# LED Panel to replace T8 shop light?



## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Hey guys,

I stumbled across these tonight while browsing ebay. I was wondering what your thoughts are on using a few of these to replace my current DIY T8 shop light setup. I'm thinking of using 3 to 4 of them on a 125G tank. My only real fear is that they won't put out enough light, but at 225 LED's per panel, and at 12 inches square, I'm thinking this could be feasible. They are said to put out a 2' x 2' square when using them as just grow lights.

http://cgi.ebay.com/225-DAZZLE-BRIGHT-W ... 45ef1bcae2

So, comments, thoughts, criticisms, flames?

Regards,

Scott


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## iCichlid (Sep 21, 2009)

I added 8 LED's to my tank tonight, 2 white and 6 blue (4 modules). I only ordered 3, but Doc Fosters Smith like me 

Anyway, it's my nighttime lighting and WOW!!! A M A Z I N G. The shimmer effect just makes me smile from ear to ear!!

I don't know if I'd buy the one he's selling, since it's from another country, but there are others on eBay.

Good luck!


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Agreed, I'm using some simple white under counter strip lights for morning/evening supplemental lighting when the main lights are off. The results are what is driving me to look into using it all the time. I've found a supplier who has a 4 pack of these panels for around $130 shipped. So tempting to order them up.......I'm waiting to hopefully get some more feedback before I pull the trigger.

Scott


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## larry.beck (Jul 31, 2009)

I actually use LEDs as the primary lighting on one of my 55g tanks and really love the effects it creates. I've got white sand in the tank so I don't really need a ton of light, and these create just the look I was after. Plenty bright to enjoy the fish without being bright in the tank.

I put in some blue's for moonlights as well. 8)


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

The one thing that really caught my attention, looking at those lights, was the size. At a foot,square, even though thin..man that would be a wide housing. 
I have tried a number of LED systems, but have not found a really good replacement for regular lighting. 
Right now, I have some "under cabinet" lights I found at HD. It is a 6 light, Xenon bulb, puck style lighting package. Cost was $35+tax. I chose these because they are fully "dimnable". 
I use a standard dimmer switch and can get the effect I want. 
Big +1 on how the "shimmer" adds to the look of the tank. 
Now the down side..I had to raise my canopy, (made out of 1X4 lumber Just large enough to mount the lights). These guys will put out a bit of heat when full on.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

I guess I don't see the width as much of a issue, because if I buy a nice set of lights, Power Compacts will run 7" wide and a Metal Halide setup will run me 15" wide, not to mention hundreds more. I'm planning on putting them in a full hood anyway, and a 125G tank is 18" wide. I'm still worried whether or not the tank will be bright enough compared to my singe 4ft T8 shoplight.

Hmmmmmm....

Scott


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

> I'm still worried whether or not the tank will be bright enough compared to my singe 4ft T8 shoplight.


That was my experience. They looked great in the garage, but not enough light when on the tank. :x 
Not pushing any style of lighting, but you have looked at what is available locally??? 
When I looked for alternative lighting and settled on mine..I was real close to trying some of the dimmable CFLs` that are out now. Not that expensive, but I have not tried any..so not sure how they would look on a tank.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

I have looked locally, I didn't find anything I wanted to use, not to mention it was extremely expensive. I'm curious, what kind of LED setup did you play with? I may just have to break down a DIY a setup like the salt guys are doing.

Thanks,

Scott


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## iCichlid (Sep 21, 2009)

Here is what 8 little LED's did to my tank at night!! love it! i want more!! I have 6 blue and 2 white. I need more white!


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

> what kind of LED setup did you play with?


They were 120cm long, bright white LED, water-proof, srtip lights, 12vdc.
I tried 2 of them, from ebay..direct from china.
They made great nightime lighting, but just got washed away during the day. Before that I gave those LED rope lights a shot..way to dim, but look cool out by the pool.

Good luck in your search


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## larry.beck (Jul 31, 2009)

I put one strip of these in the canopy of my 55G for my primary lighting.

http://www.superbrightleds.com/specs/SE-WFLS.htm

I'm going to add one more strip for when I want it bright, but I'm in no rush because I actually prefer the lighting level that this provides.

I also added 4 of these for moonlighting.

http://www.superbrightleds.com/specs/bolt_specs.htm

There's nothing quite like the shimmer that the LEDs provide in my opinion.


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## zcfish (Jan 31, 2009)

I have posted my setup.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=188249&highlight=

After about three months most of the lights are DEAD. Maybe it's this brand (Lights of America). The effect was not bad but one 40w flourescant outperformance them.


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

zcfish said:


> I have posted my setup.
> 
> http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=188249&highlight=
> 
> After about three months most of the lights are DEAD. Maybe it's this brand (Lights of America). The effect was not bad but one 40w flourescant outperformance them.


Thanks for the update..your experiences with LEDs` seems to stack right up with everyone elses.. 
Close, but no cigar.. 
Maybe next year they will have some reasonably priced LED strips we can all change over to.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

ok...I've pretty much scratched that idea. I'm leaning towards DIY'ing a setup now...basically what the saltwater guys are doing, but to a lesser extent as I don't need the intensity that corals and clams need.

http://www.luxeonstar.com/luxeon-rebel-stars-c-29.php

From what I've been seeing, most of the premade lights in stores are using 1 watt or lesser LED's, but these are rated at 5 watts. I"ll use them with lenses to help get the light where it's needed, I'm hoping for a good result.

Scott


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Ok...

So I scratched the idea of low power E-Bay setups and went straight for some of the better LED's on the market. I ordered them from Rapid LED tonight as they were having a sale. They are Q4 led's, but for what I'm using them for, I didn't see the need to spend the extra money for Q5's. Now if this were for a saltwater setup maybe, but for fresh, the extra intensity isn't needed.

They are 3 watt LED's, I ordered 12 of them which will about max out the power source. If they don't put out enough power, I will order up another set of 12 later. I'm guessing that worst cae I will be about the same light output as I have now. I will also test with and without optics. to see how much of a difference it makes.

http://www.rapidled.com

Scott


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

Looking forward to how they work for you.. opcorn: 
Good luck


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

im running my 150g tank on a hundred plus leds..12 volt.. light is fantastic for malawis .. lots of of caustic shadows ... not too soon a lot of tanks will be lit this way ...not sure if plants can thrive on 12volt leds tho?


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Hmmm... 12 volt LED's, not something commonly found around here. Do you have any specs on them or a link to where you bought them from. I would like to compare them to what I'll be using.

I know on saltwater setups, their density must be much much higher to support corals and clams, but the upfront cost is offset by the savings in electricity and bulb replacement. So I would say yes you can grow plants if a photosynthetic clam will thrive on them.

Scott


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

http://www.youtube.com/user/zazz63#p/a/u/0/miABO6U3YOk

thats my tank a while ago... i have added more since.

http://www.youtube.com/user/zazz63#p/a/u/1/-1OEETB0syk less light but i show the led units in that one.

the lights are acctually for the car market...benefits are no heat!! and they last forever plus they are water proof... you just need a lot.

i bought them from a shop in the philippines ..if you want i could give you the number .. the whole setup cost about 2000 pesos... im not sure of the conversion but its very very cheap.


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## gfry (Oct 20, 2009)

Beautiful tank, zazz. Very, very nice.

I prefer the brighter lighting in the first vid, shows off the impressive aqua-scaping a bit better. But that's just MO.

George


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

> benefits are no heat!! and they last forever plus they are water proof...


Good looking lights.
What is the voltage? Nevrmind, 12vdc, ..for a car..duh  
Are they dimmable?


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

well you simply have a plug in the wall transformer (cheap) which converts to 12v...

as for dimmable it would be hard because leds have a severe step down although i am sure there are controllers that can deal with that but i bet its not cheap.

what i would suggest is having say 3 seperate lighting rigs so you can have nightlight... daily dim ... and the full show off for when friends come round... ie all on at once.


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## carboncopy (Sep 22, 2009)

zazz said:


> http://www.youtube.com/user/zazz63#p/a/u/0/miABO6U3YOk
> 
> thats my tank a while ago... i have added more since.
> 
> ...


That is a great looking tank. I love the simple background. Very elegant looking.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

My LED's arrived today. Fast shipping and great service from Rapid LED. I'm impressed with first visual impressions. Good quality, heavy metal backing for heat transfer, the lenses fit nice and snug. I'm happy with my purchase so far.

I will post pictures later tonight for your viewing pleasure.

Scott


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Evening everyone,

Just a quick pic of the LED and lens as promised.










Scott


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

any chance of a pic of how they look in tank.... i would expect them to look pretty dramatic ..how many did you get ? how do you plan to mount them?


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

I just got them yesterday...so no the project isn't finished yet. I ordered 12 of them in what they call cool white. I'm not positive that will be enough, but will find out soon. As far as mounting, these LED's have a solid metal backplate on them that acts like a heatsink. However that alone is not enough to keep it cool if your pushing it near it's 1 amp limit. So I plan on mounting them to aluminum stock of some sort. I'm not sure what I can find locally, but angle stock or square stock would be my first choice, flat stock being last of course at it will be hard to mount over a 6 foot span without having it sag.

Ideally I would order heatsink stock, but it is crazy expensive to get it in the legnth I want, seen here.
http://www.heatsinkusa.com/

As far as the actual mounting goes, you use screws to hold them onto the metal.

Scott


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

cool...i will keep an eye open for any pics ... they acctually have these for sale as well ..so it might compliment my setup...maybe say three for highlights.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Here is a quick sketch of how I plan to layout the LED's. They are 5" apart, horizontally and vertically. The box they are drawn in is the footprint of a basic 125G tank. 72" x 18" I need to break out my geometry skills to figure out the lights patterns so I can see the coverage before I begin construction. My 5 hour training course this afternoon sounds like a good time to do that!!!!










Scott


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

just in case your not thinking this already ..try and lay the lights loose on some glass plates before you screw them hard to metal plates just to get an idea of what its going to look like.

obviously taking the office lighting layout approach makes total sense but sometimes clumping fittings can give drama to a setup ..a bit like stage lighting ..it all comes down to a matter of taste but its best to keep your options open.

i have started to gather some of my lights into two groups that blast down on a couple of rock formations... the effect of the fish swimming out of the shade into beams of "sunlight" is very pleasing.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Zazz,

You are right, I am playing it a bit safe with my layout, going more for good coverage overall instead of a "spot lighting" effect. Here is a quick photo update.

LED








LED with Lense








LED layout








and LED layout again









Everything is sitting in place as I bought the wrong size of screws tonight, I need to get something with a smaller head on it.

More updates will follow as work progresses.

Scott


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

Looking good :thumb: 
Will be watching for your updates.
Thanks for the pics.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Well....the project is done. I'm estimating that the LED's are only running about 50% of their capacity. I don't have a way to measure Mah usage, but they are under volt and I've only got the current turned up about 1/4 of the way. They run warm, but not hot by any means. I'll let you guys be the judge on appearance.

Here is a single 4 foot dual bulb shop light.









Here is the LED's without lenses









Here is the LED's with lenses.









I'm sure by raising them or using a wider angle lens would reduce the spotlighting effect, but I got a :thumb: from my wife which usually doesn't happen with my DIY projects so I'm leaving it setup as is for a while.

So.....I want to hear it from you guys, do you like or dislike?

Scott


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## iCichlid (Sep 21, 2009)

I like the spot light look! Like rays of sun. Post video! I wanna see how it shimmers! :thumb:


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Hmmm......I'm not sure I have a good way to do that. Our video camera hasn't been used in years, and I'm not even sure I have the proprietary software required to get the vids off it. It does shimmer like crazy though, you'll just have to believe me on that.

Scott


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

Ohhh Yea, I like it..
The shimmer is awesome, eh?
I just put a set of under cabinet lights on my tank, with what looks to me, the same effect you have.
Heat is probably more an issue with mine, 6, 20watt, 120v, Xenon bulbs.
I raised my lights an additional inch for needed air space, as well as a more dispersed light look.
I don`t know about you, but I seem to spend allot more time watching the tank now.
Very nice look.
Thanks for sharing.


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

i like that spotlight effect on the third shot ..reminds me of genesis 1978 ..i think i am going to punt for 3 of those at some stage to compliment what i have already.


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## scrubjay (Oct 25, 2009)

looks much better :thumb:


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

ok.....I just took another picture....this time without the glass tops. It looks much better IMO. I also raised the lights by another 4 inches.

Original with shop light









LED with glass tops - with lenses









New LED lights without glass tops - with lenses









Scott


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## munkyspooker (Nov 19, 2009)

:thumb:

The new setup looks hot. It's inspiring me to do something more with my 20 long.

-Tim


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## Maxima308 (Jun 6, 2009)

Excellent work Neogenesis! Looks 100% better than the "shop lights"

How are you powering the LED's? You said you ordered from rapidLED did you use one of their Mean Well LPC-35-700W drivers?


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Maxima308 said:


> Excellent work Neogenesis! Looks 100% better than the "shop lights"
> 
> How are you powering the LED's? You said you ordered from rapidLED did you use one of their Mean Well LPC-35-700W drivers?


I'm sorry, I thought I mentioned that a little earlier in the thread, looks like I didn't. I chose to use the Mean Well ELN-60-48P dimmable driver, as I wanted to be able to control the brightness, and to be honest it's working very well. It was easy to wire, the only thing I don't like is that the pots to adjust voltage and current are inside the unit, so you have to pop the top off it to adjust them. Other than that I can't complain.

Scott


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

What were you going to use for shrouding? Some 1X would keep the eye from being drawn to the lights.
Any heat issues?
To bad about the dimmer. Can you mod the cover, so you could change settings without the hassle?
After having a dimmable light system, I think you would agree, you will never go back.
Looking good, man..nice work.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

I plan on building a full hood for it after Christmas. I'll make what I have now a little more stable, that way the kids can't knock it off and do some real damage. If I had a actual tank controller, I could dim them with that, but since I don't I just use a nice digital timer to turn them on and off.

Hoping to order another set of 12 here soon. I plan on adding in some blues to see how they make the tank look, and possible use them as moonlight if I run them by themselves.

Scott


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## Maxima308 (Jun 6, 2009)

Reading this is really giving me the itch to start my own build  Keep us updated if/when you add the blues!

The Mean Well dimmable drivers are more of a set it and forget type thing, they would probably work really well for moonlights. The Cree LED can be dimmed down to 350ma so I wonder just how bright that would be? Possible too bright for moonlights?

I think when I start my project I'll be using 3023-D-E-1000PmA Wired BuckPuck to regulate the current. This model also allow for an external dimmer so adjusting the "brightness" would be easier. A simple potentiometer would allow you to regulate from 350ma(min) to 1000ma(max) The BuckPuck also allows use of a variety of power supplies....

You also said the heat hasn't been an issue but it may be once they are enclosed. Does the alum. stock dissipate the heat well? The reefer builds are all using heatsink but they are also running alot more LEDs.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

To be honest, there is no heat to dissipate. The little bit that is generated is sucked right out by the C Channel, it's cool to the touch.

The one thing I don't like about the BuckPuck, at least when I last looked at them was the lower number of LED's that you can run per driver.

Scott


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## Maxima308 (Jun 6, 2009)

Very true they max out at 6 were the MeanWell can power 13.

Also after a little research you can build a PWM circut to dim your current driver (ELN-60-48P). The internal adjustment is to set your max voltage not a dim adjustment.

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.p ... 692&st=500

Pg26 post# 509

This entire thread discusses the "MeanWell" driver(s) in great detail. Thought you could put that PWM circuit to some good use with your current setup. Also has changed my mind about dimming the BuckPuck with external POTs would not give as precise controls.

Thanks for the Inspiration! Now i have something to keep me busy over the winter months...


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

> Pg26 post# 509


Thank you for the post.
So many google pages, nice to have a link that covers what I am actually looking for.
The evilc66 links are a treasure for anyone looking into LED lighting.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Maxima308 said:


> Very true they max out at 6 were the MeanWell can power 13.
> 
> Also after a little research you can build a PWM circut to dim your current driver (ELN-60-48P). The internal adjustment is to set your max voltage not a dim adjustment.
> 
> ...


Excellent post....thanks again for all that info!!!!

Scott


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## Guest (Jul 2, 2010)

Another very useful and increasingly popular option in LED lighting are the 
*disc led * also called *under cabinet led lighting *. 
These product are extremely simple to install and use and they are generating enormous savings in homes around the world,
since the energy expenditure in mood lighting and decoration is drastically cut.


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## Neogenesis (Jan 4, 2008)

Thought I would update this thread,

I've have since left the freshwater cichlid world to give saltwater a try. I love my LED's so much I made a big investment and build a LED rig for my salt tank. I am sure glad I did that. Little to no heat, no bulb changes, no spectrum shifts, just rock solid performance day after day for around 6 months now. If anyone is looking to do this, you definitely won't regret it.

Any questions, fire away, I'll do what I can to help.

Scott


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