DIY cob kit

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Chip_pz

Active Member
Im wanting to upgrade my light situation. How do I go about figuring how many volts puts out how many watts. Is there a formula to figure out which driver will power X amount of cobs? I’m trying to get rid of this damned blurple and looking to add 400w of cobs
 
diyled

diyled

Well-Known Member
Amps X Volts = Watts.

400w id go 2x HLG-185H drivers. Which current and cobs you choose is decided by you budget.
 
LedSinsemilla

LedSinsemilla

New Member
The ledgardener web site has a cob led driver selection tool, rollitup wont let me post links yet.

Also check out growmau5 and greeengenes youtube vids for cob info overload.

I got mine from rapidled website, decent prices and free shipping for orders over $250
 
Humple

Humple

Well-Known Member
Chip_pz said:
Im wanting to upgrade my light situation. How do I go about figuring how many volts puts out how many watts. Is there a formula to figure out which driver will power X amount of cobs? I’m trying to get rid of this damned blurple and looking to add 400w of cobs
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What size is your grow space? You'd be adding a lot of light with 400w in COBs. Replacement of blurples with COBs isn't a 1:1 equation.
 
LedSinsemilla

LedSinsemilla

New Member
Cletus clem said:
This is a great kit for the money:

I run 1 in a 2.5x2.5, would do 3 in a 4x4. Use the coupon code gowmau5 and get 5% off. I ordered 2, $418 to my door. Horticulture lighting group also has some great diy kits using quantum boards. A bit more money also a better light.
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There is a link at the top of rapidled website with instructions to get a 10% off code on your first order.
 
Cletus clem

Cletus clem

Well-Known Member
LedSinsemilla said:
There is a link at the top of rapidled website with instructions to get a 10% off code on your first order.
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Forgot about the 10% off first order code. Skimmed through the thread. Figured id link that kit as its easy to mss on the site only being found in the 2x2 section.
 
Cletus clem

Cletus clem

Well-Known Member
Chip_pz said:
I’m in a 2x4 tent. I figured 400w would be fine as long as the lights were dimmable. Better to have the power there instead of needing more later right? I’m gonna check out the led gardener site and see what goes with what.
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400 watts of white led light is alot for that area. If your enviroment was spot on and you were dialed in you could make use of it. 35-40w sq/ft is a good generalization of how much light you need. An hlg-320h-****b would be a great driver if properly matched with cobs or quantum boards. Check out horticulture lighting group, like right now. Some killer deals on scratch and dent kits! Or, their 320xl kit would be perfect for your setup.
 
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Chip_pz

Active Member
What’s some opinions between the difference in 3000k and 3500k for full cycle? Also I plan on running some auto strains after my blueberry cheesecake is finished. Idk if hat makes a difference in color.
 
HydroRed

HydroRed

Well-Known Member
On paper the 3500K are about as middle of the road as you can get for veg and flower. 400W with a potentiometer is perfect for that size space. Run it dimmed and if/when you open up space you'll have the wattage available to you already and wont need to buy again or upgrade anything. You can currently build your own light ready to grow for less than $1 per watt if you are handy?
 
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Chip_pz

Active Member
I’ve always been able to pick up on things quick and have been mechanically inclined. The only part about this is the conversions of amps to watts and how many lights to hook to one driver. I’m just not up to speed with the terminology of things. Hooking up wires and building mounts is the easy part. I just don’t want a fire waiting to happen in my tent
 
V

Viceman666

Well-Known Member
Chip_pz said:
I’ve always been able to pick up on things quick and have been mechanically inclined. The only part about this is the conversions of amps to watts and how many lights to hook to one driver. I’m just not up to speed with the terminology of things. Hooking up wires and building mounts is the easy part. I just don’t want a fire waiting to happen in my tent
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Watt = Volts x Current (amp) simple as that so 115V at 2.1A = 241.5Watts..

Now find what you want first (COB, Quantum, strips) then how much power you want for your space and your budget and post here and you will get a ton of help on selecting drivers. There is a few good website as well ledgardener is a good reference for both COB and strips build for quantum well there js just isnt much to say.. i wouldnt be too worried about a possible fire but obviously be cautious when you put up your electrical together (dont put a power bar on the floor of your tent if you expect water accumulation) it sounds very basics but ive seen some setup that id be scared to leave the house.. meanwell drivers are rated IP67 (waterproof) and are very reliable..
 
Cletus clem

Cletus clem

Well-Known Member
Chip_pz said:
I’ve always been able to pick up on things quick and have been mechanically inclined. The only part about this is the conversions of amps to watts and how many lights to hook to one driver. I’m just not up to speed with the terminology of things. Hooking up wires and building mounts is the easy part. I just don’t want a fire waiting to happen in my tent
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Chips or boards have a forward voltage. Thats the voltage needed to illuminate. Drive current in milliamps determines brightness/intensity. Voltage x drive current equals wattage. So, vero 29D are 36v chips. My driver is constant current at 2100ma so, v (36) x ma(2.1)= 75.6 watts per chip. When wired in series on a constant current driver, add the forward voltages to determine how many chips per driver. The driver will have a listed capacity in its specs. With meanwell hlg drivers, the first number is approximate wattage, the second is drive current (cc models). Constant current drivers with boards/chips wired in series is the simplest way.
 
Cletus clem

Cletus clem

Well-Known Member
Cletus clem said:
Chips or boards have a forward voltage. Thats the voltage needed to illuminate. Drive current in milliamps determines brightness/intensity. Voltage x drive current equals wattage. So, vero 29D are 36v chips. My driver is constant current at 2100ma so, v (36) x ma(2.1)= 75.6 watts per chip. When wired in series on a constant current driver, add the forward voltages to determine how many chips per driver. The driver will have a listed capacity in its specs. With meanwell hlg drivers, the first number is approximate wattage, the second is drive current (cc models). Constant current drivers with boards/chips wired in series is the simplest way.
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More things to note. Forward voltage is on a curve, meaning as the drive current goes up, so does vf. But minimally. Example, those same vero 29D, at 2100ma actually have a vf of 37.6, but are called 36v chips because in the curve, they are mostly in the range of 36v. So, 3 vero 29D chips, wired in series with an hlg-240h-c2100a, as mentioned, this driver has a capacity of about 240w, the C infront of 2100a denotes that its a constant current driver, the 2100 is the drive current. 2100ma or 2.1 amps. At 2100ma the vf is 37.6 so, v (37.6) x c (2.1a)= 79w. 3 chips, wired in series to that driver = 237 watts. It being an hlg-240 shows that this setup is within this drivers capabilities, but 4 chips would not be. To run 4 in the same manner would require the hlg-320h-c2100, the wattage of the setup would go up by another 79w.
 
Serva

Serva

Well-Known Member
Imo, nothing is beating current strip builds. Cheapest, best uniformity and customization, great heat dissipation. I love my strips :bigjoint:

http://ledgardener.com/diy-led-strip-build-designs-samsung-bridgelux/#

Here you find easy guides to follow. Check out 2x4 section, several builds avaible. I would take 2‘ EB strips.

Edit: It‘s even possible to save 100$, with a little easier build.
 
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Cletus clem

Cletus clem

Well-Known Member
Another note, just in case! Series wiring is the positive of one chip to the negative of the next, creating a loop from the driver, through the chips, ending back at the driver. Parallel would be ganging all the positives together and all the negatives together. Like a manifold. The difference is, in series, add the voltages together for driver capacity, in parallel add the amperage. Delve into parallel wired setups once you have a good understanding of the components and how to pair them as theres additional pros and cons to parallel wiring.
 
U

Ulite

Member
Cletus clem said:
Another note, just in case! Series wiring is the positive of one chip to the negative of the next, creating a loop from the driver, through the chips, ending back at the driver. Parallel would be ganging all the positives together and all the negatives together. Like a manifold. The difference is, in series, add the voltages together for driver capacity, in parallel add the amperage. Delve into parallel wired setups once you have a good understanding of the components and how to pair them as theres additional pros and cons to parallel wiring.
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Do you recomend that kit, the 3 vero29SE? I'm looking to buy it for my 2x2 closet but i don't know if it does get too hot with the 2100mA driver. The other option would be the HLG 135w qb, i dont know which on is better yet.
 
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