LED Help

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Hi Guys planning a new tank currently, and want to go the LED route. i need to know how many leds i would require for the tank.

tank size 800x600x550 high water at say 500.
looking at DIY as the units are crazy expensive and i have a tight budget.
i am currently looking at the following;

18 white
24 blue/ royal blue
8 UV / actinic

all 3 watt bridgelux, with 60 degree optics, want to use 3 x meanwell ELN-60-48P drivers

my question is will this be enough to say grow SPS. is the colour arrangement ok, do i need more drivers.
 
What colours and how many are you planning to put on each driver?

What is the forward voltage of each LED colour?
 
What colours and how many are you planning to put on each driver?

What is the forward voltage of each LED colour?

im planning the following;

18 white on one driver - 9 each in parallel
18 blue same as above
third driver will have the other 14 leds 8 actinic and 6 blue.

white 10,000k - 3.7v @ 700mA
blue - 3.6v @ 700mA
Actinic - 3.8v @ 700mA

will it work like this or do i need to change the arrangement, not an electrical master here :).

oh and i want to use the typhoon controller i think it is to control the leds.
 
This sounds very similar to the build i helped @dallasg with.

i would go unlense (bridgelux are std 120 degrees unlensed)

Also do not forget to turn down the drivers to 700ma

What controller do you plan on using? As the ELN-60-48P drivers use a pwm signal to controll the dimming
 
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@butcherman ,

Hey man, pls correct me if im wrong...do you still turn the drivers down to 700mA when running parralell strings? does that not halve the current?
 
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do you still turn the drivers down to 700mA when running parralell strings? does that not halve the current?

No, when running 2series in parallel you will run at 1400ma.

The current will divide between the 2 strings equally assuming that both strings are identical in configuration.
NB! You will also need to add 2 quick blow fuses, because if one of your paralell series malfuntions you will be pumping 1400ma into a single series and blow even more led's.
 
hi yes beat me to it, if you run two parallel string the current will be halved, with loss probably only 600mA actually.

so if i turn the driver down to 700ma then i will only get 350ma through each string, if i add the fuses will 1000ma be fine

im using this as an example for my wiring:
Led-Lights-Chart-2-lines-12-small.jpg

"This our preferred wiring for the dimmable Mean Well ELN 60-48 series of drivers. At 1.2 Amps this driver will overdrive your CREE X P/R-E LEDs when at full power in a single series. The solution is to run 2 parallel strings and essentially splitting the Amps. This will run two parallel strings of 12 at 600mA which is close to ideal for the CREE X P/R-E LED."
 
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lol Thanx guys, got a bit confused now...planning to redo/mod my DIY LED unit on the weekend and started doubting myself there...Hehe
 
k see @butcherman beat me to it. I agree with his posts aswell

See if you can find the ELN-30-xxx series these are very cool cause there min voltage is 3v. Which means even if a 1 LED blows you dont blow the entire string of LEDs on that driver. Alt put a quick burn fuse on the strings.

Im a fan of full spectrum and I know not everyone will agree with me but Id add some red and cyan and I prefer my whites to be the neutral whites due to the added spectrum they give compared to the cool white

Check stevesled aswell very well priced leds. If I remember correctly @CW is building a unit with them.
 
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@Wolve ,

Sounds like a nice mix of colour there...should give a nice blue shimmer :)

I like your idea of splitting the different colours accross the drives like that to gain max control over the colour config :)
@butcherman , Have you had any negative results with SPS under the LEDs? got mine turned down all the way and still looks like my Strawberry Prostrata is getting burned at the tips.
 
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im planning the following; 18 white on one driver - 9 each in parallel 18 blue same as above third driver will have the other 14 leds 8 actinic and 6 blue. white 10,000k - 3.7v @ 700mA blue - 3.6v @ 700mA Actinic - 3.8v @ 700mA will it work like this or do i need to change the arrangement, not an electrical master here . oh and i want to use the typhoon controller i think it is to control the leds
Sorry i missed this :blush:
The typhoon controller is great.
You can run the driver at max but please include fuses into the build to minimise the risk if something should go wrong.
 
Quote: Originally Posted by B00tCamp Have you had any negative results with SPS under the LEDs? got mine turned down all the way and still looks like my Strawberry Prostrata is getting burned at the tips. Do you have more info about your build? or a tank thread with details?

Running two Meanwell ELN60-48d drivers with a single string of 14 LED's on each consisting of 10000K white, 6500K white(Cree XPE) , Royal Blue, 1x Green, 1x Red, and 1x UV...Sorry, cant remember the blue white ratio at the moment...all are bridgelux chips except for the 6500K's.

If im not mistaken there are 5x 10000K, 3x 6500K, 1x Red, 1x Green, 1x UV and 3 Royal Blue on each of the two strings. Drivers are both turned down to 700mA

Have not loaded the build on my tank thread just yet...still got some work to do on it... :lol:

The only negative @butcherman has with his coral and LEDs is awesome growth

Hahahaha!! Nice :)
 
Running two Meanwell ELN60-48d drivers with a single string of 14 LED's on each consisting of 10000K white, 6500K white(Cree XPE) , Royal Blue, 1x Green, 1x Red, and 1x UV...Sorry, cant remember the blue white ratio at the moment...all are bridgelux chips except for the 6500K's.
what is the size of your tank?
 
Hi there buddy

If i were you i wont go for the bridglux leds.
Ill go for the steaves leds. Alot more powerfull that bridglux.

I saw 80 bridglux blue and white in action and my 40 steaves leds rock man.

Go have a look at my thread.
Something new - Marine Aquariums South Africa

Good luck
 
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