Reef Discussion

[MagicJ]

MagicJ - I could only get the cheap packets at Bunnings on Saturday. They didn't have the right thread in the stainless bolt's. It's just a matter of taking them out one at a time to replace with stainless bolts before the fixture's go above the tank. ;)

Yup, thats where I was heading with the question;) You could probably just put a dab of varnish or something similar to protect the bolt heads.

 

[DavidS]

Looking forward to seeing this one progress Ken. Will need to catch up some time after Thursday so I can sort you out for your last delivery.

 

[Synodontis]

That's cool David, no need to worry. I'm sure we will catch up again. Will send you the details of the rock I found in Ballarat to!

MagicJ - I dont usually like to re-do things, but for the sake of 32 bolt's that are easy to get at, I reckon I will replace them with stainless.

 

[rockerpeller]

I was in Jaycar on the weekend picking up bits and pieces for a DIY Auto top-up. I'm sure I saw pre-tinned copper wire in the wire rack when I was looking for suitable cabling for it. Could be worth looking into Ken, then you only have to tin the LEDs. I'm over tinning wires. So much hassle... lol.

 

[MagicJ]

Sounds good Synodontis.

I would be very interested in finding out a bit more about the controller and drivers, and how he has recommended wiring the LED's.

PM sent.

Just to fill in some details on the controller that S was looking at...

The system probably would have worked but the design was not one regularly used for our purposes. It included high amp power supplies with Series strings of LED's wired in Parallel. The following is an example of this type of wiring

Whilst this allows for a larger number of LED's to be powered by each power supply it has some inherent problems which are not easily overcome i.e.

• Because the 2 strings on each power supply are ‘sharing’ the current, if one of the strings goes ‘open circuit’ i.e. one of the LED’s blows, then the remaining string will take up the slack with the potential (read almost certain) to exceed the current ratings of this other string and thus blow all the LED’s operating off that power supply. I have read stories where large numbers of LED’s been destroyed very quickly because of this. Now, the damage can be limited but installing a fast blow fuse on each LED string so that if the current increases to dangerous levels then the fuse blows rather than the LED’s.

• The second major problem is that LED’s are not created equal - even LED’s from the same spec and manufacturing lot may vary in Forward Voltage (Vf) at a given drive current. So when you stick a bunch of LED's together into a series string, then create several such strings and run them in parallel to each other, you have the potential for "imbalances" between the strings due to the different total Vfs for each string. Even small differences, i.e. a tenth of a volt, can make significant differences in the output of the LED's.

Whilst the nice boxes were a potential positive my view was that they were not worth $500;)

Ken has identified a few more options which I am currently having a look at.

Hope this satisfies the curious minds.

 

[Synodontis]

Thanks MagicJ

Shane suggested the Typhon controller, looks good & would do what I need. Because of so many MW driver's in this setup, I wasnt sure if I could hook 4 MW's to each channel. I sent them an E-mail earlier tonight. Just got this back.......

Hi Ken,
Sounds like you have quite the setup there! We have never tested the Typhon LED controller with 4 MeanWell LED drivers per channel. We know of a few customers who have used it with 3 LED drivers per channel, but not 4 and we have not had the chance to test it out with 4 per channel.
Sincerely,

John
BoostLED.com
I know they are not the dearest thing's around, but do I get one in the hope that it work's? Anyone interested in it if it wont work with four driver's?

 

[DavidS]

BoostLED.com
I know they are not the dearest thing's around, but do I get one in the hope that it work's? Anyone interested in it if it wont work with four driver's?

Synodontis - I was planning on ordering one this Thursday (so I probably don't want yours if it doesn't work, but I reckon you'll sell it easily). Any interest in combining our order and splitting the shipping? It's US$45 shipping for one or two, so we could save ourselves twenty odd bucks each.

 

[Synodontis]

DavidS - Great idea mate. Just message me the damage & I will drop it off for you. Just silly to get them sent separately to the same town lol. :)

 

[MagicJ]

Synodontis - I am pretty sure it would work with 4 drivers per channel. The only limitation is the current drawn by the dimming circuit on the Meanwell drivers and whether this would exceed the limits on the Mega chip. I think I know were I can find the required data - I will have a look later today.

 

[DavidS]

DavidS - Great idea mate. Just message me the damage & I will drop it off for you. Just silly to get them sent separately to the same town lol. :)

Ok cool - so you want me to order and let you know when it gets here, or the otherway around? I'm easy.

 

[Synodontis]

I'm easy too, just not cheap ;)

Yeah just order them if you can, I will drop in sometime this week and attend to the bill lol :)

 

[DavidS]

I'm easy too, just not cheap ;)

Yeah just order them if you can, I will drop in sometime this week and attend to the bill lol :)

No worries. I'll do the order Thursday morning. :) You can then come check out my new toy :D

 

['vspec']

Sweet. Thanks to for the background info. We crave sustenance!!!

 

[MTG]

:poidh

 

[Synodontis]

Hey DavidS - Went into Jaycar yesterday. Damn! talk about toy shop! just lucky Jen was with me lol, & had my wallet in her bag. Reckon I have the housing sorted for the Typhon controller & those silly little push button thingy's on the controller. I think I can make something up so the screen and buttons will sit flush on the housing. Wont be a huge expense, under $50 depending on the housing, waterproof, metal or plastic (grey or white)

 

[MagicJ]

Synodontis - I am pretty sure it would work with 4 drivers per channel. The only limitation is the current drawn by the dimming circuit on the Meanwell drivers and whether this would exceed the limits on the Mega chip. I think I know were I can find the required data - I will have a look later today.

Following some further research, my original comments were slightly wrong. The digital output pins on the ATMega chips are limited to around 50mA and only output at 5V - the circuit uses this output to switch a transistor with an input on the collector of 10V. The limits on the number of attached Meanwells is actually governed by the transistor used. Now, it is basically impossible to find out the actual current draw of the Meanwell dimming circuit - to clarify the position I posted the question on the original ReefCentral thread dealing with the Typhoon - this is the response from dwzm (the original developer of the Typhoon):

We don't really have a solid answer because we don't know the current draw that a Meanwell needs. (If you ask Meanwell, they will often blatantly misquote a spec that doesn't actually apply here).

In reality though, it should be "way more than you need." The limitation is the current capacity of the transistor that switches the 10v signal. It's limited to 100mA. Typical drivers pull only a few mA each, so in theory that gives you room for several dozen per channel. If you DID need more than that, you could simply swap in a different transistor with a higher current limit.

Posted by dwzm on Reefcentral

So, assuming that Bootsled have used similar specifications for the components in their build you should be fine.

 

[DavidS]

Hey DavidS - Went into Jaycar yesterday. Damn! talk about toy shop! just lucky Jen was with me lol, & had my wallet in her bag. Reckon I have the housing sorted for the Typhon controller & those silly little push button thingy's on the controller. I think I can make something up so the screen and buttons will sit flush on the housing. Wont be a huge expense, under $50 depending on the housing, waterproof, metal or plastic (grey or white)

Awesome - can't wait to see what you come up with. Will be curious to know the part numbers, as I'm planning on doing a fairly large order to Jaycar soon. I had one box in mind, with a clear lid, and just drill holes to put something to poke through to the buttons. If you can give me some part numbers so I can have a look, I'll adjust my order with them and try something similar :)
I have to online order as I doubt that the local Jaycar will carry enough of some particular items I need.

 

[Synodontis]

DavidS - Part number's? wots that? :)

I just walked around and put this with that, then found something better, then went back and figured if I get this and pull this bit off and match it with this bit, lol :D I was in play time mode. Then Jen said time to go :( worse the a kid being told its time to leave the park. Will try and get back with pen and paper. You should come down and play in the shop, better then the one up that way.

MagicJ - Thanks for the info. I was almost going to order two just in case, figured I could set them up the same and it would give me two complete 5ft LED lights. :)

 

[DavidS]

DavidS - Part number's? wots that? :)

I just walked around and put this with that, then found something better, then went back and figured if I get this and pull this bit off and match it with this bit, lol :D I was in play time mode. Then Jen said time to go :( worse the a kid being told its time to leave the park. Will try and get back with pen and paper. You should come down and play in the shop, better then the one up that way.

Hahaha.. possibly the numbers will be on your receipt. I haven't been to Jaycar here, but I've heard it's a bit on the small side. I always feel rushed in the shops, at least online I can sit there and write up my list, and keep modifying it, as I have been for the past 3 weeks :D
Hey - on a side note... those cichlids that I thought were all male.. well.. I have a whole heap of babies all of a sudden :eek

 

[Synodontis]

Allo all,
With all the job's I've had on the few week's, I still found time to have a play with this project. Assembly hasn't fully began but it's getting there.

Getting setup, what's on TV to watch, crap!

Found a better channel!

I didn't know if I needed to flux the star's, but this handy dandy little "texta" looked like it would do the job so much quicker & cleaner the using a liquid flux, so why not. :)

I used a eraser to clean the heat sink followed by a wipe down with alcohol wipes to clean any residue off.Made more of a difference then I thought it would. Hope it helps with adhesion & heat transfer to the sink.

Couldnt see the point in cleaning the whole heat sink so I have only done where the star's will be mounted.

Had to climb a ladder to get this shot. Being 5ft long makes it hard to get a full length pic.

That's about where I'm up to with this. DavidS has ordered the Typhon controller, I still have to order the driver's. Done by Christmas would be nice but......I dont think so Tim.

:D 3 update's in two day's! I'm on a roll now.

TaTa for now,

K&J