If you are controlling a pair of drivers, you want 50K pots.
The formula is 100K/(number of drivers)
Cheers
G
I am planning to upgrade my led light which will require an additional driver. The plan was to operate both drivers using a 100k dual. Will that be sufficient?
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Mine is set up with 2x 100K pots.
Then I figured out I could have used a single 50K 
Cheers
G
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@ChemicalDependant Yes it clicks at very start when you turn it on
If I showed you guys how I fitted the wire to the pot you should have fit , I used a connector block and Jamed the prongs into block and then wired from block to cable lol
Rule number one , don’t touch the block haha , I have lots of these rules it seams
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I have no problem with ‘farmer engineering’ so long as it holds together…
Cheers
G
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So, my lights are flickering, pretty sure it is my crappy soldering on the potentiometer. Is there a way I can just do away with dimming and the flickering by eliminating it all together? I rarely dim them down anyway.
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Yes just remove the potentiometer and tape the 2 ends up separately. Means your lights will run on full from now on
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Thanks, I knew there had to be a way.
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Keep in mind that the driver isn’t to big for the amount of strips your running
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I was talking to a buddy recently who wanted to DIY but save some cash compared to previous setups, so I spitballed a new low cost build that should really pump out the photons. Somebody please check my math.
To outfit a 4x4 for veg and flowering, it’s two (2) separate fixtures, each with these parts:
- 5x Bridgelux EB3 HO series BXEB-L1120Z-30E8000-C-D3
- 1x MeanWell HLG-240H-42A
- 2x 20" end lengths 1x1x1/8" thick square or radiused corner aluminum angle from Grainger
- 5x 46" (ish) rib lengths 1x1x1/8" thick square or radiused corner aluminum angle from Grainger - this length is worth measuring first to make sure it fits the strips and has enough length on each end to bolt up to the end pieces without hitting the strips.
- 1" double sided thermal tape to attach strips to 46" angles
- Metal screws & nuts (or rivets if you want something permanent) to attach ribs and ends together
- Plastic m3 screws & nuts to hold strips to ribs until thermal tape cures.
- Single conductor 18-20AWG doorbell wire & 5-position wagos - wire each fixture’s 5x strips in parallel to the driver
- Plug & maybe a quick disconnect
For less than $500 delivered to outfit a 4x4, you get a lot of output in a great form factor, dimmable from about 100w to around 260-275w on each driver for total output of somewhere between about 520-550w, depending on how much factory overclock the drivers have. This should be hung no closer than 12" above the top of your canopy when run at full blast.
The build is super easy. Only need a drill and drill bit, a hack saw to cut the metal, and maybe a file or sandpaper to deburr your cuts and drill holes.
The only really critical thing to get right with these HO strips is to make sure they are well-mated to the aluminum angle with the double-sided thermal tape and fastened with the plastic nuts/bolts so they don’t come off. You can’t skimp on cooling them, but the angle aluminum is sufficient to heatsink them if mated properly.
Here’s the spec sheets on the HO strips and the 240H driver series.
DS134 Bridgelux EB Series Gen3 High Output Strips Data Sheet 20200612 Rev A.pdf (1.1 MB)
MeanWell HLG-240H Driver Series Specs.pdf (227.0 KB)
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If you haven’t removed the wires from the pot, what you can do is reheat your soldering iron. Once it is hot, put a little solder on the tip and let it flow. Wipe that on a damp paper towel and put the tip against the pot lug and wire. You should see the solder on the lug/wire stay to soften. Feed your solder wire between the tip and lug, solder should flow. This should take no more than 30 seconds at the most. Don’t super heat the lug as that can potentially burn up the potentiometer.
Edit: putting solder on the tip allows for optimal heat transfer to whatever you are soldering.
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Consider 4 of those ho strips per your driver and they should be plenty happy considering some heatsinking like your planning as you can over drive them almost 200% and with 4 your only talking 110-115% off said 240driver maxed out.
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Also potentiometers do fail but as suggested you can just desolder it.
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Does anybody have a recommendation for a normal input voltage (90-300v or whatever) 25-50w bluetooth or wifi dimmable driver to power two 4ft Bridgelux EB3 strips? One that is actually available to purchase online without shipping overseas.
I want to build a home lighting fixture I can dim without physical access to it, as I can’t wire a pot.
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A Bluefish Mini with with MeanWell LDD boards?
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I appreciate the suggestion, but I was looking for something both less expensive and more streamlined. I know there are drivers that have BT or wifi control capability, but I don’t know of any in my wattage range and for cheap…
Here are some offerings from MeanWell that are close, but no cigar:
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Hey @Mr.Sparkle, on Future Electronics I see
BXEB-L0280F-35G1000-H-C3 (280mm) in packs of 1 and 200 (minimum 2000)
BXEB-L0560F-35G2000-H-C3 (560mm) in packs of 1 and 200
Are these the ones you were looking for? Seems they are available in small quantities now.
So this is the new cool stuff? I might need to build a light in the near future.
Going through this thread again I wonder how many of these would be good for 2x2? 4 or 5 of the 560mm? (Edit: probably rather 8–9, I got that confused with the HO version)
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yeah noticed you could “preorder” on future though estimated arrival date is some time in fall, unless that has changed
…never mind looks like they have some stock good spot… now do i put in a order when i have no “need” to upgrade.
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Around 8 will do and over driving them at around 140-150%
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