81 watts but i am only using 55 watts and everything is growing fast, i am trimming weekley and also 50-70 percent water change weekley. Lights are on 6 hours a day 25 watts from 19:30 then from 20:00 55 watts till 00:00 back to 25 watts till 01:30.


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## mow said




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## mow said

another update pictures taken on 4/7/2017. All led working as they should i havent encountered any problems till this date. Plants are growing like crazy with 60 watts on for 5 hours and 2 hours with only 25 watts.


 
hygrophila polysperma


 

ludwigia glandulosa converting from emersed, cabomba red , pogostemon stella and myriophyllum mattogrossense


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## lemw

This looks great, I'd love to do something similar for a tank I'm setting up but have no experience with this. I've got a few questions I'd appreciate help with from how you've done yours:

Firstly the layout of it, am I correct in saying that it is

Black diabond sheet (outer top layer).
Aluminium sheet (acts as heat sink).
Wireing of LEDs between these layers.
Perspecs sheet (LEDs go through this).
Acrylic sheet (bottom layer facing the water).


And for the LEDs, the Ines which look red in your photos - are these the full spectrum ones?

Thanks


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## mow said

hey lemw,
yes every thing you mentioned is correct i can send you all the link for the items i bought from china and here in the uk. Also i can give you more details here , send me your tank dimension and what you intend to use it for, high tech or low tech and i can let you know what will be the best wattage for you.The reason i am asking all these details its because you might not need an aluminium sheet  in the middle because if the fixture is the less than 40 watts then you will only need the diabond sheet.


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## mow said

emersed christmas moss 



myriophyllum mattogrossense


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## mow said

Here is another update did allot of trimming this week. In upcoming weeks i am going to make this led controllable which i will post here.


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## mow said

updated the led with a controller video coming soon. I am able to mimic sunrise to sundown now. Will update this thread soon.


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## mow said

Sunrise



100%



Sundown


The speed was done 300x so that you can see how its works . Lights are on from 6pm till 4:30 am which is 10 and a half hours total.


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## mow said

Another update today trimmed allot of plants and added some ludwigia glandulosa on the right looks abit bendy  atm


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## Costa

This is great Mow Said, well done! Amazing growth, great looking, lush plants!

I am thinking of replicating this for my 200 x 60 x 60 cm tank, and would very much appreciate some guidance on what to buy and a little hand holding putting it all together (although I don't live in the UK)


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## Cactusface

Hi,
      I didn't find COB LEDS that good, in fact some individual leds failed to work after a time. The 1W leds seem to be doing the job, with good coverage  better then COBS, are these from China? and quite cheap or not?

Mel.


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## mow said

Costa said:


> This is great Mow Said, well done! Amazing growth, great looking, lush plants!
> 
> I am thinking of replicating this for my 200 x 60 x 60 cm tank, and would very much appreciate some guidance on what to buy and a little hand holding putting it all together (although I don't live in the UK)



hey were are you from and it can be done easily depends what you using the tank for co2 planted or low tech. That size of a tank you will be looking to spend close to 500 on led units but if you make your own like mine it would be way cheaper let me know what kind of tank you will running.




Cactusface said:


> Hi,
> I didn't find COB LEDS that good, in fact some individual leds failed to work after a time. The 1W leds seem to be doing the job, with good coverage  better then COBS, are these from China? and quite cheap or not?
> i got the leds from china been using them since last year no issues at all. And yes they are cheap 80 for a tenner.
> 
> Mel.


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## Costa

mow said said:


> hey were are you from and it can be done easily depends what you using the tank for co2 planted or low tech. That size of a tank you will be looking to spend close to 500 on led units but if you make your own like mine it would be way cheaper let me know what kind of tank you will running.



Hey @mow said, thanks for the reply. I am based in Athens Greece and I do have access to all the items you described in your project. I was thinking of glueing the LEDs on a 2-3 mm aluminum piece directly, for better heat dissipation. I've never done this before so I really look forward to your suggestions.

Thanks again
Costa


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## mow said

hey costa send me a message directly so we can discuss properly


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## zozo

Cactusface said:


> I didn't find COB LEDS that good, in fact some individual leds failed to work after a time.



I can imagine, having a bad experience with a bad manufactured COB or maybe an very early generation that you might think it's in the type of led. But it isn't, it's more likely bad luck. I'm using COB leds now for over 1 year, still the same units, no problems at all. Both types of LED can do the job realy well. You also can buy bad quality 1 watt or 3 watt HP LEDs.


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## mow said

Update to this thread I drew a diagram on adobe illustrator to demonstrate how and what i used to dim my leds i hope it's helpful to anyone that is doing a diy led and wants to dim the unit.


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## rebel

Thanks so much for the circuit diagram. It is clear to me now as to how to wire up such a system. 

@mow said, what's the voltage for each led string with this system? I am thinking that 6x3W leds would need about 6x3V = 18V across each string?? or for 6x1W led should be 6x1v = 6V or there abouts?


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## Barbara Turner

Hi Mow 
Looks really good, How long did it take you to solder? My DIY light took a while and I only have 25 Cobs



Costa said:


> I was thinking of glueing the LEDs on a 2-3 mm aluminium piece directly



You can buy adhesive thermal paste that will give you far better results. sorry it's a uk link.. Hopefully, you can find similar.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Thermal-...hash=item3f7a370a19:m:mUqVxPUog5TWL4BSJ2FnadQ

Interesting mix of colours, I went for cool white,  full spectrum and cyan. It does look slightly pink but plants are doing well.

First batch of Cob's have given me some problems, they're meant to be 10w but blow up if you run then anything over 5w.
Just got another batch and haven't had any problems so far.


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## mow said

[/QUOTE]



You will need a 1R8 ohm which is 1.8 ohm 2w resistor for 3w led. And you can wire 6 leds with it aswell. So it is not the same resistor used with 1w make sure its the 1R8 ohm /1.8 ohm 2w resistor for 6 3w leds


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## mow said

rebel said:


> Thanks so much for the circuit diagram. It is clear to me now as to how to wire up such a system.
> 
> @mow said, what's the voltage for each led string with this system? I am thinking that 6x3W leds would need about 6x3V = 18V across each string?? or for 6x1W led should be 6x1v = 6V or there abouts?





rebel said:


> Thanks so much for the circuit diagram. It is clear to me now as to how to wire up such a system.
> 
> @mow said, what's the voltage for each led string with this system? I am thinking that 6x3W leds would need about 6x3V = 18V across each string?? or for 6x1W led should be 6x1v = 6V or there abouts?






You will need a 1R8 ohm which is 1.8 ohm 2w resistor for 3w led. And you can wire 6 leds with it aswell. So it is not the same resistor used with 1w make sure its the 1R8 ohm /1.8 ohm 2w resistor for 6 3w leds


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## mow said

Obviously there is two resistors on this one but here is an example of how it should be soldered on the lm317, you will only need one resistor connected to the lm317 (1R8).Make sure you use a thermal pad as you can on the picture and a pad underneath the resistor aa you do not want to get electrocuted. Hope it helps


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## mow said

When you use 24V power supply and 6 leds per 1 lm317 connected to resistor there is a limit factor. You can use more power than you need but not less. The led unit will draw what it needs. So if you have 500w supply and the leds you have only draws 100w then it will only draw that much power nothing more.


[How much can leds you connect with a single LM317/resistor ]
32V driver (8)  leds
24V driver (6) leds
12V driver (3) leds


If you want to use 3W LEDs you will need 1.8 ohm resistor -/ which is equal to  695mA

(200pcs/lot) 1.8 Ohm 2W Watt  5% Carbon Metal Oxide Film Resistor
http://s.aliexpress.com/EB77nmeU?fromSns=Copy to Clipboard

To calculate what power supply you need to multiply ranks(6 led per rank) x mA = Amp

Example
8 ranks (6- 3w led per rank) X 0,7 A = 5.6 Amp
24v driver x 5.6 = 134.4
Make sure u have 10% power on the driver extra and for this reason i would get a 24v 200w driver. You can get 150 but to be careful i would go for 200w as they dont come in 180w/190w etc.
Do not forget each channel on the tc420 has a 4 amp max rating so to calculate this for 3w led/
5 Ranks (6 leds per rank) x 0.7 = 3.5
24v ( power supply) X 3.5= 84w
So this means max you can do is 4amp so you can only create 5 ranks per channel which is 84w and 84w x 4 channels = 336 w totals. So tc420 can handle 480w even more but to be safe 336w would be good enough as we using resistors and drivers.





As you can see the diagram i drew has 96 1w leds and 16 ranks all together.

16 x 0.3 ma = 4.8
24v x 4.8 = 115w
Power supply used was 6.5 amp 150w.

Ofcorse the number of leds is 96 and that is 96w but the led unit will draw more power something like 115w depending on how you dimmer the lights.

Let me know what you intend to make and i can draw a sketch for you as i do not have a pc atm.


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## mow said

Barbara Turner said:


> Hi Mow
> Looks really good, How long did it take you to solder? My DIY light took a while and I only have 25 Cobs
> 
> You can buy adhesive thermal paste that will give you far better results. sorry it's a uk link.. Hopefully, you can find similar.
> https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Thermal-...hash=item3f7a370a19:m:mUqVxPUog5TWL4BSJ2FnadQ
> 
> Interesting mix of colours, I went for cool white,  full spectrum and cyan. It does look slightly pink but plants are doing well.
> 
> First batch of Cob's have given me some problems, they're meant to be 10w but blow up if you run then anything over 5w.
> Just got another batch and haven't had any problems so far.



Hey barbara ,

It took me a day i think it was like 8 hours. As i bought all material precut all i had to is get a ruler , measure , glue and solder. And soldering is very long but once you get the hang of it its all good.

Cob leds produce allot of heat i think @zozo knows more about cob leds than me. Show me you set up and what you are using maybe i can help you.
But in the future you can make something like this maybe. These pictures are not mine btw but i know were to get all these material online. I have all the link were to buy everything anyone who needs to build one just let me know and i would be happy to provide link to were you can buy drivers,heatsinks,leds and others


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## zozo

mow said said:


> Cob leds produce allot of heat i think @zozo knows more about cob leds than me



I never builded something with HP leds, so i have nothing to compare.. And cobs are in several designs available. I have a few DC12 constant voltage units in use with a 1000 lum per unit that stay pretty cool to the touch if a proper heatsink is used. The smaller constant current cobs 30 volt 350mA 7 Watt/750 lum get significantly hotter..


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## Barbara Turner

I'm using a

10 - Cool white 10w Cobs 
10 - Full Spectrum10w Cobs
5 - Green 10w Cobs

You can see them glued down to the Aluminium profile with thermal adhesive paste. 
I wired them in series in batches of 5 
I'm then using 5 boost converters that allow me to run constant current or constant voltage these are run off 2  x 24v laptop power supplies
These are swiched on and off with a 4 channel sonoff controller that allows me to turn them on and off via my phone, It also set up schedule and controls CO2


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## mow said

Barbara Turner said:


> I'm using a
> 
> 10 - Cool white 10w Cobs
> 10 - Full Spectrum10w Cobs
> 5 - Green 10w Cobs
> 
> You can see them glued down to the Aluminium profile with thermal adhesive paste.
> I wired them in series in batches of 5
> I'm then using 5 boost converters that allow me to run constant current or constant voltage these are run off 2  x 24v laptop power supplies
> These are swiched on and off with a 4 channel sonoff controller that allows me to turn them on and off via my phone, It also set up schedule and controls CO2
> 
> View attachment 115301View attachment 115302View attachment 115298View attachment 115299 View attachment 115297View attachment 115300




Good build i can see the controller box has led driver correct me if im wrong. Is the driver rated for 10w leds. As i can see you have 25 leds and 5 driver that tells me each driver is rated for 5 /10w leds. The problem i see is the profile you are using. Its not good enough as these wont even be good for a 3w leds. The heat spread is minimal. Hence why leds cant go over 5w they heat up and fry.


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## Barbara Turner

mow said said:


> Hence why leds cant go over 5w they heat up and fry.



The small Alu channel profile Is glued with adhesive paste and riveted to a 5mm x 1m x 200mm sheet of aluminium. 
It only gets up to about 40 degrees with everything running flat out. 
It could possibly do with a collection of heat sinks along the top and painting a darker colour.  

But at the minute I don't ever run it flat out, the tank is only 1.2m long and only been set up for about a month. 
Be a good way to turn everything green. 

Be nice to borrow a PAR meter and find out how much light I actually have.


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## mow said

Here is a friends tank. I helped him build his light. Its a 144w light with 1w led .120x50x50


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## mow said

Barbara Turner said:


> The small Alu channel profile Is glued with adhesive paste and riveted to a 5mm x 1m x 200mm sheet of aluminium.
> It only gets up to about 40 degrees with everything running flat out.
> It could possibly do with a collection of heat sinks along the top and painting a darker colour.
> 
> But at the minute I don't ever run it flat out, the tank is only 1.2m long and only been set up for about a month.
> Be a good way to turn everything green.
> 
> Be nice to borrow a PAR meter and find out how much light I actually have.



You have to spread the heat across rememebr you have 130 watts per channel and those are 10w led chips. If you run them 100% you will run into trouble i can gurantee you. Also they wont last long with the aluminiumn heat sinks you have, by this i mean if they have a life span of 50000 hours and they are running hot all the time they will only last 10000 hours and they will give up. And yes i would love to have a par meter too but they are not cheap devices. What i do is calculate lumens per litre and its worked for me.

My 1w leds are 100-110 lumens .
72w is my fixure that i am using
100(lumens)x72w= 7200
7200 lumens devided by 160litre which is my tank volume = 45 lumens per litre.


This is from tropica and it worked for me.


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## zozo

Barbara Turner said:


> I'm using a
> 
> 10 - Cool white 10w Cobs
> 10 - Full Spectrum10w Cobs
> 5 - Green 10w Cobs
> 
> You can see them glued down to the Aluminium profile with thermal adhesive paste.
> I wired them in series in batches of 5
> I'm then using 5 boost converters that allow me to run constant current or constant voltage these are run off 2  x 24v laptop power supplies
> These are swiched on and off with a 4 channel sonoff controller that allows me to turn them on and off via my phone, It also set up schedule and controls CO2
> 
> View attachment 115301View attachment 115302View attachment 115298View attachment 115299 View attachment 115297View attachment 115300



You might find this an interesting video. skip it to 25.30 minute.. This guy explaines it very good what to look out for and how drivers work using these 10 watt HP cob leds and run them properly. He uses a very cheap available PT4115 driver.. He doesn't explain the dim function. But this is rather easy with connecting PIN 8 from the PT chip to the TC420 mosfet Gate Pin..


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## rebel

@mow said, do you what happens if I wire up everything according to your diagram and connect 24V directly to it without the TC420??


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## mow said

rebel said:


> @mow said, do you what happens if I wire up everything according to your diagram and connect 24V directly to it without the TC420??




You will need a 24v driver ofcorse. If you plan to build 100w then again 150w 24v driver is needed. Led driver is a must!!!!
Buy a tc420 its only 15 quid and its worth it.


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## lazybones51

@mow said  i've been following this thread for a while and just wanted to post to say thanks for sharing your findings 

The Arcadia stretch i've been using has started to fail with only 1/2 of the leds illuminating. I'm planning on refitting the nice aluminium fitting with more powerful leds like in your fittings.


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## mow said

No problem if you need any help just come back to the this and leave a comment. And please do post your build if you can.


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## rebel

@lazybones51 , thats great that you have a heat sink ready to go. Make sure you water proof your electronics also .

@mow said , thanks for all your tips. By the way, where did you get a 4 foot sink? I havent found such a large heat sink .Thinking of linking up 2 foot ones.


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## lazybones51

rebel said:


> @lazybones51 , thats great that you have a heat sink ready to go. Make sure you water proof your electronics also .


Yes it is, from the brief look I had online it seems that large heatsinks are expensive! Has anybody looked at encasing the electronics in some form of resin for water protection?


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## mow said

rebel said:


> @lazybones51 , thats great that you have a heat sink ready to go. Make sure you water proof your electronics also .
> 
> @mow said , thanks for all your tips. By the way, where did you get a 4 foot sink? I havent found such a large heat sink .Thinking of linking up 2 foot ones.



What is your tank measurements and what is your plan for it. High tech , medium or low. Reason i am asking because if you want a low tech then you might not need all these fancy stuff and go with leds + drivers , no resistors or lm317.


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## mow said

lazybones51 said:


> Yes it is, from the brief look I had online it seems that large heatsinks are expensive! Has anybody looked at encasing the electronics in some form of resin for water protection?



Water protection? I used a perspex sheet cut to size. Very cheap also it was around less than 10 quid online. No need for resin


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## rebel

@mow said , My tank will be a 4 footer. It will be high tech and I need to hang the light high above the tank potentially. At least 60cm above the tank. My plan is to use 45 degree lenses.

I am also up to the challenge of such a build but I need it to be very neat like yours as it will be a display tank. I am very finicky with colour rendition and don't know exactly what I like. I think I will like a purple tinted crisp white look. Probably more heavy on the blues.


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## rebel

lazybones51 said:


> Yes it is, from the brief look I had online it seems that large heatsinks are expensive! Has anybody looked at encasing the electronics in some form of resin for water protection?


Never heard of any options. I just use the spray-on water proofing for electronics.


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## lazybones51

mow said said:


> Water protection? I used a perspex sheet cut to size. Very cheap also it was around less than 10 quid online. No need for resin


That's good to know


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## lazybones51

rebel said:


> Never heard of any options. I just use the spray-on water proofing for electronics.


I'm new to diy electronics and didn't know such a thing existed , thanks for the heads up!


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## ian_m

I have used sprays like this to moisture proof electronics.
https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/electronics-varnishes-lacquers/8232646/

Need to be careful around any connectors and wire attachments as the lacquer will prevent connectors connecting and will crack and fall off around wires.

To moisture proof connectors and wires use non corrosive silicone (or hot glue).
https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/silicone-sealants/0494118/

Notice I use the words moisture proof, not water proof !!!


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## zozo

ian_m said:


> I have used sprays like this to moisture proof electronics.
> https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/electronics-varnishes-lacquers/8232646/
> 
> Need to be careful around any connectors and wire attachments as the lacquer will prevent connectors connecting and will crack and fall off around wires.
> 
> To moisture proof connectors and wires use non corrosive silicone (or hot glue).
> https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/silicone-sealants/0494118/
> 
> Notice I use the words moisture proof, not water proof !!!



You might find stuff like that in regular automotive shops as rustbuster.. Epoxy resin spray to apply over rust without further ado.. It brings an air tight waterproof epoxy coat over the rust or anything else that it is sprayed upon. And sold by Conrad Electronics i see..
https://www.conrad-electronic.co.uk/ce/en/product/829564/Brunox----EPOXY----BR040EP----400-ml

But actualy a regular 2 component epoxy would even be eaiser to apply with a brush and than you decide the layer thicknes.. As long as the components aren't mixed it is indefinitely shelf live if stored dark. Just need a little weight scale to mix 100/50 or 100/60 parts in small amounts. I already have it for 5 years on the shelf and still using it.. Mater a fact 2 days ago, it still is ok.. (so the 1 year shelf life on the bottle is commercial bs)..  And it has about 45 minutes work time, it slowly cures, in 20 minutes it will be a thick syrup, still able to apply it, but it wont run so much anymore..


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## mow said

I havent used any waterproof sprays on my unit. Its been more than a year and nothing. As long as you use a sheet on top of the wiring you will be safe. I used a black perspex sheet the measurements are in page one. You can use any colour you wish even clear acrylic sheet will do. Perspex is acrylic, easy and simple no need to buy sprays but it's up to you. You think twinstar or chihiros use any sprays i


----------



## mow said

rebel said:


> @mow said , My tank will be a 4 footer. It will be high tech and I need to hang the light high above the tank potentially. At least 60cm above the tank. My plan is to use 45 degree lenses.
> 
> I am also up to the challenge of such a build but I need it to be very neat like yours as it will be a display tank. I am very finicky with colour rendition and don't know exactly what I like. I think I will like a purple tinted crisp white look. Probably more heavy on the blues.




Dimensions in cm h/w/l please


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## rebel

mow said said:


> Dimensions in cm h/w/l please


@mow said , 120x45x45 cm most likely. Tank is in planning stage.


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## mow said

https://www.tme.eu/en/details/rad-p3698_1000/radiators/stonecold/

3w leds i would go for.
And dont hang up the light too far you will loose par 65cm is too far.
I would use 60degrees lenses for the front let's and back with 90 degrees lenses in the middle for a good spread. The heat sink is 15cm w , your tank is 45cm so I would use 60d for side to get the tank lit properly.


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## lazybones51

I've just ordered my leds, heatsink bases and thermal adhesive. I have got the other bits and pieces required, including the Arcadia i'll be repurposing. As the Arcadia is a decent sized heatsink I opted for 3w leds, hopefully it'll be able to displace the extra heat OK, there's one way to find out


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## rebel

mow said said:


> https://www.tme.eu/en/details/rad-p3698_1000/radiators/stonecold/
> 
> 3w leds i would go for.
> And dont hang up the light too far you will loose par 65cm is too far.
> I would use 60degrees lenses for the front let's and back with 90 degrees lenses in the middle for a good spread. The heat sink is 15cm w , your tank is 45cm so I would use 60d for side let's to get the tank lit properly.


Thanks for your links and recommendations. I wont need too high light. Just need fairly even light through the tank; top to bottom . By lifting the light, this becomes easier .

That heatsink is good! I will see whether they can deliver to  Australia .


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## mow said

Led chips
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Hon...32672028527.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.xl0VwY



Cable for wiring
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Tin...32329297720.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.cEsRYl



Glue thermal silicone

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2Pc...32637525833.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.cEsRYl



Base plate
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...32243603937.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.cEsRYl


Lenses

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/50-...mm-Mini-LED-Lens-for-IR-CCTV/32385927660.ht

Alumiuum sheet only for 1w leds

https://www.aluminiumwarehouse.co.uk/aluminium-sheet-cut-to-order

Glue aluminium sheet with composite to hold it together. See page 1 for more details. For 1w leds only

https://plasticonline.co.uk/cut-to-size-plastic/aluminium-comp/black-aluminium-composite-sheet.html

For 3w use this.
https://www.tme.eu/en/details/rad-p3698_1000/radiators/stonecold/


Acrylic Sheets

https://plasticonline.co.uk/acrylic...ur/black/black-extruded-xt-acrylic-sheet.html

Tc420/tc421 controller
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/LED...32341378232.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.HkZRDA

24v 150wdriver

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/AC-...-f853-4ec9-9f64-916cc1da33cf&rmStoreLevelAB=0

Lm317

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Fre...32549487669.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.qv0A4R


Resistor for 3w leds not 1w. 1.8ohm 2w / you can get these anywere but make sure they are the correct ones .
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/200...-758c-47aa-9326-354b57518683&rmStoreLevelAB=0

Thermal pads for lm317
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/New...-1799-4b29-8aa6-e7e553b07cdf&rmStoreLevelAB=0

0.75 mm or higher because of the amps the transformer/driver releases
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12v-24v-2...-black-/321931450179?var=&hash=item4af49c1743






Will add more links


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## mow said

Place the thermal pad and use the silicone thermal glue to glue the lm317 simple. The black pad is foam pad as you dont want the resistors touching the heatsink.


----------



## mow said

Important you need one of these. I too had no clue how to use one. Had to learn and make sure you test voltage on all leds once your build is complete. When you do a bad soldering and you trying to figure out which led is not connected out of 100leds its not fun at all. This will make your job easy and buy any multimeter you want but this is what i used.
https://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-mas830b-digital-multimeter-600v/75337


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## mow said

I will be updating this thread . People have been messaging me for a non dimmable version. I will make a new project on adobe illustrator and add all the parts needed for a non dimmable version. Do not use the previous project if you are not going to dimm the leds.  i have a simple way for people that want a non dimmable led unit thanks.


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## mow said

Building a pc at the moment once my build is finished i will update this thread for you folks that want a simple non dimmable led unit.


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## lazybones51

It took a while (i've got too many DIY projects on the go...) but my light is up and running 

I started by breaking down the failed/failing 23w Arcadia stretch unit in to it's component pieces. The circuitry is mounted to an aluminium flat bar which can be pulled out of the heatsink once the end caps are removed. Removing the old circuitry was tedious and I did result to using a fine grade flap disk to clean up the area.



 




Once clean and polished assembly was pretty straight forward. As you can see I crammed a lot in to not much space, power wise it's running on 12v at around 50w on full power.













Unfortunately the original perspex cover no longer fit in it's slot due to the height of the new components. I temporarily attached it using elastic bands but will come up with a more permanent solution soon. Only the cables are touching the perspex and it's not getting hot, should be ok... 

I'm not sure why but the LED's I got appear to have different colour characteristics to what @mow said has in his photos, none of them are pink/purple. You can't see it in the photo but there are three different colour temperatures in there.




Trial fitted to my rather bare tank. This was more of an practise run for when I upgrade to an EA Aquascaper 900...





I'm not running it much over 70% and it's slightly warm to the touch. During a full power test it does get hot, but not so hot you can't touch it. It's a bit Heath Robinson but it works


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## mow said

@lazybones51 wow that is amazing also you could of put 6 leds per Lm317 +resistors as these do get hot the lesser the better . If you can upload pictures of drivers and information about the resistors and controller you using as it would help others too.And when are you building the light for aquascaper 900.


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## lazybones51

@mow said Thanks!

This is the parts list from my build, based on the original list @mow said posted:

1.8 Ohm 2w Metal film resistors

LM317T Variable voltage regulators
3w Epistar LEDs - Colour range is: full spectrum, 10000k and 6500k. However I don't trust I got the colours I ordered.
3w LED aluminium heatsinks
Thermal paste
I'm using a Mean Well PWM-60-12 driver. This is a 12v constant voltage driver which I was using with the original Arcadia Stretch unit as the standard driver didn't offer any dimming. This driver accepts a PWM signal for dimming, which i'm supplying via a Raspberry PI Zero running on Reef Pi. 

More information on the Reef Pi project here, information on the specific lighting controller aspect of the Reef Pi project can be found here.


----------



## mow said

Amazing i kinda guessed those were 10000k and 6500k leds. And i forgot you using 12v so only 3 x 3w leds per lm317 + resistor . Future reference though better of with a 24v for the 900 aquascaper tank you will have less lm317 to put which = less heat. But so far im impressed cannot wait to see your other light. When will it be ready  , will you use the pi if so please share full guide im intrested in a pi now got confused reading the project lol ​


----------



## zozo

Nice build!..  But, without pun intended, it just surprises me and wondering about it!?.. Why do you guys still hangon to that old fashion HP LED?.. Since development in the led industry goes at such a fast pace..

Take for axample the <2B#C COB unit>, also already a few years on the market.. It outperforms the regular 3 watt Epistar quite a bit, almost a factor 2. And is about equal in size by surface but 4 times as flat and doesnt get as hot.


----------



## lazybones51

mow said said:


> Amazing i kinda guessed those were 10000k and 6500k leds. And i forgot you using 12v so only 3 x 3w leds per lm317 + resistor . Future reference though better of with a 24v for the 900 aquascaper tank you will have less lm317 to put which = less heat. But so far im impressed cannot wait to see your other light. When will it be ready


Yeah, when I make the fixture for the Aquascaper 900 i'll use a higher voltage power supply. I was using what I had to hand this time around 

Next time I might use Meanwell LDD constant current drivers, paired with a higher voltage power supply. Similar to this build over on one of the Reef forums, https://www.nano-reef.com/forums/to...ntroller-on-the-cheap-seriously/#entry4214446

The next build won't be happening for a while, as the new tank is dependant on redecorating and getting new carpet for our living room. I've got a few other things which need doing first.


----------



## lazybones51

zozo said:


> Nice build!..  But, without pun intended, it just surprises me and wondering about it!?.. Why do you guys still hangon to that old fashion HP LED?.. Since development in the led industry goes at such a fast pace..
> 
> Take for axample the <2B#C COB unit>, also already a few years on the market.. It outperforms the regular 3 watt Epistar quite a bit, almost a factor 2. And is about equal in size by surface but 4 times as flat and doesnt get as hot.


I used them because they're cheap and this was my first time attempting to build a light unit like this. If I made a mistake it would only cost pennies instead of pounds  Ten Epistars cost just over £1, where as 1 COB cost £2.


----------



## zozo

lazybones51 said:


> I used them because they're cheap and this was my first time attempting to build a light unit like this. If I made a mistake it would only cost pennies instead of pounds  Ten Epistars cost just over £1, where as 1 COB cost £2.



I'm not from the UK, but i always order from Asian Wholesale sources.

https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/Outs...108.1000016.1.42686a59RIhVkH&isOrigTitle=true

https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/Big-...108.1000016.1.41ec76a4RlB8EK&isOrigTitle=true

I must confirm, buying overseas finding a proper quality source can take time and patience. It requires a small batch order first to check quality. Buying this from a local vendor easier to contact, reflects in it's price ofcourse, for in most cases the very same product.


----------



## mow said

zozo said:


> Nice build!..  But, without pun intended, it just surprises me and wondering about it!?.. Why do you guys still hangon to that old fashion HP LED?.. Since development in the led industry goes at such a fast pace..
> 
> Take for axample the <2B#C COB unit>, also already a few years on the market.. It outperforms the regular 3 watt Epistar quite a bit, almost a factor 2. And is about equal in size by surface but 4 times as flat and doesnt get as hot.




Hey @zozo there is many reason why im using these other than cobs leds. First there is not allot of range when it comes to cob leds. You cant mix and match to get the colour you want maybe in the future but not now. Another option is to use SMD leds but the problem is you need a board for it, many companys such as Ada , twinstar and others are using SMD. Its not easy to solder SMD leds without proper manufacturing equipment.Maybe in the future i will make a SMD when the boards are easy to get. You can email Chinese people with the designs you want and they will make you a PCB board which is not cheap and you will need a PCB soldering machine. Anyways my point is cob leds are good but they are not cheap and they do not have many colours. Also advantages of cobs are not that much.



As for lumens not that much difference with the one you linked . MCOB is a new led type which i have not seen before.



And as you can see not much diffence with the ones you linked as they are aluminium . The ceramic cobs are good but expensive.
( 10pcs Cree XLamp CXA1507 15W Ceramics COB LED Array Light EasyWhite 5000K Warm White 3000K with or without Holder
http://s.aliexpress.com/fEZrQjQr?fromSns=Copy to Clipboard )

My point is the best leds you can use in an aquarium right now for diy are SMD if you can source a company that can make you a pcb and solder the leds for you. If you live in china then its like walking to a corner shop. For now 1w 3w leds are the best for a DIY unit with colour mixing. As @lazybones51 said cheap to replace.


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## zozo

@mow said  Thank you.. It makes sense.. Just was wondering..



mow said said:


> My point is the best leds you can use in an aquarium right now for diy are SMD if you can source a company that can make you a pcb and solder the leds for you. If you live in china then its like walking to a corner shop. For now 1w 3w leds are the best for a DIY unit with colour mixing. As @lazybones51 said cheap to replace.



I absolutely agree, my last build was from the SMD 8520 Dual chip.. After using this a few years i don't think i ever need anything else.. They are extremely durable, stay rather warm than hot in comparison. Are absolutely strong enough with 65 lumen per chip it's also enough for a high tech setup up to 40 cm tall tank. Awfully simple to drive and control with a 12 volt constant voltage and PWM. Already come from factory on a rigid aluminium PCB.
https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/50cm...108.1000016.1.109511f8AOoVUg&isOrigTitle=true

Must say afetr using 4 metre of this strip vor 3 years above an open top tank. I feel like done searching for beter.. It doesn't need to be..  But that's a mater of personal perception and preference.

SIngle led PCB version is 72 chips p/m ot so long ago i saw the 120 chip p/m double row on 1 PCB version. 
Yet not sure if the Double row comes in dual chip, not yet seen it.
https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/Kore...108.1000016.1.400e1b965pmsi9&isOrigTitle=true

And also this is already 3 years old, i wouldn't be surpised if there already is a beter performing SMD.


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## lazybones51

zozo said:


> @mow said  Thank you.. It makes sense.. Just was wondering..
> 
> 
> 
> I absolutely agree, my last build was from the SMD 8520 Dual chip.. After using this a few years i don't think i ever need anything else.. They are extremely durable, stay rather warm than hot in comparison. Are absolutely strong enough with 65 lumen per chip it's also enough for a high tech setup up to 40 cm tall tank. Awfully simple to drive and control with a 12 volt constant voltage and PWM. Already come from factory on a rigid aluminium PCB.
> https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/50cm...108.1000016.1.109511f8AOoVUg&isOrigTitle=true
> 
> Must say afetr using 4 metre of this strip vor 3 years above an open top tank. I feel like done searching for beter.. It doesn't need to be..  But that's a mater of personal perception and preference.
> 
> SIngle led PCB version is 72 chips p/m ot so long ago i saw the 120 chip p/m double row on 1 PCB version.
> Yet not sure if the Double row comes in dual chip, not yet seen it.
> https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/Kore...108.1000016.1.400e1b965pmsi9&isOrigTitle=true
> 
> And also this is already 3 years old, i wouldn't be surpised if there already is a beter performing SMD.


I used a roll of "warm white 5630 led strip lighting" when adding under cabinet lighting in my kitchen. I tried using the left over as an aquarium light but was disappointed with the colour, the "warm white" made the aquarium look yellow. I imagine a "cool white" would look a lot better. According to the specs it was around 1500 lumen a meter.


----------



## zozo

lazybones51 said:


> I used a roll of "warm white 5630 led strip lighting" when adding under cabinet lighting in my kitchen. I tried using the left over as an aquarium light but was disappointed with the colour, the "warm white" made the aquarium look yellow. I imagine a "cool white" would look a lot better. According to the specs it was around 1500 lumen a meter.


These are the ones i used to build a light.
https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/5pcs...108.1000016.1.6a3c1372P7U5IP&isOrigTitle=true

They also come in warm white, but than you need to ask, they have them. I gave the fixture away to a freind, because i'm stripping down the tank i builded it for. But it contains 5 x 50 cm strip, 2 natural white 6500k, 2 cold white 10000K and 1 warm white 2700k. Since it hangs over an open top i only used the aluminium profile to mount withuot the cover. The aluminium pcb slides snuggly into the profile.. With a little thermal grease between the aluminium PSB and profile it has a very good heatsink, encreasing it's durability. That's the main issue with those flex strips, the LED mounted to it burns to hot and burns out sooner slowly decreasing in performance from the heat. You need to glue them to a surface that never holds very long.

In my case use the 3 different white colors i can slightly change the color pallet. Since the strips are very affordable in price it also aint a big deal to change the setup and put one more warm white strip in and take out a cool white. Or what ever is prefered.

Regarding lumen, i'm still in the dark how that is determined with setups with multiple single leds.. Factory data gives lumen per single chip.. Does that mean i need to add each single led to the sum to get to a total. I don't know i never checked.. I gues vendors also just add the sum to give you a number. Anyway the SMD 8520 is pretty strong at 65 lumen per chip and 72 chips per meter. Pretty strong and bright, but i can't give other numbers than 72x65 lumen = 4680? And that was the strongest SMD i could find at the time. If i check on the SMD 6530 i end up with about 45/50 Lumen per chip. I wonder how your vendor came up with 1500 lumen per meter? Had it 30 leds? Or did he had a par/flux meter?


----------



## mow said

No problem @zozo as we are learning from one another 




mow said said:


> You have to spread the heat across rememebr you have 130 watts per channel and those are 10w led chips. If you run them 100% you will run into trouble i can gurantee you. Also they wont last long with the aluminiumn heat sinks you have, by this i mean if they have a life span of 50000 hours and they are running hot all the time they will only last 10000 hours and they will give up. And yes i would love to have a par meter too but they are not cheap devices. What i do is calculate lumens per litre and its worked for me.
> 
> My 1w leds are 100-110 lumens .
> 72w is my fixure that i am using
> 100(lumens)x72w= 7200
> 7200 lumens devided by 160litre which is my tank volume = 45 lumens per litre.View attachment 115317
> This is from tropica and it worked for me.



Lumens if you check on the thread i explained about it


----------



## lazybones51

zozo said:


> These are the ones i used to build a light.
> https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/5pcs...108.1000016.1.6a3c1372P7U5IP&isOrigTitle=true
> 
> They also come in warm white, but than you need to ask, they have them. I gave the fixture away to a freind, because i'm stripping down the tank i builded it for. But it contains 5 x 50 cm strip, 2 natural white 6500k, 2 cold white 10000K and 1 warm white 2700k. Since it hangs over an open top i only used the aluminium profile to mount withuot the cover. The aluminium pcb slides snuggly into the profile.. With a little thermal grease between the aluminium PSB and profile it has a very good heatsink, encreasing it's durability. That's the main issue with those flex strips, the LED mounted to it burns to hot and burns out sooner slowly decreasing in performance from the heat. You need to glue them to a surface that never holds very long.
> 
> In my case use the 3 different white colors i can slightly change the color pallet. Since the strips are very affordable in price it also aint a big deal to change the setup and put one more warm white strip in and take out a cool white. Or what ever is prefered.
> 
> Regarding lumen, i'm still in the dark how that is determined with setups with multiple single leds.. Factory data gives lumen per single chip.. Does that mean i need to add each single led to the sum to get to a total. I don't know i never checked.. I gues vendors also just add the sum to give you a number. Anyway the SMD 8520 is pretty strong at 65 lumen per chip and 72 chips per meter. Pretty strong and bright, but i can't give other numbers than 72x65 lumen = 4680? And that was the strongest SMD i could find at the time. If i check on the SMD 6530 i end up with about 45/50 Lumen per chip. I wonder how your vendor came up with 1500 lumen per meter? Had it 30 leds? Or did he had a par/flux meter?


According to the supplier it's 60 LED a metre at 25-30 lumen per LED. 5630 SMD LED's


----------



## mow said

So its 60 x 25 = 1500 lumens 

Anyways this is what i would like to make in the future 


 

 

 

Its called lupyled in my opinion this is the best money can buy led unit. Check it out on youtube. They use smd leds as you can see from the PCB a build like that will need a allot of equipments such as SMD soldering machine , laser cutter and PCB manufacturer in china to make you one similar to this.


----------



## zozo

mow said said:


> So its 60 x 25 = 1500 lumens



That is what i doubt so much if that is accurate or just say something?? I guess the later, because the outcome of such a sum can be rediculously high and people still claim it is less as what their T5 produces with a lower number. And as said than i would have had almost 25000 lumen from my led light if that sum is correct. That would almost equal to profesional 200 watt discharge grow light.. And it isn't by far, because i've seen them burn those lights, it wasn't nearly compairable. If i would hang such a 200 watt light above the same tank, i would blow the crap out of it..

I can not realy find any valid data on that formula and factory data is always per single led.. But anyway, since lumens doesn't do much for us and actauly we need PAR value. We need a rather expensive device to get close to the real value.


----------



## mow said

You can have allot of lumens but if the light is not penetrating deep enough on you tank then it wont grow anything. For example 60w of led strip vs 60w 1 w leds which will penetrate all the way down to your tank. Ofcorse the 1w will ,that is were par comes into play. But for us that do not have a par meter we can guess and calculate the lumens which are given to us by the manufacturer. Ofcorse some are over stated by the lumens the manufacturer provides us with. Another example a normal 60w 1w leds fixure that has no lenses vs the one that has lenses ofcorse the one with lenses will give you more par value. When choosing leds go for strong leds and calculate the lumens per litre as we do not have the par meter this is the way foward i understand its not correct but tropica are not stupid to provide such information, also make sure you spread the led chips to have equal distribution.


----------



## lazybones51

mow said said:


> So its 60 x 25 = 1500 lumens
> 
> Anyways this is what i would like to make in the future
> View attachment 117187 View attachment 117185 View attachment 117186
> 
> Its called lupyled in my opinion this is the best money can buy led unit. Check it out on youtube. They use smd leds as you can see from the PCB a build like that will need a allot of equipments such as SMD soldering machine , laser cutter and PCB manufacturer in china to make you one similar to this.


Wow that's an impressive piece of kit! I wonder why they opted for stainless steel over anodised aluminium? The anodised aluminium still has great corrosion resistance, without the extra weight of stainless steel. It would be very impressive to see somebody DIY build a unit like that. Although it seem unnecessarily complex and a bit OTT.


----------



## rebel

@mow said , Rather than bothering with SMD soldering etc, why not just use the 4W RGB power leds with lenses (if need be) and control each channel as required. Surely, you don't need individual cluster control etc.


----------



## mow said

lazybones51 said:


> Wow that's an impressive piece of kit! I wonder why they opted for stainless steel over anodised aluminium? The anodised aluminium still has great corrosion resistance, without the extra weight of stainless steel. It would be very impressive to see somebody DIY build a unit like that. Although it seem unnecessarily complex and a bit OTT.



I just checked and i dont know either but maybe they are using 316 stainless steel but inside the unit they are using aluminium pcb board and the leds are SMD so they dont produce much heat. Im sure they are fans in the unit to cool down the fixutre too.


----------



## mow said

rebel said:


> @mow said , Rather than bothering with SMD soldering etc, why not just use the 4W RGB power leds with lenses (if need be) and control each channel as required. Surely, you don't need individual cluster control etc.


You can but SMD is better and 4w RGB leds are not good as you dont know how many watts you will be using in them which will make the build complicated. im assuming you talking about the 4w - 12w rgb?


----------



## rebel

mow said said:


> You can but SMD is better and 4w RGB leds are not good as you dont know how many watts you will be using in them which will make the build complicated. im assuming you talking about the 4w - 12w rgb?


I meant 1W x4 (RGBW). I see your point though. Lensing is easier with a bigger leds. Can the SMDs be lensed effectively? I want to hang my light higher.


----------



## mow said

Yes they can you can buy lenses from china for smd . And 3w leds will be good with 60 degree lenses on all leds if you are planing to hand the unit high. Check my thread again page number 2 there is a unit with 3w leds and its using the heatsink i linked on your thread,its a 120w simple fixture and you will be able to run it 100%. And controlled by TC420 but if you are good with rasbery stuff @lazybones51 linked a page for that.


----------



## rebel

lazybones51 said:


> Has anybody looked at encasing the electronics in some form of resin for water protection?


Yes, I use conformal coating on my racing drones so I can just solder through the coating for repairs. 

Something similar and you can buy cheaper than this. For example.
https://au.rs-online.com/web/c/faci...aners-protective-coatings/conformal-coatings/


----------



## rebel

mow said said:


> And as you can see not much diffence with the ones you linked as they are aluminium . The ceramic cobs are good but expensive.
> ( 10pcs Cree XLamp CXA1507 15W Ceramics COB LED Array Light EasyWhite 5000K Warm White 3000K with or without Holder
> http://s.aliexpress.com/fEZrQjQr?fromSns=Copy to Clipboard )


Beware that they do sell FAKE Cree LEDs on these sites. Do not pay extra for these unless you know how to check.


----------



## rebel

mow said said:


> Yes they can you can buy lenses from china for smd . And 3w leds will be good with 60 degree lenses on all leds if you are planing to hand the unit high. Check my thread again page number 2 there is a unit with 3w leds and its using the heatsink i linked on your thread,its a 120w simple fixture and you will be able to run it 100%. And controlled by TC420 but if you are good with rasbery stuff @lazybones51 linked a page for that.


Thanks my good sir. I am looking into the whole lot. When I start my project, I will start a new thread or link through this one.


----------



## zozo

With using lenses you need to watch out for Prisma effect.. Red a few threads of people complaining about this and it was caused by the used lenses.
Led angle versus Lense angle and the water surface created those colored prisma beams in the aqaurium. 

I would say, first try a single lens and see before you buy a lot.


----------



## rebel

Hi @mow said , I found these SMD boards online. Perhaps they may be useful for your project.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/2Pcs-Al...885842&hash=item4641470581:g:G~AAAOSwDkVaSlYT

SMD soldering looks to be finicky though.

I 'may' attempt to convert my Chihiros clone light into a RGB just for kicks and giggles....


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## mow said

Thanks @rebel but i have source's in china that i can get pcb soldered and all sorts. And yes soldering your self will be hard as you need a machine for this also smd leds needs smd resistors too. Plus the lupyled board has more things in it that i have never seen before. Unless some chinese manufacturer buys one and clones it . It wont be posible to make the same board. I hope your project goes well once its done please share it


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## lazybones51

I'm now setting up a 30cm cube and thought it made sense to build another light. I've got plenty of left over components from the previous one, all I've bought so far is a nice little 130mm square heatsink.


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## mow said

Nice btw you can go with something like this.


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## lazybones51

@mow said That's a neat solution. I was going to do something along the lines of this.


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## mow said

Yh even that looks good its similar but this one is more sleek


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## Chris may

mow said said:


> Led chips
> https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Hon...32672028527.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.xl0VwY



Hi,

Firstly thanks for all the great info. Been doing some research into diy led for my 120cm tank which I'm looking to upgrade to hightech so need the old t8's upgrading! The leds quoted seem to be 10w+. Am I right in thinking these 3w are the ones to go for.... 

https://m.aliexpress.com/item/32673...ite-light-bulbs-1W-3W-5W-10W-20W-30W-50W-100W


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## mow said

Hey @Chris may i think they probably changed the link but here is another one
High Power LED Matrix 1W 3W 5W 10W 20W 30W 50W 100W Warm Pure Cold Natue White Light Bulb Lamp SMD COB 3000K 6000K 10000K Indoor
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/ZdgpTKp



And if you read carefully i have used 1w leds its up to you what you want to use. But just make sure you have a proper heat sink when using higher watts led chips.


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## Chris may

mow said said:


> https://www.tme.eu/en/details/rad-p3698_1000/radiators/stonecold/
> 
> 3w leds i would go for.
> And dont hang up the light too far you will loose par 65cm is too far.
> I would use 60degrees lenses for the front let's and back with 90 degrees lenses in the middle for a good spread. The heat sink is 15cm w , your tank is 45cm so I would use 60d for side to get the tank lit properly.



Tank is same size as this was quoted for so using all info for this as a basis. Never attempted anything like this but up for the challenge. Looks as good as branded lights if not better with the customisation possibilities but all for a fraction of the cost! Any help with shopping and instructions once started would be great. Just at planning stage atm and trying to get my head around it all


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## mow said

@Chris may dont worry you got this keep on reading this thread anyhelp needed just private message me i will be happy to help


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## Chris may

Cheers for the support, already helped so much with everything I've read on here!


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## Django

Nice thread... I have been looking at samsung SMD's, plan was to use LM561 rigid boards no soldering needed, I wanted to have something that was somewhat waterproof, have not found a good waterproofing plan yet. You can get a fully mounted 80watt LM561 setup for roughly 100€ maybe 110€ with shipping... this setup will give you roughly 15000 lumens or roughly 93lumen/liter

If you go for the 30-40€ more expensive LM301 setup (no LM301 6500k yet) you would be looking at more than 100lumens/liter


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## mow said

Django said:


> Nice thread... I have been looking at samsung SMD's, plan was to use LM561 rigid boards no soldering needed, I wanted to have something that was somewhat waterproof, have not found a good waterproofing plan yet. You can get a fully mounted 80watt LM561 setup for roughly 100€ maybe 110€ with shipping... this setup will give you roughly 15000 lumens or roughly 93lumen/liter
> 
> If you go for the 30-40€ more expensive LM301 setup (no LM301 6500k yet) you would be looking at more than 100lumens/liter



You can get fake 5630 (LM561) led strips. And to water proof where will you be placing the leds under a cover or hanging them?


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## Django

Fake?? How do they compare specs, price etc?


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## mow said

I havent used them but tbh chinese leds never failed me. You can find any ones you like even the samsung ones are available Here is a link:
10pcs/Lot  leds 0.5m LED bar light smd 5050 5630 7020 8520 4014 12V led rigid strip white warm cold RGB  under cabinet kitchen
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/bdWIWoi5


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## Django

Yes...i know one Alibaba dealer that deals in original Samsung and bridgelux emitters. They make panels for some of the expensive fixtures...it is from them I was looking at 4x90cm dimmable bars, 80watt samsung lm561...15000lumens...they would give me same lumens output as my current 2x45w t5, but driven at 28w


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## mow said

Its up to you but to be honest it doesnt matter as chinese leds vs samsung leds are not far different. Maybe samsung leds are a little bit better but for the price i would just buy the chinese ones as to replace those leds will be cheap anyways. The life span is the same as on all led chips on the market but again it depends. You can end up getting samsung ones and they may get blown up in a year it goes vice versa. Anyways good luck with the build if you have any questions please do ask.


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## rebel

Hey guys, I have a question about the output of the TC420/TC421. What happens to the output if the said channel is set to 100%? Is it still the same 12V that was input to the TC421? Does the TC421 dim using a PWM signal which pulses at a set frequency to 'dim' the LEDs?


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## Parablennius

can't speak for the TC421 but when I was testing my TC420, prior to installation, with a 12v input the output was always 12v irrespective of % setting. As I understand it the PWM duration on/off is the dimmer. HTH


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## zozo

rebel said:


> Hey guys, I have a question about the output of the TC420/TC421. What happens to the output if the said channel is set to 100%? Is it still the same 12V that was input to the TC421? Does the TC421 dim using a PWM signal which pulses at a set frequency to 'dim' the LEDs?



the TC420 or 421 works on 12 to 24 volt.. It puts out what you put in.. Thus you could put 16 volts in and than it puts 16 volt out..And this goes for anything between 12 and 24 volt.

If you want to control something just on (100%) and off (0%) at 12 volt you can simply use the Jump setting in the timer schedule than there will be no modulated output and it functions as a on/off switch.



Parablennius said:


> can't speak for the TC421 but when I was testing my TC420, prior to installation, with a 12v input the output was always 12v irrespective of % setting. As I understand it the PWM duration on/off is the dimmer. HTH



That kinda depends on how you measure it. If you hook a <simple voltage meter> with a number display this goes also for a multimeter set to DC voltage. It still is registered and displayed as a voltage drop. But indeed in reality it is the on/off duty cycle that stays the same voltage and current, but it goes on off so fast it is registered as a lower voltage at 50% duty cycle.. Because the measuring device will be shut on and off at the same fast cycle and it will display a lower voltage.

Ive used PWM to control DC pump on the filter for an aqaurium and used such a voltage meter to know at what output i am to regulate flow.  Running at half the speed it displayed 6 volt.

It was this setup



The knob DC motor controller goes the the little green circuit board that is a PWM controller.
The voltage meter was hooked to it parallel with the motor. Used it to know where i'm at for the speed it ran..


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## john arnold

Wow wish i was good at electronics thst is impressive, instead im going to layout £350 for twinstar arrrrrr


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