# A Complete Idiot's guide to make an LED lighting unit



## sumer

*For more such tutorials and fishy pictures please visit my website: www.playsofrays.com*

As always I am writing this for people who have no prior experience with LEDs, electrical and electronics works just like I never had before I did this. I will be posting a lot of pictures here and going into a lot of detail about making connections, wiring etc. So the people who know how these things are done may find it boring and unnecessary, but please bear with me.. it’s for the newbies.

In order to understand LEDs and what kind best serves your needs go to my previous post – An Idiot's guide to understand LEDs
It contains all the theoretical aspects of LEDs and in very simple language. Once you have a good understanding of what you need, read this post.

Before starting this thread I would like to thank Milad, who helped me a lot throughout this tedious process. He is an awesome guy.
I ordered the following things for Lighting from LEDGroupBuy.com:



12V 5A Power supply w/4PIN molex connector

4 pin Molex to 3 pin fan

80mm Fan Silencer

Arctic Alumina Thermal Adhesive 5g

Arctic Silver Céramique 2 - 25g

CREE LED Optics / Lens
(LED Type: CREE XT-E / XP-G / XP-E, Optic Angle: 60, Quantity in Package: 6 Pack)

CREE LED Optics / Lens
(LED Type: CREE XM-L, Optic Angle: 60, Quantity in Package: 6 Pack)

CREE XM-L White
(Color: Cool White (~6500K), Group: T5, Quantity in Package: Single LED)
XML-CW-T5-3 Nos

CREE XP-E Red
(Quantity in Package: Single LED)
XPE-RED-2 Nos

CREE XT-E Royal Blue
(Quantity in Package: Single LED)
XTE -ROYAL BLUE- 4 Nos

CREE XT-E White
(Color: Neutral White (4500K), Quantity in Package: 6 Pack (5% discount))
XTE-NW-6PK- 1 (6 Nos LEDs)

CREE XT-E White
(Color: Warm White (3250K), Quantity in Package: Single LED)
XTE-Warm White- 3 Nos

DIM4 - 4 Port LED Sunrise/Sunset Controller V1.0
DIM4-R1.0- 1 Nos

Fan 80mm- 1 Nos

Hanging Kit for MakersLED Heatsink- 1 Nos

Inventronics 40w driver - 700mA

MakersLED Designer Heatsink Kit - Professional Grade (Length: 12 inch)

Ocean Coral White (Optic Angle: 90°)- 2 Nos

OEM Digital Multimeter DT-830B- 1 Nos

Solder Tube 10g - 2 Nos

Soldering Iron 60w- 1 Nos

Solid Wire 24awg (300 volt) - 25 feet - Black- 1 Nos.

Stranded Wire 24awg (300 volt) - 25 feet - Black











Then I got some more stuff from Home Depot – 


assorted grommets 
zip ties
water proof cable connectors
two pin plugs 
some timers
extra wire (in case needed)










Before starting,
make sure to make a rough sketch of how you would assemble your LEDs on the Heat sink. It is very helpful to refer to it when making the circuit. Without it there will definitely be a lot of confusion and chaos. A blueprint of this is available on LEDgroupBuy.com- Blueprint And here is mine for reference –









People in India might be a little disappointed because it’s not available there. But I am sure you can speak to Milad if you really want it and can work something out.

*1.* To start, test each of the LEDs if they are working. For testing I ordered a Multi-meter from LEDGroupBuy.com. Connect the red and black wires (with pins on the end) to the multi-meter body as shown below. Now turn the knob to point to (diode) symbol. Gently touch Red wire pin to positive and black-wire pin to negative of the LED you are testing as shown below. If there are no defects on the LED, it should light up. In case it doesn’t light up, check the connections to the multi-meter again and whether its knob points to symbol.




























An alternative way of testing (without the multi-meter) is to use two AA size batteries and connect the positive of the batteries to positive plate and negative of the batteries to negative plate of the LEDs.

*2.* You must have received a no. of nuts, bolts and washers. Join them in as shown in the picture. Now place them into the grooves of the heat sink as shown below. For every LED you will require 2 sets of nuts, bolts and washers. Arrange these bolts in the same way as you have made in your blue print. This gives you a rough
idea of the positioning of your LEDs.














































The Nuts and Bolts-









You have to put them together in this way-









They send many extra pieces-









Then put them into the groves of MakersLED heat sink-









*3.* Pick up one LED and put a tiny bit of thermal grease on its back. Gently put the LED on its respective position on the heat sink and press it. Once in place, tighten the nut-bolt pair on the grooves. This holds the LED in its position. Do this step for all LEDs. Now all your LEDs are fixed on the heat sink on their respective
positions. Make sure that you have placed all the LEDs in a way that you are able to connect all of them in series (- of one LED is connected to + of the other -- - + - + - + - + - + ….- +)


















Dont worry about the mess (I'm sure it the grease will mess up the heat sink). It can be wiped by a tissue later.


















*4.* Now to wire all LEDs first pre-tin the connecting points of each of the LEDs. Pre-tinning is nothing but putting a small layer of soldering material on your connections.
• Heat your soldering iron. When it’s hot gently bring it in contact with one end of the soldering wire. The soldering wire immediately melts leaving a drop on the hot tip of the iron. Gently place this drop on the small connecting plates of the LED you are connecting. Let it cool. It takes about 3-5 seconds to cool off. Do this for all the LEDs.








This step makes it faster to connect wires to all twenty LEDs.

*5.* Now, take the wire and cut it into pieces of appropriate length. If you like you may use red wires for positive and blue wires for negative. The wire should not be too long, it should not sag or touch other LEDs (because otherwise it will be damaged due to the heat of that LED). Scrap off insulation from both ends of all of these wires (about 2-3mm). Once you have cut all the pieces and scraped off their ends start soldering them.

• For this bring the hot tip of the soldering iron in contact with the pre-tinned connection plate of an LED very briefly. This will melt the shiny tin layer. As soon as this happens hold the wire with a pair of tweezers and gently push its end into the melted metal and let it cool. Once cool, it holds the wire firmly. As you make connections for each LED you can test them with the multi-meter or a battery as mentioned earlier. Repeat for all LEDs.









*6.* In my case, I have also used DIM4 circuit which produces the day-night dimming effect. I have made power connections in the following manner. You may connect them in any other way you like.
• Out of 20 LEDs, 15 are connected to an LED Driver (I have used Inventronics 40W driver – 700 mA) An LED driver converts AC to DC on which all LEDs run.
The driver has 3 sets of connections – AC in (2wires - black and white), DC out (2 wires – red+ and black-) and Dimming Controls (3 wires – green -, purple+ and yellow x).
Two wires positive+ and negative – of the dimming control on the LED driver will go to a channel of DIM4. 
*In case of this particular driver, purple is positive, green is negative and yellow is not used anywhere. Remember it like this – purple – P- positive; green-is mean-hence negative and yellow-is a dirty fellow- therefore not used.*

•3 Royal Blue LEDs are powered by Channel 1 of DIM 4 Circuit.
•One OCW (ocean coral white) is connected to Channel 2 of DIM4
•One OCW to Channel3 of DIM4.









For people who are not using DIM4 circuit can connect all the LEDs to the LED driver and they are good to go.

*7.* Now place the optics you ordered. These optics are nothing but special lenses that concentrate light. I have used the ones that concentrate at a 60⁰ angle; you may choose what every suits you. In order to stick them to your LEDs you can use a hot glue gun. I was not sure what to use so I ordered a thermal adhesive from LEDGroupBuy. If you are doing the same, you will receive two small tubes, combine a very small amount of both in equal proportions and use it to glue the optics. A word of caution – it smells terrible. This glue dries very quickly, so mix very small proportions every time. DO NOT USE SUPER GLUE. When heated, super glue produces fumes which clogs the LEDs and damages them. You can again test all LEDs here.






















































This is how the 'shades' look under my LED unit









*8.* Now you can cover your LEDs with the splash guard. This is nothing but an acrylic sheet. Place 4 Upper T-slot plugs and Plastic-end Caps on each of the sides of the heat sink. On top of the heat sink place the fan along with its circular frame and fix it with nuts and bolts. Your LED unit is ready.


















*9.* Now, let’s talk a little bit about drivers and dimmers.




































This is necessary to understand and helps you make the right connections. Dim4 has 4 channels (CH1, CH2, CH3, CH4) Two relays (R1,R2) and Power supply-in.









Each of the channels of the DIM4 is capable of lighting up to 3 LEDs and 0,1 or more drivers. Let’s consider two cases here –

• CASE I : Using DIM4 to control Drivers that are connected to LEDs:
Each channel of DIM4 can control dimming options of at least one driver. In this case DIM4 will command the Driver to dim, giving the sunrise and sunset effects. If DIM4 is connected to drivers, it will require only 500mA current.

• Case II : Using DIM4 to control LEDs directly (no LED driver):
Each channel of DIM4 can light up exactly 3 LEDs at a time. DIM4 will directly command all LEDs to give the sunrise-sunset effect. If all LEDs are connected directly to DIM4, it will require more current – (I've used 5A). Hence you will need to use – THIS

• My Case: 








I have used –
i) Channel 1 for my LED Driver. This driver lights up 15 LEDs.
ii) Channel2 for OCW1 (Ocean Coral White), which is a set of 3 LEDs of color red, blue and green.
iii) Channel3 for OCW2 which again is a set of 3 LEDs – red, blue and green
iv) Channel4 for 3 Royal Blue LEDs.

• _Relays_: There are two relays R1 and R2 in the circuit. Relay R1 fires up as soon as Channel 1 goes live and Relay R2 fires when Channel3 goes live. Both relays give a power supply of 12V. Now these relays may be used to control your fans. I used R1 to start my fan which sits on top of theheat sink. As soon as my Channel1 goes live, it controls my LED driver connected to 15 LEDs; at the same time, relay R1 fires, turning on the fan over the heat sink to cool down the heat sink.

10. If you are using DIM4 to light up your LEDs directly, it will produce a lot of heat. In order to cool it down you will need another small fan. For my device, I placed both my LED Driver and DIM4 inside a plastic container and attached a fan on top of it by making a circular hole on top lid right under the fan blades. I made holes on sides of the plastic box from where wires can go inside as well as for air circulation. 























































When I was doing my final test-










11. Now make all the remaining connections – the ones to driver, DIM 4 etc. Make sure you don’t leave any loose ends. Cover all the connections with electrical connectors/insulation tapes. Do not leave the soldering iron ON unattended.










12. Install the hanging kit. And you are good to go.










Note- If you are one of those (well, I was) who "overthink", there are pretty fair chances that you can do this-








DO NOT DO THAT. OCW (Ocean Coral White) has already been soldered in series. You DO NOT have to connect it in the series. 

THE PROPER WAY IS THIS-









Disclaimer
This post is just how I did it and my . You may have other options and ideas. I wrote it because I didn’t find any similar post to help me when I did it. If you follow this and incur any losses/damages, then I am not responsible for it. I am also not responsible for your safety around electrical items. 

Thank you for reading and watching It was a Superman presentation (never mind, lol).


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## DarkCobra

I only skimmed it, but that is one of the most detailed step-by-step builds I've ever seen. It will surely give the confidence to try building a LED light for the first time. Great post, Sumer!


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## AVN

Nice guide, now anyone who can read can build their own LED fixture!

Now just reduce the size of the red text, it is annoying.


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## MiniFishRoom

Good info


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## GraphicGr8s

Good post. One thing I see is your method of soldering can lead to a cold solder joint. The ends of the wires should also be tinned. You apply heat to the wire not the solder. You apply the solder to the wire, not the tip of the iron. Doing that is what leads to a cold solder joint. It will work for a while but as moisture gets up into it it will fail. Then try finding it.
The solder is drawn up into the wires via capillary action. Same as if you were soldering copper pipes.


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## sumer

AVN said:


> Nice guide, now anyone who can read can build their own LED fixture!
> 
> Now just reduce the size of the red text, it is annoying.


Done :thumbsup:


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## sumer

GraphicGr8s said:


> Good post. One thing I see is your method of soldering can lead to a cold solder joint. The ends of the wires should also be tinned. You apply heat to the wire not the solder. You apply the solder to the wire, not the tip of the iron. Doing that is what leads to a cold solder joint. It will work for a while but as moisture gets up into it it will fail. Then try finding it.
> The solder is drawn up into the wires via capillary action. Same as if you were soldering copper pipes.


Thats another thing I never read on the internet. Thanks for the info GraphicGr8. Will include it in the article.


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## GraphicGr8s

sumer said:


> Thats another thing I never read on the internet. Thanks for the info GraphicGr8. Will include it in the article.


Yeah there's a lot of stuff you'll never read on the net. But the correct way to solder is on the net. Just google soldering wires.
Another thing is to watch the power of the gun or iron. Too much heat and you can burn up the led. I've never burned up components. (cough cough cough) I've got six or seven weller guns but my favorite is my little iron. Just right for delicate work. 

Something else to note. Solder itself. Most of what you find is thick stuff. They also have (well, had anyway back when I bought it) solder that's almost hair thin. It's great for solid state parts. It takes less heat.


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## AVN

I'm going to build a light using this guide, how much did the budget run for you?


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## scapegoat

i'm a complete idiot when it comes to hardware... after reading both of your articles I feel like I understand things quite a bit better.

one thing i'd like to see though, is the entire thought process that goes into selecting the specific leds as well as the drivers and the dimmers. 

based on your leds made easy article... I merely divide the wattage of the driver by the number of watts each LED requires, and that gives me the max leds per driver. and the mA of the driver dictates the max the LED's requirement can be?

what about people putting resisters in line with their LED systems?

excellent write up! its allowed me to actually question parts of it and understand what it is i'm asking.

if its not a huge amount of trouble, could you provide a link to each component?


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## Milad LEDGroupBuy.com

Wow this is great! (and im not just saying that because i was mentioned in it)

Its very detailed, great photos, great walk through, its instructable material
You should consider putting it up on http://www.instructables.com/ because it would probably get featured.


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## sumer

AVN said:


> I'm going to build a light using this guide, how much did the budget run for you?


Budget went around $400-$430 including everything. You definitely can take it down by reducing the DIM4 and some LEDs. It depends on for how big tank you're making the LED.



scapegoat said:


> i'm a complete idiot when it comes to hardware... after reading both of your articles I feel like I understand things quite a bit better.
> 
> one thing i'd like to see though, is the entire thought process that goes into selecting the specific leds as well as the drivers and the dimmers.
> 
> based on your leds made easy article... I merely divide the wattage of the driver by the number of watts each LED requires, and that gives me the max leds per driver. and the mA of the driver dictates the max the LED's requirement can be?
> 
> what about people putting resisters in line with their LED systems?
> 
> excellent write up! its allowed me to actually question parts of it and understand what it is i'm asking.
> 
> if its not a huge amount of trouble, could you provide a link to each component?


Yeah some people use resistors and other rocket science stuff but I did it in the simplest way possible. And the mA of the driver tells you the amount of current it can give to the LEDs. And you should use the LEDs which have their max mA rating, equal or higher than that of the driver. Its that simple. There is some logic behind using those resistors that the LED will automatically take the required current but I didnt go deep in that stuff. My main aim was to make something easy, goodlooking and effective.
And links of what !! From where I bought this stuff ? ledgroupbuy.com was the place. 



Milad LEDGroupBuy.com said:


> Wow this is great! (and im not just saying that because i was mentioned in it)
> 
> Its very detailed, great photos, great walk through, its instructable material
> You should consider putting it up on http://www.instructables.com/ because it would probably get featured.


Thanks Milad. It wasn't possible without your help though. Will surely upload it there too.


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## sumer

This DIY got featured on instructables.com
See This Here


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## salmon

very nicely done Sumer! glad you were able to build such a nice DIY!

any pics of it over the 60-P? do you find the reds kind of stand out/spotlight?

edit: I see some pics in the aquascaping section. looks great. oh and either #4 or #5 looks best.


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## sumer

salmon said:


> very nicely done Sumer! glad you were able to build such a nice DIY!
> 
> any pics of it over the 60-P? do you find the reds kind of stand out/spotlight?
> 
> edit: I see some pics in the aquascaping section. looks great. oh and either #4 or #5 looks best.


Yeah, It's looking good on 60-P. Glad I didnt go for 18" heatsink.
Reds do stand out at 0V. But once the XMLs, Royal Blues and OCWs start to gain the current, It looks perfectly white. I'm very happy with it. The only thing I couldn't find was that 15 pin computer monitor connecting plug. Once I get them, I'll get rid of these wires.


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## IWANNAGOFAST

wowzers you really went all out with this LED build! Good stuff!


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## GraphicGr8s

Curious about this. It ran you $400 or so. What does a comparable prebuilt run? No. Not baiting you. I simply haven't researched LED fixtures since right now my avatar takes all my spare $$$$$. That and I really have no clue what's available anymore. 

Educate me.


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## sumer

Those red wires were making it look shabby. Finally I found SGVA extension cable. 
Its the wire which we use for connecting Computer monitor to CPU. It has 15 pins. 

I cut the female part out-


















And then found this 8"x6"x3" project box. That kitchen ziplock container was not an appropriate container to house my DIM4 controller. 



























And then housed everything inside it. Cut some spaces for air circulation-


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## sumer

GraphicGr8s said:


> Curious about this. It ran you $400 or so. What does a comparable prebuilt run? No. Not baiting you. I simply haven't researched LED fixtures since right now my avatar takes all my spare $$$$$. That and I really have no clue what's available anymore.
> 
> Educate me.


Umm even I didnt research much on the commercially available units.
If yo talk about ray2, it would cost around $100. People have had good results with it. 
But as you'll go in the advance world of LEDs, the prices will be $300 +. A unit like this, with sunset/ sunrise controller and 3 different series of lights, (1 white, 1 Royal Blue, and 1 for OCW), it'd definitely cost more than $500.


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## GraphicGr8s

So when do you start your production line?


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## sumer

2500+ views..
Seems like my LED unit is getting famous 
Well just to update you all- Plants are growing carzy. And people who say LEDs cant grow red plants- They are so wrong. Red plants are so so red in my tank. Polygonum k. is doing great. Just keep your N under control.
Plants are loving this light.


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## RobMc

Wow, super clean build. Really diggin the serial tail. Have you noticed any more or less algae to plant growth ratio with this light?


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## dtejeda.arias

What are you lighting with all those Crees?(just skimmed didn't read much) Great step by step guide. Also very clean and neat setup. How do I make a quick link to this to post on the 100 DIY led post?


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## sumer

Here's what I'm growing with this light-













































I'm not sure what is 100 DIY led post but you can just copy and paste the link.

Rob- thanks. I'm glad you liked it. I'm soon gonna attempt one like you have made.
I dont have any algae issues after a few in initial phase and a spirogyra infestation. But now my tank is mature and plants are blooming. Reds are red.. Who says LED cant grow red plants.


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## PhillyMurse

This is awesome! Thanks for putting in the time to create this. Hopefully I can give it a go when time permits.


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## sumer

If you're planning on a new light unit, this is worth spending time for.


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## jccaclimber

Very nice. I may have missed it, but what size tank is this over, and at what height?


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## Nubster

From the looks of it, your light is definitely doing the job. Any idea how much a bare bones unit like this would cost to build? Nothing fancy, on and off, enough lights to get into high light range, small tank, like 24"W x 14.5"H.


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## sumer

jccaclimber said:


> Very nice. I may have missed it, but what size tank is this over, and at what height?


My tank is an ADA- 60P. Its about 17 Gallons. And right now it is at 12" height from the water surface.




Nubster said:


> From the looks of it, your light is definitely doing the job. Any idea how much a bare bones unit like this would cost to build? Nothing fancy, on and off, enough lights to get into high light range, small tank, like 24"W x 14.5"H.


I got your point. Just a simple LED unit with on/off with the same lights and driver would be $200 +/- 25 (No fancy heat sink, controller). 
Rotala mini Butterfly is as red as Tom sent me. Egleria fluctuans is growing madly. This is enough to put a light unit into "successful" category i think. I'm pretty satisfied with the built.


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## Nubster

Definitely...it looks good as does the tank.


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## sumer

Nubster said:


> Definitely...it looks good as does the tank.


Thank you


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## sumer

I was just wondering- Does this journal helped anyone in understanding or DIYing a LED unit ?


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## dzega

theoretically, green light is better to compensate for reds and blues. 
white led consists of several(usually 2) spectrum spikes which in fact might be poor on green color. and while emitted light appears white and strong to human eye, it might reflect poorly from green surface(plants). in other words you might get blind from strong white light when looking directly at that led, but when directing it to plant it might look dimm because of green spectrum absense
im currently waiting for ordered leds to experiment more with this white vs green led thing on my DIY plant led setup.

PS. you did awesome job there


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## EngineChauffer

Fantastic write up! This will definitely be my go-to post if/when I decide to DIY LED. Your plants are beautiful!

Great job and thanks for sharing!


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## theblondskeleton

Great build! I LOVE my MakersLED heat sinks. I have changed things up a couple of times and I'm so glad I'm able to tinker with it. Nice job


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## sumer

dzega said:


> theoretically, green light is better to compensate for reds and blues.
> white led consists of several(usually 2) spectrum spikes which in fact might be poor on green color. and while emitted light appears white and strong to human eye, it might reflect poorly from green surface(plants). in other words you might get blind from strong white light when looking directly at that led, but when directing it to plant it might look dimm because of green spectrum absense
> im currently waiting for ordered leds to experiment more with this white vs green led thing on my DIY plant led setup.
> 
> PS. you did awesome job there


I know what you are saying. And for the same reason I added 2 OCW LEDs in my unit. OCWs have red, cyan and green in them. And I think thats the thing which is helping my plants a lot.




EngineChauffer said:


> Fantastic write up! This will definitely be my go-to post if/when I decide to DIY LED. Your plants are beautiful!
> 
> Great job and thanks for sharing!


Thank you. Glad you liked it.




theblondskeleton said:


> Great build! I LOVE my MakersLED heat sinks. I have changed things up a couple of times and I'm so glad I'm able to tinker with it. Nice job


Thanks. Yeah Its kind of a big investment at first but later you find that how helpful it is.


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## sumer

6718 views !!
So it IS helping 
I'm glad that it is helpful.


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## sumer

11,205 views.
Wow.. If you came here and it helped you, please drop a comment. I would love to read if it really worked or not.
And yeah about my unit, its working fantastic. I have dismantled my planted tank but I have a tanganyikan setup in the same tank. 
My tangs love the sunrise/sunset effect.
See the vid-


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