Diy Led opinions

[spit.fire]

So the time has come for me to get my butt in gear and start purchasing pairs for my led build

I plan on running multiple pendants
2 channels per pendant running ldd drivers

As per colors / ratios I want to run

Channel 1:
8000k
450-465nm
3000k

Channel 2:
465-485nm
450-465nm
410-420nm

So my question is should I run a bunch of 3w LEDs, or 10w LEDs

The thing id like to do is get 5 lumina 5.1 LEDs but I don't want 5 channels per pendant due to the amount of wires involved

[monocus]

my next build will be a mix of 10 and 3 watt

[Antrias]

You get better coverage out of 3w LEDs. I just went with 12 royal blue 1 true blue and 8 natural white luxeon es (steves leds) for my 27g and they look great. I went with a heatsink from rapid led though because by it self looks a lot better and is easier to wire on instead of many tubes. I also used steves led drivers and power supply for the ability to get maximum efficiency out of the system. I also liked the idea of separating the psu and drivers so that if one fails I can just replace that part... It is more work though going that route.

Anyway I would go all 3w for best spread of light.

[Antrias]

Also great read for anyone who wants lots of great info on lighting
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2012/10/aafeature

[mike31154]

I've been running a 10 watt LED diy fixture for over a year. Works great, coverage is fine. It's all a matter of spacing, height of fixture above water & possibly optics, whether 3 watt, 10 watt or larger multi chips. Check the link to my build below fo mo info. Many multi chip leds 10 watt & up are now available with a mix of colours on the same chip.

[Amadod2]

i ran 36 3watt diy led half blue and half super white, it worked really well, i had amazing coral growth and the coloration i wanted, i also ran two dimmers to give me full control. i just finished my new tank build and have my DIY LED fixture in the closet, bit of a waste.

[spit.fire]

So I've started purchasing parts

So far I've ordered:
20x 28mm round PVC boards that hold 4x 3w LEDs each

5x ldd 700h drivers

[daplatapus]

Have you got something to control those LDD's? And I have a few 4 LDD boards if you wanted to mount them...

[spit.fire]

Originally Posted by daplatapus

Have you got something to control those LDD's? And I have a few 4 LDD boards if you wanted to mount them...

Yup

Tanks for the offer



Just finished ordering all my LEDs

90 in total

Good thing I bought a new soldering gun

[daplatapus]

Sweeeetttt!