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Post by freshwater on Feb 6, 2014 10:30:43 GMT -5
The light hood is ready, as long as all our dimensions are right in my conversion from metric to inches. I will bring it on Sunday
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Post by baconnlegs on Feb 6, 2014 11:13:18 GMT -5
Dont imagine heat should be a problem as those leds are relatively low power, although given the large power supply they will being drawing maximum amperage all the time. My diy led project will be to use fewer higher power leds under powered (amperage). You can always test the leds before installing for heat issues, wire them up for see if there building any heat. I think if you leave enough space between each row youll be okay. Also not sure if these are like the round led strips people use for cars but those can only be cut at certain lengths, like every 6 leds. Cutting them shorter renders them useless Just to be sure, I'm having Keith leave a hole in the hood he's building for me, so that I can install a low-power computer fan for ventilation. It should be enough to affect the temp of the tank, but it could easily build up and cook the lights themselves - which would shorten their lifespan. These lights aren't the plastic-covered ones you're thinking of; they're built right on circuit board, with adhesive on the back, keeping them very low profile. These have cut-marks every 3 lights, I'll post some pics tonight. The upside to using these over the car-type (well, there's many) is that because they're completely exposed, you can cut short lengths and solder them together - everything is accessible. This way, I can spread my blues, reds and greens amongst the whites, keeping the lighting balanced.
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Post by baconnlegs on Feb 6, 2014 11:15:09 GMT -5
The light hood is ready, as long as all our dimensions are right in my conversion from metric to inches. I will bring it on Sunday Awesome! Thanks for getting that done on such short notice lol. is there any chance there's a hole drilled for wires? If not, I should be able to drill one here, the wires aren't huge
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Post by freshwater on Feb 6, 2014 11:26:40 GMT -5
Yes I made a hole with a plastic knock out plug for the wires
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Post by baconnlegs on Feb 6, 2014 15:38:50 GMT -5
Thanks! I can't wait to see it
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Post by Admin on Feb 6, 2014 19:16:04 GMT -5
I can't wait to see the finiished project, nice DIY
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Post by guppyguy on Feb 6, 2014 20:00:55 GMT -5
I am also been following this thread and looking forward to seeing the end results.
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Post by baconnlegs on Feb 7, 2014 2:46:33 GMT -5
Update! Episode 2. So here's where we're starting at. Since I don't (yet) have a dimmer switch, I'm going to build just half the light, to see exactly how bright it's going to be. I trust my calculations, but damn! These are really bright lights. If I need more, I'll build the second half. When you take the lights out of the package, here's what you'll see. Pencil for scale. Each reel has a connector at the start, allowing you to hook it directly to your power source. The ones from Hitlights had a small adhesive clip, handy for keeping everything neat and tidy if you're mounting it under a cabinet etc. defiantk, this one's for you. Check out these teeny tiny 'scissor' marks. This is the only place that you can cut the strip without causing damage. You'll see these every 3 lights...but... Wait! What's this?... don't panic, kids. At some point, 2 strips were joined at the factory to produce what's on your reel. You CAN cut through this stuff with household scissors, but if you're worried, just cut through the previous or next cut mark. See? Disaster averted. I'm working with 5 colours, and it would make no sense to have 5 power supply connections here. I left the connection on the longest piece, the Cool White. For the other colours, g'head and chop them off (mind the cut marks). You can use these in future projects. STOP. Pick up a Sharpie and label your lights, now. A thought occurred to me as I was cutting - and thankfully, I had put the cut pieces back into their respective baggies. These strips aren't labelled! They all look identical! Take my advice - label the connector pieces, cut light strips, AND the reel itself. I'm no scientist, but this should save you a metric ton of headaches down the road. After all, the only way to check for colour is to solder the strips to a connector and plug them in. No thanks. I did try labelling the peel-off adhesive strip on the back, but it's super-slick and the ink wouldn't set. After accounting for those soldering joints and the fact that everything will have to be in multiples of 3, here's what we're looking at. This unassuming little collection is half your aquarium light. Still think those Finnex lights are worth the money? Naaaaah, not so much. Stay tuned. Tomorrow, we're going to melt metal, and other cool stuff.
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Post by Stellar on Feb 7, 2014 14:28:09 GMT -5
Fantastic build so far..... Cant wait to see that tank!
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Post by Admin on Feb 8, 2014 0:27:48 GMT -5
Looks excellent, nice LED colour selection
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Post by gabor129 on Feb 8, 2014 18:03:37 GMT -5
I can't wait! It looks very interesting!
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Post by baconnlegs on Feb 12, 2014 12:47:42 GMT -5
So after much, shall we say, 'prodding' from Gabor and Darren, I carved out a few hours to work on the light again. Here's the progress I've made! Check out this awesome light hood that Keith (freshwater) made! It's nice and light (white aluminum, correct me if I'm wrong, Keith?), with 2 40mm holes for cooling fans and a plugged hole ready for electrical wires. I plan to matte black Tremclad this in the spring when I can work outdoors and not gas my brain cells into oblivion. Close up of one of the fan holes Look at the attention to detail! The folding, the seams... it looks great. Thanks, Keith! (note - that's shop dust in the corners, not rust. Wipes right off). It's also worth mentioning that he whipped this up in like, a DAY. I needed something to mount the LEDs themselves on, something removable in case I want to rearrange them, paint the hood, etc etc later on. I opted for this very reflective, galvanized joist lining (16" x 36") from Home Depot: www.homedepot.ca/product/joist-lining-16-x-36/911732Here's the sheeting after it was cut. I used a tape measure, metre stick (in hindsight, a square would have saved me some time), aviation snips, and a dry erase marker - this was helpful throughout the project. MMMM. Dat fit. I cut the sheeting a smidge smaller than the housing, so it's not wedged in there but it isn't banging around, either. Fair Warning: Keep all pieces of sharp metal away from kids, pets, and clumsy spouses. See that edge? Like a knife. If you're working on this with your kids and/or are clumsy yourself, you might want to consider taping the edges with this foil-tape. It's used for sealing duct work. Not sure exactly what it's called. I threw caution to the wind and didn't use it. Alternatively, you could slightly round the pointed edges with the snips. Lastly, mark out where your holes will be once the panel is installed in the hood. I initially used the marker, but went back with a sharpie later, in case I smudged it.
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Post by guppyguy on Feb 12, 2014 12:57:22 GMT -5
Excellent updates. Coming along nicely. And I can vouch for Keith saying he makes excellent hoods. I am very happy with mine.
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Post by baconnlegs on Feb 12, 2014 13:12:14 GMT -5
The next part was the most irritating so far. It started off harmlessly enough.... Grab some Scotch Blue multi surface painter's tape (I suppose any painter's tape would do, but I had this kicking around from a mirror project), and a pair of scissors. Start cutting the tape into strips about a centimeter wide - these will help you keep the LED strips in place on the board. I figured I had enough lights in my plan for about 6 lines, so I used the tape to mark off roughly where they would go. I also ended up marking the lines with the marker from one end to the other later, I recommend doing this, too. Now, here comes the worst part. It was literally like trying to make a portrait of My Little Pony out of Legos while colourblind. I cut most of the lights into 6-LED portions (this is 2 sections of 3 lights each). Then, I labeled each and every single bloody piece with a letter to note the colour. THEN I wrote the same letter on the piece of tape on each piece to make it easier to read. AND THEN I tried to figure out how I should lay the damn things out for good colour balance. Not too much warmth on one side, not too dark in that corner, etc etc etc. After a couple hours of sniffing sharpie fumes and cursing...idk, anything that came to mind... I called it quits for the night and made some tea. Do you SEE the insanity!? *eye twitches* I ended up adding a couple of sections to fill in some bare spots. The strips don't go all the way to the end to accommodate connection wires and possible tabs (to keep the panel inside the hood) for later on. This is where I called it quits. Yeah, I'll go back at it tonight *grumblegrumble*. In hindsight, next time I'm going to use a computer program to lay out the strips before I start playing with a million pieces in the same shade of beige. Closeup of my handiwork. Yes, I know the positive/negatives don't match up yet. It's just a layout right now, man!
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Post by Stellar on Feb 12, 2014 15:50:02 GMT -5
"It was literally like trying to make a portrait of My Little Pony out of Legos while colourblind. " BEST. Analogy. EVER!!!!!!!! Looks great Sarah! I can't wait to see this, when CNN shows pics of your house glowing from space
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