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DIY Project - Low Cost IKEA Luminaire for TMC LED Tiles

Julian

Member
Joined
20 Jul 2013
Messages
688
Hi guys, just thought I'd share this little project I've been working on as I thought others may find it useful.

I wanted to find a way to suspend my TMC Mini 400 LED's above my tank without having to hang them from the ceiling joists. I looked into buying the suspension kit that TMC sell, but it's £30 for a few screws and cables which I knew I'd be able to find for a lot less.

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After a bit of digging around on eBay, I found the following:

2 x Silver Aluminium Anodised Kart Cable Clamp for Brake & Throttle FREE POSTAGE £3.25

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GENUINE PROMAX UNIVERAL DOUBLE ENDED INNER BRAKE CABLE 2 for £2.98 (but you could probably get away with just 1)

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TMC MSS Rail 308mm £6 (although if you have one of these LED tiles, chances are you have this already)

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Ikea Mulig Clothes Rail £6.50

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You might have to use a bit of imagination for this part as I didn't take many pictures while doing it.

I started off by cutting the top horizontal bar of the clothes rail to the length I needed (red line). I then cut the TMC MMS rail to the same length, less 20mm. I then drilled 2 holes into the exact same spots on both the clothes rail and the MMS rail, then threaded the gear cable through it.

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Keeping in mind that the gear cable has to be cut at one end in order to be threaded through the holes, it's a good idea to wrap some sellotape around the end so it doesn't unravel.

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It's then just a case of threading the cables through the clamps and tightening them using an Alan key. Although these claps are a little ugly and not very discrete, they give me piece of mind as they are very strong.

Hopefully you should end up with something looking similar to this!

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All in it costs £19, but if you have the MMS rail and only use 1 gear cable (depending on length) it brings the cost down to £11 which I think is pretty good!
 
Looks excellent. Will be using this for the new tank. I got decent lights from Ikea to use in my old tank.
 
Great job.:clap: Love to see these DIY projects as anything to save money these days helps .

Harry
 
Looks great. How did you attach the rail to the cabinet?
Its not really attached, it leans against the cabinet. The 2 feet on the clothes rail stop it from falling over. I could screw it onto the cabinet but its stable how it is.
 
Looks really great! I did prety much the same thing but went for two Ikea mounting bars (http://forum.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/showthread.php?t=105801)

I really like your method as it looks really clean, IMO it would look even better is you cut down the TMC mounting bar into two short lengths though.

I also have mine wedged into the back of the cabinet and it feels pretty stable too!
 
Looks really great! I did prety much the same thing but went for two Ikea mounting bars (http://forum.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/showthread.php?t=105801)

I really like your method as it looks really clean, IMO it would look even better is you cut down the TMC mounting bar into two short lengths though.

I also have mine wedged into the back of the cabinet and it feels pretty stable too!

Yeah, I think I'm going to cut the MMS rail down a bit, it doesn't need to be that long but I'm too lazy ... I did the entire project with just a drill and a pen knife. It took me an hour and a half to file through the inch thick aluminium of the MMS rail!
 
That's commitment! I found it ok with a small saw.
If you do go for 2 smaller sections of rail are you going to add two additional steel wires?
 
I dont think I will cut it into 2 pieces... I may upgrade my tank in future so the longer bar may come in handy. Plus I think the extra wires is a bit over kill, it would make things look a bit too 'busy'.
 
Hi Julian, Thank you for posting this idea :) I have a new project on the go and was wondering how to do the lighting for it.

Now I have the Answer :cool:

Thanks again :thumbup:


No worries, glad it will be of use!

I've actually perfected the design with the mark 2 version so that the clamps no longer poke out of the top. Instead, I made a loop at the end of the cable, secured the loop using the clamps, then threaded a piece of coat hanger into the end of the clothing rail which passes through the hoops. I'll take a picture later so you can see what I mean. It's a small change but it makes all the difference.
 
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