Modular LED 3 Foot Kit?

[Enigma]

Does anyone have any photos of what they've done using Modular LED's three foot kit?

I'm struggling a bit trying to get a visual of it. Could it be installed in a handmade wooden hood/top on a tank only 16" deep?

I'm really electrical dumb. It freaks me out and makes me nervous. I'm not building the lighting, but I need to understand what is going on and place the order.

[gregzz4]

Sounds like you're a bit freaked out there Shelly
Do some reading, it'll calm you down
On my end, I have to go eat something and do some downtime
Later .....,,,,,,,,

[daplatapus]

I've yet to pull the trigger on my build, still researching as well. But I've e-mailed back and forth with a couple LED suppliers (both in US and Canada) and the communication has been excellent. If you haven't already, contact them directly and they'll be happy to answer any questions you have. RC has some great build threads as well.

[Enigma]

Originally Posted by gregzz4

Sounds like you're a bit freaked out there Shelly
Do some reading, it'll calm you down
On my end, I have to go eat something and do some downtime
Later .....,,,,,,,,

Anything electrical is enough to make me hyperventilate. Combine that with lighting, and it just gets worse.

It relates back to grade 11 physics. I was scarred for life!

Originally Posted by daplatapus

I've yet to pull the trigger on my build, still researching as well. But I've e-mailed back and forth with a couple LED suppliers (both in US and Canada) and the communication has been excellent. If you haven't already, contact them directly and they'll be happy to answer any questions you have. RC has some great build threads as well.

I've spent quite a bit time trying to figure out what vendor to use for LEDs, as I want to mod my Nano Cube, too. In the end, I've chosen Modular LED as they're right here in Alberta and are board sponsors. Their feedback on the forum is good (no negs: all neutral or higher) . . . and I read the word "chocolate" in a thread in relation to them.

I'll go with their 36" LED Kit . . . I'm just looking for ideas on how to put it together: how to arrange the LEDs, mounting solutions, etc. How many dimmers . . . should I use a controller or just the dimming kit? Do I want to dim the whites and all of the blues, or just some of the blues? Should I add any reds or greens?

I think I need a bit more of a plan before I go bugging the vendor.

[troni]

i have a 20g with a kit from modular led, lots of added stuff though aswell.
look through some of martins videos and it might help sort things out.
with him your glueing boards of 2 leds down on a "hunk" of metal. talk to grizz about mounting solutions, he makes a wicked hanger. arranging is up to you basically you want to spread out evenly with enough color everywhere. you can automate everything with a controler like dusk and dawn. you can't with a dimmer. and from what i have, i have blues and white dimmed very low, also dimming will let you get the color you like. you dont need red and green.
he can also help you create a plan just shoot him an email.

[martinmcnally]

Hey Shelly you can check out one possible mounting solution for the 3 foot kit in this thread

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=78761

[Enigma]

Originally Posted by martinmcnally

Hey Shelly you can check out one possible mounting solution for the 3 foot kit in this thread

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=78761

Thanks, Martin. That is a very good illustration of the type of installation we'd be doing.

How high would the LEDs need to be above the water surface, if the tank is 36x18x16 (40 Breeder) and will be a mixed reef mostly housing softies and LPS (with the odd SPS)?

As we get farther through the process of building the tank I'll hit you up with some more questions and figure out exactly what we'll be ordering from you. The plan is plumbing first (in case we bust the tank while drilling it), then stand and hood, then lighting.

Originally Posted by troni

i have a 20g with a kit from modular led, lots of added stuff though aswell.
look through some of martins videos and it might help sort things out.
with him your glueing boards of 2 leds down on a "hunk" of metal. talk to grizz about mounting solutions, he makes a wicked hanger. arranging is up to you basically you want to spread out evenly with enough color everywhere. you can automate everything with a controler like dusk and dawn. you can't with a dimmer. and from what i have, i have blues and white dimmed very low, also dimming will let you get the color you like. you dont need red and green.
he can also help you create a plan just shoot him an email.

I like the thought of a (budget conscious) controller. I suppose I would like to be able to dim the whites and blue independently, but then have some blues that were left on all of the time for moon lights (but I'd need to be able to dim those, too).

[martinmcnally]

I usually recommend about 6 inches off the water however I dont think there is really any set amount. Thats how high mine are.

For control you can start out with just a dimming kit like our Dual Channel which will give you dimmer knobs for whites and blues. Next step up unfortunately is pretty steep to an Apex controller or the like.

[Enigma]

Originally Posted by martinmcnally

I usually recommend about 6 inches off the water however I dont think there is really any set amount. Thats how high mine are.

For control you can start out with just a dimming kit like our Dual Channel which will give you dimmer knobs for whites and blues. Next step up unfortunately is pretty steep to an Apex controller or the like.

Thanks!

The Apex Junior doesn't make me wince too much, but it would probably be best to use the dimming kit while we figure out exactly what we want in the way of a controller. I'm sure we would outgrow the Junior quite quickly.

[martinmcnally]

Well great thing about apex is you can just add on extra modules as you go. Its great for getting started. You would need that plus the VDM module.