Well, I've finally finished assembling a lighting fixture I've been meaning to build since last summer. A lot of learning and planning went into this, and as always there were last-minute improvisations. I'm guessing if an electrician saw what I've done they'd get a heart attack.
The frame: 1*1m built of aluminum L-shaped profiles, with 5 thin U-profiles to give it sturdiness and hold the strips
The drivers: 2 HLG-480H-24B, hanging outside the tent and connected to a timer. Dimmer left to its own (i.e., 100%)
The light: No idea, really. I'm assuming at least the temp is right, with a mix of 30 strips (2160 diodes) @ 3500K and 36 strips (2592 diodes) @ 3000K. Yes, that's a total of 4752 diodes. That is, in theory: despite my best efforts 9 strips failed to turn on, so there's only a total of 4104 diodes. C'est la vie.
Here are some of the lessons I've learned along the way:
1. My Mufue review was made earlier, but it's even worse than I expected. Besides using bogus diodes, the build quality is downright pathetic. Six (!) connectors broke off the PCBs when fitting the wire to power the strips. The first time it happened I thought it's my fault, pushing too hard, later I realized some were simply barely attached to begin with.
2. Pay with PayPal and order enough time in advance to make a second order from another supplier, if need be. Between filing for a refund and having the matter concluded it can take two weeks. I waited until the last minute and couldn't afford the time, or the (small) risk of ending up with $1000 of 5730-SMDs. Being cheap can get expensive.
3. 1mm solid-core wire is essential when wiring PCBs. The distance between the positive and negative connectors is so small a tiny strand will short it.
4. You can solder a wire directly to the PCB if the connector breaks off. Even if you've never soldered before, it really is pretty simple.
5. A riveter is cheap and simple to use. When building an aluminum frame it gets much better/firmer results than screws and bolts.
6. If the light doesn't turn on when you finally plug it to the socket, try inverting the positive and negative cables going to the driver. And then again, and again. Eventually you'll get it right.
7. Wiring 66 strips means there are 132 bits of 1mm wire to cut and strip of their coating, and so on and so on. It takes a good amount of time, and again a wire-stripper is pretty much a must. Also, solid-core, even at 1mm, is much trickier to move/bend than braided wire. As with any new skill, it takes practice. You can clearly see which half of the fixture was put together first and which last.
8. Better do all of this with plenty of space to move around and test things before they need to go live. It's a pain to readjust strips/connectors inside of a tent filled with plants.
9. Wagos are nice, but I wasn't entirely sold on them. I bought a lot, used many, but didn't cry when I need some more and couldn't find the package. Good ol' school terminal blocks do just fine.
