Well Buck You Too...

The Buck Driver Experience
Trying to build COB under $100


Earlier this month, Growmau5 mentioned in another thread
http://rollitup.org/t/best-cree-set-up-for-tiny-micro-grow.907799/
about using Buck drivers in a small space lighting situation.

He hinted at a possible video, but we know he's into the bigger stuff.

This is my proposed modular build – AS CHEAP AS POSSIBLE

I gave little consideration to the CREE chips except price and current (and availability of course)
Is backwards of all builds I've seen, in that, my power is majority of cost, whereas, those $40-50

Parts:


$86.75 parts total

$110.45 (ship&tax bastards)

The chips were smaller than I expected, but have watched too many 3590 build videos.
You might notice there are 8 buck drivers but only 5 LEDs to run, that's just expansion
for future configurations.

First configuration is full boards of same type of LDD, a 4x300H and 4x350H board

The LRS and LDD boards will be mounted outside the grow area.
Wiring it up with Cat5 solid 24AWG – 4 pairs – Solid + and Striped -

These boards can handle 700 or 1000 LDDs and the LSR-350-48 would let you add
some of the higher chips to fill out the current available. Since these boards daisy chain
you can keep adding Buck groups until you reach desired level of peak current.

3.3A available on 150-48
7.3A available on 350-48

Since each chip has it's own driver, the 24AWG should be enough even for 1A chips
since we're still only drawing 36v across a pair.

Why Cat5 – have a couple partial rolls of it on hand.
Also have interior Cat3 4-strand phone wire (also 24AWG solid copper)

Side project for the Tent People:

Why hang heavy lights from the ceiling (driver/heatsink/frame/etc)

Put them on the corner pvc poles.
I see clamp on fans, even oscillating ones, mounted this way.

Take the fan off and mount your heatsink to the bracket.


Would you even need a center light?

How about a double or triple light at each corner.

Wonder What 150 Watt

After watching all these LED grow videos, it's like walking down the purple canal streets in Amsterdam, looking into the bud porn windows and not being able to experience the live act (and coming away sticky and reeking of satisfaction)

No genetics ATM but nice dispensary bag (and even J ) seeds to pop and I need to sex
and pheno them for mother/cloning etc... This should let me get them to show me what
I want to see before I spring for the good stuff...

CFL might be added but going to give it a fair shot first.

HalfBee

Sunlight not an option so we grow indoors
Canopy management, just one of our chores
Rig our netting one or two levels deep
Once flipped, upward those colas creep
Get them harvested then move in some mores

Just ordered the last of the parts unavailable locally, the Coralux boards.
Putting together all the bits and pieces and making a list for the surplus store run next week.

Memorial Day Weekend is prime for Yard Sale bargains (so many sales, so much junk)
Since nobody has said I'm insane or headed for disaster (yet) the project shall proceed...

HalfBee

CREE – Do the Math(s)

Filling time between salvage missions... digging out parts and hard data on what I got...

CXA1507-0000-000N00F230F
Bargain Bin $1.94

Description: LED, HB, WHITE, 680LM, 3000K; Product Range:XLamp CXA1507 Series;
LED Color:White; Viewing Angle:115 ; Luminous Flux @ Test:680lm; CCT:3000K;
Forward Current If Max:375mA; Forward Voltage @ Test:36V; Forward Current @ Test:200mA

680Lm * 1.6 @350mA = 1088
running softer 1.44 @300mA = 979




The 2011 can be driven harder with 40v up to 1A. They move up when you upgrade wattage to something like the 350. For the 2530 or CXB 18s you would fill a 4U with 700 or 1000.

They put out quite a variety of 48v but the 350 is both price and amps above (and probably why they were backordered when I bought mine). And the bottom 210A is probably a good deal

Upgrading the power supply or populating a 4U board
each of these is equal in value to the price of a better COB.

One driver – One COB (and a fan)
I'm comfortable working at 36-40v range.
Things shouldn't get too hot, you can work with modular connectors.

interesting: you know when I first saw this DIT stuff I was like I can do it.....but I cant, or is it I don't care too either way you guys are awesome who can do this.

nice. I use Epistar 12-3W led's for veg 12 hours, and cxb3590 4-50W 12 hours. The royal blue really helps growth and root development. I also use Deep Red, IR, and Far red for bloom at 24-3W plus cxb3590 4-50W. I use a typhon controller and a 5up coralux driver with LDD-1000H, and LDD-700H and a meanwell SE-200-48 power supply. I am also building a switch for on/off using a switching relay 5v/120v-10A from pwm dimming controlled by the typhon, as well. nice to see others taking the plunge. I think you have a nice setup going. What type of controller will you use for the 5up driver board? the coralux driver boards require a pwm signal to power on the led's. Rapidl3ed's has a driver board that you can jumper on/off for pwm signal. Coralux turns the led's off without a pwm signal in case the controller is off, the leds do not go at full brightness. So if no controller you might consider the LDD-H4 board -> http://www.rapidled.com/ldd-h-4-driver-board/ can be configured either way. peace

SoOLED said:

interesting: you know when I first saw this DIT stuff I was like I can do it.....but I cant, or is it I don't care too either way you guys are awesome who can do this.

Click to expand...

Having grown up with Heathkit and Tandy projects it gives you a set of skills that come in useful for DIY.
If you lay everything out ahead of time, follow the instructions (if you can translate them), and take your
time, eventually you'll get a working whatsit (or a fried and melted carcass).

VegasWinner said:

nice. I use Epistar 12-3W led's for veg 12 hours, and cxb3590 4-50W 12 hours. The royal blue really helps growth and root development. I also use Deep Red, IR, and Far red for bloom at 24-3W plus cxb3590 4-50W. I use a typhon controller and a 5up coralux driver with LDD-1000H, and LDD-700H and a meanwell SE-200-48 power supply. I am also building a switch for on/off using a switching relay 5v/120v-10A from pwm dimming controlled by the typhon, as well. nice to see others taking the plunge. I think you have a nice setup going. What type of controller will you use for the 5up driver board? the coralux driver boards require a pwm signal to power on the led's. Rapidl3ed's has a driver board that you can jumper on/off for pwm signal. Coralux turns the led's off without a pwm signal in case the controller is off, the leds do not go at full brightness. So if no controller you might consider the LDD-H4 board -> http://www.rapidled.com/ldd-h-4-driver-board/ can be configured either way. peace

Click to expand...

Right now I'm not going to dim with PWM and run max (300 and 350 shouldn't tax it too much). I found a 555 circuit to
provide triggering PWM (stepper/servo design) and I'll play around with that since I have components on hand for it.

I'd like to get into arduino but haven't the $$$, and I'd want it to do more than just dim my lights.
I'd want it to:

• Monitor temp/humidity & adjust exhaust
• Moisture levels and send alerts
• Measure canopy height and raise lightbar
• etc...

With the AI coming into it's own it won't be long... A couple robotic arms, VR headset, and you could
grow in a few hundred rooms you never have to visit...

Show a robot how to trim and you've wasted an afternoon...

I understand and agree completely. I use my Storm to monitor temps, dim lights, turn off/on COB drivers, control on/off Far Red Deep Red IR and Royal Blue leds for two rooms all from one location. I am learning arduino. you can get this board that does not require a trigger 5v but is in on position as a start mode vice off like the corulax 5up board., but has a jumper for the resistor ->http://www.rapidled.com/ldd-h-4-driver-board/
peace

Yeah, that RapidLED 4Up board is what I ordered (see first post), I looked at the 6Up and others.
I would have soldered the connectors on and such but worth a buck or two for nicely done ones.

Went back out looking at the CXA2011 after seeing it can handle any current LDD throws at it
driving it harder and brighter. They are in 'End of Life' status and might be worth grabbing a few
before they disappear. Notice they don't have a CXB version (yet).

Glad you mentioned playing around with Far Red...

A while back I picked up some Red/Green LEDs at a bargain price.
They are mounted in a 4 LED package and were $.06 each
(they were an impulse purchase, what's a buck more...)


Now check out the specs:

The green is right where it probably should be, very narrow band relatively speaking.
The red is "Bright Red" (their term) and peaks much higher than you would expect from
your typical 660nm standard red, covering a larger spectral footprint.

Having done a bit of 555 work in the past driving arrays of LEDs.



Part of this current project schedule is a 'Night Light' for the greens, but the reds will get the Far Red treatment scheduling once things get up and running. Not as far as those specialized 730nm but up highter than normal into that end of the spectrum.

Yeah they are the little ones... but the area they need to cover is also small...
Sidenote: soldering all those individual LEDS was a pain.

I also use Deep red and IR for bloom period, as well. nice setup. like the simplicity of your approach. peace.

The Coralux 4Up boards arrived (sure... after the holiday)

After review and consideration of my previously used heatsinks and fans, they probably had many hours on the motors and weren't matched in size or weight.

Surplus supply turned up some 'new in box' specials for $3 each.
They have the thermal material already applied and a plastic cap to mark for the drilling alignment.


Drill press worked great, and the caps made easy alignment, but the thermal material held all the metal from drilling the holes... For about $20 more I could have had larger heatsink/fan models that weren't pre-pasted ($3 more each) and bought the thermal goop in a tube.

It is what it is...

That was the worst one, the others had much less. A few strokes with a soft paint brush fixed it.

The original baskets I looked at were about 4" wide and 12" long and would have fit very close to the fan width. (They no longer had them in stock) This size allows more lights to be added, or (if I'm so lucky) yoyos to be attached. Could even mount a big fan on top.



The lights are now attached to metal mesh desk baskets and zip tied so fan blows up thru mesh.
The rings let us hang it from snaps or ratchets (when I get some) to raise and lower.

Almost time to cut the cords...

Bright light at the end of the tunnel...

Went with my plan of Cat5 cables. Found my punch down RJ-45 jacks so I could wire the cables as I liked and slap a plug on the end. The Blue and Green carry power for COBs and Orange is 12v for the fans.
The Brown isn't used but could easily wire in another COB on each side.

Am running all the heatsink fans off a single wall wart I took from a ethernet hub. When I put a meter to it with no load it read about 16 volts (says 12v 1.2a). I can probably put 2 more fans on the same supply (for the 2 future light expansion) with no problem. The fans aren't marked but they're just little guys that spin really fast.



How they hangin...

Since I don't have any ratchets right now, I settled on some casino card bungies. The clips are ok, but the cords need a new solution. They should hang a little better once I run the cables outside of the space and mount the drivers to their final location. I left enough slack in the cable that I can lower the lights down to where I plan to put my scrog net. The space they are in now is 18" high, when I remove the shelves and gut this box, the top net will be 22" from ceiling. The lower net is down another 8", leaving 12" in the bottom for grow containers.

Right now they are running at max 350 mode to start, if plants want it a bit softer, I can switch to 300 by just moving a few wires over to the other LDD bank. One of the next projects is the PWM dimmer module. The 555 design I found is being converted over to a 556 model to allow 2 channel output per board. So I'll have to build a pair (and then another pair for the other 4Up board), but if I'm reading it correctly, I can power them off USB 5v (will have to see).


Once you shut the doors, there's a bit of light leakage around the edges, but that gets fixed with a bit of panda film when I line the box later on. But that adventure will end up over in the micro cab or grow journal areas.

What did we learn...

Placement used was from the original plan
Lights wired on virginal heatsinks with fan
Utilizing concepts in modular design
Getting to move them works out fine
Spread canopy coverage evenly if you can

2 hour test run closed cabinet. Temp raised from 85 to 92 during that time. The heatsinks themselves were warm to the touch. Outside temp was also high, probably 85 to 90.

Foam board was pushed to back and covered airflow up from lower levels, and back was covered where there is a vented door access point. Only circulation was from the heatsink fans themselves.

Did a live 2 hour run in the morning with plants. Put a circulation fan in lower area and could feel air flow up and open vents at top. Temp only a few degrees over room temp.

Number 1... Plug the leaks

The photo last post of the light leaks was taken at night and wasn't too bad I thought.
During the daytime it catches the eye if you were to walk past the room's doorway.
Need to seal and ventilate the space but still debating the configuration I want to try.
Dollar store Car Sun Shade – 24x50 will fit across the front and overlap corners


Silver side designed to reflect the sun, should do well to spread it here
Not totally light proof, but a little tape support and it will be.

These pictures show it just pushed up against the back wall
It's a little taller and wider than the current area so overlaps well
When I mount it on the front side, I'll leave a 6" flap on one side
Overlap by 3 inches with magnetic tape to hold access closed

This is only the upper area of the cabinet for testing purposes
Taking out the shelves I could cover all the walls with 4 or 5 shades
($5 vs whatever panda film would cost – just a test)

Number 2... Plug the lights

Cut the Cat5 and gave each Light a 2' tail.
Feel safe doing this as 350mA is under the rating of the cable
500-700-1k I'd consider 18awg and putting LDD drivers on light itself

4 light pairs coming in on Cat5 to double phone jack
This will let me double check the power coming in at each terminal
Marked them and then attach the COB.

Changed design and put fan plug in middle instead of on end.


Fan power
12v comes in on Cat5 cable

Really hate doing this since it's more wattage than my drivers
Will this count against me on watt to whatever for the grow?

ATX 200w power supply +12v individuals – Common ground


Went with ATX I got for $1 – so small – 4x5x3 case
A couple other salvaged finds...

Found a 12v RV fan - a bit of fixing up and it oscillates, mounting board or stand attached.

Found this for $1 – larger than what I wanted but couldn't pass it up
This fits nicely across the bottom of the cabinet, enough room for ventilation
Cons:
Take a full bag+ of medium to fill it
Need to find or build a run off catch basin

Number 3... Plug the Limerick

Stored neatly from strains of the past
Experimenting on grow methods at last
Enclosed spaces are small
Determining sex about all
Since balls mean pop the next beans fast

www.MadMusic.com – Visit my MadSpace page
The place to go for novelty music...

Fifteen-two and a double run of four
Crib Notes:

Well... searching for a little more stability and permanence.
Connections turned out to be a little less stable than hoped...

Cheap is as Cheap breaks

Off to treasure hunting again, picked up a couple cribbage boards for $1 each.

A Cool Idea – see if it works out that way...




Idea #2: Since I have 4 of the 300mA LDDs sitting empty, I could put the fans off on that driver section and run:
Am even considering running my circulation fans off one of these banks.

It's no wonder my fans were screaming – the wall wart was marked 12v @ 1.2A, and it should be fine divided by 4... but meter on output showed 16v+ being delivered.


As far as I know... this hasn't been posted anywhere and could solve many of the cooling issues for those running single COB units off LDD drivers. In review it's still a bad idea... they don't scream as loudly as they did, but I know I'm over driving them and will shorten their life span, A temporary solution but it works.

Final Weight 1 pound 13 ounces

Digging a deeper hole


One of these had 2 bottom panels – bonus from China
Bottom material a bit more sturdy – still using barrier cloth
Cut cardboard to border strips or hole for drainage


I think I'll only fill it 5 inches deep, these will drop in side by side to one half of the plastic crate very nicely.

Dropping the pre-veg size into it give sideways root space rather than deeper.


Many of the issues I've had with this project is me being cheap... compounding that is disability and getting old.
Can't spend hours peering over a soldering iron anymore, eyesight not what is once was, etc...
The concepts and individual steps weren't too bad, but in not planning ahead many things had to be repaired, repeated, or redesigned.

The Stuck Up Buck

I knew from the start that the design was wrong for the space
(both under powered and not stable enough to last through a grow)
So I swapped it out for a quad of 2700K – 40w CFLs *(they say 2600 lumens)*
until I can afford the new bars I want.

Trying to keep as much of the wiring and drivers outside the limited cubic area

Got some 5 conductor thermostat wire to run to the light bar
Also added an extra split off the 12v line for case fans
It's a bit stiff but since this light doesn't have to lower it's fine.


Busy Box for Gregarious Growers
Had the outside shell of an ancient server that's stood alone as a shelf for far longer than I'd like to admit


Area designed to hold 2 plants in veg/LST

A stable erection is required when you Buck from the ceiling

I thought the dispensary's little plastic bags were expensive...

Ceramic bar magnets hold each end firmly to the top
Top assembly can be riveted for permanence later

These will be the main support structure


Wing nuts thread on to hold modules in position
backed by standard nut on opposite side of module

Two 4.5 inch cross bars through heat sinks per module

Two 3 inch risers on the ends (double bolt & lock washer)

Top is 2 angle 90 brackets for flat surface with a 3 inch panel plate for stability

Topped with the bar ceramic magnet

LDD 4Up board mounted on 4 inch square plate

Angle brackets 2 per side for rods mounting

Risers off front of plate at the rod intersection

Wiring zip tied to top of shell – no adjusting height

Fan wiring zip tied to front section of LDD plate with socket

3 heatsink fans powered

2 circulation fans (tied to shell) off same supply (seperate cable)

Meanwell goes direct to LDD board
Cobs go directly to LDD board



I think the 3 lights (of this size) will work fine in this setting, will have to monitor heat and circulation.

Bump the Buck Back

Perhaps a new entry will prompt some re-reading of the core material early on in this thread.
Working with LDD and 48v supply you can run 6 of any cobs you like at 1000 mA.
(all the vero and cree flavors under 45v) or 4 at 1500 mA when new LDDs comes out

Here's the light from earlier in the thread during a PWM dimmer test.
The concept works but how to box it up...


Cough Up A Buck
Hung the light back in place and here's the Strawberry Cough I'm mangle folding.
Took my clones and pushing it into a veg cycle under the 1507s at 350 mA.
These dollar chips are going to keep paying their way until something else comes along.

Project Update:

Back near the start of this thread, during the first build, we saw a little plant and clone in a bottle.
The other bean of that strain was male and purged. Two beans and damn 50% m/f ratio...
To date that's the only clone that's survived enough to veg. Beginners Luck!

The pair had to suffer through all the lighting combinations, the cabinet upgrades, all the typical trial and error associated with first grows and learning how best to use the equipment you can afford.


The clone was a bit better than the momma, or liked the container better.
It had two main colas and a horizontal spread of smaller lower blooms.

Jury still out on the container sizes, it did keep them small, and the watering amount is now known.
But after harvest, the root structure just wasn't there. They didn't cover the width of the container and were really thin.

You don't do it for the yield, you do it for the experience (bull)!

As you can see momma (right) didn't leave anything much behind.
On the left is the clone with a pair of minor colas, most was just tidbits.
(Sorry no bud porn here, just depression era shots of ugly cousins without sepia filter)

Remember that little tortured strawberry back in the veg bin under the COBs...
It replaced momma in the flower room and that's it next to our finishing clone.
(Ignore the Grape Ape in the room with mom and strawberry pictures)


The Strawberry was in the same size as used for the clone all the way through veg. Since the torture stopped it's sprung up and is about 2 weeks into flower. While it did stretch a bit, reaching the ring is the goal which might not be met. Perhaps yoyo support ring instead.

Not sure if it will remain under the CFLs or finish up under the new light in the works.
The first of the Vero 18s arrived, but almost everything else is waiting on funding.
Next order will be for the Gen7 18s to augment the first bar in the set (cheaper too).


That's another build, with separate journal to follow along.

Mango to replace Strawberry, backed up by more of the momma's strain.
In a cup...

In a tub...

In the warm California sun...


HalfBee