DiY LEDs - How to Power Them

robincnn

robincnn

Well-Known Member
20150730_180248.jpg
Notice the small size of LPC100 in middle
Meanwell LPC-100 Datasheet

Meanwell's low price plastic casing non dimmable power supply. $30/piece. Should be available in USA in August. If you can find it now let me know. Don't say ebay.
Perfect for small projects. Please correct if wrong.
2.1 Amps upto 48V i guess good for single CXB/CXA 3590 36v versions and Vero 29's
1.75 amps upto 58V might be good for 2 Vero 18's since they would need around 60V, over voltage will not kick-in at 60V
1.4 amps upto 72V will be good for 2 Vero 18's, good for 2x CXB 3590 36v version
0.7 amps good for 2x cxb3590 72V Version
Untitled.jpg
 
hayrolld

hayrolld

Well-Known Member
poxa said:
Hi guys,

thanks all so much and Supra particularly for the thread, impressive and very useful!
I'm a newbie about the subject trying to figure out from scratch what should I do for a (2' x 2') setup.

I was considering before starting if it is possible to mix different COBs in a single rail and have all them driven - for example - by a single HLG-185H-C700B (driver must dimmable by a 100μΩ PM).

(2 x CXB3070) + (2 x CXB3590)
or
(2 x Vero29) + (2 x CXB3590)

If some specific information is available - please, point me out without mercy and forgive the noob in advance!

Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Yes, you can put any combination of LEDs in series and have them run fine. The main consideration is if the total voltage forward (Vf) of the string adds up to less than the drivers max voltage.
 
M

MAXMVP10

Member
Hello guys! Need your help!

I'm planning to build my personal DIY growbox using CREE CXA3590 77v 5000K and Mean Well driver. My budget is rather small. I've got 2 questions:

1) Will 1 (CREE CXA3590 77v 5000K) cob be enough to EFFECTIVELY RUN the growbox with reflective surface on the inside and with the following measurements? :
- height - 1m (40" inches)
- width - 60 cm (23,5")
- length - 40 cm (15,75")
Or should I necessarily use 2 CREE CXA3590 77v 5000K cobs?

2) Depending on the first question (number of cobs) - what is the best (affordable) Mean Well driver for me? How many "Watts", "Volts" and especially "mA" would be the best for growing?

Thank you in advance!

Cheers,

Max
 
SomeGuy

SomeGuy

Well-Known Member
If I was lighting a box that small I would use vero 18 and drive them soft. I would do 3-4 of them at 700ma. Remember bigger cobs need some headroom. Smaller cobs softly driven can get much closer to the plants without damaging them.

Just my 2cents.

MAXMVP10 said:
Hello guys! Need your help!

I'm planning to build my personal DIY growbox using CREE CXA3590 77v 5000K and Mean Well driver. My budget is rather small. I've got 2 questions:

1) Will 1 (CREE CXA3590 77v 5000K) cob be enough to EFFECTIVELY RUN the growbox with reflective surface on the inside and with the following measurements? :
- height - 1m (40" inches)
- width - 60 cm (23,5")
- length - 40 cm (15,75")
Or should I necessarily use 2 CREE CXA3590 77v 5000K cobs?

2) Depending on the first question (number of cobs) - what is the best (affordable) Mean Well driver for me? How many "Watts", "Volts" and especially "mA" would be the best for growing?

Thank you in advance!

Cheers,

Max
Click to expand...
 
T

Tazbud

Well-Known Member
Tazbud said:
Any thoughts on why a driver would be marked for North American use only while the Voltage in is 100-240-277??

I spied these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Inventronics-160w-Led-Driver-Constant-Current-Type-Quad-Channels-Model-EUC-160-/141679836058?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20fcc6bb9a They have been selling for a while now at a decent price and look pretty good for vero.
Click to expand...
Just thought i'd add that these work fine, I have them running Vero 18 cool and safe alternate.
So= a cheap alternate for quality and reasonably high efficiency, not only for USA use.

freight forward = @$20 shipping.
 
EfficientWatt

EfficientWatt

Well-Known Member
Hi all,

Anyone seen these yet ? Meanwell ELG
http://www.meanwell.com/webapp/product/search.aspx?prod=ELG-150-C

I think these are new, only model I can find is 150W, looks almost identical to HLG 120H, but MUCH cheaper. (25$-30$ on alibaba)

Weird, they don't show the efficiency <50% load, but it looks like a very flat line, around 92%+ ...

Great cheap option for those who want to run 2 CXBs @75W or 3@49W
... I hope ELG-200-C is in the pipeline ...

Oh yeah, looks like these won't work on 110V tho, so not for most of you guys in USA .. :/

First image is parts of the spec sheet put together ..

not sure how to read the second graph in 2nd screenshot.

elg150.png

elg150b.png

Comments .. ?
 
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P

poxa

Member
Anyone could help please? These are my first maths trying calculating values like efficiency and μMol/s for 2.6.x2.6 areas, using cxb350 spreadsheet, but I've done math wrong, as realstyles said. [wrong math removed].

I was looking for the most efficient way with 3 or 4 cobs (36v or 72v) in order to have ~1000μMol/s in 2.6x2.6...
 
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REALSTYLES

REALSTYLES

Well-Known Member
EfficientWatt said:
Hi all,

Anyone seen these yet ? Meanwell ELG
http://www.meanwell.com/webapp/product/search.aspx?prod=ELG-150-C

I think these are new, only model I can find is 150W, looks almost identical to HLG 120H, but MUCH cheaper. (25$-30$ on alibaba)

Weird, they don't show the efficiency <50% load, but it looks like a very flat line, around 92%+ ...

Great cheap option for those who want to run 2 CXBs @75W or 3@49W
... I hope ELG-200-C is in the pipeline ...

Oh yeah, looks like these won't work on 110V tho, so not for most of you guys in USA .. :/

First image is parts of the spec sheet put together ..

not sure how to read the second graph in 2nd screenshot.

View attachment 3471618

View attachment 3471619

Comments .. ?
Click to expand...
Why did you beat me to the punch? lol I was talking to a alibaba supplier about those well they sent me a email about those drivers last week but I didn't take it to mind lol. Great option though for the guys who want to build a small light.
 
REALSTYLES

REALSTYLES

Well-Known Member
poxa said:
Anyone could help please? These are my first maths trying calculating values like ~60% efficiency, ~1000μMol/s for 2.6.x2.6 area, using this spreadsheet:


Don't know if math done here is correct: please, what's the most efficient way with 3 or 4 cobs (36v or 72v) in order to have ~1000μMol/s in 2.6x2.6?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
36v - 2.6X2.6 feet 6.76sqft - 4x cxb 3590 @700mA
35.5W X 4 = 142 Dissipation W
142 * 58.71% efficiency = 83.3 PAR W
83.3 * .9 reflector/lens/wall losses = 75 PAR W
75/6.76 = 11 PAR W/ft²
11 * 4.65 umol/s * 10.7 = 551 PPFD In a 2.6x2.6 Feet. <-------------------- (So is it impossible to cover this area with only 4 x 36v?)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
72v - 2.6X2.6 feet 6.76sqft - 4x cxb 3590 @700mA
75.5W X 4 = 302 Dissipation W
302 * 51.67% efficiency = 156 PAR W
156 * .9 reflector/lens/wall losses = 140.4 PAR W
140.4/6.76 = 20.7 PAR W/ft²
20.7 * 4.65 umol/s * 10.7 = 1033 PPFD In a 2.6x2.6 Feet.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is the 3K spreadsheet linked above almost suitable for 4K CD bin (36v) or 3K CB bin (36v, 72v)?
Click to expand...
You have your math wrong on the CXB3590 72v wrong use this tool from Cree http://pct.cree.com/dt/index.html
 
EfficientWatt

EfficientWatt

Well-Known Member
@poxa Ok, little help:

(using Supra's numbers ; Cree's will be about 6-10% lower efficiency)

1) Do you need 1000 ppfd or 1000umols ?

ppfd takes area into account, umols doesn't.

1000ppfd =1000umols per metre² ==> 1000ppfd for a 2.6x2.6 = 1000*0.64 = 640 micromols
1000umols = 1000/0.64 = 1562ppfd == plant saturation point == Overkill

Answer : 1000 ppfd in your space (which is plenty) amounts to 640 umols.

Note : 1000 ppfd is alot, most go with ~650-750.

2) How to get ~640ppfd with 3 to 4 cobs?

Ok, so 1 PAR watt is 4.67 umol => 640/4.67 = 137 W PAR neeeded to reach 1000ppfd in your area

a) CXB3590 @~50W : 36V@1400ma / 72V@700mA
If 4 CXB 3590 CB @48.85W has 51.67% efficiency => (4*48.85) x 0.5167 = 101 W PAR
If 4 CXB 3590 CD @48.85W has 56.34% efficiency => (4*48.85) x 0.5634 = 110 W PAR

Ok so with 4 @~50W wont get there
b) CXB3590 CB @75.5W : 36v@2100mA / 72V@1050mA
If 2 CXB 3590 CB @75.54W has 45.59% efficiency => (2*75.54) x 0.4559 = 68 W PAR
=> 4 CXB3590 CB @75.54W => 136 W Par BINGO !

If 2 CXB 3590 CD @75.54W has 49.71% efficiency => 75W PAR
=> 4 CXB3590 CD @ 75.54W => 150W PAR => 150*4.67 which is 700umols and 1095ppfd

So your target is reached with :

4 CXB 3590 CB 72V and 2 HLG 120H 1050C will get you there

Hope this helps !

Or you might be able to use this super cheap driver i just mentioned above, its like 40% cheaper, dimmable, and just about as efficient ! :

ELG-150-C1050 ! (but looks like you need 230V AC)

elg150.png

@REALSTYLES : Don't think they're any use to you in the states, but did you get a quote you can share with us ? :D

:peace:
 
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Actionbone

Actionbone

Well-Known Member
poxa said:
THANKS. There's much to learn from your post, I must study it.
Only a thing: we ended with 4 CXB 3590 CB 72V and 2 HLG 120H 1050C, is there any solution at 230V that could be run by only 1 driver even if we have some efficiency loss? (i.e. HLG-185H-C700?)

I'm really stuck in those maths.
Click to expand...
if you wait for the new 240h driver from meanwell you can use 5 cxb3590 at 48.85w for 960ppfd!!
 
EfficientWatt

EfficientWatt

Well-Known Member
They run at ~75W each

So 4 of them would require a 300W driver, HLG 185H is 200W max, so nope.

Constant current drivers >200W aren't very common.

poxa said:
THANKS. There's much to learn from your post, I must study it.
Only a thing: we ended with 4 CXB 3590 CB 72V and 2 HLG 120H 1050C, is there any solution at 230V that could be run by only 1 driver even if we have some efficiency loss? (i.e. HLG-185H-C700?)

I'm really stuck in those maths.
Click to expand...

Looks like MW is planning a ELG-240-C ! Now if it's anywhere between 45 and 55€, it will be a game changer for price.

Could run 3x75W ... and hopefully 5x49W and 4x 62W !!! (102%-104% load)

I'm loving this, gonna like my own post :bigjoint: EDIT : Can't :( ;)

@Actionbone HLG 240H series is not readily available, but I got a quote from MWdirect UK with 7-8 weeks lead time, but price looks much higher thann hlg185, making it more expensive overall.

ie. if HLG 240 costs more than $price-hlg185$ x 1.25, then it's better to stick with 185. Price I got was around 95€-105$ ...


EDIT : Looks like a HLG 320H-C series in under development too ...
 

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Actionbone

Actionbone

Well-Known Member
EfficientWatt said:
They run at ~75W each

So 4 of them would require a 300W driver, HLG 185H is 200W max, so nope.

Constant current drivers >200W aren't very common.




Looks like MW is planning a ELG-240-C ! Now if it's anywhere between 45 and 55€, it will be a game changer for price.

Could run 3x75W ... and hopefully 5x49W and 4x 62W !!! (102%-104% load)

I'm loving this, gonna like my own post :bigjoint: EDIT : Can't :( ;)

@Actionbone HLG 240H series is not readily available, but I got a quote from MWdirect UK with 7-8 weeks lead time, but price looks much higher thann hlg185, making it more expensive overall.

ie. if HLG 240 costs more than $price-hlg185$ x 1.25, then it's better to stick with 185. Price I got was around 95€-105$ ...
Click to expand...
GOOD INFO BRO! im also very interested cause i have also 2 80x80 tents to cover and i alredy have 4 cxb3590 and soome veros for veg
 
REALSTYLES

REALSTYLES

Well-Known Member
poxa said:
Thanks for your reply: I've tried this tool man, but I didn't understand: is there an example that I could follow or replicate to determine right values for a 2.6x2.6 with 3 or 4 cxb3590s?
Click to expand...
I'm fucking lazy but I will make a video on how to use it. I'm still new booty to the led shit myself wanted to make one in 2009 but I'm glad I waited
 
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