LEDs

[douglas]

LEDs save about 90% on energy so in time I may switch over to them.
I purchased some on Ebay and did an experiment.
I went to Radio Shack and found some PC boards and placed about "30" super bright white LEDs an inch apart on one. LEDs require a resistor or they will burn out.
I placed them with "4" together in series with one resistor for them. With this setup they will run on 9-12 volts (DC). With two "6" volt flashlight batteries these guys could run days non stop.
I built a 6x10 (inches that is) light fixture with a see through square lens for a cover and it works like a fluorescent light. One day they could replace the lights we use today! heres what they look like.



www.protolytes.com/led_lighting/

I found a 12 v solar panel I may set up outside and hook it up to a rechargeable 12 v battery for a power supply.

[Pharmer Phil]

Doug, excellent work!
At work, in previous years, we had small indicator lights in all the 460 three phase control cabinets. Although about cheaper than LED'S they burnt out at abot 3 per year.
One of the first things I did was order led replacements for every button, Of course, I got some feedback on the $$$ I spent (about 300.00) in all for each replacement plus a spare for each; however, even the first we installed 2 years ago, is still in service..all the "feedback" went silent.

[Pharmer Phil]

Oh, I have found these at Radio shack also, even cheaper than I purchased from Mcmaster Carr

[douglas]

I checked on the web and heard they can last up to TEN years if wired up correctly. They now have them for tail lights for cars and I did a search and found they make incandescent bulbs for household use

[Deleted]

Theres quite a buzz in the gardening world about these LEDs! I've been readin quite a bit about em and some claim LEDs could be the future of lighting.
Replacing even fluorescent as a cost effective lighting source.The ability to "mix" colors is what intrigues me!

Doug I have a question,...how much heat is produced by these lights?

[douglas]

LED's are cold and produce no heat whatsoever and thats the cool thing about them however if you push them beyond the limit as far as the voltage is concerned they will burn out making a closed circuit. Most of them are rated at about 2-3 volts and is why a resistor is required if you are running a higher current in them (DC). I been using a resistor with these color bands ( Yellow-purple-brown-gold). I placed a diode and three resistors together (Red-Red-Green) on some and tapped into a 120 outlet and had used them along a stairway to light the way leaving them on day and night. They cost alot cheaper then a 5 w night light

[Deleted]

So if there is no heat then they could be used for growing indoors?

[douglas]

I think you might be able to use the Ultra Violet type if you had enough of them, not sure


Almost forgot, I just ordered "50" Ultra Violets for about $5 on eBay, man I gotta slow down on that place

[douglas]

I came across these(24 leds) and they are about 1 1/2 watts to run compared to the 10-20 watt halogen bulbs

[Deleted]

How much light do these give off?

Lumens per watt.

[douglas]

I would say as much as a track light the kind they have at Home Depot or Lows.
I found two 6v rechargeable batteries and have them charging as I speak from the solar batteries, they will have about 16 amps of power to run the LED's I'm putting in the house.
I'm waiting on some super bright white LEDs to come in the mail so I can use them under my kitchen cabinets, right now the ones I have are pushing about 80 watts (halogen)

[douglas]

Well this is what I came up with, I installed one in the master bathroom, and two in the livingroom, and eight under the kitchen cabnets.

[nnbreeder]

When we swap l.e.d. with standard taillights in flatbed trks we often have to change the flasher unit cause it no longer draws enough juice to make them blink! Never thought about home use though. So how would you swap over a standard 110v system?

[douglas]

I would go with a small power pack you would plug in an outlet as long as it's DC current and that you have the correct voltage and resistor to run them. LED's push less then a watt. My oldest son runs 200 of them all night in the house on a 12v battery and hardly drains the battery at all I use solar power for a charging seystem....

[nnbreeder]

Just thought of another use too, a trouble light to keep behind the seat. Wouldnt drain the battery or burn out while trying to work. A solar panel for a fence charger should work too as they have either 6 or 12v back-up batteries in them depending on the model.

[douglas]

That would work good with a cluster of LED's in a group, this might even do the job I happened to phind this on the web.

I would use a 12v led battery for the fence setup because they charge much faster with solar panels, and use at least a 5 watt panel for the job. I find most of my panels on eBay at good prices.

[Deleted]

Hey Doug how many can you put in a cluster?

[douglas]

You can add as many as you want bro, my wife has about 60 above her bed using them for a reading light at night. They come in two different types, straight ahead light or the wide angle veiwing kind which are much better because the light spreads out at all angles.......