DIY LED Fixture

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Emitters

Forward Voltage

Forward voltage is the minimum voltage required for the LED to emit light. A typical high power LED used in reef lighting has a 3V (volt) forward voltage. It may be referred to a Vf on a datasheet. The forward voltage is summed when wiring emitters in series and remains the same when wiring in parallel. For example, three emitters in series will require a power source that outputs at least 9V (3 x 3V) and three emitters in parallel will require at least 3V.

Current

Brightness / Luminosity / Flux

Color

CRI

Optics

Packaging

Bins / Binning

Reading a datasheet

Comparison table of common emitters

Drivers and Power Supplies

Sizing

Drivers vs power supplies

Comparison table of common drivers

Cooling

Heatsinks

Thermal paste / glue / padding

Mounting emitters

Fans

Wiring

Design: livestock considerations

How much light for various livestock

Coverage and intensity guidelines for diff size tanks

Design: asthetic considerations

Coverage

Disco ball

Spotlighting

Color temp

Spacing

Dimming and color control=

0-10V vs PWM

Aquarium controllers Apex, DA, Profilux

Dedicated controllers: typhoon, nano-box

Manual dimming with knob