What are you guys using to enclose the DIY LED heatsinks?

amheck · 04/14/2010, 01:32 PM

Assuming I don't have a fixture to hack up, what are you guys doing who are building your own LED fixtures? I do think the raw heatsink looks pretty cool, but I just didn't know what options there were to make it look like a "normal" fixture.

Thanks in advance,
Aaron

smsreefer · 04/14/2010, 01:58 PM

I've sold two of the Coralife PC fixtures [old and empty] that were going to be used as a housing for LED's .
If you have ever owned one ,you know how hot the housing can get . Seemed to me you could possibly get by with using the housing as the heatsink too.[ made of aluminum with small fins]
[ wish I had kept one of the housings for an NPS tank I am working on.]

Obi-dad · 04/14/2010, 02:04 PM

Mine are going in an existing wood canopy, I like the classic wood look. But I see others are using sheet metal or gutting other light fixtures to put the LED heatsinks in.

I am not using one of the huge heatsinks, I am building mine in u shaped aluminum with mini heatsinks on each LED (like the kind used for some PC video chips). You don't necessarily need those huge heatsinks most people seem to be using if you have airflow from fans, although it is a good idea to have a controller be able to shutoff the LEDs if your fans stop and the temp rises (easy to do with the cheap diy arduino controllers).

amheck · 04/21/2010, 07:52 AM

you guys think a 8" wide (front to back) fixture, centered on a 20" front to back tank, could be effective? I've found a couple Coralife and Current 20" fixtures that would work nicely with the legs.

der_wille_zur_macht · 04/21/2010, 08:03 AM

Would depend on height above the water, optics, coral placement, etc. You'll likely have some dropoff near the front/back of the tank but you might be able to work with it.

amheck · 04/21/2010, 08:07 AM

Was thinking something like this. there are others, all differ a little, but I think they all sit 3-4" off the water. Would I want to look into using some optics? In which case, I guess I should go with the XR-E's for the white's which have optics? As opposed to the XP-G's which do not? Any guess on the degree of the optics I should initially try?

CJO · 04/21/2010, 08:47 AM

From what I've read, you can now get optics for the XP-G's, made by Carclo.

CJ

04/14/2010, 01:32 PM	#1
amheck Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: St. Pete, FL Posts: 1,721	What are you guys using to enclose the DIY LED heatsinks? Assuming I don't have a fixture to hack up, what are you guys doing who are building your own LED fixtures? I do think the raw heatsink looks pretty cool, but I just didn't know what options there were to make it look like a "normal" fixture. Thanks in advance, Aaron

04/14/2010, 02:04 PM	#3
Obi-dad Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: CT Posts: 4,314	Mine are going in an existing wood canopy, I like the classic wood look. But I see others are using sheet metal or gutting other light fixtures to put the LED heatsinks in. I am not using one of the huge heatsinks, I am building mine in u shaped aluminum with mini heatsinks on each LED (like the kind used for some PC video chips). You don't necessarily need those huge heatsinks most people seem to be using if you have airflow from fans, although it is a good idea to have a controller be able to shutoff the LEDs if your fans stop and the temp rises (easy to do with the cheap diy arduino controllers). __________________ 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

04/21/2010, 08:03 AM	#5
der_wille_zur_macht Team RC Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: NY Posts: 17,749	Would depend on height above the water, optics, coral placement, etc. You'll likely have some dropoff near the front/back of the tank but you might be able to work with it. __________________ Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman)

04/14/2010, 01:58 PM	#2
smsreefer Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Trussville,Al Posts: 329	I've sold two of the Coralife PC fixtures [old and empty] that were going to be used as a housing for LED's . If you have ever owned one ,you know how hot the housing can get . Seemed to me you could possibly get by with using the housing as the heatsink too.[ made of aluminum with small fins] [ wish I had kept one of the housings for an NPS tank I am working on.]

04/21/2010, 07:52 AM	#4
amheck Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: St. Pete, FL Posts: 1,721	you guys think a 8" wide (front to back) fixture, centered on a 20" front to back tank, could be effective? I've found a couple Coralife and Current 20" fixtures that would work nicely with the legs.

04/21/2010, 08:07 AM	#6
amheck Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: St. Pete, FL Posts: 1,721	Was thinking something like this. there are others, all differ a little, but I think they all sit 3-4" off the water. Would I want to look into using some optics? In which case, I guess I should go with the XR-E's for the white's which have optics? As opposed to the XP-G's which do not? Any guess on the degree of the optics I should initially try?

04/21/2010, 08:47 AM	#7
CJO Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 578	From what I've read, you can now get optics for the XP-G's, made by Carclo. CJ