My First Led build

Corvette Reefer · 07:54 PM

Well im building a led i bought all the stuff last thrusday, just waiting for it too get here but heres my plan for all of it

- 4 of these
- 6 of these
- 2 of these (i think these were it)
- driver

i have a old fixture that houses PC's but i scraped the stuff cuz it dont work so im using the aluminum box it was it, and its gona have a switch built onto it.

Stuff came today heres what i had ordered its all laid out

Here is the fixture and everything i will be using for the build

bluwc · 05-15-2011, 10:17 AM

Goodluck! I'll be watching this one as I will have to build something similar one day.

MizTanks · 05-15-2011, 10:29 AM

I'm watching too! Git-er-done!

2pairs · 05-15-2011, 01:43 PM

So what are you going to use for a heat sink and what are you going to use thermal heat tape or thermal adhesive?

Corvette Reefer · 05-15-2011, 01:59 PM

well with the size of the fixture and how far the bulbs are and that there are only 12 im just gona use a fan to blow over the leds to keep them cool i have a heat sink but, idk if theres really a benefit from anywhere i could put it becuase its small and the heat should stay down pretty good. And im just going to solder the leds onto it or screw them into the fixture if i can.

Im thinking about how i could get the fixture higher so light it more spread out, im not sure if it will need it yet tho ill have to wait to see once i get my stuff in the mail.

2pairs · 05-15-2011, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Corvette Reefer

well with the size of the fixture and how far the bulbs are and that there are only 12 im just gona use a fan to blow over the leds to keep them cool i have a heat sink but, idk if theres really a benefit from anywhere i could put it becuase its small and the heat should stay down pretty good. And im just going to solder the leds onto it or screw them into the fixture if i can.

Im thinking about how i could get the fixture higher so light it more spread out, im not sure if it will need it yet tho ill have to wait to see once i get my stuff in the mail.

The problem with what you are going to do is you are skipping two important aspects. #1 is a heat sink this is what keeps the diode cooled to a temp that it can operate at with out getting over heated. #2 the use of a thermal conductive material with out this the emitters will not be able to transfer heat properly.
Both of these can and will cause premature failure. If you were using the cheep $1 led's I would say ha go for it, but you spent the money for good led's it just makes good sense to do it rite. Then you can add more if needed or wanted because it will still be working.
Well this is just a thought and I don't want to discourage you, I am only trying to help.
And I will help if you want.

motorcityreefs · 05-15-2011, 07:06 PM

+1 on that, If you don't use a heat sink thay will burn out and for the thermal transfer you should be using thermal glue or a thermal past if you are giong to screw them to the heat sink, and good luck on your build.

Mr. Microscope · 03:17 PM

+12! You gotta have a heat sink on those LED's. Here's a link:
Extruded Aluminum Heatsinks from HeatSinkUSA

They'll cut them to whatever size you need (they even do custom shapes if you need them, but you won't for that). The prices are pretty good too.

Use your fan to blow on top of the heatsink as active cooling.

BTW, that color combination is going to look a bit yellow. Here are the standard ratio people use for about a 10-12K look. Cool White:Royal Blue = 1:1, Neutral White:Royal Blue = 1:2, or Warm White:Royal Blue = 1:4. Cool Whites are being phased out of the DIY community and being replaced by Neutral Whites. Cool Whites have a spectrum that overlaps too much blue with royal blue. It washes out the warmer colors and produces a kind of icy look. I imagine you'll probably want to either up the royal blues, or get rid of some of the whites.

If I were to do a build with 12 LEDs, I'd use 8 Royal Blue and 4 Neutral White.

Corvette Reefer · 05-16-2011, 08:12 PM

The whole structure it is being built on a aluminum case so the who thing acts as a heat sink and i will be getting a fan to blow over the leds to help and maybe ill add the little heat sink i have and put it in the middle on top of it once i build it and see how hot it gets.
As for the led heat transfer, im going to solder them with aluminum type stuff so it will transfer heat very good. And the leds color im just experimenting, i have read that the cool white wash out corals but i want the power from them, and im just gona do tests and see how i like the color, i cant change any colors now cuz i already ordered them, but im hoppppping it should be appealing to me

Mr. Microscope · 05-16-2011, 08:43 PM

How thick is the Al? If it's at least 1/4 inch where you put the LED's you might be okay. Just be careful. That thing is going to get hot. Also, be especially careful not to cause a short between the LEDs/soldering and the housing or the light is going to turn into one big electrocution machine.