DiY LEDs - How to Power Them

Ahh thanks, my bad! I knew that I was twisting something...but it was the 750 so the H2.
It was my first own bike and I did not know it any better, lol!
I bought it from my favorite uncle Henri, (not without a lot of warnings).
In itself a good machine, but when accelerating out of the curve, she likes to tear her ass away because of the two stroke engine. There was a moment that was similar to a turbo effect. Below 4000rpm only little torque, but just over 5000rpm the hell breaks loose. A mistake in this moment can have fatal consequences, hence her nickname "Widowmaker".
She layed me down three times in the first year! Two times I was lucky, the third time not, lol! Total loss and some broken bones ..
Suzuki's 550cc had also a nice two stroke engine back then but was watercooled. My best buddy had one and we always cooked together. Were this nice times ...

Randomblame said:

@burnpile
Meanwell ELG-200-C1050B is a bit cheaper and good if you have a 220v connection. I would not save on drivers, cheap COB's probably work for years, cheap drivers does not!

https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Mean-Well/ELG-200-C1050B/?qs=sGAEpiMZZMs2%2bVrH5rwl1l7OMla5VDQOYdG8mG8/glXDwymxUkykCg==

@1050mA each 32/36v COB would run at ~36w(~34v).

You can also use a cheap e3ay 36v/5A CV driver to drive them in parallel but I do not know how high the voltage/resistance differences are between these cheap fullspectrum COB's.
500-1000mA is probably the sweet spot.
You can get 10packs for ~20$, an ELG-200 costs ~50-55$ shipped and if you run 2 parallel strings of 5 COB's they would run with only 525mA. Benefits? That's ~5% more efficient, you get a more even coverage, COB's needs less cooling effort @525mA(17w) and you could safely reduce the distance to the canopy without the risk of blanching them, which results in increase PAR levels.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/50W-Full-Spectrum-LED-COB-chip-DC12V-32V-Integrated-Smart-IC-Driver-220V-110V/322658790343?hash=item4b1ff66bc7:m:mimPgeDXE3mSW3xSy8YYRAg

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Thanks for the reply, I went with the hlg-185h-c1050a, dims from 74w to 195w, gets really hot at 195, hot at 74w but you can keep your hand on it without burning.

Randomblame said:

Suzuki's 550cc had also a nice two stroke engine back then but was watercooled.

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AKA the water buffalo. H2 more fun!

Randomblame said:

@burnpile
Meanwell ELG-200-C1050B is a bit cheaper and good if you have a 220v connection. I would not save on drivers, cheap COB's probably work for years, cheap drivers does not!

https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Mean-Well/ELG-200-C1050B/?qs=sGAEpiMZZMs2%2bVrH5rwl1l7OMla5VDQOYdG8mG8/glXDwymxUkykCg==

@1050mA each 32/36v COB would run at ~36w(~34v).

You can also use a cheap e3ay 36v/5A CV driver to drive them in parallel but I do not know how high the voltage/resistance differences are between these cheap fullspectrum COB's.
500-1000mA is probably the sweet spot.
You can get 10packs for ~20$, an ELG-200 costs ~50-55$ shipped and if you run 2 parallel strings of 5 COB's they would run with only 525mA. Benefits? That's ~5% more efficient, you get a more even coverage, COB's needs less cooling effort @525mA(17w) and you could safely reduce the distance to the canopy without the risk of blanching them, which results in increase PAR levels.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/50W-Full-Spectrum-LED-COB-chip-DC12V-32V-Integrated-Smart-IC-Driver-220V-110V/322658790343?hash=item4b1ff66bc7:m:mimPgeDXE3mSW3xSy8YYRAg

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hey, did you use those cobs? how are they? worth grabbing a few for a small veg tent, or do you think they're capable of flowering decently? "full spectrum 380nm-840nm" sounds promising, this covers some uv and ir, no?

nonamedman420 said:

hey, did you use those cobs? how are they? worth grabbing a few for a small veg tent, or do you think they're capable of flowering decently? "full spectrum 380nm-840nm" sounds promising, this covers some uv and ir, no?

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No, I've a few but don' use them. But they look like a 2nd. generation with twice the amount of diodes. These 50w COB's are 10s10p, gen1 was only 10s5p. So at least they are better like the old ones.
Yeah, the full-spectrum term is used for all products using the same 1590°k phosphors. There is no UV but lots of far red. One can mix them with efficient 4 or 5k white COB's to avoid unnatural stem elongation but they grow weed also without additional white. You need probably 350-400w to get the same yield you would see under 300w of F-strips/good COB's, but they work. Just not as efficient as latest brand COB's..

Randomblame said:

No, I've a few but don' use them. But they look like a 2nd. generation with twice the amount of diodes. These 50w COB's are 10s10p, gen1 was only 10s5p. So at least they are better like the old ones.
Yeah, the full-spectrum term is used for all products using the same 1590°k phosphors. There is no UV but lots of far red. One can mix them with efficient 4 or 5k white COB's to avoid unnatural stem elongation but they grow weed also without additional white. You need probably 350-400w to get the same yield you would see under 300w of F-strips/good COB's, but they work. Just not as efficient as latest brand COB's..

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I appreciate the quick response.

anyone know who has the best deal on hlg drivers? looking for a 600

These SPD is just a fake. Take a closer look in the blue range, as you can see the blue peak is at ~390nm. These means they must use near UV diodes which is simply not true. These COBcs are made from cheap EPILED royalblue diodes, with UV diodes it would cost a lot more. It's a phosphor mix with less green but lots of deep red/650nm particles which leads to spectra like this.

bdigi said:

anyone know who has the best deal on hlg drivers? looking for a 600

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Try mousser.com but two 320 are probably cheaper and more powerful in the same time. Would be 700-720w vs. 650-660w and around 20-30$ less.

As far as efficacy? Why wouldnt water cooling them be more efficient? Im still a bit new.

Higher upfront costs, additional energy consumption, ...
To get that back from 1-2% better effiency it needs some time.
But water cooling is a good thing where it's needed, for example in usually hot areas.

When you reuse the heat it's another thing.
You have eg. a cold floor, which leads to low root temperatures, you could install a kind of underfloor heating and use the waste heat of the LED's to keep the pots warm from below. 300w of heat is also enough to keep another small room nice and warm or even as a frost guard in a winter garden or in coldframes.
Heat itself can be used very well elsewhere.

Randomblame said:

Higher upfront costs, additional energy consumption, ...
To get that back from 1-2% better effiency it needs some time.
But water cooling is a good thing where it's needed, for example in usually hot areas.

When you reuse the heat it's another thing.
You have eg. a cold floor, which leads to low root temperatures, you could install a kind of underfloor heating and use the waste heat of the LED's to keep the pots warm from below. 300w of heat is also enough to keep another small room nice and warm or even as a frost guard in a winter garden or in coldframes.
Heat itself can be used very well elsewhere.

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Like radiant heat underneath my ebb buckets? I am totally all good on trying to figure that out. Aside from that they gotta stay cool under my circumstances. I don't live in a hot climate either. Water sits around 66.6F. Higher upfront cost is always a scare but it didnt stop me from water cooling my computer for a horridly lovely price tag of course.

Randomblame said:

Higher upfront costs, additional energy consumption, ...

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you constantly tell bullshit to the people

the heatsink of my watercooled fixture beats anything in upfront cost, that use aircooled heatsinks.
My additional energy consumption is a 3w aquarium pump and is able to manage up to 2000W
lamp fixture(US$ 40,- without chips+driver), if i want.
- 3w - that`s what others spent for a 100W heatsink + integr. 3w fan.

The light efficiency gain of my watercooled chips depend on Tj.
My Tj is ~20°C in the morning and ~40°C in the evening.
Compared to other aircooled leds - this can be an efficiency gain of 10-20% (not only 1-2%)


You also agree, that it is worth to reuse the heat of any device, to have savings in oil or gas water heaters.

My Light-Heat-Cogeneration is ~85% energy efficient.
Aircooled led light produce the same amount of heat, but you are not able to store and take hot showers with that heat or bring it back to the grow room during the night.
So aircooled leds only reach a max. of 30% energy efficiency.

Not everyone builds like you everything by yourself! Most peeps use PC WC equipment like radiators + fans and such things, so higher upfront costs are not bullshit, dude!
It depends on having the right tools and abilities...
Not everyone can or wants to invest in a hot water treatment. Some indeed try only to cool their LED's in a tight space as efficiently as possible.
I pay 15 € / month for hot water, but my bathroom is at the other end of the apartment. If you do not own a home, it is difficult to achieve. And I can not use existing lines for that reason. I've already thought of hanging an extra 60x 90x 10cm radiator on the wall as a kind of auxiliary heater.
That would at least help reduce my heating costs. But in summer, however, it would be bad if my already 26°C warm apartment is heated in addition by 3-400w LED, so I put the plans on ice.

Not all are in the ideal position like you and can realize something like that.

hey guys, kinda noob here. and id love to toss a question in here.
can you run multiple drivers in parallel? will the main ac power cord only pull 120v to each driver and output the set and desired voltage and current?
i have 6 citi clu058 1825 running on three meanwell 48v 120h cc+cv @ 1.4a
and i recently had gotten two hlg 304 and a meanwell 320H C2800
i was wanting to consolidate the six cobs over two 120w drivers for better efficiency and have three cobs on each side of the 2x hlg 304, to make one panel. each string with its own driver
so again is there a voltage multiplier on the ac side that i will surpass? or does it deliver a sole 120v across the line? the power cable is a 15a 3x12g.
i had seen my old marshydro leds were wired in parallel with two drivers running each side of the board, and wanted to make sure i could do the same thing

You can easily hang several drivers to a power outlet, you just should not pull over 40A from one the line. Look at your fuse box, how much ampere the fuse can handle. That's your maximum! Better 20% less!
If you do not use wall plugs, remember to hang the drivers in parallel to the line, not in series.
Sounds stupid, but I've seen horses puke already .... in front of a drugstore...

so i had overthought my situation and had forgotten the basic fundamentals of ac electricity, but thank you for answering my next question before i asked it

Randomblame said:

You can easily hang several drivers to a power outlet, you just should not pull over 40A from one the line. Look at your fuse box, how much ampere the fuse can handle. That's your maximum! Better 20% less!
If you do not use wall plugs, remember to hang the drivers in parallel to the line, not in series.
Sounds stupid, but I've seen horses puke already .... in front of a drugstore...

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I know your not in the US, so you need to ask more questions of this poster before replying.
He stated 120v, no way your going to pull 40A from a 120V circuit.
Not trying to call you out here but please watch your recommendations when referring to electrical power. Please

Randomblame said:

You can easily hang several drivers to a power outlet, you just should not pull over 40A from one the line. Look at your fuse box, how much ampere the fuse can handle. That's your maximum! Better 20% less!
If you do not use wall plugs, remember to hang the drivers in parallel to the line, not in series.
Sounds stupid, but I've seen horses puke already .... in front of a drugstore...

Click to expand...

40amps? I wouldnt suggest pulling over 20 amps from one plug since thats kind of standard all over.