arsenicrain
New Member
well i would, mister sarcasm, if i knew where to begin. though if i knew where to begin, i wouldnt be needing someones help figuring it out now would i?Guess it's time to hit the books!
well i would, mister sarcasm, if i knew where to begin. though if i knew where to begin, i wouldnt be needing someones help figuring it out now would i?Guess it's time to hit the books!
@arsenicrain It would be pretty tough and incomplete to type a DIY led primer course here. But here are some basicsyou just spoke in absolute alien to me
what makes you think the deep red stars from steves led aren't robust enough ?@Reggae1017 And, I have had more trouble than I would like with the phillips luxeon deep red 3w stars from Steves leds. their reflowing is very shallow and requires very delicate handling. Due to my user error, or possible rough handling, I have had several red leds go out recently.
-cheers
i tried to be as fair as possible in my statement to Steves led. it maybe be rough handling on my part. I have soldered only about 100 - 120 leds total in my diy career. I have had a total 5 leds burn out that were not driver related issues. 1 was an xml2 from Fasttech, the other 4 were luxeon deep reds from Steves led. take that for what its worth, even though it is purely anecdotal.what makes you think the deep red stars from steves led aren't robust enough
thanks, understand.i tried to be as fair as possible in my statement to Steves led. it maybe be rough handling on my part. I have soldered only about 100 - 120 leds total in my diy career. I have had a total 5 leds burn out that were not driver related issues. 1 was an xml2 from Fasttech, the other 4 were luxeon deep reds from Steves led. take that for what its worth, even though it is purely anecdotal.
I wanted to wait to release this until it was done, but it pertains to your application perfectly. I too have a 5x5 ft area that i need evenly illuminated to veg plants while keeping heat and wattage to a minimum. I just build a 36" x 36" panel, parts list below:
(20) cxa2530 4500k (bin unknown) https://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10013316/2250000-cree-cxa2530-60w-4500k-6000lm-cob-led-array $200 total
(2) Meanwell HLG185h-c500b http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Mean-Well/HLG-185H-C500B/?qs=%2bmCJZPMmHFM%2bw04ux59OXg== $140 total
(4) 4.850 heatsinks 36" long http://www.heatsinkusa.com/4-850-wide-extruded-aluminum-heatsink/ $140 total + shipping
it pulls 405 from the wall and will blow the doors off of an 8 bulb T5 unit , View attachment 3462568 View attachment 3462569 heres an idea of what it looks like
sorry to hijack the the thread, but here is a little more eye candyView attachment 3462579
@Reggae1017 sure man, i dont mind helping and telling you exactly what to buy. If you are budget conscious and like you mention in your thread, you have some other "name brand" leds to supplement, heres what I would go with for myself.
I would go for (4) cxB 3070 , i would go all 4000k personally, since you only have 5ft height. I have noticed much more stretch with 3ks. Mouser carries the AB bin ( one bin from the top top) for $40 each. so thats $160
driver: hlg185h-c1400b. $70 anywhere (mouser, bravo, sager etc)
heatsink: def go for the 5.886" profile minimum. this width is sufficient, but more importantly the based plate of the aluminum heatsink is a bit thicker than some of their other profiles. 36" long will run $64
fan: Cooler Master Sleeve Bearing 140mm Silent Fan $11. cheap price, great fan, i use several of these personally, you only need one for this build.
fan power supply, anything from 5v to 12v will work. i use the meanwell APV12-12 $7.
Total: $312.
that set up plus your other lighting will be affordable, easy to build, and give you great results. if you like it, you can scrap the older lights you have and double the setup i suggested.
ok great, thanks for all your help. Off to read more... Hey looking at your material list are you thinking of everything just riding on the heatsink with a fan blowing over the driver, or expecting me to come up with a tube design to house the driver ( which i can certainly do). Just wasn't sure if you were thinking skeletal design/minimal cooling needed or just focusing on the lights. I do have an extra pc power supply and 5 zone fan controller with temp probes that fits a pc 5.25 bay. would be cool to run that. Would give your temps along the heatsink as well as possible expansion to up to 5 fan zones.@Reggae1017 Sourcing cxA are easy, any color, CRI, or Bin, no problem. When it comes to cxB, the newer version suggested in my earlier post, things get more scarce. Ideally, you would want the cxb3070 AD (top top bin for our purposes) 4000k./ I dont have a link for you unfortunately. You may want to contact Jerry @ kingbrite. I have not done business with them, but I hear and read great customer experiences.
View attachment 3463013
...i prefer "fine" aluminium sheet or other metal for not deformate with hot temps ...not plastic...@salmonetin I really like your idea of adding some "mini reflectors" The holes in my face panel are 35mm. Currently, I have the chassis of the light mounted directly to face panel you see pictured. I do have an additional 1.5 inches of clearance inside the fixture so that i can have room to add a reflector. I thought about trying to get someone with a "Maker Bot" to fabricate what I need, but i fear just about any kind of plastic will deform or melt, like in the picture about. Im currently browsing Kingbrite for a reflector solution. Ill keep ya posted.
...i prefer "fine" aluminium sheet or other metal for not deformate with hot temps ...not plastic...
...and maybe other exterior sheet with more saparation from the reflectors sheet and opened for her extremes for ventilation or cleanning or washing proceses with highly light transmissive polycarbonate material...
...for protect a bit the leds... i know its expensive way... but seems to me better than templed cristal for hot temps (on the cristal or policarbonate sheets ... the officine rectangular lamps cases or other forms are good inspiration for my pov )...sacrifice some numbers and its expensive way but i like... and maybe better for the vegetative stage with high humdity...
...my inexpert and crazy ideas....
Saludos
I'm not sure how you would get it to act as much of a supplemental heatsink, but sounds like a good idea.how about thin anodized aluminum sheets stamped for the reflector portion which also acts as a supplemental heatsink?
So what I am getting in this the best I can understand is your talking about a lense of some sort over the cob led for protection?...i prefer "fine" aluminium sheet or other metal for not deformate with hot temps ...not plastic...
...and maybe other exterior sheet with more saparation from the reflectors sheet and opened for her extremes for ventilation or cleanning or washing proceses with highly light transmissive polycarbonate material...
...for protect a bit the leds... i know its expensive way... but seems to me better than templed cristal for hot temps (on the cristal or policarbonate sheets ... the officine rectangular lamps cases or other forms are good inspiration for my pov )...sacrifice some numbers and its expensive way but i like... and maybe better for the vegetative stage with high humdity...
...my inexpert and crazy ideas....
Saludos