Cool DIY LED light thread

Obi-dad · 03/05/2009, 09:14 PM

There is a really cool thread on making your own LED light, and not for moonlights, for the main lighting, check it out if you are interested in LED lighting.

I am not in a rush to replace my current lighting, and want to wait to see the results of long term keeping of corals in LED lighting, but this is more reasonable in price than manufactured LED units - and won't have to buy from the company that patented 'marine growth with LEDs' (and put PFO out of business). It's looks pretty easy to do.

mtc1966 · 03/05/2009, 09:59 PM

funny i just came from that thread. seemed like a rather spendy set up though for leds.

i was just at aquatic art technologies the other day and the owner was testing 4 led strips on a bio-cube 14 took the fans right out because no heat issues with leds had 2 blue and 2 white hooked up to the oem switches . put out a lot of light looked great corals looked great but he has only been testing for about a month .

looked promising . i.m.o
b.t.w he just broke down a big tank and is running specials on all his frags if anyone want to get in touch pm me and ill send you his phone number as you need to make a appointment.

fitch4 · 03/06/2009, 05:03 AM

I have been following that thread for a while now (big suprise) and it looks easy enough. I smell a project day!

Markh65 · 03/06/2009, 05:25 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by fitch4
I have been following that thread for a while now (big suprise) and it looks easy enough. I smell a project day!

I have a LED driver and some 3 watt White Luxeon III, 80 - Lumen, 5500k LED's if you want to tinker a little. The great thing is you get a ton of light, a MH shimmer, no heat, and it only uses 24 watts of elec.

Obi-dad · 03/06/2009, 06:55 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by mtc1966
seemed like a rather spendy set up though for leds.

Are you talking about moonlight LEDs? This is for replacing your main lighting, like the PFO units - that cost double what this DIY project costs. Pricey, yes, but cheaper than a manufactured LED unit, and not that much more than a halide or T5 manufactured unit (but more pricey than a diy halide or T5 setup). And you don't have to replace the LEDs for years.

I also like the ability to use dimmer drivers that can be controlled remotely. That could be used to start out with all blue, slowly ramp up to blue with white, ramp the blue down so it is just white, then do the reverse to get to just blue. If I wasn't watching my pennies so closely in this recession, I would SO be doing this.

fitch4 · 03/06/2009, 07:36 AM

If you figure on a MH fixture for the 48" tank that he has it on, I don't know if it is all that much more $ upfront. As with any DIY, it just requires that you do some of the construction work on your own. The nice thing is that you can customize it, so if you have a nano, or a wide tank, you can make it work for you.
I think the controller would be my one concern, it has to be relatively programable.

sploke · 03/06/2009, 02:52 PM

I've been following that thread for a while as well. I'm looking at doing an LED setup over the 200 FOWLR that I'm i the process of putting together. Since it only needs to be a low-light tank, I can get away with trying it on a smaller scale (starting with six Rebels, no optics) to see how it goes.

Obi-dad · 03/06/2009, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by sploke
I've been following that thread for a while as well. I'm looking at doing an LED setup over the 200 FOWLR that I'm i the process of putting together. Since it only needs to be a low-light tank, I can get away with trying it on a smaller scale (starting with six Rebels, no optics) to see how it goes.

Why are you going with the Luxeon Rebels as opposed to the Cree LEDs? Just curious, I haven't researched all the details yet on the various LEDs.

serendipity1 · 03/06/2009, 07:55 PM

how do the lux readings compare to that of a halide? This is the best thing about this hobbie (DIY). I would rather build it than buy it any way just for the " look what I did", and not just for the thing that worked.

sploke · 03/07/2009, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Obi-dad
Why are you going with the Luxeon Rebels as opposed to the Cree LEDs? Just curious, I haven't researched all the details yet on the various LEDs.

I hadn't actually done a strict comparison. It looks like the Crees put out 100lm at 350mA while the Rebels put out 80lm at 350mA. Unfortunately the Cree website doesn't give specs for flux at 700mA, which is probably what I'd be driving them at. Maybe I'll end up using the Crees instead.

FroMan · 03/08/2009, 04:43 PM

I had sent the orgional thread to my friend that works at the NH osram plant. He is checking into what kind of prodcut they sell that could be applicable.

I'm still trying to research the patents that the one company filed, so that I could see if there was a way around the patent

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...readid=1583241

03/05/2009, 09:14 PM	#1
Obi-dad Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: CT Posts: 4,314	Cool DIY LED light thread There is a really cool thread on making your own LED light, and not for moonlights, for the main lighting, check it out if you are interested in LED lighting. I am not in a rush to replace my current lighting, and want to wait to see the results of long term keeping of corals in LED lighting, but this is more reasonable in price than manufactured LED units - and won't have to buy from the company that patented 'marine growth with LEDs' (and put PFO out of business). It's looks pretty easy to do. __________________ Greg, member of ARKSC and CTARS Visit our CTARS club website by clicking my RC name then 'visit homepage' - and please support your LFS Current Tank Info: 75g mostly stonies. DIY LEDs (24 CW XP-G, 48 RB XR-E) on dwizum CAT4101 drivers, DIY Hydra controller, SSB, Korallin Ca Reactor, Euroreef skimmer

03/06/2009, 05:03 AM	#3
fitch4 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: CT Posts: 1,988	I have been following that thread for a while now (big suprise) and it looks easy enough. I smell a project day! __________________ 2020 New England Frag Farmer's Market March 7, 2020 E.O. Smith High School in Storrs CT Largest Single Day Coral Show in the U.S.! - 100+ Vendors! Current Tank Info: 100, 135 reefs and 150g and 800g frag tanks

03/06/2009, 07:36 AM	#6
fitch4 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: CT Posts: 1,988	If you figure on a MH fixture for the 48" tank that he has it on, I don't know if it is all that much more $ upfront. As with any DIY, it just requires that you do some of the construction work on your own. The nice thing is that you can customize it, so if you have a nano, or a wide tank, you can make it work for you. I think the controller would be my one concern, it has to be relatively programable. __________________ 2020 New England Frag Farmer's Market March 7, 2020 E.O. Smith High School in Storrs CT Largest Single Day Coral Show in the U.S.! - 100+ Vendors! Current Tank Info: 100, 135 reefs and 150g and 800g frag tanks

03/06/2009, 02:52 PM	#7
sploke Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Eastern CT Posts: 665	I've been following that thread for a while as well. I'm looking at doing an LED setup over the 200 FOWLR that I'm i the process of putting together. Since it only needs to be a low-light tank, I can get away with trying it on a smaller scale (starting with six Rebels, no optics) to see how it goes. __________________ -Matt Current Tank Info: 265 reef w/ 200gal sump

03/05/2009, 09:59 PM	#2
mtc1966 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: middletown,ct Posts: 6,528	funny i just came from that thread. seemed like a rather spendy set up though for leds. i was just at aquatic art technologies the other day and the owner was testing 4 led strips on a bio-cube 14 took the fans right out because no heat issues with leds had 2 blue and 2 white hooked up to the oem switches . put out a lot of light looked great corals looked great but he has only been testing for about a month . looked promising . i.m.o b.t.w he just broke down a big tank and is running specials on all his frags if anyone want to get in touch pm me and ill send you his phone number as you need to make a appointment.

03/06/2009, 07:55 PM	#9
serendipity1 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: lebanon CT Posts: 63	how do the lux readings compare to that of a halide? This is the best thing about this hobbie (DIY). I would rather build it than buy it any way just for the " look what I did", and not just for the thing that worked.

03/08/2009, 04:43 PM	#11
FroMan Insane in the Brain Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Vernon, CT Posts: 1,389	I had sent the orgional thread to my friend that works at the NH osram plant. He is checking into what kind of prodcut they sell that could be applicable. I'm still trying to research the patents that the one company filed, so that I could see if there was a way around the patent http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...readid=1583241