IT WORKS!!
That’s the end of this update. Next update should be the final install and drivers.
Cheers
YYC
SpARF - The modular strip fixture
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YYCannabis
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...cont update
IT WORKS!!
I made a test rig without adding a potentiometer to see what max brightness would be...and I wasn’t disappointed. I left the strips on for about 15 minutes. And I was surprised at how warm they are at only 620mA (30 watts) each. I’ll have to bring the laser thermometer from work and get a good number as to just how hot they get.
That’s the end of this update. Next update should be the final install and drivers.
Cheers
YYC
IT WORKS!!
I made a test rig without adding a potentiometer to see what max brightness would be...and I wasn’t disappointed. I left the strips on for about 15 minutes. And I was surprised at how warm they are at only 620mA (30 watts) each. I’ll have to bring the laser thermometer from work and get a good number as to just how hot they get.
That’s the end of this update. Next update should be the final install and drivers.
Cheers
YYC
Once you have it installed make sure you run an oscillating fan over the bars, it makes a huge difference having a bit of airflow. If seen some set up where they mount them on the bar frame to keep things cool
Find me on Instagram led_teknik
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YYCannabis
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I was hoping to be able to passively cool without adding more fans. I guess I’m going to have to hit amazon for small fans.
Depending on what temperatures you are getting you can passive cool, most quality leds can take alot of heat now days, your leds will last longer and perform better when kept cooler. I always reccomend fans over heatsinks as it also provides airflow to the plants and helps them grow too
Find me on Instagram led_teknik
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YYCannabis
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**BIG UPDATE**
Finally! Let there be light...
Cheers
YYC
Finally! Let there be light...
YYC
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YYCannabis
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...cont
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW
Alright so cable management isn’t my strong suit...and those Wago connectors are certainly easy. Ugly as hell. But easy.
I am already planning to move on from the cluster-fuqq of Wago to using a proper bus bar.
Yup. I warned you it was ugly. But but works for now. The solid core wire is a pain in the ass to work with for this bundle of connections. I think i will be switching to 16ga stranded wire when I upgrade to a bus bar.
Part of the challenge was having extra Wago connectors for adding the inline fuse. On each strips connection. That’s on the rework list as well.
Lastly, some of the strips have connectors at both ends. Since my design has ribs very close to each other, I had concerns about accidentally bumping one of the lights and causing a short by touching the exposed connectors. As a bandaid remedy, I painted the ends of the heatsinks with liquid electrical tape. I’m not sure if that will be a final solution, so I’m open to suggestions.
Now on to drivers...
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW
Alright so cable management isn’t my strong suit...and those Wago connectors are certainly easy. Ugly as hell. But easy.
I am already planning to move on from the cluster-fuqq of Wago to using a proper bus bar.
Part of the challenge was having extra Wago connectors for adding the inline fuse. On each strips connection. That’s on the rework list as well.
Lastly, some of the strips have connectors at both ends. Since my design has ribs very close to each other, I had concerns about accidentally bumping one of the lights and causing a short by touching the exposed connectors. As a bandaid remedy, I painted the ends of the heatsinks with liquid electrical tape. I’m not sure if that will be a final solution, so I’m open to suggestions.
Now on to drivers...
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YYCannabis
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Drivers...
I discovered an old wire rack shelf in my storage shed and figured it was darn near perfect for the drivers. No airflow restriction and mounted up ABOVE head level
I marked the pots with basic markings to know which is for the 3K or 5K strips and which side like left and right.
Power leads covered in a loom from the drivers to inside the tent. The power leads for the right side of the tent run across on top of the tent. Using a loom helps keep them together and protected.
As I move on to the next rebuild, plans will include properly soldering the leads to the drivers.
So as a near-finished product, I’m happy as hell and I’m sure the little ladies in the tent will be much happier too
This concludes the main build. As I move forward with the V2 version, I’ll make updates as things progress on.
Cheers
YYC
I discovered an old wire rack shelf in my storage shed and figured it was darn near perfect for the drivers. No airflow restriction and mounted up ABOVE head level
I marked the pots with basic markings to know which is for the 3K or 5K strips and which side like left and right.
Power leads covered in a loom from the drivers to inside the tent. The power leads for the right side of the tent run across on top of the tent. Using a loom helps keep them together and protected.
So as a near-finished product, I’m happy as hell and I’m sure the little ladies in the tent will be much happier too
This concludes the main build. As I move forward with the V2 version, I’ll make updates as things progress on.
Cheers
YYC
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HomerPepsi
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That cri tho.. Wow sexy. Lemme know how that feels as a growing light. I've maxed out 80cri builds. The only thing left to for me is to move up on cri. You can see that light quality in those pictures.
Also, I'm not sure about the capabilities of your LED's, but I'm just learning now about attaching a 10k ohm resistor to the positive side of the dimmer so it only allows for a maximum of 90% dimming. Something to research further on your own if you haven't already as I am moving away from analog dimming and literally just learned about it
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Also, I'm not sure about the capabilities of your LED's, but I'm just learning now about attaching a 10k ohm resistor to the positive side of the dimmer so it only allows for a maximum of 90% dimming. Something to research further on your own if you haven't already as I am moving away from analog dimming and literally just learned about it
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Last edited by HomerPepsi on Mon Nov 11, 2019 7:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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YYCannabis
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The CRI does look spectacular. Those pics are from an iPhone 7 without any photoshopping or enhancing of any kind. With that said...I’m going to now tweak some pics to help with colors 
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HomerPepsi
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BTW - I've got some of those same orange scissors.. Awesome pair lol
Edit: Also, for v2, if you could develop an non permanent mounting solution (ie. some way for the ribs to disconnect and be able to clamp on to different width/height heatsinks), you'd almost have a modular sellable product on your hand.
Edit: Also, for v2, if you could develop an non permanent mounting solution (ie. some way for the ribs to disconnect and be able to clamp on to different width/height heatsinks), you'd almost have a modular sellable product on your hand.