Just another DIY COB build

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
what's up everyone? this is my first COB experience so bear with me. i did a ton of research over the past few weeks and laid out plans which seemed to change every 30 minutes but i finally got all my ducks in a row. after watching and re-watching Growmau5's videos several times i decided it was time to take the DIY plunge.

this is nothing new or crazy here. i simply took bits and pieces from everyones threads and ran with it. the basic concept of how im designing these 2 lights is 1 COB per sq/ft. some would say that's overkill but i like overkill. can a cockroach be too dead? i think not.

there will be 8 CITI 1212's 6500K going over a 2x4 area. i am building 2 of these identical because when my vert run finishes in my 4x4 it will be converted to a veg tent and I will put the second 2x4 COB array in there with the first, thus filling the tent with 1 per sq/ft.

I got all my metal locally at a metal supply/welding place. i got about 53' of 1/8" 1x1 angle aluminum cut to all my dimensions for only 52$ out the door. it would have been around 100 at lowes and i would have had to cut it all myself.

drilling the aluminum was easy, even with my little 12V drill. just get yourself a nice new bit for metal ~6$ and go to work. i used vice grips to hold my pieces together while drilling so my holes line up. they are bolted together with grade 8 bolts and nylon lock nuts. the pieces that hold the heatsinks will be riveted into their final position.

i dont know if i'll bother with securing the heatsinks down or not. it may be advantageous to be able to slide them around a little, but then again with 1/sqft i dont think i will ever need to.

i am waiting on my parts to show up from Cobkits.com. i would like to thank him for helping me out all along the way with all of my newb questions and setup help. i might be adding fans onto these heatsinks to help them stay cool and efficient, but mostly just because i want the practice wiring and soldering them lol.

i plan to cable wrap everything and build it as clean as possible.

it may get a little boring in here over the next few days until the exciting stuff shows up but i will build and update as i go. thanks to everyone around here for the help and inspiration.

the plants vegging now are under t5's but soon to be blasted by these COBs. they are exotic genetix Future(GG#4 X starfighter f2) and ethos collective Blackfire(WIFI X afghan cultivar). stay tuned for more!

IMG_1277.JPG IMG_1287.JPG IMG_1285.JPG IMG_1286.JPG IMG_1284.JPG IMG_1279.JPG
 

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
here's a basic breakdown of cost. this is bare minimum. if you want all the cable wrap and pretty stuff add another ~30 or so.

8 120mm heatsinks - $120
8 CITI 1212's $106
2 HLG 185-48A- $88
8 COB holders- $20
8 reflectors- $44
thermal paste- $11
misc. hardware, wire etc- $30
aluminum angle- $26

TOTAL- $445 to light the bejeesus out of a 2x4.

it weighs 17.2 lbs right now without the drivers, COBs, wires etc. i expect it to be about 20 lbs when finished.

the heatsinks are just a hair shy of 19oz each
 
Last edited:

Victor6634

Well-Known Member
what's up everyone? this is my first COB experience so bear with me. i did a ton of research over the past few weeks and laid out plans which seemed to change every 30 minutes but i finally got all my ducks in a row. after watching and re-watching Growmau5's videos several times i decided it was time to take the DIY plunge.

this is nothing new or crazy here. i simply took bits and pieces from everyones threads and ran with it. the basic concept of how im designing these 2 lights is 1 COB per sq/ft. some would say that's overkill but i like overkill. can a cockroach be too dead? i think not.

there will be 8 CITI 1212's 6500K going over a 2x4 area. i am building 2 of these identical because when my vert run finishes in my 4x4 it will be converted to a veg tent and I will put the second 2x4 COB array in there with the first, thus filling the tent with 1 per sq/ft.

I got all my metal locally at a metal supply/welding place. i got about 53' of 1/8" 1x1 angle aluminum cut to all my dimensions for only 52$ out the door. it would have been around 100 at lowes and i would have had to cut it all myself.

drilling the aluminum was easy, even with my little 12V drill. just get yourself a nice new bit for metal ~6$ and go to work. i used vice grips to hold my pieces together while drilling so my holes line up. they are bolted together with grade 8 bolts and nylon lock nuts. the pieces that hold the heatsinks will be riveted into their final position.

i dont know if i'll bother with securing the heatsinks down or not. it may be advantageous to be able to slide them around a little, but then again with 1/sqft i dont think i will ever need to.

i am waiting on my parts to show up from Cobkits.com. i would like to thank him for helping me out all along the way with all of my newb questions and setup help. i might be adding fans onto these heatsinks to help them stay cool and efficient, but mostly just because i want the practice wiring and soldering them lol.

i plan to cable wrap everything and build it as clean as possible.

it may get a little boring in here over the next few days until the exciting stuff shows up but i will build and update as i go. thanks to everyone around here for the help and inspiration.

the plants vegging now are under t5's but soon to be blasted by these COBs. they are exotic genetix Future(GG#4 X starfighter f2) and ethos collective Blackfire(WIFI X afghan cultivar). stay tuned for more!

View attachment 3849296 View attachment 3849297 View attachment 3849298 View attachment 3849299 View attachment 3849300 View attachment 3849302

Very clean build great job
 

goofy81

Well-Known Member
Very nice,
Always great to see other people's DIY to find new ideas which you can incorporate into your own.
Any photos of it hanging? I think your setup might look cool with 2 x 180mm RED LED computer fans floating on top of the heatsinks :D
 

JDMase

Well-Known Member
Nice one man, so this lights for veg? What're you gonna use for flower?

I read this for like 10 minutes to make sure it went into my head properly. This question may be dumb.. Super high haha
 

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
Very nice,
Always great to see other people's DIY to find new ideas which you can incorporate into your own.
Any photos of it hanging? I think your setup might look cool with 2 x 180mm RED LED computer fans floating on top of the heatsinks :D
Nice one man, so this lights for veg? What're you gonna use for flower?

I read this for like 10 minutes to make sure it went into my head properly. This question may be dumb.. Super high haha
the light above in the pics is for veg.

I am building a 4x8 rig out of the same aluminum framing as soon as my 4x8 HPS run finishes. then after that one is done i will build another to replace another 4x8 table of HPS. I wanna cut my heat by 65% and my electricity by 35% or so. Depending on how i drive these flowering COBs each table should be around 1400-1800W where as an HPS table is closer to 2200W

the flowering rig will be (32) 3000K CXM22's at 40-50W each. still undecided on the drivers and such as i still have a month to prepare.

speaking of HPS flowering table.... the bitches WOULD NOT STOP STRETCHING so i had to remove the lid off my tent and attach panda film to the ceiling and extend the tent lol. seems to be working :) now the lights are about 24" above the canopy rather than 6" haha. got a little bleaching but they will be fine now. just look at the jungle. its a tangled mess lol. IMG_1289.JPG
 

jillxjilly

Well-Known Member
What % intensity do you run them at when they're small? I have a similar setup (12cob 4x4), but my plants are only 5 days old from seed. (First time grow :P)
 

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
What % intensity do you run them at when they're small? I have a similar setup (12cob 4x4), but my plants are only 5 days old from seed. (First time grow :P)
im right there with you buddy. this is my first COB setup. with little ones i would suggest dim and far away. these things are brutal
 

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
Ok, here's a baby update. played with my new rivet gun(highly recommended). This thing is great. got my frame all riveted together and it feels very sturdy. I like it. if you are gonna go this route get yourself a $20 rivet gun and some 1/4" grip length rivets. you will also need a drill bit the width of the rivets(1/8" for mine). vice grip into place and drill then rivet. super simple. i even went full blown dumbass and bolted one on backwards :) easy fix, just get a drill bit the size of the rivet head and drill the head off. then use the original size bit to drill the rivet out. done! looks clean. IMG_1291.JPG IMG_1292.JPG
 
Top