DIY LED ~ easy build thread

[afboundguy]

I've heard similar stories with bryopsis and LEDs in some of the threads I've been reading and I think the general gut feeling is that it has something to do with the spectrum. I've also read that the LEDs seem to reduce HA as well...

 

[Muddskipper35]

Cant speak on the HA part of it but deffinately an effect on the bryopsis.. Might be a lack of red in the spectrum? It has deffinately affected the growth and the growth pattern of it.. Doesnt even look like bryopsis anymore. It's deff an interesting point that needs further evaluation.. Might also be why some of the corals shifted color and look 10Xs better IMO..

 

[DoctaQ]

i had a lot of HA and then some byropsis when i first started, since then its gone for the most part, but has been replaced by macro and geledium both of which are growing out of control, lame. i also run phoar and some carbon along with an algal turf scrubber so i cant say what took care of my problem.
i started the tank with leds just to be clear

 

[DoctaQ]

also, q5s arent the newest in the line of xr-e, its actually the R2 as weird as that sounds, it is a bit brighter on paper, and you wont find a ton of info on it, its not even in the datasheet. are you using the xp-e q5s? i am under the impression those could probably match up to the r2 probably for cheaper but the optics choices are pretty limited. neither of those come close to the xp-g though, of which i think the highest bin is the r5.

wow im a dork

 

[Muddskipper35]

This is what the new kit comes with.. XP-G R5
And this is what the kit I originally ordered came with.. Cree Q5 XR-E LEDs
As far as lenses I'm not concerned as I am happy with the output and coverage without them currently and since I'm doubling what I have for edge to edge coverage I seriously doubt I'll need them with 2X coverage...

Heres the specs on the 2 diff LEDs

http://www.cree.com/products/pdf/XLampXP-G.pdf

http://www.cree.com/products/pdf/XLamp7090XR-E.pdf

Looks like the specs on the R5 are deff brighter and an overall better product.. gonna be interesting to compare the 2.

 

[afboundguy]

The XP-G LEDs are the newest and the best LED's for at least this month They have the highest output and are the brightest... People are actually changing the ratio of blue/white bulbs... It was 50/50 with the XR-E and XP-E and now people seem to be doing a 40:60 white/blue with the XP-G's...

By the time I have the funds to do my LED build I'm sure there will be a few more advances in lights so the now best XP-G's will prob be dirt cheap

 

[DoctaQ]

i wanna see a tank lit with the xpg driven to 1500ma putting out almost 500 lm each

 

[Muddskipper35]

Holy Cow! Thats all I can say about the new kit... 48 Led kit is up and running. It's on the tank and .. and.. heck I dunno what to say.

UNBELIEVABLE!!

The new Q5's are much much brighter and whiter. Its gonna be a month before I can turn these all the way up for fear of bleaching the corals.. There is just so much available light penetrating to the bottom of the tank and without lenses..

Yes even though I doubled the numbers I am comparing 24 to 24 leds as I have this setup where I can turn on one ballasts at a time..

PICS comming soon..

On a side note I'm never going back to Halides even though I still havent figured out some spectrum issues.. More on this later and the effects of just leds on the red coloring in corals.

 

[JeremyR]

Saw the kit in action today.. was very impressed.

 

[Muddskipper35]

As promised here are a few pics..
Setup pics
pic of leds at 10%
Pic of leds at 100%
Pic of leds on tank at 100% ~ trust me its a heck of alot brighter than the pic shows.. Clearly see alot more light at the bottom and along the sides of the tank.
Pic of leds actinic only 100%

 

[Muddskipper35]

actinics

 

[Cheetos]

Nice build! Where did you get those heatsinks and what size are they? I didn't see any fans to dissipate heat from the heatsinks. Are you planning on adding them later?

 

[Muddskipper35]

Heatsinks are aluminum U channel from Lowes and or Home depot.. The ones in the 2nd build above are 3/4".. Yes I will be building a fixture soon with a set of 4 or 5" fans built in.

YES THESE THINGS COOK... THEY ARE EXTREMLY HOT. I dont have a temp reading on this one yet.

For those interested the newer leds from cree (used in this build) are EXTREMLY bright and put the ones in the ast build to shame.. Only using 50% of available light from the whites and still getting a very crisp 12K from the setup.

These will be setup at the meeting on the 16th at CRA for those interested in seeing them.

 

[s_kelley]

Holy crap I just saw scotts LEDs in action and wow
Definately check this setup out at cra at this months meeting. Scotts got me thinking that instead of replacing my bulbs in 8 months I'm gonna get one of these kits. The pictures don't do it justice at all these thing are sooooo bright it's crazy and it's completely adjustable so you can make it as blue or white as you like. We put a meter knit and I'm sure Scott will post those results to tonight.
Awesome job Scott