low budget build using laptop charger
Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 3:27 am
I've been reading quite a bit on the site and have gotten excited about giving indoor gardening a try. I'm looking to start small in 1-2 square foot area (1'x1' to 2'x1'). I'm mostly interested in growing herbs (mint, basil, thyme, etc) and maybe moving on to leafy greens (lettuce, kale, arugula) at some point in the future. I was originally thinking of throwing together something using a bunch of 5mm LEDs, but this site has gotten me thinking about using COBs or strip lights instead.
Since I won't have very high power demands, I was hoping I could get away with a power supply I have lying around. I have an old 65W power brick from an old laptop rated for 18.5V and 3.5A http://www.primelec.com/hp-compaq-65w-1 ... BRrattKiM8. That sounds like it would give me enough power based on what I've read (30-40W per square foot), but I wanted to double check. I also wanted to check if this would act as a constant voltage driver and how that would influence which LEDs to use and their wiring.
If the power supply can give me enough power, I was hoping someone could give me a recommendation for some cheap COBs or led strips that I could buy in Canada. I was thinking of getting some EB2 strips and wiring them in parallel. However, their forward voltage seems to be 19.5v and I'm not sure my 18.5V charger would be enough. Any ideas?
Since I won't have very high power demands, I was hoping I could get away with a power supply I have lying around. I have an old 65W power brick from an old laptop rated for 18.5V and 3.5A http://www.primelec.com/hp-compaq-65w-1 ... BRrattKiM8. That sounds like it would give me enough power based on what I've read (30-40W per square foot), but I wanted to double check. I also wanted to check if this would act as a constant voltage driver and how that would influence which LEDs to use and their wiring.
If the power supply can give me enough power, I was hoping someone could give me a recommendation for some cheap COBs or led strips that I could buy in Canada. I was thinking of getting some EB2 strips and wiring them in parallel. However, their forward voltage seems to be 19.5v and I'm not sure my 18.5V charger would be enough. Any ideas?