# DIY Cheap LED housing



## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

I got a set of cheap LED lights that did a great job growing plants, but did not stand up to the exposure to water so i came up with a housing to hold the LEDs over a clear top lid. i wanted it to be a cheap build since the LED upgrade was supposed to be cheap to begin with. In all i spent under 15 dollars on the supplies.

Supplies:
3 inch PVC gutter down spout (i used two pieces)
coupler 
paint 
Ebay LEDs
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Aquarium-Fi...t=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item3f175ea5d9
scrape wire

Tools:
hand saw
dremel
solder gun
utility knife


I used two pieces of downspout but a solid piece can be used so the glue steps can be skipped

i first knocked the shine of the PVC at my glue joints and used super glue and clamps to hold it tight.


i next cut the piece to length adding a extra inch so i would have a .5 inch over hang on each side 


i laid out the design i wanted and began to cut it with a dremel cut off wheel


when i got to the other end i i cut out my overhang and than cut in more than needed so i could mark where i needed to cut to make a nice tight fit


when i was all done i ended up with this


i sanded the it down with 500 grit sand paper and sprayed it with black paint.

Finally its time to install the LEDs. the ones i got can be cut every 3 leds. since i had 3 feet i ran 3 strips down the inside of the housing


to solder the strips together you cut back the silicone over the positive and negative pads on each end









i used some left over wire i had sitting around and soldered the positive to the positive and the negative to the negative.









after soldering the connections all together i removed the paper on the back covering the 3m tape and put them in place in the housing. the final results look like this

























In the dark









With the lights on


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## jasonwuzthere (Sep 16, 2013)

Wow, that looks awesome! Are you still going to seal the LED's with silicone or aquarium sealant.


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

Yeah I am I forgot to add that


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=131693

These are the same LEDs just inside the tank so you can see the growth


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## InfiniteGlory (Dec 17, 2012)

Kyle, your project turned out great. I saw your other post over on TPT. I am going out of town for Thanksgiving and hopefully can work on my project. 

I am going to try and use aluminum track channel to build my LED strips and fill them in with silicone. Stayed tuned after the holiday


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

i thought about the same thing but i was afraid it would way to much for the bottom of the plastic lid that my tank came with


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## InfiniteGlory (Dec 17, 2012)

the additional weight has crossed my mind too. I was going to work with the existing LED strip(s) that failed just to make sure it is all going to work out.


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

very nice,clean work.


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

Thanks. The LEDs worked great on the bottom of the lid but the water exposure was too much so I figured put them over a lid an it would work perfect


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## alyssaanne (Aug 10, 2013)

So I'm a total newbie when it comes to npt light. What level of light would something like this be considered? Low, moderate,high? If I kept it on for 10-12 hours a day. I'm starting a new 20gal and I'm quickly approaching my budget and this looks great. I'm confident I could build this.


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

Pushing medium on this set up. I wouldn't have minded having a slightly higher kalvien led.


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## alyssaanne (Aug 10, 2013)

This is prolly a very stupid question but would having this level of light require co2?


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## BasilBetta87 (Jan 15, 2011)

CO2 wouldn't hurt. You could always does Excel and Flourish.


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

alyssaanne said:


> This is prolly a very stupid question but would having this level of light require co2?


Co2 is what plants use with light to do photosynthesis taking light energy and turning it into a sugar the can use for growth. For a npt co2 is not needed. A good thread for reading
http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=114575


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## alyssaanne (Aug 10, 2013)

Thank you.


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## alyssaanne (Aug 10, 2013)

What kind of connector did you use to go from the strips to the plug to the regular outlet? I don't really know my way around that subject. I'm assuming I need a special adapter of some kind. Could you provide links to the peices I need?


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## kyle89 (Mar 1, 2013)

The eBay led strips are a complete set up. They come with the plug connected already


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## alyssaanne (Aug 10, 2013)

Awesome! Thanks!


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