LED Build 3x3

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

sonmanc said:
I went through that site looked at the kits and even thought about the chilled logic pucks and quantum boards even cbx3590 cobs . The cost for me in Canada for these and heat sync is crazy high priced. I don't really see a lot of info of builds without heatsync other than eb strips.
If you really think it's that much better end results I would try it for sure. 100$ either way is no big deal if it jacks up my lumens per watt @ 300w compared to what my suggested build of 20 eb strips. I never got deep into details on how running 50-75% effects lumens per watt. I think Samsung is definitely better and run more efficient that way though. Certainly would appreciate feedback on my suggested build or a Samsung no heat sync solution.

Yeah it seems most build there run the lights pretty hard requiring a small heatsink. All you need to do though is drive them a little bit softer. The H influx for example can be driven at 1050 mA. Mount it on aluminum channel and you shouldn't have any issues regarding thermals.

I'm in Canada and ordered from Rapid. Expect to pay 40 for FedEx and then another 50 for duties. It's expensive but a nice product. They have a Canadian site now with a limited selection but worth checking. Ive done Diy but really appreciate how clean their setups are.

If you have any question on lumens per what, check the data sheets. They'll have info on it at different currents and such.

As for Samsung being better, not sure. EB2 is a great value but yes, the new lm301b diodes are more efficient. Just depends what you're looking for and price.

sonmanc · Mar 23, 2019

DangerDavez said:
Yeah it seems most build there run the lights pretty hard requiring a small heatsink. All you need to do though is drive them a little bit softer. The H influx for example can be driven at 1050 mA. Mount it on aluminum channel and you shouldn't have any issues regarding thermals.

I'm in Canada and ordered from Rapid. Expect to pay 40 for FedEx and then another 50 for duties. It's expensive but a nice product. They have a Canadian site now with a limited selection but worth checking. Ive done Diy but really appreciate how clean their setups are.

Yeah But the 200w of nice growmaw fixture cost 340 and only cover 1/2 my tent. It's 327$ for 20 strips and driver for the full tent and maybe 50$ of other pieces and I have most the extras laying around. I would need two of those 680$ for similar coverage. Seems that strips are the way to go. Withthe savings I could order a separate Growmaw 200w later. Are you running these? From what I read the strips do basically as good as they do. What do you think of them vs strips? Of course they are and extra 100 watts. Cant compare 300w vs 400 but would be good to hear if you really find penetration much different. Right now I'm running 2 meizhi 450's in my tent. about 400 wats but not great. 300 of strips would be better . The burbles run chips that are over 12 years old and not efficient at all. So anything will be an upgrade for me.

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

sonmanc said:
Yeah But the 200w of nice growmaw fixture cost 340 and only cover 1/2 my tent. It's 327$ for 20 strips and driver for the full tent and maybe 50$ of other pieces and I have most the extras laying around. I would need two of those 680$ for similar coverage. Seems that strips are the way to go. Withthe savings I could order a separate Growmaw 200w later. Are you running these? From what I read the strips do basically as good as they do. What do you think of them vs strips?

Well I'm running the pucks. They use lm301b diodes so they're quite a bit more efficient than eb2 strips. H influx or q series will match them though. Their is no doubt though that you'll get a much better bang for your puck going the diy route.

Reason I went for the pucks is that I needed something quick and I just like how it's much cleaner than anything I can DIY. I also had an HLG 240 1750 driver that I wanted to use and I would have needed something like 24 strips and had to do a combination of parralel and series wiring. Not optimal. That and build a track for them. Just don't have the time. Also got 10 percent off and ordered quite a bit so it softens the blow.

If I was starting from scratch, had time and I was on a budget, I would Diy for sure. With the driver I have though, I wouldn't really be saving money.

sonmanc · Mar 23, 2019

Nice. But Now I have to start looking at Samsung strips. Arrrhghh. Lol. I'll post back a Samsung build to get your thoughts.

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

sonmanc said:
Nice. But Now I have to start looking at Samsung strips. Arrrhghh. Lol. I'll post back a Samsung build to get your thoughts.

Theirs 11 of the 2 ft 3000k eb2 available on digikey.ca. 3000k is honestly fine evene for veg. You can always try mouser, arrow or Newark as well. How big is the room and you Canadian ?

sonmanc · Mar 23, 2019

That's the ones I have in my cart. And 3500'S will be in on the 30th of this month. Yeah I'm in Nova Scotia, my room is tiny. Sticking to 3x3 tent for now

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

sonmanc said:
That's the ones I have in my cart. And 3500'S will be in on the 30th of this month. Yeah I'm in Nova Scotia, my room is tiny. Sticking to 3x3 tent for now

11 strips on an HLG 240 1050 would work quite well if you don't want to wait.

Skoal · Mar 23, 2019

Build starting today.

Finished the driver.

Mounting my strips to aluminum. Im using leapage gel expoxy to mount it. Good for plastic and metal. Should create a nice bond. Also it’s rated to withstand -23c to 150C. LED won’t get that hot so I should be good with this

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

Skoal said:
Build starting today.

Finished the driver.

Mounting my strips to aluminum. Im using leapage gel expoxy to mount it. Good for plastic and metal. Should create a nice bond. Also it’s rated to withstand -23c to 150C. LED won’t get that hot so I should be good with this

Don't use epoxy. It has extremely poor thermal conductivity. Thermal paste or double sided thermal tape is what you want

Skoal · Mar 23, 2019

DangerDavez said:
Don't use epoxy. It has extremely poor thermal conductivity. Thermal paste or double sided thermal tape is what you want

I was going to buy thermal paste from Canada computer. The kid behind the counter told me it doesn’t work as an adhesive and won’t work like glue.

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

Skoal said:
I was going to buy thermal paste from Canada computer. The kid behind the counter told me it doesn’t work as an adhesive and won’t work like glue.

Double sided thermal tape is ideal but you should be fine just mounting them with screws no thermal. If you're set on the glue, don't glue under LEDs. I'd strongly advise against glue though since once there, theirs no taking it off without risk of damage.

Skoal · Mar 23, 2019

DangerDavez said:
Double sided thermal tape is ideal but you should be fine just mounting them with screws no thermal. If you're set on the glue, don't glue under LEDs. I'd strongly advise against glue though since once there, theirs no taking it off without risk of damage.

Didn’t want to use screws at all. Now I guess I gots find double sided thermal tape then haha.

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

Not that your strips will run super hot or anything at that current but the cooler they run, the longer they last and the more efficient they become. Look for something thermally conductive. Ideally something that isn't permanent either since you may want to disassemble at some point.

This is what I'd use
https://www.amazon.ca/25mx20mmx0-25mm-Adhesive-Performance-Thermally-Heatsinks/dp/B07BHK2Z1Y/ref=pd_aw_lpo_147_tr_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=FVJ2D4ZFD78GRWPYKKH2&th=1

Skoal · Mar 23, 2019

This is my mock up right now. Gonna be putting hooks in all 4 corners. After putting everything on my board it seems like I can go ahead and pop a few screws into each strip. I have screws laying around. So that may be my selection. Also gonna leave a small gap on the back so I can drill my driver to the back of it. Driver is a tad heavy though but should be fine. Don’t know where else to mount it other than the other side of my strips.

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

Skoal said:
View attachment 4305431 This is my mock up right now. Gonna be putting hooks in all 4 corners. After putting everything on my board it seems like I can go ahead and pop a few screws into each strip. I have screws laying around. So that may be my selection. Also gonna leave a small gap on the back so I can drill my driver to the back of it. Driver is a tad heavy though but should be fine. Don’t know where else to mount it other than the other side of my strips.

Looks good. I Usually have my driver's outside the room so you could always do that if it's too heavy

Skoal · Mar 23, 2019

DangerDavez said:
Looks good. I Usually have my driver's outside the room so you could always do that if it's too heavy

Run the driver outside of the tent with a very long wires for the DC side from the driver to the strips?

Push in connectors are driving me nuts. I’m returning. I’m buying butt splice connectors that I can crimp. So much easier than the push in connectors. Fuck them. Back to Home Depot. May as well get metal self tapping screws while I’m there lol.

sonmanc · Mar 23, 2019

DangerDavez said:
11 strips on an HLG 240 1050 would work quite well if you don't want to wait.

Well I'm about to end a grow with burples I can wait a few. I never considered a constant current driver. How do they know what voltage to run at or do they just fall in that range with sires hookup, 119-238 in this case. Would it not run the risk of voltage creep? It's almost too perfect. Only thing I don't like is being maxed out which is why like constant voltage I "think" I can add more and just can't go below rated amps or I'll fry everything. Or am I not understanding this correct. I only done basic electronics like 20 years ago. Appreciate your help. I Like the idea af a few extra strips already l in parallel that just drops the amps per strip. Keeping a buffer " extra strips" in case one dies and dont cascade everything else to fry due to too much current. Does that sound right to you? A pure high voltage strip sounds nice that your suggesting as well. If a strip dies you only loose one.( well they all go out but you don't fry them all) I do like the idea I'd the 320 version of the 1050. The voltage states it has a range of 152-305 . That's where Im not sure how many strips I should or can run.15 max, 8 min?

Skoal · Mar 23, 2019

Am I too high or have I lost my marbles? I’ve decided to just got with butt end crimped style to cap off the spot for the dimmer and to wire the dc side to the 22awg wire for the strips. Now when looking at the diagram of the driver it says the dc wires are 17awg not 18 awg? Now I’m having issue finding my butt end connectors cause they are only rated 14-16 and then 18-22awg. Can I use the 18-22awg butt crimper.

Also screws for the win on the .25 inch aluminium sheet to hold the strips down. Yeah they poke out the top. But nothing sits up there anyways.

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

sonmanc said:
Well I'm about to end a grow with burples I can wait a few. I never considered a constant current driver. How do they know what voltage to run at or do they just fall in that range with sires hookup, 119-238 in this case. Would it not run the risk of voltage creep? It's almost too perfect. Only thing I don't like is being maxed out which is why like constant voltage I "think" I can add more and just can't go below rated amps or I'll fry everything. Or am I not understanding this correct. I only done basic electronics like 20 years ago. Appreciate your help. I Like the idea af a few extra strips already l in parallel that just drops the amps per strip. Keeping a buffer " extra strips" in case one dies and dont cascade everything else to fry due to too much current. Does that sound right to you? A pure high voltage strip sounds nice that your suggesting as well. If a strip dies you only loose one.( well they all go out but you don't fry them all) I do like the idea I'd the 320 version of the 1050. The voltage states it has a range of 152-305 . That's where Im not sure how many strips I should or can run.15 max, 8 min?

https://www.ledsupply.com/blog/constant-current-led-drivers-vs-constant-voltage-led-drivers/

Wired in series, all you have to do is ensure you have enough strips to fall within the drivers specified voltage range. If you refer to the strips datasheet, we see that they run at 20v when hooked up to a 1050ma driver. So if for example you driver can hand 150 to 300 volts, you could drive 8 (20*8=160) to 15 (20*15=300) .

DangerDavez · Mar 23, 2019

Skoal said:
Am I too high or have I lost my marbles? I’ve decided to just got with butt end crimped style to cap off the spot for the dimmer and to wire the dc side to the 22awg wire for the strips. Now when looking at the diagram of the driver it says the dc wires are 17awg not 18 awg? Now I’m having issue finding my butt end connectors cause they are only rated 14-16 and then 18-22awg. Can I use the 18-22awg butt crimper.

Also screws for the win on the .25 inch aluminium sheet to hold the strips down. Yeah they poke out the top. But nothing sits up there anyways.

You could always use marettes temporarily

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