Power supply for 9x BXEB-L1120Z-50E4000-C-B3

[jon]

Hello,

Which Meanwell power supply do I need to run 9x BXEB-L1120Z-50E4000-C-B3 (4ft) at around 70% max power in series?

thanks

[PeteR_1]

Hello,
Which Meanwell power supply do I need to run 9x BXEB-L1120Z-50E4000-C-B3 (4ft) at around 70% max power in series?
thanks

Gen 2 BXEB 1120mm LED Strips 39 Vdc, 1.4 A max., insulation rated 60 Vdc.
1.4 (A max) * 0.70 (70%) = 0.98 A (980 mA each)
.980 * 39 * 9 (total strips) = 343 Watts req’d

Not Recommended... Series wired @ ~ 1000 mA, 351 Vdc (Vf min.), 343 Watts; due to the 60 Vdc ELV rated PCB Insulation.

Should be wired in Parallel to an HLG-320H-48AB or HLG-480H-48AB adj. down to ~ 350 Watts output (~ 369 Watts input), Both have 24 - 48 Vdc CC range (Constant Current range). You're welcome, Good luck.

[jon]

Hey, thanks for the reply

I would prefer to avoid wiring in parallel due to safety concerns. It's for a 3-shelves unit for plants, so there will be water near the LEDs and i'm a bit paranoid lol

Here is my previous setup
6x 976-BXEB-L0590U-50E1500-C-C3-ND (2ft)
1x HLG-80H-C700B

The previous setup was too much power so I ended up using it at around 60% power max

If 80W was around 40% more power than I needed on my old setup, I was thinking 160W would be enough to run 9x4ft strips at 60%-70% ?

[PeteR_1]

Hey, thanks for the reply
I would prefer to avoid wiring in parallel due to safety concerns. It's for a 3-shelves unit for plants, so there will be water near the LEDs and i'm a bit paranoid lol

Here is my previous setup
6x 976-BXEB-L0590U-50E1500-C-C3-ND (2ft)
1x HLG-80H-C700B

The previous setup was too much power so I ended up using it at around 60% power max
If 80W was around 40% more power than I needed on my old setup, I was thinking 160W would be enough to run 9x4ft strips at 60%-70% ?

You're welcome.
40Vdc is much safer than 351Vdc, especially when the insulation is not rated for the higher volts...

Your previous LED Strips have max rated Amp; 1.7 A or 1700 mA;
. 6 * 19.1 Vf * 0.700 A (Typ. / Test Amps = 42% of Max Amps) = 80.22 Watts, 16,060 Lm, ~ 224.7 PPF
BXEB L0590U 5000K Strips... https://www.digikey.com/en/products/det ... 3/10279841

Can't provide answers without knowing more info. Grow Lights should be "Sized" by Grow Area and Plant Specific Growth Stage... download/file.php?id=4438

[jon]

If I remember correctly, one of the main raison I went with series wiring is that it's safer if one of the strip gets disconnected. But now that you are mentioning the electricity would be safer with parallel wiring i'm not sure anymore which one is safest

I downloaded the Lux Meter app and I currently have around 15,000 lux in the middle of the shelf. I'm looking for the same luminosity on my next setup.

It's just for house plants and cacti so I will go with a standard 5000k white light because it will be in the living room

This is my new 5-shelf unit:
https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/south-shor ... hrelevance
Distance between each shelf is 12"
3 strips per shelf on 3 shelves

My old setup has a 80W meanwell driver, I use a potentiometer at around 60% power and it is more than enough to get 15,000 lux

especially when the insulation is not rated for the higher volts

Can you please elaborate on that? I'm a noob and not sure what you mean

Thank you so much for your help

[Shimbob]

Roughly, while the maximum current of a wire is determined by the surface area of the conducting metal, the maximum voltage is determined by the insulation around the wire. As voltage goes up, it's more likely to spark across the insulator, so more insulation for higher voltage.

[PeteR_1]

If I remember correctly, one of the main raison I went with series wiring is that it's safer if one of the strip gets disconnected. But now that you are mentioning the electricity would be safer with parallel wiring i'm not sure anymore which one is safest I downloaded the Lux Meter app and I currently have around 15,000 lux in the middle of the shelf. I'm looking for the same luminosity on my next setup.
It's just for house plants and cacti so I will go with a standard 5000k white light because it will be in the living room

This is my new 5-shelf unit:
https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/south-shor ... hrelevance
Distance between each shelf is 12"
3 strips per shelf on 3 shelves
My old setup has a 80W meanwell driver, I use a potentiometer at around 60% power and it is more than enough to get 15,000 lux

especially when the insulation is not rated for the higher volts

Can you please elaborate on that? I'm a noob and not sure what you mean
Thank you so much for your help

IMO, The only electrical "advantage" of Series wiring is "lower Amperage" due to "higher Volts" (allowing smaller gauge wire), for the same total Watts compared to Parallel wiring. Overall Parallel wiring is more versatile, easier to set up, add or remove strips and maintains the SELV Ratings (Separated/Safety Extra Low Voltage) of the LED Strips and LED Drivers. The wire gauge (AWG) is not really an issue if the Parallel Wired Voltage is kept above 20 Vdc and sized properly, short 18 AWG wire to the LED Strips is usually adequate.

Its better to use an inexpensive 0 - 200,000 Digital Lux Meter, most Lux Meter Apps are not accurate, Korona is an exception (has a light diffuser)... https://growlightmeter.com/

The LED Strips (PCBs) have a "Listed Insulation Voltage Rating", the Bridgelux EB Gen 2's is 60 Vdc (Note #3, page 4 of Datasheets)
EB Gen 2 Datasheet... https://www.bridgelux.com/sites/default ... ev%20A.pdf

A benefit of "Sizing" for Grow Area and Specific Plant Requirements is that it eliminates a lot of guesswork as show below...

Some Calculations:
15,000 Lux of 5000K LED is approximately 210 PPFD
15000 * 0.014 (PPF/Lm Factor) = 210 PPFD (PPF/m2)
210 PPF/m2 * 0.1 (m2/SqFt Factor) = ~ 21 PPF/sqft

3 (Shelves) * 1' * 4' = 12 sq ft or ~ 1.2 m2
12 * 21 = 252 PPF req'd
252 / 2.5 PPE = 100.8 Watts req'd

Each 1' x 4' shelf @ 15,000 Lux (210 PPFD) only requires ~ 84 PPF or 6000 Lm @ 34 Watts...


Strip Selection:
Bridgelux Gen2 BXEB L1120Z 5000K, 4920Lm, 68.9 PPF, 180Lm/W, 39Vf, 27.3W, 700mA (50%, Test), 1400 mA Max Amps.
9 (strips) * 68.9 = 620 PPF (~ 44,280 Lm) @ 245.7 Watts, 700mA ea.


Driver Selection:
100.8 * 1.25 = 126 Watts
XLG-150-H-AB ($37.00)... https://www.digikey.com/en/products/det ... b/10222586


Notes:
1. Grow Lights should be "Sized" by Grow Area and Plant Specific Growth Stage... download/file.php?id=4438

2. Older "Watts per sq ft sizing" was based on ~ 1.7 PPE (1000W HID / 25 sq ft)... e.g., 40 Watts / sq ft ~ 68 PPF / sq ft (680 PPF / m2)

3. Nominal Efficiency of current LED Strips is 2.5 PPE and the LED Driver "Sizing" factor or multiplier used is 1.25 (125%) of the LED's Watts for "Reserve Capacity" .

4. The -AB suffix XLG and HLG series Meanwell Drivers can be "Current Limited" down to 50% (-A) and then Dimmed between "0 or 10 - 100%" (-B), e.g., HLG-480H-AB can be current adjusted down to 240 Watts (-A, 50%) and then also Dimmed 0 - 240 Watts (-B, 0 - 100%) with a connected 100K Ohm Pot. The -B suffix Drivers are a more versatile alternative than the -A suffix Drivers, can be dimmed down to 0 or 10% (0 Watts for the HLG-480H-48B) with the added 100K Ohm Pot and (IMO) should be the only other alternative to the -AB suffix drivers if dimming is required.

Good Luck.

[jon]

Thanks for the detailed reply, very well explained and the calculations are very helpful.

About my safety concerns... I've dug in my old posts to remember why I went with series wiring in my previous setup.
I bought a kit of 4x QB288 and it came with a HLG-480H-48B driver designed for parallel wiring.
After receiving my order, I have read an article mentioning series wiring was safer. So I started freaking out and bought two HLG-240H-C2100B instead
I asked on this forum to confirm series wiring is safer than parallel with my previous setup, here's the thread: https://www.ledgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8798

So I understand it's a completely different setup and the concerns may not be the same, but I just want to confirm

IMO, The only electrical "advantage" of Series wiring is "lower Amperage" due to "higher Volts"

If I go with parallel wiring for this setup, is there any fire or safety risk if one of the strip is disconnected and the power overloads the rest of the strips? I've read that it could be an issue and if I remember correctly they were recommending to add a fuse for safety.

Its better to use an inexpensive 0 - 200,000 Digital Lux Meter, most Lux Meter Apps are not accurate, Korona is an exception (has a light diffuser)... https://growlightmeter.com/

Not available on Android unfortunately Is there any reliable meter I can buy in Canada?
This one seems to have good ratings, do you think it's worth buying it? amazon .ca/BTMETER-BT-881D-Illuminance-0-01-400-Luxmeter/dp/B07QGTLYM9/

4. The -AB suffix XLG and HLG series Meanwell Drivers can be "Current Limited" down to 50% (-A) and then Dimmed between "0 or 10 - 100%" (-B), e.g., HLG-480H-AB can be current adjusted down to 240 Watts (-A, 50%) and then also Dimmed 0 - 240 Watts (-B, 0 - 100%) with a connected 100K Ohm Pot. The -B suffix Drivers are a more versatile alternative than the -A suffix Drivers, can be dimmed down to 0 or 10% (0 Watts for the HLG-480H-48B) with the added 100K Ohm Pot and (IMO) should be the only other alternative to the -AB suffix drivers if dimming is required.

I would prefer to have dimming with a potentiometer. Sorry, forgot to mention it.

I have three extra HLG-240H-C2100B laying around because I was a noob and bought the wrong items for another project (that's why I came on this forum before making another mistake )
Can I use one of them with my 3-shelves project, without any compromise on safety?
I also have an extra 100k OHM Potentiometer so i would only buy the strips from Digikey

[Shimbob]

The risks of thermal runaways appear greatly exaggerated.

[PeteR_1]

Thanks for the detailed reply, very well explained and the calculations are very helpful.

About my safety concerns... I've dug in my old posts to remember why I went with series wiring in my previous setup.
I bought a kit of 4x QB288 and it came with a HLG-480H-48B driver designed for parallel wiring.
After receiving my order, I have read an article mentioning series wiring was safer. So I started freaking out and bought two HLG-240H-C2100B instead
I asked on this forum to confirm series wiring is safer than parallel with my previous setup, here's the thread: https://www.ledgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8798

So I understand it's a completely different setup and the concerns may not be the same, but I just want to confirm

IMO, The only electrical "advantage" of Series wiring is "lower Amperage" due to "higher Volts"

If I go with parallel wiring for this setup, is there any fire or safety risk if one of the strip is disconnected and the power overloads the rest of the strips? I've read that it could be an issue and if I remember correctly they were recommending to add a fuse for safety.

Its better to use an inexpensive 0 - 200,000 Digital Lux Meter, most Lux Meter Apps are not accurate, Korona is an exception (has a light diffuser)... https://growlightmeter.com/

Not available on Android unfortunately Is there any reliable meter I can buy in Canada?
This one seems to have good ratings, do you think it's worth buying it? amazon .ca/BTMETER-BT-881D-Illuminance-0-01-400-Luxmeter/dp/B07QGTLYM9/

4. The -AB suffix XLG and HLG series Meanwell Drivers can be "Current Limited" down to 50% (-A) and then Dimmed between "0 or 10 - 100%" (-B), e.g., HLG-480H-AB can be current adjusted down to 240 Watts (-A, 50%) and then also Dimmed 0 - 240 Watts (-B, 0 - 100%) with a connected 100K Ohm Pot. The -B suffix Drivers are a more versatile alternative than the -A suffix Drivers, can be dimmed down to 0 or 10% (0 Watts for the HLG-480H-48B) with the added 100K Ohm Pot and (IMO) should be the only other alternative to the -AB suffix drivers if dimming is required.

I would prefer to have dimming with a potentiometer. Sorry, forgot to mention it.

I have three extra HLG-240H-C2100B laying around because I was a noob and bought the wrong items for another project (that's why I came on this forum before making another mistake )
Can I use one of them with my 3-shelves project, without any compromise on safety?
I also have an extra 100k OHM Potentiometer so i would only buy the strips from Digikey

Meanwell Constant Voltage ("Voltage Limited") LED Drivers (12 - 54 Vdc) are usually SELV rated and match the Low Voltage (60 Vdc) insulation rating on most LED Strips.

https://www.meanwelldirect.co.uk/glossa ... tage-selv/
"The Separated Extra Low Voltage (SELV) systems can be thought of as having a protective partition from the other higher voltage systems. Combining the low voltage, basic insulation, and protective separation makes SELV systems one of the safest electrical systems."

Haven't heard of "safer" high voltage Series Wiring other than shutdown (total Failure) of the circuit or Light Fixture if one (1) LED Strip fails, creating an "open circuit". When one LED strip in a parallel wired set fails the total Watts / amps is "Re-distributed Equally" over all the other remaining strips, e.g., 10 strips at 100 watts is 10 Watts per strip, if one strip fails its 9 strips at 100 watts, only 11.1 watts per strip an increase of 1.1 Watts. The "Equal Distribution" of total available Amps (total Watts) makes Parallel wiring much easier to Plan, easier to add Additional or Remove unwanted LED Strips (or COBs). Also, the only possible way to reach any "Thermal Runaway" is if; The LED strips were operating at or near Maximum Amps under normal condition, which is usually never the case, unless they were initially improperly selected, very undersized or continuously run very "Hard" / Hot.

My most used and always accurate Lux meter is a Genuine Benetech GM1010 (usually under $20.00)... http://techinstruments.ca/product/digit ... ch-gm1010/

Yes all the Meanwell HLG and XLG Series -AB and -B suffix LED drivers, including the HLG-240H-c2100B (B Suffix) can use the external 0 - 100K Ohm Potentiometer for dimming... https://www.digikey.com/en/products/det ... A1/4733104

The HLG-240H-c2100B, 59 - 119 Vdc @ 2.1A could possibly be used in the 3-shelf project if the 9 LED strips are wired in a 3-Series / 3-Parallel circuit, 117 Vdc @ 2.1 Amps, ~ 245 Watts available but dimmed to ~ 100 watts, though not typically recommended for a 240 watt Driver due to reduced % Efficiency (85 - 90% Efficient at ~ 42% Load, 100 Watts)

9-Series and 3-Series / 3-Parallel circuit diagrams

HLG-240H-c2100B Datasheets... https://www.meanwell.com/Upload/PDF/HLG ... C-SPEC.PDF
BTW, I do not recommend Parallel, Series or Series/Parallel Circuits above 60Vdc / SELV Rating of the LED Drivers or LED Strips...

You're welcome.