Help with building led light

Hi guys, as the title suggests, I am writing this post to ask you for a hand in building a led light using Bridgelux EB Series 2 led strips
It will be a long post so I thank in advance those who will want to read it and help me

I will grow in a 1.15x1.15x2.3ft mini grow box, that means I will have 1.29ft2. Taking in mind that 30 to 40W/ft2 are needed in flowering, I will need 38.7 to 51.6W.

The choice is between these two builds (but I'm obviously open to your advice)

1) Series wiring
7 × Bridgelux EB Series 2 1 foot
3500K
Forward voltage: 19.5V
Maximum current: 700mA
Rated current: 350mA

Meanwell HLG-60H-C350A
Output voltage: 100 ~ 200V
Maximum output current: 350mA
Maximum power: 70W

The minimum power of this build would be 28.1W (for the growing), the rated power 40.6W and the maximum power 47.7W.

Wiring in series would get a voltage of 136.5V (19.5V×7). Is it dangerous or can I rest assured?

Version "A" has an integrated 50/100% dimmer, do you advise me to opt for version "B" and use a 100K ohm potentiometer for more control?


Wiring should be done like this, right? It would be the first time, so I'm looking for confirmation

2) Parallel wiring
6 × Bridgelux EB Series 2
Specifications as above

Meanwell HLG-60H-24B
Output voltage: 14.4 ~ 24V
Maximum output current: 2.5A
Maximum power: 60W

Using Ledgardener's "Parallel Strip Building Tool", which however is based on the previous Bridgelux series (the rated current of the Gen 1 is 22.1V) I would get a power of 46.4W, using the strips at 50% of their maximum.



I chose the B version of the driver to be able to add a 100k ohm potentiometer.



Here too I ask for confirmation for the wiring..

I have come to the end, I know that maybe it would be easier to go with normal commercial leds, but the idea would be to be able to use the build also in a 40x40x120cm growbox, and therefore I prefer to build something already now. Any advice, any other build to suggest is welcome. I'm a total noob in this field, all the information I gleaned from other people's hours of reading, so I may have got a lot wrong.

You need a taller space.
I tried in a 36" high wine fridge and it worked, just not well. Between the pot height and light distance, there isnt much room left.

HydoDan said:

DIY Guides - LED Gardener

Click to expand...

Yes, I practically took a lot of inspiration from their guides. The problem is that all the builds with led strips they propose start at a minimum of 120W, which is too much for what I want to do, and they do not offer solutions for microgrowing

Boatguy said:

You need a taller space.
I tried in a 36" high wine fridge and it worked, just not well. Between the pot height and light distance, there isnt much room left.

Click to expand...

My idea was precisely to create a microgrow, and grow 1/2/3 plants in 18oz Solo cups, so as to keep the plants small, no problem if I have a yield of 5/10gr per plant

Simomas said:

Yes, I practically took a lot of inspiration from their guides. The problem is that all the builds with led strips they propose start at a minimum of 120W, which is too much for what I want to do, and they do not offer solutions for microgrowing



My idea was precisely to create a microgrow, and grow 1/2/3 plants in 18oz Solo cups, so as to keep the plants small, no problem if I have a yield of 5/10gr per plant

Click to expand...

My largest harvest in that little fridge was about an ounce.
In a 2x2.5' tent with 150w got me 6 oz.... First try.
Everything is difficult in a microgrow. Watering, training, climate/odor control, and for a pretty unsatisfying final result.

If you lose 6" of height from your solo's, and 18 for your light and distance from canopy, you have about 6" left for your plants

I could look for a few taller closets, but trying to stay roughly 1.15 feet as the side. Can you tell me something about the LED configuration?

Simomas said:

I could look for a few taller closets, but trying to stay roughly 1.15 feet as the side. Can you tell me something about the LED configuration?

Click to expand...

I built my first one for that fridge with some cree xpe's and ran them dimmed to around 75w. Later i replaced with small cobs and ran them the same.
Just because they recommend 120w doesnt mean you cant dim them to where they need to be.

I found another cabinet where I could build the grow box, 37x40x80cm (1.21x1.31x2.62ft), it would be 20cm more, but that's already something

All I can say is run as many as you can fit because the more you use the softer your running them and the closer you can have your light to your plants, which matters when your limited In height.

Simomas said:

I found another cabinet where I could build the grow box, 37x40x80cm (1.21x1.31x2.62ft), it would be 20cm more, but that's already something

Click to expand...

What Cory said. ^^^ Use more strips and they can be within just a few inches of the canopy. You could also do some side lighting. Your driver selections are fine, but I like AB dimming. You could also run an HLG-60H-42 with pairs of strips in series. Another option is a 20-24v laptop supply or similar and a PWM dimmer.



BTW, those strips can run up to about 500ma without heat sinks if the backside is exposed to the air.

Hey guys, I will probably opt for the 100cm high cabinet instead of 80, side and depth remain the same
On another forum where they are helping me I was advised to use the B version of the Meanwell drivers, to have much more management possibilities. At first I was torn, I have never soldered and I don't have a soldering iron, but they are cheap and it's always good to learn something new

So...that got me thinking about my build again. I would like to get a more powerful driver to use in a possible 2x2ft growbox, but which at the same time can be used without damaging the plants in my current growbox (the one I want to build).

The choice was: Meanwell ELG-100-C500B
Output voltage: 100 ~ 200V
Maximum output current: 500mA
Max power: 100W

I will wire 7 Bridgelux Gen 2 strips in series, I will add a 0-10VDC potentiometer and this should be what i will get:


I should be fine for all growth stages, although I don't think I will exceed 80%, so 400mA, I will put the strips on a 30x30 aluminum plate with 3mm thickness, what do you think?

Also look at the meanwell xlg range. They are smaller and used to be cheaper last I checked

Yes, but it is a matter of a few euros so I would prefer to stay on this build, how do you think?

https://www.digikey.it/en/products/detail/cts-electrocomponents/026TB32R101B1A1/203775

Would this be the correct potentiometer for the ELG-100-C500B ? It's 100ohm, but I don't understand if it's 0-10V or 1-10V.
Or simply whether it is the correct potentiometer

Some notes:
Side lighting has already been mentioned but id like to add a small twist: with limited eimensions and height it would be good to have a "anti stretch" function. The blux vesta strips incorporate both cold white and warm white channels so could fit the bill. The smallwr the space the more control you need of your plant size.

If youre set on 350mA nominal you could tailor your spectrum by adding monos which run very well at this current.