Diy Whole Tank Led Lighting Retrofit

[SuperColey1]

You have to switch ebay search to worldwide and spend hours looking. lol
 
I wanted long thin heatsinks.  using long and heatsink brought nothing up.  So then I typed 600mm heatsinks and voila.:
 
http/www.ebay.co.uk/itm/600x25x10mm-Heatsink-Aluminum-Heat-Sink-Heat-Sink-for-LED-Power-Transistor-/271011092836?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f19851964
 
I bought this one as I wanted the thin long appearance like the luminaire I am trying to copy however you could go for bigger ones like this:
http/www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1PCS-Aluminum-LED-Heatsink-for-20x3W-or-60x1W-600x76x22mm-Aluminium-0-65kg-/321213829832?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ac9d612c8
 
or this in black:
http/www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Black-Anodized-Aluminium-Heatsink-for-25x3W-or-80x1W-600x120x20mm-1-1Kgs-/321140015567?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item4ac56fc1cf
 
 
One thing I always do is if I find a seller that sells something I want even if I don't ever plan to use them again I save them in my favourite sellers and put in the notes for that seller what they sell that I like.  That way I can always come back and look there first.  don 't forget to untick any 'newsletter' options or you'll get loadsa e-mails updating you.
 
One other thing I did was search 625mm, 650mm all the way up to 1200mm.  If I had found one cheaper then I would've cut it.  I am the world's worst penny pincher.

 

[msebar]

When looking for a dimming driver do I get one that is just under the voltage that is needed? For current can the driver have 1000ma output even though I only need 700ma? I always thought the the voltage needs to be under and it will draw what ever current it needs.

Thanks

 

[dgwebster]

Just an FYI in the decorating, you can purchase hollow conduit channel skirting boards. Can run electric, network and AV cables etc through it easily.

You can so get a version that runs hot water through them, replacing radiators with a hidden heating system that spreads throughout the room.

 

[SuperColey1]

Just an FYI in the decorating, you can purchase hollow conduit channel skirting boards. Can run electric, network and AV cables etc through it easily.

You can so get a version that runs hot water through them, replacing radiators with a hidden heating system that spreads throughout the room.

 
You didn't read my last sentence  r.e. penny pinching.  Cheaper to chisel channels in the walls, cover with cheap electric conduit and plaster.  I did actually route channels in the back of the skirting boards for future if I need them.  Never know when you need to hide something after it's all done.  
 

When looking for a dimming driver do I get one that is just under the voltage that is needed? For current can the driver have 1000ma output even though I only need 700ma? I always thought the the voltage needs to be under and it will draw what ever current it needs.

Thanks

No idea on dimmng.  I am no electrician and it is just something extra that can go wrong IMO.  You can use whatever ma you want as long as it is equal to or greater than you need. the driver has to be the ma you want and it will only draw the ma it requires.  I have used 2000ma adaptors in the past.  Whichever ones I could get cheapest I used.  Just make sure they are 700 or above.

 

[msebar]

I found the info I needed. V needs to be just a bit higher 1 to 2 volts. The ma needs to be right on.

In the first unit you made what did you use for the midnight ligths?

 

[SuperColey1]

no the ma doesn't need to be right on.  you can use anything at or above the ma stated for each LED.  You have to use a constant current driver inbetween the power source and LED(s)
 
If you weren't using a driver then yes you would probably want to be dead on however not using constant current drivers means that there is nothing controlling surges however slight and inevitably ends with the LEDs 'frying'.
 
If you are using the 700ma 3W LEDs then get a driver capable of running the required voltage for your series. i.e. if you were doing a series of 10 and each LED is 3.4 to 4V and 700ma then look for a driver that will supply between 34V and 40V that is regulated to 700ma.  Then connect the power source to the driver.  The other option is to get a driver/adaptor combo that will regulate and convert from AC to DC however the DC adaptors are not reliable enough for this job.
 
This was my first.  This is a 12V 800 ma DC adaptor, a 700ma 12-24V constant current driver and 3 x 3.4 to 3.7V 700ma LEDs.  The DC adaptor is supplying the power but the driver is regulating it so there are no spikes/surges which will fry the LEDs.

 
Back when I did my first above (2008) people were jumping in and trusting the adaptor to supply exactly what it says on the label and therer were a lot of expensive burnt out units around the forums.
 
The blue lights were cold cathode tubes twist connected to an old mobile phone charger.  6V ahould be fine for that.  these aren't as sensitive as the LEDs so they can be wired direct to a DC source.

 

[msebar]

Thanks for the update.
 
I will using a combo ac to dc driver with 24v 700ma rated at 18w.
 
http/www.ebay.com/itm/111175597372?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649
 
I will be using 6 led's in series at a voltage of 3.4-3.8. This should handle it as it comes in at 20.4-22.8 volts. They also have a dimmer that will attach to the AC side of the driver to adjust it from 5% to 100%. I am using the driver just in case I have to dim down the lights. My layout is roughly 1 led every 5 to 6 inches apart. For the midnight lights can I use a 3w star blue? I was going to use 12 to 14 of them across a 72x24 tank.

 

[SuperColey1]

You can use the blue stars if you wish.  I don't use them anymore though.  I tend to sleep at night now. lol