DIY LED light fixture

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imsobored152

Member
ok, im working on my LED light fixture. Sorry no pics yet.(later or tomorrow)
Its going to have 6 citizen CL-L220 series 16watt 12v 1.4A leds
Its divided into 3 sections with 2 leds on each section, spaced out over my 36" long. My fixture will be expandable if I choose to add more leds/heat sinks to it. There are no plans for a dimmer at this moment. But it may happen in the future. and there are no blue leds. again, maybe down the road. Once the leds are mounted i'll get pictures. then again when theyre lit.

there are no plans on a hood for the tank. its goin topless.

I managed to score a free heatsink 12"x12". Chopped it up into (4) 3"x12" sections. Im only using 3 though. I have limited tools and abilities, so its not the cleanest and prettiest cuts, and a little lopsided, :smack: but after saving hundreds on a light, I wont care. I finished mounting the heatsinks onto my cross beams and drilled the holes for the leds. unfortunately I broke the tap, so i'll finish tomorrow. only 4 more holes to do. My fixture will be mounted onto the wall using door hinges, so it'll lift up with ease. just from holding it against the wall it looks like the heatsinks will stop the fixture right at 90 degree angle. if not ive got L brackets I can use as stoppers. I just need to mount the leds and order my power supply, and i'll be set. and considering that my whole project cost around $50, im not complaining. we'll see how it turns out.

P.S. I managed to get the leds and heatsink as freebies, so thats why the lower cost :makefun:
 
I

imsobored152

Member
100_0507.jpg

100_0506.jpg
 
Frankie

Frankie

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
Cool project. THe only problem I see is that the heat sinks are made of aluminum. Salt water will eat that up pretty quickly. You might want to coat it with something.
 
I

imsobored152

Member
awesome. Its already painted black, so no need to do a thing. except maybe coat the edges of the cuts.
 
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I

imsobored152

Member
Re: DIY LED light fixture(wip)

drilled, tapped and leds mounted.
And yes, I know one led isn't straight. I some how was WAY off when I drilled the hole, so I had to angle the one to drill a new hole. I should be ordering the power supply by the weeks end. So lit pictures are next
100_0508.jpg
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Interested to see how this looks over the tank.

In this application, where you get a spotlight effect not unlike conventional MH, it might be good to supplement the white LEDs with some sort of T5 actinic for color balance.
 
I

imsobored152

Member
for the actinic attributes or just for the coloring? Im thinking about some blue leds. not sure which ones yet, but we'll see. which would be better? actinics or blue leds?
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
That's debated. From what I understand, corals under bluer light grow at a slower rate, while places like coral farms sometimes use bulbs around 6700k to promote faster growth. So while it is not necessary, I and many others think it looks better.

The biggest concern to me would be color blending. The T5s would run the length of the entire tank, whereas blue LEDs would have to be placed very carefully to ensure proper blending. Are the blue LEDs like the ones already on there?
 
I

imsobored152

Member
I havent looked into the blues. it wouldnt be that specific led. But maybe something similar. Do the blue leds give off a different wavelength, or is it just blue?Is it possible to paint(dont flame me on that, just an idea) the dome of and led to the blue I want? Ive done it with car lights before and it came out the color I wanted. and really a colored bulb is just colored glass casing. reason I ask is ive got a handful of the same leds layn around, and a handful of smaller domed leds(10.5v)
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
This I don't know. Assuming the main LEDs provide for all the basic lighting "needs" of the coral and the blues were strictly for color blending, I suppose they could get their color any way so long as they produce blue light. After all, that is their purpose.

Blue itself is a different wave length of light then, say, red or green. I'm not sure how efficiently paint would transform white light into blue, but it could work. If you have extras laying around and it wouldn't cost you anything, it couldn't hurt to try.
 
I

imsobored152

Member
then I may go ahead and do that. Ive got some smaller domed leds I can experiment with. Ive already got the power supply for those. looks like im runnin to the auto store for some touch up paint. Which actually holds up to heat pretty well. Used it before to paint my manifold on the car once. never cracked bubbled or anything.

I'll keep this updated
 
I

imsobored152

Member
heres a quick peek of them lit up. This a crappy video on my cell phone. with ONLY 2 leds lit. There is no water in the tank. I managed to find a 18v-36v 1.05A supply to test these with. these are UNDERpowered by almost half an amp. they run at 1.4a. Video starts with normal corner lamp on, then shuts off and goes dark while I try to plug the leds in in the dark. Then theyre on. This is NOT where the leds will be, theyre just chillin on the top. They'll end up above the tank mounted to the wall
Enjoy
0125101813a.flv video by imsobored152 - Photobucket
 
I

imsobored152

Member
I cant wait either. :cool: dont forget theyre under powered by almost half an amp.

Maybe tomorrow, they'll all be lit.

too bad theres no sand or water.....or anything in the tank.
still need everything that accompanies an empty tank :smack:

but so far im happy with the results.
 
I

imsobored152

Member
well I tried to paint the led with electron blue pearl touch up paint. It gave off a beautiful blue, very bright.......but then it started smoking. Smoke is never a good thing :O/ I may try to get some high temp engine paint for them and try again. I'll get some pictures before it starts to smoke
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Hm. Well that's interesting. It does look to be a good blue color. The smoking is never good, especially when who knows what could be in the fumes.
 
I

imsobored152

Member
well Ive had my two leds burning in for a few hours now. The leds are hot to the touch after a few seconds. The heatsink is warm. I'll probably leave it burning in for a while(at least till bed). this is with active cooling, no fans necessary.

I just hope they have a good blue color in the high temp paint.
 
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