...All Things Vero...

Would you consider buying a VERO after reading through some of the posts?

  • Total voters
    357
B

Bill Lidgate

Active Member
OneHitDone said:
95% of all growers I have seen here in cali run 220V for their lights at residential locations ;)
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Its a good idea, most universal input SMPS (Mean Well included) are about 5% more efficient when run at the higher voltages (with loads over 50%) and you can get a bit less heating on a given AC line going from 120-> 240->277VAC
 
bobbuck

bobbuck

Well-Known Member
Hola! I'm doing a Vero 18 build with 6 cobs and a mw hlg-185h-c1050 525-1050ma. I went with the picos ez-mate. I see some people against these due to voltage being to high. the data sheet I downloaded says there good up to 300v. Anyone have an opinion on this seeing as the driver has a high voltage cutoff of 210-225v? Thanks
 
JavaCo

JavaCo

Well-Known Member
bobbuck said:
Hola! I'm doing a Vero 18 build with 6 cobs and a mw hlg-185h-c1050 525-1050ma. I went with the picos ez-mate. I see some people against these due to voltage being to high. the data sheet I downloaded says there good up to 300v. Anyone have an opinion on this seeing as the driver has a high voltage cutoff of 210-225v? Thanks
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They break pretty easy. Only rated to be put on and taken off 10 times. The one i tried only made it on one time broke taking it off. They will work fine for 6 cobs on that driver Just wouldn't plan on them lasting very long if you're planning to unhook the COBs a lot. Ended up just soldering mine.
 
bleak

bleak

Well-Known Member
Can Vero 18's be securely attached to a heat sink using only thermal adhesive? And if so, which is the best thermal adhesive for this purpose?

I'm planning a Vero 18 light, and like to avoid drilling & tapping if possible.
 
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PurpleBuz

Well-Known Member
bleak said:
Can Vero 18's be securely attached to a heat sink using only thermal adhesive? And if so, which is the best thermal adhesive for this purpose?

I'm planning a Vero 18 light, and like to avoid drilling & tapping if possible.
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awww come on... man up! drilling and tapping is easy.

I use arctic silver thermal adhesive, but do not use adhesive to glue them to the main heatsink because the epoxy is permanent making a clean and easy replacement impossible.
 
kmog33

kmog33

Well-Known Member
bleak said:
Can Vero 18's be securely attached to a heat sink using only thermal adhesive? And if so, which is the best thermal adhesive for this purpose?

I'm planning a Vero 18 light, and like to avoid drilling & tapping if possible.
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Yea, I use 0 screws for the les in all of my cob builds. Arctic silver works well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
bobbuck

bobbuck

Well-Known Member
JavaCo said:
They break pretty easy. Only rated to be put on and taken off 10 times. The one i tried only made it on one time broke taking it off. They will work fine for 6 cobs on that driver Just wouldn't plan on them lasting very long if you're planning to unhook the COBs a lot. Ended up just soldering mine.
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Thanks for the info I thought they'd be finE I don't plan on taking then apart to much and I grabbed a few extra incase. Hopefully get it finished by the weekend.
 
bleak

bleak

Well-Known Member
PurpleBuz said:
awww come on... man up! drilling and tapping is easy.

I use arctic silver thermal adhesive, but do not use adhesive to glue them to the main heatsink because the epoxy is permanent making a clean and easy replacement impossible.
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Hehe yeah, I'm sure you're right about it being easy - once you know how. But I don't own the tools, and have no experience in metalworking.

Correct me if I'm wrong, I thought thermal adhesive was semi-permanent? Thought I remembered reading about someone using a knife to pry the COB off the sink.

I'm also looking at heat sinks that are pre-drilled for Vero 18's. They're not too expensive, could be a good solution:
http://www.led-heatsink.com/seepricesandbuy.php?subcate=1038
http://www.led-heatsink.com/seepricesandbuy.php?subcate=785
http://www.led-heatsink.com/seepricesandbuy.php?subcate=1197
 
P

PurpleBuz

Well-Known Member
bleak said:
Hehe yeah, I'm sure you're right about it being easy - once you know how. But I don't own the tools, and have no experience in metalworking.

Correct me if I'm wrong, I thought thermal adhesive was semi-permanent? Thought I remembered reading about someone using a knife to pry the COB off the sink.
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Two part epoxy based is permanent. Arctic actually recommends NOT using on a CPU because it is permanent.

There is one part adhesive that is not permanent. I believe the heat transfer and the holding power is not as good, but works.

http://shop.stevesleds.com/Thermal-Adhesive-1-Part-Glue-TSE3941M-8794102427.htm
http://www.amazon.com/ELEGIANT-Silicone-Conductive-Adhesive-Heatsink/dp/B015Q70VBE?ie=UTF8&keywords=silicone thermal adhesive&qid=1464295366&ref_=sr_1_4&sr=8-4

not much tools to drill and tap, a portable drill, a good quality tap, a matching drill bit and some lube.
Some DIYers even use self tapping screws, or just drill and use the machine screw to tap it (aluminum is soft).
 
bleak

bleak

Well-Known Member
PurpleBuz said:
Two part epoxy based is permanent. Arctic actually recommends NOT using on a CPU because it is permanent.

There is one part adhesive that is not permanent. I believe the heat transfer and the holding power is not as good, but works.
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Good to know, thanks for clearing this up. After hearing more about thermal adhesive, I'm now having second thoughts about it. I want to get this right the first time, rather than an ongoing project that I improve later.

PurpleBuz said:
not much tools to drill and tap, a portable drill, a good quality tap, a matching drill bit and some lube.
Some DIYers even use self tapping screws, or just drill and use the machine screw to tap it (aluminum is soft).
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Also good to know! The self tapping screws sound easy.

I need to decide whether to buy CPU heat sinks locally, or pay international shipping for the pre-drilled heat sinks (eg MechaTronix, which can be passive, nice bonus)

I bought the tools to drill/tap, it will cost minimum of $50 (cheap Chinese electric drill + other bits needed). Probably around the same I'll pay for shipping the MechaTronix.

The possibility I'll make mistakes on my first tap & drill make me lean towards the pre-drilled heat sinks. I'm afraid I'll do a half-assed job and not know any better, and this will lead to heat issues and headaches in the future.
 
Airwalker16

Airwalker16

Well-Known Member
bleak said:
Good to know, thanks for clearing this up. After hearing more about thermal adhesive, I'm now having second thoughts about it. I want to get this right the first time, rather than an ongoing project that I improve later.



Also good to know! The self tapping screws sound easy.

I need to decide whether to buy CPU heat sinks locally, or pay international shipping for the pre-drilled heat sinks (eg MechaTronix, which can be passive, nice bonus)

I bought the tools to drill/tap, it will cost minimum of $50 (cheap Chinese electric drill + other bits needed). Probably around the same I'll pay for shipping the MechaTronix.

The possibility I'll make mistakes on my first tap & drill make me lean towards the pre-drilled heat sinks. I'm afraid I'll do a half-assed job and not know any better, and this will lead to heat issues and headaches in the future.
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Use Kapton tape if you REALLY don't wanna tap. But a 7/64" Titanium Nitrate bit(a 5/64" might be better) and M3 8-12mm long SELF TAPPING screws is by far the easiest. Tapping is just not necessary in aluminum.
 
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waltzNo2

Member
Definitely use screws. You can use a chip as a template, or print the cad file of the chip in the PDF. Sharpie to make a dot and an auto punch right in the center.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_center_punch

The drill bit will do the rest. I machine screws from home depot that come in a 50ct box.

Soldering is easy with SMD solder paste. They sell little tubs of it at Sparkfun. I also have a little syringe that is long expired but still works for most tasks. Get a SMD prototyping board and you'll have 100s of pads like the ones on your chip to practice on for $5.

It's pretty hard to screw up drilling a hole for a self taping screw in aluminum.

Heat sinks can be sourced from heatsink usa for a reasonable price. Google them. You can get CPU coolers at a PC recycling center. You may even be able to volunteer, tear apart old electronics, and take home a few heatsinks.


Nice work Zefito!


Who is excited for the 7th gen Veros?! They are shipping in June. I might get some 29's in 6k and a low CRI to do the veg tasks with 1/2 the current energy usage. I doubt they'll kill the current king, but they will certainly be bright.
 
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Zefito

Well-Known Member
hmmmm my friend i think the pdf has the old numbers....however i am a bit drunk ...can't see the vero 29 version 7
 
JavaCo

JavaCo

Well-Known Member

Gen 7 numbers , still haven't seen a datasheet on them. Doubt they will put one out till the gen 7 s release next month.
 
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