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Post by baconnlegs on Dec 16, 2013 5:44:53 GMT -5
Hey all,
I'm going to be wiring up a DIY LED light for a 20g long, and I have some questions. I'll try to give you as much info as I have.
I've ordered 300 'bright white' LEDs in the 5500-6k range, with a lumen output of 900-1100. Right now, I'm planning on a panel that will be ~24x6".
I know some LED aquarium lights incorporate violet, blue and/or red LED's. So my questions are as follows:
*How many of these white LED's do I realistically need to grow plants in my 20g long?
*Should I add coloured LED's as well, and in what ratio or percentage for each colour recommended?
Bonus question for those of you who have built light hoods: What can I use to contain all of this? I'm looking for something I can buy at Home Depot, etc.
Thanks for the input!
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Post by Admin on Dec 16, 2013 13:15:00 GMT -5
For spectrum the range you ordered should be good, but I would also incorporate some "red" LEDS as plants use a lot of that spectrum. You could add some other colours for a more full spectrum, like blue to give a more crisp appearence and better fish colours, but they won't really benefit plants and too much blue can cause problems in planted tanks. SO to break it down:
-white in 5500-8000K for plant growth -red LEDS will hit a critical range in the spectrum for plant growth -you can even use some lower spectrum white leds, even as low as 3000k to hit more critical points in the spectrum -blues, greens, and higher k white/cool white leds for better colour in the tank and of the fish (this is kind of just personal preference)
Just remember the lower spectrum white LEDS gerenally are used better by plants and give a "warm" look and higer spectrum give a "cool" look.
For your other questions: how many LEDS do I need, that depends on the specific LEDS you ordered (their quality, brand, watts). LEDS are funny, some are great and you only need a few, others will require a lot. It also depends on the drivers being used to power them as some will require the power of LEDS to be throttled down.
As for a specfic ratio, I am not too sure, but your all white LEDS will forusre be the dominate colour. All the other colours will bascially just be there to supplement your white LEDS.
To contain it, most people will either use thermal compound or thermal pads and attach the LEDS to a finned Aluminium heatsink, I havent seen that at home depot.
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Post by gabor129 on Dec 16, 2013 21:58:31 GMT -5
If you are interested in the LED lights, there is a new store on Jefferson, just before the EC Row that deals with LED lights only. They could most likely answer your questions more accurately that we can! Also they most likely have the heat sinks you need.... Just tell them that you using it for plant growth and go from there! Unfortunately I can not remember the name of the place right now! Maybe someone else can!
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Post by Admin on Dec 16, 2013 23:55:34 GMT -5
Yes LEDS are a large subject so many inputs are always recommended especially if its from a vendor who deals in them. To keep it simple you could always find a LED fixture you like and mimic their ratio, for example the Finnex Ray Planted+ uses white and red LEDS.
On a separate notes, Gabe I drove past that location not too long ago and their sign was removed. I cannot remember their name either, but it looked like they closed or maybe moved or they were getting a new sign lol
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Post by baconnlegs on Dec 17, 2013 1:17:04 GMT -5
Lots to think about! Those thermal pads looks like a nice alternative to messy grease. Can they be purchased in Windsor anywhere? I'm trying to avoid amazon bc they take forever to ship If I go for the aluminum heatsink, what exactly should I be building the LED portion on? I've seen people use a sort of foam-core posterboard, but that doesn't seem, ahm, very heatproof I guess? And I do know the LED store you're thinking of, I believe they're closed.. the whole plaza there is a ghost town :/ Since I won't be getting my LED's there, where's the best alternative? I'm looking for something in tape-form to keep the work simple.
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Post by freshwater on Dec 17, 2013 14:47:33 GMT -5
EWS electrical whole sale supply has a good selection of LED. They are at 3393 county rd 42 unit #1 Phone # 519-946-2052. Right across the street from the air port
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Post by baconnlegs on Dec 19, 2013 2:06:04 GMT -5
Cool, thanks for the head's up! I'll see if they're open this weekend I'm still waiting on the power supply, so I can't start assembling just yet!
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Post by Rainbowfish Alan on Dec 19, 2013 7:28:35 GMT -5
I'm interested to see how this gets assembled. Any chance of taking pics at each stage of assembly?
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Post by baconnlegs on Dec 19, 2013 9:26:18 GMT -5
Sure, i was planning on doing a DIY submission It's going to be slightly messy, some trial and error for sure! But then I guess everyone can learn from my mistakes I'll be ok with the actual soldering/electrical part. it's more the esthetics, the finished-look. I may check some computer parts stores for old heatsinks, and maybe even a casing for the unit? Also, I just spoke with a Reddit user named GeekPhysique, for those of you who use Reddit. He posted a cool video of his fully-automated 75gallon with rainstorm simulation, so I asked about his lighting setup. He uses 48 bright white CREEs, 48 royal blue (at 5% brightness), 12 red, 12 dark red, and 12 green to help balance the spectrum and fuel plant growth. I may try this approach as well, but with a limited number of blues - he has some computer-controlled system that dims, I won't. Here's his tank: www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCjbAdTYagM&feature=youtu.be
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Post by Admin on Dec 19, 2013 14:07:54 GMT -5
He has a full thread at the plantedtank: www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=224490The reason it has so many blues is because its was from an older saltwater setup, so for your planted tank you won't need that (hence he powers them down to 5%). He built an awesome Led setup
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Post by baconnlegs on Dec 19, 2013 14:58:41 GMT -5
He did mention that in his answer, I guess he's in the process of rebuilding it? I'll have lots to mull over for sure...
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Post by Rainbowfish Alan on Dec 19, 2013 17:49:15 GMT -5
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Post by baconnlegs on Jan 7, 2014 11:07:16 GMT -5
**UPDATE** DIY is such a waiting game. I've taken delivery of the power supply, the tools (simple soldering kit), and the bright white LED tape. I figured I'd add a few blue LEDs, at least, and get the rest from EWS as Keith mentioned above. Unfortunately, they don't sell coloured LEDs in the format I need (and the warm white was $40/m, more than I'm willing to spend), but the gentleman on the phone WAS interested in our forum, as he has a good-sized aquarium of his own. So I went back to Amazon. Hopefully by Friday, I'll have rolls of warm white, green, red and blue LEDs, as well as quick connectors (they make it easy to go around corners or place LEDs in parallel strips). I haven't crunched the exact numbers yet, but I think the project will take me to a little over $100 in supplies. Then again, I'll have enough materials to make 4 lights for a 20L or standard 29 gallon, or many smaller light hoods for smaller tanks (which I plan to do!). So here's where I need YOUR input. Using GeekPhysique's layout as a rough guideline, I've come up with some colour combinations to use in my light. I've also considered the rough number of LED's used in some commercially-available lights (like Finnex's Planted+) . Is there too much of one colour, not enough of another? Too much or too little light? GP's CREE light: 48 cool white 48 royal blue (at 5%) 12 red 12 dark red 12 green My LED plan: 88 bright white 44 warm white 44 red 26 green 11 blue And a blinded partridge-in-a-pear-tree Once I have the colours set, I have another challenge. Like the Finnex lights, I'd like 2 switches. 1 to independently control the blue (for a moonlight), and a second switch for the remaining lights. I may need to seek fin's advice here, I hear he has a background in electrical?
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Post by Admin on Jan 7, 2014 14:33:57 GMT -5
I like your ratio of LED colours, what is the wattage of those LEDS?
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Post by baconnlegs on Jan 7, 2014 14:54:09 GMT -5
Thank you! It took a bit of math and a lot of fingercrossing. According to the product info sheet, all LEDs are 24W, 12V, 2A.
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