Mounting drivers to wall

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YYCannabis
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I want to mount my drivers to the wall outside the tent. I’m not sure how hot they get and if they need something like a metal box to be mounted in? Can I mount them on plywood?

The drivers are elg-150-48B.

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YYC
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I wouldn't mount a driver on anything flammable. They dont get hot enough under normal operation to ignite the plywood but anything electrical has the possibility of causing a fire.

A piece of sheet metal or an electrical junction box is worth the investment.
ATPinMotion
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Ya, I've found 3/4" plywood and aluminum flashing works well. Helps conduct heat away from the driver and acts as a chassis so all the drivers can be grounded through one connection to the sheet.

The cooler you can keep your driver's the longer they will last, so I advise against putting them in a box or any kind of enclosure unless you actively vent the enclosure with a fan.
Run 'em soft
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TEKNIK
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It's a good idea to use some washers to make an air gap at the rear of the driver for airflow.
You can use washers or even some nuts to do this, the extra airflow makes a big difference to the heat.
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ATPinMotion
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Compared to what?

My testing has shown drivers run cooler with a heat sink than an air gap.
Run 'em soft
TacticGuy
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ATPinMotion wrote:
Sun Nov 03, 2019 7:57 pm
Compared to what?

My testing has shown drivers run cooler with a heat sink than an air gap.
A heatsink is ofcourse better.
But if you are mounting to a wall, not using a heatsink, spacers between the wall and driver will ofcourse help :)

EDIT: also to note, i hung my two hlg-320h drivers directly on a wall, and they run at 38c in 26c ambient temps. hope it helps.
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TEKNIK
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ATPinMotion wrote:
Sun Nov 03, 2019 7:57 pm
Compared to what?

My testing has shown drivers run cooler with a heat sink than an air gap.
If you can heatsink it's better of course, most people don't do that though, they just mount a driver to a wall
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ATPinMotion
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Ok, I see what you guys are getting at - the way your post followed mine didn't make any sense to me. :lol:
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hlgmount.jpg
I did it like this, although it's nothing special. (Yes, I've changed the wiring, haha)
YYCannabis
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Currently I ended up using an old wire rack shelf. Made sure to mount it up above head level.
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