Eugenereef Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Here are some quick pictures. I'll post some tank before and after in a couple of days. A complete shot of the fixture: LED side Backside: The fixture hangs inside canopy with the two 4' black shelf bars bought from HD. The ballasts and all the electrical connections are held by these bars too. The blue box in the middle is where are the junctions are and next to it is RJ45 connectors for VS port connection from apex (dimmers). This is how the fixture sits inside the canopy: Some details of how the hanging bars are connected to the heat sink (via 3 inch spacers and details on fins on the heat sink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 An acrylic splash guard was added on the LED side using nylon bolts and nuts and half inch spacers. Since the apex driver does not completely dim the light (at 15% or so the lights just go out :furious:, I had to add a separate set of moonlight that I ripped out of my DIY t5 fixture. I have been using LED mmonlights for the past 4 yrs (long before the Crees showed up , bought from Besthongkong.com). This is the driver for moonlights. here is one of the moonlight: I have run it all day long and the temperature now does not seems to be an issue! if it does become too hot, this is where two fans are going to go: I have adjusted all the drivers to 950 mA for now as I would like to run my LEDs close to 1 A. The fixture seems to put out enough light. The CWs are a more brighter than RBs but I can adjust the CWs to 40% and get the colors I like! I will add an additional center strip of 14 RBs at a later stage and then I can run them brighter. For now the CWs are at 100% for 3 hr a day simulating high noon! questions? comments? thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteRock Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 How bout some pics of the tank with the lights on? Looks like a pretty sweet set up though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Is the heatsink strip something special or is it aluminum stock like you can buy at home depot?. How are the led's attached, I think I can handle building one but I'm not sure about the wiring is there info out there on how to hook them up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 How bout some pics of the tank with the lights on? Looks like a pretty sweet set up though! They are coming! they are coming!!! Thanks for the compliment! The trouble with LED tank picture is that my tanl looks different at different times of the day. I have the blue LEDs on from 11 to 12 going from 0 to 100% then the white ones follow this routine: 12:00 noon on 12:00 to 1:00 ramp from 0 to 40% 1:00 to 3:00 run at 40% 3:00 to 4:00 ramp to 100% 4:00 to 7:00 run at 100% 7:00 to 8:00 rampdown from 100 to 40% 8:00 to 10:00 run at 40% 10:00 to 11:00 rampdown 40% to 0% 11:00 Off Seems like a complicated and may be overkill but since I can do it using Apex, so I figured why not. Also, the brightness of LEDs CAN bleech corals and this sort of timimg may help them get use to the intensity! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 Is the heatsink strip something special or is it aluminum stock like you can buy at home depot?. How are the led's attached' date=' I think I can handle building one but I'm not sure about the wiring is there info out there on how to hook them up[/quote'] Yes, the heatsinks are made of stock aluminuim strips bought from Jerry's (cheaper than HD). The LEDs are glued to the sink using thermal epoxy. And yeh! it is a pretty stright forward project but just takes a lot of time. I had to design this from scratch and modified the design as I went along to accommodate the needs! Plus I have a lot of crap sitting in my grage from previous projects (some of which I am trying to unload now ) that I try to use. . Also, I do have to mention my very supportive (wife) who allows me to make mess at different parts of the home! here are some of the examples. I had things going in three different areas in the home and garage: This is my homeoffice where the tank is: this is our living room (after a major cleanup ) And even the kitchen counter was not spared DOH! Damm What a mess! I need to learn how to work more cleanly (scratch) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h2odvl Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 LOOKS VERY "COOL" INSPIRATIONAL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AquaticEngineer Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 What size tank is this going over? Are you using any optics to focus the light downwards? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 LOOKS VERY "COOL" INSPIRATIONAL Thanks h2odvl! Now if I can get everybody to change over to LEDs and have them buy them from RapidLED.com, I might start earning some kickbacks from them JK!!! What size tank is this going over? Are you using any optics to focus the light downwards? Its going over 90g (48LX18WX24H). I stayed away from the optics because I want the light to mix well before it hits the water! With optics, I have heard that there are shadows as the beam is more focused. Since the lights are about 4.5 to 5 inchs above water, there is not much loss (Actually I think there is more loss due to splash shield as some of it gets relfected back). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Very cool Upinder. Looking forward to seeing how well it does on your tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AquaticEngineer Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 One thing with LED's is that witout optics they usually have a 110-120 angle on them, so light that is going straight down from an LED without optics is the same amount of light that is going out the side of that wide angle. With the optics your able to focus a lot of that light that your losing and point it back down where you want it. In my case I doubled the amount of light going in the right direction by taking an LED with no optics (120 angle) and narrowing it down to a 60 degree angle. There is almost zero cast off light now. I might be worth buying optics for at least half of your white LEDs to see the side by side difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 One thing with LED's is that witout optics they usually have a 110-120 angle on them, so light that is going straight down from an LED without optics is the same amount of light that is going out the side of that wide angle. With the optics your able to focus a lot of that light that your losing and point it back down where you want it. In my case I doubled the amount of light going in the right direction by taking an LED with no optics (120 angle) and narrowing it down to a 60 degree angle. There is almost zero cast off light now. I might be worth buying optics for at least half of your white LEDs to see the side by side difference. Thanks for your input. This exactly what I was looking for. Somebody who has seen their tank with and without optics. I might give it a shot and see if it improves the intensities! Another $60.00DOH! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald525 Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 Very nice work Inspector gadget! I like LEDs I'm just waiting for all of you pioneers to work out the kinks and for the prices to continue to go down. I'm willing to use them in my maxi mini 29 gallon tank I just hate figuring all that stuff and buildling it!(laugh) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 29, 2011 Author Share Posted April 29, 2011 Very nice work Inspector gadget! I like LEDs I'm just waiting for all of you pioneers to work out the kinks and for the prices to continue to go down. I'm willing to use them in my maxi mini 29 gallon tank I just hate figuring all that stuff and buildling it!(laugh) Thanks Kim! Just do it my way, jump in without thinking and you will succeed Maxi mini would love the intensity of LEDs and you don't need to figure things out!!! we can help you there:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 29, 2011 Author Share Posted April 29, 2011 Here are some pictures of my tank with LEDs on. Keep two things in mind when you watch these pictures 1. Mine is a very young tank, 2 months so most of the corals are tiny frags. but there is huge polyp extensions on these guys! 2. My camera is really crappy not to mention, the photographer (that would be me ) is no good either. but the tank light is really crisp! here we go: here is the rightside of the tank. The left side closeup Side FTS I recently got this feather starfish from LFS this guy is really cool and is happily spread out and eating! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr S Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 Very cool. How much was the whole set up and how many hours did you put into the project? Also, what type of technical know how do you need? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 29, 2011 Author Share Posted April 29, 2011 Very cool. How much was the whole set up and how many hours did you put into the project? Also' date=' what type of technical know how do you need?[/quote'] Hmmm... All very sensitive questions JK The whole thing cost me ~500.00 (everything included). and it took me about a week complete the fixture and I would consider myself average in technical knowledge. I started with a rough design in my mind and changed the design if it didn't look good. I know this is not a conventional way! People plan first then execute, I started to execute and planned as I went along (scratch). That means countless trips to Jerry's, HD Lows, Radioshack and Norwalk electronic during lunch time, after work (sometime two time a day(nutty)). These people know me by my face now some of them run as I show up and others actually walk up to me and ask what I am up to and how can he/she help (Really!! I kid you not!(laugh)) If you or anybody need any help, feel free to contact me. I love this stuff and would be happy to help you all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr S Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 Sounds good. So another "sensitive" question. LOL Life span of the system? Cost of this versus regular lighting (MH, etc.) and has there been any long term comparison such as growth and coloration of LED's compared to the regular lighting systems? Aren't I just a bundle of questions!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald525 Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 That feather starfish is really cool! The tank looks great Upinder and yeah leave it up to the middle school teacher to ask the personal questions! LoL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr S Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 Yeah whatever KIm!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 29, 2011 Author Share Posted April 29, 2011 Sounds good. So another "sensitive" question. LOL Life span of the system? Cost of this versus regular lighting (MH' date=' etc.) and has there been any long term comparison such as growth and coloration of LED's compared to the regular lighting systems? Aren't I just a bundle of questions!!![/quote'] (laugh) I think in terms of costs, LEDs are a slightly more expensive than T5HOs or MH setups but then the LEDs lasts ~50000 h or ~5 yrs (based on what I have read on RC). so the recurring cost of changing bulbs every 9 to 12 months makes up for the difference (actually I think you come out ahead in case of LEDs). Also, LEDs may go out but they can be changed for mere $5.00 (compare to a bulb going out in T5 or MH setup). I saw a thread on RC where people have shown their tank with LEDs for 3yr or more! Pretty good colors and growth! If you can wait another 2 yr, I can give you a really true answer (laugh). I think LEDs don't offer any PAR advantage over other lights (T5s or MH) but the efficiency is just incredible. No heat and less electricity consumption. I had 2 MH (250W)+ 2 t5 actinics (54W) (total wattage= 608 Watts), moved to 6 T5HO (54W each) (total wattage = 324W) and now to 56 LEDs (3W) (total wattage 168 Watts). you can see how the power has been cut to nearly 4 times going from MH to LEDs while keeping MH shimmer and brightness and NO Heat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugenereef Posted April 29, 2011 Author Share Posted April 29, 2011 Very cool Upinder. Looking forward to seeing how well it does on your tank. Thanks Miles! Come-on by sometime if you want to see it in person Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 I got to see this light in person and wow does it make the tank look good. So impressive!!!!! Makes me want LEDs now (drooler) I just love how the light changes throughout the day and the shimmer is even better than MH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KMiller Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 Holy cow, you are so amazing, Upinder!!!! This is so cool!! Makes me want LED's too!! P.s. I would love to see this soon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefnjunkie Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 So I missed the "Upinder" part-WTH?? (laugh) If you are getting that much light spread out over that length, I am thinking the 60 (3 watters) LED's that showed up today for my 24 x 8.5 heat sink may be a little overkill- Granted I went with 60 Degree optics- I thought I readsomewhere that its better to run them at 750mA to save on the life of the LED, have you ever heard/read that?? Just curious since I saw you run some at 100% Nice job on the build it looks awesome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.