Hi All,
Does anyone out there have any experience with DIY LED lighting? I stumbled across this link on another site and these look interesting. For the $$ I could probably build a pretty good set up. Anyone ever done it or have plans?

Luxeon LEDs - LXHL-LW3C Luxeon III Star - White Lambertian (http://www.luxeonstar.com/item.php?id=386&link_str=196::198&partno=LXHL-LW3C)

I appreciate any insight you can give!

Here's a link to my local reef site's try for a tiny fixture. It should have the info needed to go upscale, though -pretty darn involved: Asheville Marine Aquarium Society :: View topic - The DIY Solaris Project (http://www.ashevillemarine.org/bb/viewtopic.php?t=621)

Thanks Russ,
I had seen the Solaris project. Wonder how hard it wopuld be to build a 5 foot long light bar like this? It does look very involved. Any time soldering irons are involved I freak.
Thanks!

The LED's in that link are the ones that i will be using. I plan on doing away with my PC's and going LED's for my daylight. I am planing on making my own hood and stand though so i wouldn't be using the traditional light hood. I was planning on a square peace of tubing going across the hood and the LED's bolted to the inside with a lens cover. So i can't help you there but i would highly recommend trying your hand at the DIY lighting. Soldering is easy :) Once you get the hang of it its a snap, Talkingreef can help you there too :)

Thanks Wes,
Let me know how it comes as you progress. I would love to see a "this is what you need when you do a DIY "Solaris Like" fixture. Theirs has a number of different LEDS and all of the bells and whistles for moonlight, sunrise, sunset etc. It is all in the planning. I need to go over to Radio Shack and pick the guy's brain. There is one guy there who is pretty good at setting up outside lighting, timers and "computer operated stuff." Maybe he can provide some insight. It would be great to be able to simulate real world conditions of lighting, as least in a completely artificial environment, spend the money up front (not $3,400.00) and avoid sending even more money to Sempra Energy Group. My gas and electric bills in San Diego are the highest in the country already, 3-500 a month in August and September. Willing to take on the soldering. (OBTW, from what I understand, the less you have between the actual LEDs and the tank the better. See Russ's post earlier in the thread.

Just a warning, if you want all the bells and whistles you might find you are better off just shelling out the cash for the production unit. But you can save some money if you go a little simplified and DIY. I plan to try making a small fisture myself for a 10 gallon some day. You might want to try it on a small scale too first to see how it works out or what the best solution is before you go spend lots of money on LEDs and drivers.

Thanks!
All good thoughts. I am still very much in the exploratory stage of this. Just like my reef, which was two years in the planning and implementing stage, I want to get/read/digest/process EVERY piece of information I can before I pull out the plastic. The technology advances so quickly, and now with new LED reef light vendors appearing on the market, I just may adopt a wait and see attitude. I will in the interim need more light, so I think I will go with more T5s as I wait and see. Thanks so much!

yeah, expanding, or affirming what other have said, teh time it would take building a diy led unit would be substantial, and the quality would be nowhere near a production unit.

If you think about a solaris, it has computers and bells and whistles telling each led how bright to be and when to be ( lol, if that doesnt make sense, w/e :p)

If you wanted to do it diy, the money you'd spend just to tweak it would be getting close to buying the production unit itself

Here is an old thread about the same subject. http://www.talkingreef.com/forums/lighting/735-led-tech-file.html

Thanks Guys,
After much consideration, and tons of time in fromnt of this machine, I have decided to wait. I looked at pretty much all that is out there, and there is a LOT. But, it is expensive to do it righ myself, or expensive to buy an off the shelf Solaris. I think I will use the $$ to take my wife back to the Caribbean instead! Thanks for all of the input!

Here is an old thread about the same subject. http://www.talkingreef.com/forums/lighting/735-led-tech-file.html


wow, how old was that thread carmie, i can actually remember dribbling on about all that. & who would have known that solarius was going to drop a golden bomb shell that same year.

I'd bookmarked it ages ago.