DIY LED light fixture

[imsobored152]

ok ive got all 6 lit. I took 3 pictures, one at the lowest setting, medium and the highest they'll go. They all look the same in the pictures. So you get one picture. Either way theyre bright.

Ive also come to the conclusion thats its the led burning up, and not the blue paint. I think alot of the heat escapes through the face of the led, and the paint is just blocking the escape. So looks like it'll be whites for a bit, then i'll order some blue. Maybe with tax money.

 

[imsobored152]

i'll snap a few more off the tank later

 

[BigAl07]

It does look to be BRIGHT

 

[imsobored152]

Well I changed the way the heatsinks are, now theyre on top of the Aluminum L thing as opposed to under it. But I stuck a few pieces of dry rock(from reefcleaners) in the empty tank, gives a better perspective on the brightness.
I have more rock, but since theres no water or sand to cushion a fall from stacked rock, I only put a few there.

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

Lookin good. You need some blue in there man!

 

[imsobored152]

thanks. I will get some blues soon enough. The heatsinks only get slightly warm, so I room for led expansion on the current heatsinks. Ive already got the other meanwell driver, just need the leds now

 

[BigAl07]

Looking good. Me being a "blue kinda guy" I gotta agree with CoD. What's cool (if memory serves me correctly) the Blues give off more PAR than the whites (correct?).

My heatsink doesn't get hot either. Even though it's enclosed inside of a hood it's still just slightly more than warm. I LOVE LED

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

Looking good. Me being a "blue kinda guy" I gotta agree with CoD. What's cool (if memory serves me correctly) the Blues give off more PAR than the whites (correct?).

Yup, with the Crees they do. In this setup, if he was just painting them, I still think they'd be important because they'd still put out PAR, even if it's only 70-80% of what an unpainted diode would.

My heatsink doesn't get hot either. Even though it's enclosed inside of a hood it's still just slightly more than warm. I LOVE LED

That's good to hear. I was a little apprehensive about putting the super-silent fans in the hood for fear of inadequate cooling and premature diode failure, but if it's only a little more than warm to the touch, then we're good

 

[imsobored152]

UPDATE! Finally got everything together. Got water in the tank, rock(dry). Picking up some LR to seed tomorrow.

After 8 hours, still a little cloudy, but much better.

And YES I know I need blues still. SOON, but not yet.

 

[Midnight]

very nice

 

[imsobored152]

well ive got some blue leds on the way. hopefully they get here soon. only going with 10 for now. Not sure how many I can fit. I may need to get another section of heatsink to add more. we'll see. they should be here in a week or so.
woohoo for blue!

 

[zigginit]

well i like the idea of you using the 16w LED's. i have been having the same idea but with the much higher watts LED like the 50W. i have seen youtube videos of the 50w LED in a test run and it was super bright. they use them as parking lot flood lights! and the LED unit is only a little bigger then the ones you got. i was thinking of like 2 over a tank would be great for coral with maybe an actinic PC bulb as suplament.

 

[1325903997]

what wattage is your DIY LED Light Fixture? It looks no fans on the heat sinks

 

[StirCrayzy]

Wow, haven't seen this thread in a while ! I don't know how active the OP is anymore.

With the right heat sink to power ratio, passive cooling can be more than adequate.
Most suppliers recommend to keep diode in operation below 90° for optimum lifespan.
I've built fixtures with active and passive cooling, with that temperature goal in mind.