Has anyone made a nice looking LED not in canopy?
 

Has anyone made a nice looking DIY LED not in a canopy? i have seen lotsa pics of diy leds and not really any that are mounted/hung above a tank with no canopy.

I am considering going LED (since my m/h ballast just burnt out) i like the idea of a diy but i do not have a canopy on my stand and do not want to buy one as i like the look of a wire hung fixture.

i was considering a couple different options if i couldn't figure out a pretty way to put a diy fixture together.

1. i have a reefbrite led and i could use it and maybe anotherin their 3 or 5 led bracket and make either 1 or 3 diy rails for the middle or even all of them could be diy for that matter but i dont mind the idea of it coming out looking something similar to this:

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d9...exhoheader.jpg

2. have a coralife pro fixture currently and they are probably about 8" deep which would leave quite a bit of room to fit a diy fixture if i gut it of all old components.

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d9...oralifepro.jpg

3. show me a nice diy led someone has made :)

It depends on your definition of nice. I put 3 rails with leds into a surround made from opaque black acrylic. Mine stands on top of my tank but it was based on one made to hang, that I saw on another forum.
Mine is 8 inches high because I needed the height, but it only needs to be 2-3 inches if it's hanging.

I found this site in my travels and am thinking of doing something for my new nano with it to try. Looks like a clean way to do an LED build.
www.MakersLED.com

Here is mine, but nice is quite subjective :)

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=85771

Bioload, Yours is one of the only ones that makes me feel happy inside and consider doing a diy... Nice work :)

i am also having a hard time getting past how much some of these sites are charging for a diy kit(most of them not even including the heatsink). wondering if i would be better off buying something like these and getting more light and paying less then a lot of the diy kits i have seen.

http://www.aliexpress.com/store/3178...with-Lens.html

i also am wondering if there has been a standard set as to how many watts per foot you need. I have read quite a few threads and the number of leds used varies quite a bit and also have noticed that most people down even end up getting their fixtures up to 100% intensity once they are acclimated. so, do i really need 200-300 watts of leds over a 4foot 120 mixed reef with a bit of sps near the top??

I'm about 90% done with my DIY fixture using 10 watt multi chip emitters. I've had it hanging over the tank for just over a month but need to take a more recent picture since I've stained the wooden frame I've made to hold the LED rails. Used a mahogany stain on the wood & am trying to figure out how to best attach gold coloured aluminum trim around the edges to hide the corner joints & screw holes. Also need to make some sort of cover to hide all the wiring on the top.

Here's my build thread, but like I said, photos are out of date as far as the wooden frame goes. It looks much nicer now with the stain applied & wiring cleaned up.
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=82206

I'll try to get a new photo up tomorrow. Have the corner trim pieces on & one of the long trim pieces taped in place. Looks good.

cant wait to see the pic mike... i really do like the idea of the multi chips from ebay as they are very economical and i liked the look of the light they put out when i saw you set it up at the frag swap.

is there a reason that you went with numerous rails of the 10w chips as opposed to just one rail of larger 25-50w emitters?

Several reasons. Price, more flexibility as to colour blending, availability of the heatsink/fan combos for cooling, forward voltage of 9-12 volts (more common voltage for power supplies, possible solar power). For me the 10 watt emitters are a good compromise between the more commonly used 3 watt Cree, Bridgelux, Phillips, Osram etc and the larger multi chip LEDs. You don't need quite as many as when you're using the 3 watters, they put out plenty of light and cooling isn't as much of an issue as with the 20 and higher watt emitters.

Mine is kind of a cross between fixture and canopy. Doesn't hang, it's supported by the wall behind and hinges up for full access.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a1...1/DSC_6838.jpg

Pics taken this morning. Voltage is dialed down low for dawn effect. Typical forward voltage for maximum current of around 900mA for most of the LEDs is between 9-12 volts. I've never run them any higher than 9 volts.

The trim is held on by tape just to give an idea. Not sure whether I'll try to glue it on or use small ss screws. I tried the hot glue gun & that's how the corner pieces are attached, but one fell off already. The hot glue didn't allow me to press the pieces fully flush so that made the long pieces impossible to attach securely. Might try epoxy.

https://public.blu.livefilestore.com...42e.JPG?psid=1

https://public.blu.livefilestore.com...43e.JPG?psid=1

Thank You,.....a lot of planning went into it, and still ongoing..Hope it gives you some ideas for your build

What did you gues use to protect the wood from moisture....looking for a sealer myself.

Acrylic shield for the inside. Basic two stage stain on the outside, color base with multiple spray coats of clear. Just the regular stuff, nothing fancy.

The fans in the canopy draw air from below and exhaust out the top so it keeps air moving around the canopy. There really isn't a moisture issue to be concerned with, wood is always bone dry.

Here is mine:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-c...s640/LED30.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Z...s640/LED28.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-m...s640/LED31.jpg

Two coats of MinWax mahogany stain on the outside, bare wood on the inside, although I did stick some aluminum tape along the lower portion of the inside to reflect some of the light, sideways I guess? Anyhow, the tape will provide a little protection from moisture. It's high enough above the water that I doubt moisture will be an issue. It's an open frame so good air circulation, moisture really can't accumulate like inside a canopy. My previous fixture's reflectors did get caked up with salt spray over the period of several years, but it was closer to the water. My LEDs are mounted on individual heatsinks each with it's own fan that blows air down, so the tiny spray drops that mucked up the reflectors on the Halides & T5s should be diverted. I'll be checking on that periodically to make sure it's not an issue, especially since I'm not using any optics over my LEDs.

Here's a photo taken a while back, but shows how open it is.
https://ojcrhq.blu.livefilestore.com...96E.JPG?psid=1