Gone LED

[MorganAtlanta]

I have switched my scrubber from 24" T5HO over to LED. Originally, I built the scrubber SM100 style, except I made it taller (10") so that it used three T5HO lights on each side, for a total of roughly 150 Watts. For the new LED setup, I used 10 660nm reds and 4 630nm reds on each side. They are "3 Watt" LEDs, but I'm running them at around 500mA, and their forward voltage is around 2.2V, so the total wattage being used is only around 30 Watts.

[attachment=2:326cfw5t]scrubber_leds.jpg[/attachment:326cfw5t]

As part of the conversion, I cut the scrubber box down from 24" to 20", because a 24" box was awkward to fit in my stand. The heatsinks are 20" by roughly 6", and running 15 Watts each, they don't even get warm to the touch.

[attachment=1:326cfw5t]led_scrub.jpg[/attachment:326cfw5t]

When cutting the box down to 20", I also cut down the size of the screen from 22" to 19". It is 9" high, so the potential growing area is still 171 square inches, double sided, which is capable of much more filtering than I currently need.

The first week's growth is greener and more lush than I ever got with T5HO, and at only 1/5 the wattage. Very nice. I plan to move the heatsink up some so that the light is more centered on the screen, but since I'm not feeding nearly as much as I could be, for right now, limiting growth to the bottom 6" of screen is fine.

[attachment=0:326cfw5t]scrubber_oneweek.jpg[/attachment:326cfw5t]

The total cost of the conversion was something like $220, and was quite easy to do.

Heatsinks $40 each
Drivers Meanwell ELN-30D $30 each
LEDs $20 for 10, shipped to US from China
Wire, epoxy, solder, connectors, etc. $20

I'd highly recommend going LED from the start rather than T5 at this point for anyone planning to build a scrubber. The growth with 660 nm red LEDs seems proven. The initial cost of LEDs is similar to that of a T5HO setup, and there are a number of advantages, including no ongoing bulb costs, lower energy costs, no issues from adding heat, and more flexibility in the size of the screen.

Stats:
Acrylic box "SM100" style scrubber
Screen: 19" x 9", double sided
LEDs: 10 660mn + 4 630 nm on each side, run at 500 mA, roughly 3" from screen.
17 hours on - 7 off
Fed from drains at about 700 gph
125 US gallon mixed reef tank, 10 months old

[jwoyshnar]

Great looking. I just set up my led scrubber with 660's. I hope to get growth like yours


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=41.542338,-75.959401

[kerry]

Nice LED build and great results. Here is another source for heat sinks: http://icamanufacturing.homestead.com/Heatsink.html . I use them for my electronic needs and have had great service from them.

[simon wright]

looking good . love the growth you have . think i will have to go led on mine aswell , looks like all the led scrubbers are doing verywell .

[MorganAtlanta]

I've had a few more questions about details of where I got things, etc, so here is some more info:
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I ordered the 660s off eBay from LED-DNA, and the 630s off eBay from BestShop2008HK. Both are China based sellers. They ship directly to the US. It took around three weeks for the LEDs to arrive.

The drivers are Meanwell ELN30D-48. You don't need any resistors, and you can put the 14 LEDs in series, so the wiring is easy. I ordered the drivers from WattSupply.com. I used the dimmable version, but I think the non-dimmable would be fine, and the wiring would be easier. Just check the voltage range of the driver you get to make sure it matches requirements of the number of LEDs you have. I would avoid really cheap power supplies because the hassle of replacing one if it blew wouldn't be worth any money saved.

I used Arctic Alumina thermal adhesive to glue the LED stars to the heatsink. For the wires between the LEDs, I used "thermostat" wire. I think it was 20 or 22 gauge solid wire. I soldered the wires to the pads on the LED stars. This isn't as hard to do as you might expect.

For the wires between the power supplies and the heatsinks, I scavenged wires with male "type M" connectors from old cellphone/electronics/toy power supplies I had laying around, then bought some female "type M" connectors from Radio Shack. I drilled a hole in each heatsink to mount the female type M connector.

I built the scrubber box using black and clear 1/4" acrylic. The design is basically an SM100 style, but it is not as wide (20") and is two inches taller (10"). I cut the acrylic from 24"x18" sheets myself, but if I had to do it again, I'd order the pieces already cut to size from Tap Plastics. I glued the box together with Weld-On #16. The thicker #16 is much better for getting good bonds than the thin stuff.

[MorganAtlanta]

Second week's growth was even better than the first. I am soooo happy with the move to LED. If you are building a scrubber and thinking T5... DON'T DO IT!!! Go with LED!!

[vira]

Second week's growth was even better than the first. I am soooo happy with the move to LED. If you are building a scrubber and thinking T5... DON'T DO IT!!! Go with LED!!
I"ve also built a SM 100 style with 2 screens viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1236 (http://www.algaescrubber.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1236) using CFL's . The result is acceptable but, with yr reccommendation,I'd like also to go LED. I have a question though. Have you put lens onto your LED's ?. If so,what are their angles ?

[kerry]

Lens's burned my algae. I had to take mine off. I use 3W 660nm at about 1.5" to 2" away.

[Aeros]

I'm building pretty much the same thing. My plan for light diffusion is sandwiching two acrylic fluorescent light diffusers together with a drop or two of Weld-On.

[rygh]

Looks great!
Interesting that it works so well with no blue at all. A slight surprise.
But no big surprise to me that LEDs work well.

[vira]

Lens's burned my algae. I had to take mine off. I use 3W 660nm at about 1.5" to 2" away.
Thanks.

[MorganAtlanta]

No lenses. The 120 degree spread is just right. They are so close to the screen, there's no need to focus further down.

[salty joe]

[attachment=2:1bjffs3i]scrubber_leds.jpg[/attachment:1bjffs3i]

In this picture, it looks like you are using diffusion plastic, but you only mention 1/4" acrylic. Can you tell me what you have between the LEDs and the algae?

[MorganAtlanta]

It is just 1/4" acrylic. I gets a little condensation on it sometimes inside the box.

[Floyd R Turbo]

Wow, yet another great LED build. Great job!

[Eddiee]

Why have you used 630nm led as well as 660nm? Is there a reason for this and has it gave you better results then the full 660nm builds?

[MorganAtlanta]

I used four 630s and 10 660s per side. No reason other than I was experimenting and at the time, there wasn't a consensus on what wavelengths were needed. Since then, I think there have been successful builds with just 660s. I don't have a control point, so I can't say whether having the 630s helps or hurts, but in general the design works. If I had to do it again, I don't think I'd bother though since there are successful builds with just 660s. There's no point overthinking it on the wavelength. There's probably more to be gained by figuring out the right on/off photoperiod to take advantage of the strength of the LEDs without burning the algae.

[Floyd R Turbo]

I got a tidbit of advice from someone regarding wavelength and intensity again recently, and I can't recall what else I've heard, but I believe that the 660nm is used more efficiently by the chlorophyll "A" that the 630nm is used by the "B". From the Horticulture side though, the 630s grow more watt per watt because they have much higher intensity. Again I really wish I had time to run my experiment.

The addition of a blue LED in roughly a 7:1 ratio red:blue apparently helps the roots grow better, at least according to one long-time LED scrubber user on here (Rygh IIRC) so with the 660 throw on a 425/435 violet and with the 630s a 455. Actually I think either blue would work.

[Ace25]

Floyd, can we see some PAR readings to show the difference your claiming?

I have taken PAR readings from China 640's and 660's as well as Cree 630s and OSRAM 660's. The OSRAM put out more PAR than any of the other red LEDs that I have personally tested (and probably why Ecotech picked them for their reds on their Radion light), so that goes against what your saying, that 630 is more intense. PAR=Intensity. I think the intensity of an LED depends on the LED/Mfg more than the specific wavelength.

[Floyd R Turbo]

I have no data to back that up. Sorry. That's what I remember hearing from the hydro guy I was working with to build the custom fixtures. Maybe the intensity of the 660s has been improved? It wouldn't surprise me that it has changed in the last 6 months. It seems like anymore all of the grow lights you see are 660s, so that says something...

[MorganAtlanta]

The problem with having lots of colors in a build with 3W LEDs is that you won't end up mixing the colors evenly. You'll end up with spots lit primarily by one or maybe two colors. Mixing might work with 1W LEDs with a wide angle, but 3W LEDs only 2" or 3" from the screen, you get spot lights of this color and that color.

[Ace25]

I agree, for the vast majority of people, using just 660nm, or just 630nm, will be more than sufficient and not add any complications to the setup.

For people like me, I understand the blending aspect of LEDs and can build/blend a large mixture quite well, but I would be the 1%er of LEDs. LOL

[Eddiee]

Is it best to use more then just the red?

[Ace25]

I would say that is still "debatable". I have some proof other spectrums do help, but I can't say exactly how much they help and if it is worth it. There is still a lot of testing to be done in that area. For now, if you want simple and algae to grow, I see no issue with just using 660nm LEDs without anything else.

[kerry]

I ditto that, they seem to be pretty good.

[Floyd R Turbo]

If you don't mind, take a look at this thread I started and post your info

http://algaescrubber.net/forums/show...nes-and-Builds

[MorganAtlanta]

I will at some point, but the FTS you asked for isn't looking so hot right now. I was playing with different photo periods and found one that definitely didn't work... Algae popped up in the display just like that, and once it is there, it takes a while to go away since I really don't have anything to graze on it. All my emerald crabs starved to death, and my lazy tang won't touch the stuff. I'd be fine if I could just stop tinkering with things...

[Floyd R Turbo]

the link got hosed up somehow

http://algaescrubber.net/forums/showthread.php?1711-DIY-LED-Scrubber-Lighting-Guidelines-and-Builds

[Eddiee]

how far apart are the leds from each other?

[MorganAtlanta]

Roughly 3" inches, but I just doubled the number by adding 420nm, 445nm, 455nm blues in between each red, so now they are around 1.5 inches apart, an equal number of "blue" wavelength LEDs and "red" wavelength LEDs. We'll see how things grow with this setup. I was getting great growth volume with just reds, but it wouldn't fully out compete algae in the display growing under the blue wavelengths from my display lights.

[Eddiee]

did you take any pictures? and can you let me know how it goes?

cheers Edward

[MorganAtlanta]

I have had one side done for a week, and just finished the other today. With the new lights, I have to experiment again with photoperiod, total intensity, and relative intensity of the blues versus reds.

[MorganAtlanta]

I've had the new blue LEDs on one side for two weeks and did a cleaning Sunday. Growth was very good, but what is most interesting is that I think the algae that grows with the blues added is a completely different species than that which grew with reds alone. It seems more like true green hair algae, while the algae that I got with reds alone seemed more like the shredded seaweed that is in Japanese seaweed salad. It was much more "ribbon" like. The new hair algae is also much harder to scrape off the screen. This stuff is tough.

This cleaning cycle will be the first with red+blue on both sides, so we'll see how it goes. The current light setup is 10x660nm, 5x630nm, 4x455nm, 4x445nm, 5x420nm per side. The reds are running at 600mA and the blues at around 400mA. There is still hair algae in the display. If this setup doesn't out compete it, I don't know what will.

[SantaMonica]

I really like the ribbon stuff... which is probably ulva. It does not matt-down as easily, and really lets the water flow throughout it.

[MorganAtlanta]

I don't think it uses the same amount of nutrients per volume as GHA though. The hair algae seems much more "dense".

[SantaMonica]

Yes but it can't grow/filter without light, so the bottom layers become useless after a few days.