mrg02d
Aquarium Advice FINatic
Ouch, 12 LEDs just for a 2.5g pico is too much money. Thats $72 (just for the leds) plus drivers, heatsink, ect. You sure 12 would be needed of the 3W cree leds?
Matt
Matt
Lighting for Corals & Expenses
- Thread starter Crepe
- Start date
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OP
OP
Crepe
Aquarium Advice Addict
I think 12 may be too much for a pico haha especially with good lenses you will probably only need 4-6.
mrg02d
Aquarium Advice FINatic
Hello,
Yes, I was thinking about 8 LEDs. Four white and four blue. That seems like a lot of light (24W over a 2.5g) but I deffinately dont want to get into trouble with light spread and spot lighting. I could dim the leds if the corals look unhappy. That is, as long as these LEDs dont require full current to maintain their color temp.
Instead of building the driver, I may just buy one of those dimmable PSU they sell. My design will cost me $30 and Id have to get a power supply as well. Cheaper to buy one of those commercial power supplies. (my design was intended for 40W laser diodes).
Another idea to save money: Anyone know where to buy the leds without the "stars"? Seems to me I could save money by soldering the leds onto their star mounts myself. I am very good at soldering anyways...
Matt
Yes, I was thinking about 8 LEDs. Four white and four blue. That seems like a lot of light (24W over a 2.5g) but I deffinately dont want to get into trouble with light spread and spot lighting. I could dim the leds if the corals look unhappy. That is, as long as these LEDs dont require full current to maintain their color temp.
Instead of building the driver, I may just buy one of those dimmable PSU they sell. My design will cost me $30 and Id have to get a power supply as well. Cheaper to buy one of those commercial power supplies. (my design was intended for 40W laser diodes).
Another idea to save money: Anyone know where to buy the leds without the "stars"? Seems to me I could save money by soldering the leds onto their star mounts myself. I am very good at soldering anyways...
Matt
Jimbo7
Aquarium Advice Addict
I know you can buy them separately but i have only heard of that in like group buys or large orders. What is the footprint of your tank? I'm thinking 6 would probably be enough. Are you looking to do real high light stuff? I dont think you should worry about lenses, there is no need for them on any small tank. They are really just used to penetrate down deep into the tank. Plus if you did 6 you would only need one driver.
mrg02d
Aquarium Advice FINatic
Hello,
the tank is about 12in by 5in wide and maybe 6-7in deep. As of right now I dont plan on anything that needs that much light, but do have a small pocillipora frag (broke from main colony) that would look nice in there.
Matt
OP
OP
Crepe
Aquarium Advice Addict
Just talked to the guy here's the low down:
Hi Jeffrey,
Unfortunately CREE does not allow us to specify bin codes when ordering, so we don't know what we are getting until the order is run. Dimmers affect the color of light only if you're mixing whites and blues. For example, if you dim one of our Cool White LEDs the CCT is still the same (ie. 6500).
Mike
Hi Jeffrey,
Unfortunately CREE does not allow us to specify bin codes when ordering, so we don't know what we are getting until the order is run. Dimmers affect the color of light only if you're mixing whites and blues. For example, if you dim one of our Cool White LEDs the CCT is still the same (ie. 6500).
Mike
Jimbo7
Aquarium Advice Addict
Hello,
the tank is about 12in by 5in wide and maybe 6-7in deep. As of right now I dont plan on anything that needs that much light, but do have a small pocillipora frag (broke from main colony) that would look nice in there.
Matt
you can go with 8, but you are going to be fine with 6. You can wait and see though, me and Ziggy are both starting our builds soon. Should be a lot more information flying around then. Plus you could run 6 much easier with a 24v PS.
mrg02d
Aquarium Advice FINatic
Good to know, 6 it is then. Should I go with an even 3 white and 3 blue?
I will plan to use one of those commercial driver+PSU to keep things cheaper and more compact.
Matt
I will plan to use one of those commercial driver+PSU to keep things cheaper and more compact.
Matt
Jimbo7
Aquarium Advice Addict
I would, but its a personal choice. Since you wont have individual control over them, if you know you would like more blue, then get one extra blue. Again, you will be able to see soon how an equal amount of LEDs runs when either of us start.
AMDPhenomX4
Aquarium Advice FINatic
For cheap, the DIY driver I linked was under $10.00 for 2X8LED drivers. All that is needed is a cheap 24V power supply.
Jimbo7
Aquarium Advice Addict
I didnt see any link, but you wont be able to run 8 LEDs in series with a 24v power supply.
mrg02d
Aquarium Advice FINatic
I think i will go with 6 leds and use one of those 24v commercial units. The cheapo LM317 constant current drivers are pretty lossy IMO. I am happy to see that the commerical units combine a constant current driver (that can be dimmed) and a power supply all in one package for $33.00. An LM317 would come in handy for providing a 0-10v signal to the driver for dimming though.
So, 6 leds then. Should that be good for most coral requirements? (Over a 2.5g). If it works well, I will scale up for my 20g.
Matt
So, 6 leds then. Should that be good for most coral requirements? (Over a 2.5g). If it works well, I will scale up for my 20g.
Matt
