Nano LED Build - Write-up with pics

[martinmcnally]

One of my customers did a write up of a great little nano build on Reef Central. They decided to take the post down for some reason, really not quite sure why. Anyways Mike sent me the text and here it is below:

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Hey guys, decided to do a little write up for my nano LED build. I hadn't seen one on here yet for Modular LED.

I decided to go with Modular LED I wanted something easy to put together and to get my light up and running pretty quick. Plus I love DIY but the solder kills me sooo.

First top notch job from Martin at Modular LED he answered every question I had within minutes, not hours or days the emails were flowing even on the weekends. He did later admit to having an iPhone glued to his forehead

I purchased a 6x6 heatsink from them was perfect for my tank and decided on a 2:1 ratio of Royal Blues to Cool Whites. Here is the arrangement I wanted:



First was glue. I used the Arctic Alumina. Each of their boards has a little heat transfer pad that you put the glue on.



I noticed that each of their boards were marked QA. When I asked him what that was about he said they test every single board and LED to make sure they work. I understand the other ones on stars are only randomly tested so you can get some duds or something.

I ordered my driver pre-configured (configuration was free!) and it also came fully wired for me. However looking at the connections now it would be childsplay to wire because all the wires are color coded.



Below is how the driver is wired, one connector goes to the LEDs the other to the dimmer:



It even came with the power cord already attached and a grounding cable.



I decided to glue the dimmer right on top of the driver



And here it is all wired up. Before I purchased I drew it all out on some paper so I would know how the connections would work and to make sure they were long enough. I used all 2 inch Standard Connectors.



I put the lenses on. I used all 45 degree lenses.



Last thing I did was add some connection extenders. I bought a bunch of these so I can house my drivers and dimmer hidden away under my desk rather than in the small light hood for the nano.



And hear it is finished. Unfortunately the camera is not good enough to show you the blues and whites but the color is beautiful and soo bright!



Here is the best part. Build time less than 20 minutes. Not including the Arctic Alumina cure time of course that took a few hours.

Oh and there was a free chocolate bar in the box! haha I love it!

[smokinreefer]

awesome post.
makes me almost feel confident i could put one together!

couple of questions...
do you know what size tank that went on?
and the approximate cost of a set up like that?
or what the cost would be to effectively light a tank roughly 20"x20"x20"?

thanks!

[martinmcnally]

That was for a little tiny tank and it was probably overkill but with the dimmer it can always be turned down. I believe it was for a 6x6x12 tank and the cost was approximately $150 but that setup could easily be put on a larger tank.

For 20x20x20 I would recommend you go with two 6x12 heatsinks side by side. That gives you one square foot heatsink which would be perfect for that size. My little formula suggests around 25 individual LEDs for that size of tank so 13 of our boards.

Heatsinks would be $60, LEDs $130, connectors approx $10, glue $10, optional lenses $26

You would then either choose a dimmable or non dimmable driver. With the dimmable you then need the approx $50 dim kit.

So its going to be around $230 plus driver (and optional dimmer). If you want I could put together a more accurate quote over email.

Actually we do have the 24 LED kit on the website with a discount on there total price is $220, you just add the heatsink (or build your own).

Martin

[smokinreefer]

thanks for the info.

apologies if this is a thread hijack...

so after a kit is assembled, how would you mount it over a tank?
are there mounting legs? hanging kit?

thanks again.
if this is too off topic, please feel free to PM or email me.

[martinmcnally]

You would have to build a simple enclosure or acrylic shield from Rona or Home Depot. Then you can get a mounting kit from JL Aquatics to hang it. Lots of people remove T5 and reflectors from an existing hood and retrofit.

I have a bunch of pictures of hoods that some people built if you need some ideas.

[phi delt reefer]

fyi - Reef Central removed the thread because you are not a RC sponser.

welcome to capitalist america - hope your journey is pleasent one!


awesome documentation on the build. Martin well done on the kit - i think more people will get into DIY leds now that your kit is on the market.

keep up the good work...

a true violet/royal blue module would be awesome for supplementing if you ever look into expanding!

[martinmcnally]

We actually have that exact one haha, 2 Royal Blue LEDs on one board. It just doesnt show in that picture of the LEDs running because they blind the camera. It really makes the coral pop right out of the tank. The colors are amazing.

Actually for the last few days i've had a problem with an older soldered LED fixture so only my Royal Blues have been working. I am amazed at how the corals have responded in a few days. Just running the Royal Blues seems to have given them a growth spurt. I am guessing it wont last forever and they will start missing the white but maybe all the talk about cloudy days and storms actually does give them a bit of a break from the high intensity light and let them expand a little.

Martin

Originally Posted by phi delt reefer

fyi - Reef Central removed the thread because you are not a RC sponser.

welcome to capitalist america - hope your journey is pleasent one!


awesome documentation on the build. Martin well done on the kit - i think more people will get into DIY leds now that your kit is on the market.

keep up the good work...

a true violet/royal blue module would be awesome for supplementing if you ever look into expanding!

[phi delt reefer]

royal blue 455nm and true violet (aka actinic) 420nm

[martinmcnally]

Was just looking at the Cree website there and unfortunately 450nm the ones we have are the lowest wavelength they produce I wonder if they will try to bring out lower range colors just for reefs. My guess is I doubt it.

Martin

[mseepman]

People have to source their violet led's from makers other than Cree...I think they are getting more popular now though.