king_neptune
Active Member
nope. Was waiting on heatsinks so I cold match them properly to frame.
anything in paticular you had in mind?
anything in paticular you had in mind?
Neptunes 72" Custom LED system.
- Thread starter king_neptune
- Start date
swimmer4uus
Member
Yes. I built my frame after I had all the LEDs in place, with associated wiring. I found I had to pull a couple off to have the heatsink fit properly, as I didn't account for the size of the lip I was using on my Aluminum. I'd definantly recomend having the heatsink mounted onto your frame before you mount the LEDs, and wire them up.
king_neptune
Active Member
indeed. was my intention to mount them first, them do the LED's and wiring.
king_neptune
Active Member
I just got back from my trip to Area 51:
UFO on camera!!!
Well...ok.Its a pair of 200mm heat sink fans. Ill have 4 total one each panel. They are silent, and I mean SILENT! Cooler Master PC fans for anyone interested.
Here is some teasers for you all.
A close up of the mounting system for the drivers, just some leftover L brackets from the main spars:
I still have the two end Brackets remain untouched, so back to home depot they go, along with some packs of screws I ended up not needing. -$30 off the top of my costs I quoted yesterday. Ill probably spend that on something else.
The bolts through the brackets were easy to do. I did one hole, then used cle-ko's to temp rivet hole, then on to the next.
I was lucky to have my Dad open up his airplane shop to me, saved a lot of trouble by getting access to specialized tools and equipment.
I was able to add a nice machine finish to the edges as well. Maybe on the next array Ill actually rivet it together. For now screws and bolts.
I also am going to drill/tap every screw, so I started with the heat sinks, they each have 4 screws tapped through the frame to the heat sink itself. It also saved a struggle trying to bolt with the fins in the way...and made it come out nice and clean.
I got about 4 screws into the project and was beginning to have trouble(bit got stuck), I asked Dad, and he got a can of Tap oil.
Any oil will do, but this is meant to keep the bit cool and drill clean. I highly recommend anyone who tries to drill and tap do this.
It is IMO an essential part to tapping properly. After that the tapping became a breeze. I think this is probably why so many people chew up bits when they do this, I have yet to come across one DIY'er who instructed readers to use tap oil.
Here is what Ill get started on tomorrow:
The daunting task of tapping for 48 LED's. Not sure If Ill do 2 each, or 4. Its gonna take alot of work to do all these holes.
Ill have 24 LED's per panel. 4x6 with alternating w/b pattern.
UFO on camera!!!
Well...ok.Its a pair of 200mm heat sink fans. Ill have 4 total one each panel. They are silent, and I mean SILENT! Cooler Master PC fans for anyone interested.
Here is some teasers for you all.
A close up of the mounting system for the drivers, just some leftover L brackets from the main spars:
I still have the two end Brackets remain untouched, so back to home depot they go, along with some packs of screws I ended up not needing. -$30 off the top of my costs I quoted yesterday. Ill probably spend that on something else.
The bolts through the brackets were easy to do. I did one hole, then used cle-ko's to temp rivet hole, then on to the next.
I was lucky to have my Dad open up his airplane shop to me, saved a lot of trouble by getting access to specialized tools and equipment.
I was able to add a nice machine finish to the edges as well. Maybe on the next array Ill actually rivet it together. For now screws and bolts.
I also am going to drill/tap every screw, so I started with the heat sinks, they each have 4 screws tapped through the frame to the heat sink itself. It also saved a struggle trying to bolt with the fins in the way...and made it come out nice and clean.
I got about 4 screws into the project and was beginning to have trouble(bit got stuck), I asked Dad, and he got a can of Tap oil.
Any oil will do, but this is meant to keep the bit cool and drill clean. I highly recommend anyone who tries to drill and tap do this.
It is IMO an essential part to tapping properly. After that the tapping became a breeze. I think this is probably why so many people chew up bits when they do this, I have yet to come across one DIY'er who instructed readers to use tap oil.
Here is what Ill get started on tomorrow:
The daunting task of tapping for 48 LED's. Not sure If Ill do 2 each, or 4. Its gonna take alot of work to do all these holes.
Ill have 24 LED's per panel. 4x6 with alternating w/b pattern.
king_neptune
Active Member
Here is my control box.
Its a simple concept,Ill try to make it simple to understand.
Meanwell drivers have a dimming capability, but to use it you need a 10v power supply that has a potentiometer capable of dimming it from 0-10v.
This voltage is sent to a separate line in the driver that tells it basically to go from %0-%100 power.Current(aka M.a. doesnt matter, the driver just needs volts to interpret how much power to send the LED's.
A quote from another reefer...his words are better than mine:
" It requires this (again 0-10V) being 0V= 0% dim and 10V = 100% power output. In this application mA doesn't really matter to much. The meanwell just needs these signal to know how much power you want the driver to release to your LEDs. The power people are using to the LEDs (12,24,32, etc) is the power for the driver and this is NOT the power to your driver. The driver uses AC and gives you DC to the LEDs. That gives you a stable mA (here matters) to the LEDs. You could have a 200 mA power supply for the Dimming wires and still have 1000 mA through the LEDs cause they work independently"
To illustrate what I just said.....
I played around with several pots, 25ohm,250ohm,1k,5k,100k,500k. All failures. Finally I opted for what the sales rep at RapidLED recommended, 1m ohm pots. He knew what he was talking about
WAY overkill IMO(very sensitive once you found the sweet spot)...but these were the ones that proved most reliable when it came to giving me steady accurate voltage. I basically took the signal from the incoming wall wart, and forced it down to 10v. Like I said...I tried all sorts of pots, and the 1m ohm were indeed the ones that gave the best results. Currently I have about a 45degree twist beetween 0 and 100% power, Id like to have more; but like I said Ive tried all sorts of sizes of pots, and 1m ohm is indeed the best one I came across.
From there I split it to 4 more pots so that I could manually adjust them from 0-10v, and I added a side line to be able to carry that 10v signal to the next control box for next months addition.
Please forgive the ugliness, I'm not really good at this kind of stuff.
I did test it out and the concept worked! I'm heading to Fry's tomorrow and getting 3 more voltage meters($6 a pop) so I can make a panel that will let me monitor the Exact power each individual array is getting.
The reasoning is it will be really helpful in determining if I'm at 30% power ect.
Its a simple concept,Ill try to make it simple to understand.
Meanwell drivers have a dimming capability, but to use it you need a 10v power supply that has a potentiometer capable of dimming it from 0-10v.
This voltage is sent to a separate line in the driver that tells it basically to go from %0-%100 power.Current(aka M.a. doesnt matter, the driver just needs volts to interpret how much power to send the LED's.
A quote from another reefer...his words are better than mine:
" It requires this (again 0-10V) being 0V= 0% dim and 10V = 100% power output. In this application mA doesn't really matter to much. The meanwell just needs these signal to know how much power you want the driver to release to your LEDs. The power people are using to the LEDs (12,24,32, etc) is the power for the driver and this is NOT the power to your driver. The driver uses AC and gives you DC to the LEDs. That gives you a stable mA (here matters) to the LEDs. You could have a 200 mA power supply for the Dimming wires and still have 1000 mA through the LEDs cause they work independently"
To illustrate what I just said.....
I played around with several pots, 25ohm,250ohm,1k,5k,100k,500k. All failures. Finally I opted for what the sales rep at RapidLED recommended, 1m ohm pots. He knew what he was talking about
WAY overkill IMO(very sensitive once you found the sweet spot)...but these were the ones that proved most reliable when it came to giving me steady accurate voltage. I basically took the signal from the incoming wall wart, and forced it down to 10v. Like I said...I tried all sorts of pots, and the 1m ohm were indeed the ones that gave the best results. Currently I have about a 45degree twist beetween 0 and 100% power, Id like to have more; but like I said Ive tried all sorts of sizes of pots, and 1m ohm is indeed the best one I came across.
From there I split it to 4 more pots so that I could manually adjust them from 0-10v, and I added a side line to be able to carry that 10v signal to the next control box for next months addition.
Please forgive the ugliness, I'm not really good at this kind of stuff.
I did test it out and the concept worked! I'm heading to Fry's tomorrow and getting 3 more voltage meters($6 a pop) so I can make a panel that will let me monitor the Exact power each individual array is getting.
The reasoning is it will be really helpful in determining if I'm at 30% power ect.
jchase1970
Member
are you using all 3w LEDs or a combination of sizes?
king_neptune
Active Member
Cre-XRE series(3w).
24 Cool White Cree Q5 XR-E LEDs
24 Royal Blue Cree XR-E LEDs
I was considering Rapidled's premium kit, which contains a mix of
* 24 Cool White Cree XP-G R5 LEDs
* 24 Royal Blue Cree XR-E LEDs
THe XPG series is the latest from cre.
Well...latest to the public...they do have a new one as of last month(sorry cant remember the link).
XPG's are 140 lumens per LED vs. 107 lumens from the XRE.
Unfortunately the Royal Blue does not come in XPG. so......
Now I open a can of worms because I would need like a 40/60 split and that makes choosing the pattern a little more complicated. I was advised just to stick with whats already proven to work, since the XPG's are still pretty new.
Im glad I chose to listen to the advice given...Ive been reading a lot, and people are beginning to think that a 50/50 split with the XRE-s may also be incorrect. It seems that the higher the ratio of blues the better the growth.Evidently the white is just too intense, haveing it more blue is safer for corals
A 60/40 b/w split might produce better results(and personally I think it looks better anyways).
Im not worried since I plan to have independant dimming for each panel, and each color. As a result, Ill be able to drop the White, and up the blue. Would be giving me similar results anyways. Granted not identical to actually doing a 40/60 split...since the spread of the pattern would still be 50/50, but it will be a significant ability of my array.
24 Cool White Cree Q5 XR-E LEDs
24 Royal Blue Cree XR-E LEDs
I was considering Rapidled's premium kit, which contains a mix of
* 24 Cool White Cree XP-G R5 LEDs
* 24 Royal Blue Cree XR-E LEDs
THe XPG series is the latest from cre.
Well...latest to the public...they do have a new one as of last month(sorry cant remember the link).
XPG's are 140 lumens per LED vs. 107 lumens from the XRE.
Unfortunately the Royal Blue does not come in XPG. so......
Now I open a can of worms because I would need like a 40/60 split and that makes choosing the pattern a little more complicated. I was advised just to stick with whats already proven to work, since the XPG's are still pretty new.
Im glad I chose to listen to the advice given...Ive been reading a lot, and people are beginning to think that a 50/50 split with the XRE-s may also be incorrect. It seems that the higher the ratio of blues the better the growth.Evidently the white is just too intense, haveing it more blue is safer for corals
A 60/40 b/w split might produce better results(and personally I think it looks better anyways).
Im not worried since I plan to have independant dimming for each panel, and each color. As a result, Ill be able to drop the White, and up the blue. Would be giving me similar results anyways. Granted not identical to actually doing a 40/60 split...since the spread of the pattern would still be 50/50, but it will be a significant ability of my array.
handbanana
Member
Sweet!
Very nice project King. Pretty Impressive.
Very nice project King. Pretty Impressive.
king_neptune
Active Member
Also I would like to add:
RAPIDLED will swap out your order free of charge to your spec's.
For example: I wanted a mix package of lenses, they did exactly the number I wanted and what angles I wanted.
Same for LED's. Say I wanted to do a 40/60 split, no problem...they customize the LED quantity any way you want. Provided your doing one type for the same type. ex XRE for XRE.
This really is a great asset for DIY'ers.
My next project after this one will be a 55g frag tank that will be blue dominated. Ill probably opt for 36b/12w when I order that package later this summer.
RAPIDLED will swap out your order free of charge to your spec's.
For example: I wanted a mix package of lenses, they did exactly the number I wanted and what angles I wanted.
Same for LED's. Say I wanted to do a 40/60 split, no problem...they customize the LED quantity any way you want. Provided your doing one type for the same type. ex XRE for XRE.
This really is a great asset for DIY'ers.
My next project after this one will be a 55g frag tank that will be blue dominated. Ill probably opt for 36b/12w when I order that package later this summer.
handbanana
Member
I'm considering making my own Moonlighting now. That I should be able to handle.
Thanks King. Your DIY is very motivating!
Thanks King. Your DIY is very motivating!
king_neptune
Active Member
Drill and tap time!!
Oh man this is a painstaking process.
First line up the LEDs the pattern you want, be sure that the holes your about to drill will fall BETWEENN the fins.You dont want to get through and have the bit biting halfway into the fin.Its gonna break. I snapped the first bit on the first hole. grrrrr.
Its tough geting the perfect fit, but I got it as close to perfect as I could. Next get a marker and put a dot where each screw will go.
Remove the LED's and it looks something like this:
Put a dab of tap oil on each dot. After about 45 min I ended up with this:
The holes take a min each to do. Its painstaking and slow. I'm getting tired so I'll finish this over the next few days.
Hopefully my Glow in the dark shrink tubing and remainder of my electrical supplies arrive. I ordered it Friday, so any day now.
And while I'm on the heat sink, I'm wishing I would have ordered it a couple inches longer. 10" is just right for a row of 5 LED's, but for 6 its kinda tight. At least 12" for anyone mimicking this build. Just remember your losing space between the sinks, so you might find your self placing the drivers in a different spot if you go larger.
Oh man this is a painstaking process.
First line up the LEDs the pattern you want, be sure that the holes your about to drill will fall BETWEENN the fins.You dont want to get through and have the bit biting halfway into the fin.Its gonna break. I snapped the first bit on the first hole. grrrrr.
Its tough geting the perfect fit, but I got it as close to perfect as I could. Next get a marker and put a dot where each screw will go.
Remove the LED's and it looks something like this:
Put a dab of tap oil on each dot. After about 45 min I ended up with this:
The holes take a min each to do. Its painstaking and slow. I'm getting tired so I'll finish this over the next few days.
Hopefully my Glow in the dark shrink tubing and remainder of my electrical supplies arrive. I ordered it Friday, so any day now.
And while I'm on the heat sink, I'm wishing I would have ordered it a couple inches longer. 10" is just right for a row of 5 LED's, but for 6 its kinda tight. At least 12" for anyone mimicking this build. Just remember your losing space between the sinks, so you might find your self placing the drivers in a different spot if you go larger.
swimmer4uus
Member
If you're this far, using self tapping screws is stupid. haha, I mean, if you're already going the extra mile of drilling, might as well tap them.
king_neptune
Active Member
Originally Posted by acrylic51
http:///forum/post/3272640
Are you going to tap the holes or use self tapping screws?
Very tempting. I almost bought self taping screws. But I wory about self tapping while the epoxy is trying to set. Last thing I want is a mishap while I got the glue settling in. Safer to have the hole already drilled and tapped.
And the tapping part is cake, the bit goes in like butter. Its the actual drilling of the hole that is the challenge.
Oh, and I dont know why I didnt think of it lastnight, probably had to do with being tired...but I have access to my dads shop and among things is a drill press!
I kept looking at it thinking, WOW that will really help speed things up, and ensure a safer drill for the bit....but the thought wasnt connecting and finishing to actually doing it. Soo....Il be using a drill press for the remainder of the drilling! Should be cake now.
http:///forum/post/3272640
Are you going to tap the holes or use self tapping screws?
Very tempting. I almost bought self taping screws. But I wory about self tapping while the epoxy is trying to set. Last thing I want is a mishap while I got the glue settling in. Safer to have the hole already drilled and tapped.
And the tapping part is cake, the bit goes in like butter. Its the actual drilling of the hole that is the challenge.
Oh, and I dont know why I didnt think of it lastnight, probably had to do with being tired...but I have access to my dads shop and among things is a drill press!
I kept looking at it thinking, WOW that will really help speed things up, and ensure a safer drill for the bit....but the thought wasnt connecting and finishing to actually doing it. Soo....Il be using a drill press for the remainder of the drilling! Should be cake now.
handbanana
Member
Hey King, The wiring will be on the surface shown, then covered with a cover/ lenses?
I've never seen LED's that look like that is all. They're usealy connected from behind I thought.
I've never seen LED's that look like that is all. They're usealy connected from behind I thought.
king_neptune
Active Member
Originally Posted by Handbanana
http:///forum/post/3272817
Hey King, The wiring will be on the surface shown, then covered with a cover/ lenses?
I've never seen LED's that look like that is all. They're usealy connected from behind I thought.
It will look something like this:
Lenses are clip on, they will snap onto the LED itself. I will have a sheet of Acrylic cut at a local shop to match the shape of the frame, then I will fasten it as a splash guard over the arrays face.
If you would like to learn more about DIY LED arryas a good place to start is soundwaves build. Him and Evilc66 were more or less the pioneer's in the DIY LED reef revolution.
A good palce to start is google this phrase:
soundwave's diy led array
third one down.
http:///forum/post/3272817
Hey King, The wiring will be on the surface shown, then covered with a cover/ lenses?
I've never seen LED's that look like that is all. They're usealy connected from behind I thought.
It will look something like this:
Lenses are clip on, they will snap onto the LED itself. I will have a sheet of Acrylic cut at a local shop to match the shape of the frame, then I will fasten it as a splash guard over the arrays face.
If you would like to learn more about DIY LED arryas a good place to start is soundwaves build. Him and Evilc66 were more or less the pioneer's in the DIY LED reef revolution.
A good palce to start is google this phrase:
soundwave's diy led array
third one down.
aquaknight
Active Member
You know... What would be really sweet for that setup to help with cooling? A water-to-air intercooler.
Like most laptops have in them. Copper pipe running across the fins, to an intercooler on each end, routed in a constant loop, with a fan mounted to it.
handbanana
Member
That is so awesome. I'm going to check that link.
What if instead of an intercooler, the water from the tank cooled the light and heated the tank?
I think I'm getting a little carried away.
What if instead of an intercooler, the water from the tank cooled the light and heated the tank?
I think I'm getting a little carried away.
king_neptune
Active Member
Originally Posted by AquaKnight
http:///forum/post/3272943
You know... What would be really sweet for that setup to help with cooling? A water-to-air intercooler.
Like most laptops have in them. Copper pipe running across the fins, to an intercooler on each end, routed in a constant loop, with a fan mounted to it.
copper, not sure thats so hot. I know its seperate from the main system, but cant that still pose a threat somehow?
besides, too much effort. with this basic setup the fans will do some amazing cooling for the sinks. Im confidant Ill be able to grip it firmly no trouble.
http:///forum/post/3272943
You know... What would be really sweet for that setup to help with cooling? A water-to-air intercooler.
copper, not sure thats so hot. I know its seperate from the main system, but cant that still pose a threat somehow?
besides, too much effort. with this basic setup the fans will do some amazing cooling for the sinks. Im confidant Ill be able to grip it firmly no trouble.
king_neptune
Active Member
ive had about all I can take from drilling and tapping.
I switched to the drill press and voila! the holes were all done in about 5 min!
then I went to the tappng...which was sooooo easy the other day. snapped 2 bits in before I got halfway through my second row!
Im so bent right now, I need to calm down and think where I went wrong.
I think its a result of not cleaningthe bit each hole, it got bound up on the metal shavings in the bit.
I cant be making trips to town everytime I snap a bit, its an hour round trip to the hardware store. And at $5 a bit.
This is already stacking up, im pretty much tapped till the 1st of the month.
If I chew through much more bits, Im just gonna do what 90% of the folks out there do....epoxy it with thermal paste.
you can eat my fecal excriments drill and tap method
I switched to the drill press and voila! the holes were all done in about 5 min!
then I went to the tappng...which was sooooo easy the other day. snapped 2 bits in before I got halfway through my second row!
Im so bent right now, I need to calm down and think where I went wrong.
I think its a result of not cleaningthe bit each hole, it got bound up on the metal shavings in the bit.
I cant be making trips to town everytime I snap a bit, its an hour round trip to the hardware store. And at $5 a bit.
This is already stacking up, im pretty much tapped till the 1st of the month.
If I chew through much more bits, Im just gonna do what 90% of the folks out there do....epoxy it with thermal paste.
you can eat my fecal excriments drill and tap method