Just want to ask out there, with nano tuners now shut down, does anyone know where to get the LED upgrade kit for a 12g JBJ hood? We are not DIY people, if someone wants to help us, I am cool with that but this is not something I would do on my own. Any input would be appreciated.
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12g nano hood upgrade
- Thread starter mnat
- Start date
The loss of nano tuners was a huge blow to the nano world. I really wanted to get one of their duo 700 driver enclosures for my Biocube. 
I still have to do my Biocube hood and install my heatsink and LEDs. I got my driver, heat sink and LEDs from RapidLED. They now have plug and play LEDs that you literally just screw down to the heat sink and plug the LEDs in, no soldering required.
There is another site that does LEDs but I can't think of it off the top of my head.
Maybe we can get together and have a hood mod party!
I still have to do my Biocube hood and install my heatsink and LEDs. I got my driver, heat sink and LEDs from RapidLED. They now have plug and play LEDs that you literally just screw down to the heat sink and plug the LEDs in, no soldering required.
There is another site that does LEDs but I can't think of it off the top of my head.
Maybe we can get together and have a hood mod party!
My question for you is, how much control do you want over the lights? Do you want to just adjust the brightness (only need one driver) or be able to dial in the color temp (would require two drivers) like you can with the AI's?
You are going to need dimmable driver(s) and unless you have, or plan on adding a controller, the LEDs will just be on/off without any ramping ability. Without a controller you will still be able to tune the intensity (with one driver) and color (with two drivers) manually.
You are going to need dimmable driver(s) and unless you have, or plan on adding a controller, the LEDs will just be on/off without any ramping ability. Without a controller you will still be able to tune the intensity (with one driver) and color (with two drivers) manually.
I am looking around now and that is what I am finding out. Rapid LED sells a kit for the biocube 14 http://www.rapidled.com/biocube-14/ so I might drop them a line to see if it would fit in the JBJ 12 or if it is too tight of a fit.
I want dimmability because leds, especially crees, in a 12g would be really damaging considering I am upgrading from PC lighting. I would probably want 2 channels of dimmability but could live with one. I will have to take the controller into account and which one I would want (and pay for). This thing could get expensive.
I have read that the Eco exotic strips can fit in the 12g as well, might have to do some more research on them. Not the stunner strips, but their actual fixture which you can put 2 of their full powered strips in and a stunner for some color.
Originally we were going to break this tank down, but with all the small gobies and small shrimp which we love, we can't get rid of it.
I want dimmability because leds, especially crees, in a 12g would be really damaging considering I am upgrading from PC lighting. I would probably want 2 channels of dimmability but could live with one. I will have to take the controller into account and which one I would want (and pay for). This thing could get expensive.
I have read that the Eco exotic strips can fit in the 12g as well, might have to do some more research on them. Not the stunner strips, but their actual fixture which you can put 2 of their full powered strips in and a stunner for some color.
Originally we were going to break this tank down, but with all the small gobies and small shrimp which we love, we can't get rid of it.
I've actually contacted both ecoexotic & rapid LED about those 2 things you're talking about. they both will fit in the NC12 hood once it's gutted(reflector as well). the BC14 kit will fit but the predrilled heatsink holes just wont match up, whuich isn't a big deal.
imo for the $ the rapidLED route is your best bet. you'll get more light for your $. once you add up 2 panorama pro modules plue dual dimmers + power you're looking at well over 200$ vs the 149ish you spend @ rapid LED. I currently have a 24x3W setup(Eshine) hanging high over my 12G NC. I went directly from PCs to the LEDs on 10%white 20% blue without any bleaching of my hammer, zoos, frogspawn, acans, & even the candy canes just make sure you start out LOW. Hope this helps.
My brother has done a lot of research on this. He's built his nano hood with all Cree 3w LED's, and I had him build a 90 LED setup for my tank, in two separate boxes of 45 LED's with 3 colors independently controlled. I purchased those from Aquastyleonline, just to save cost. Honestly, he's found that the efficiency of some of the LED's aren't that great. He built one recently for another nano reefer using Steve's LED's. Website is stevesleds.com. Steve was extremely helpful in the build. We've noticed that the intensity of light at 3/4 power with Steves, equals the Cree Leds he purchased for his own nano when they're run at 100%. So, for power consumption, it's a benefit. If you have any questions on anything, he's more than happy to help you out (I've already spoken with him). Just PM me and I'll shoot you his email and #.
Heat is the main reason I'm doing the switch on the Biocube. PCs get hot. LEDs running at 20-30% barely get warm.
The DA ALC works with 0-10v input dimmable drivers. Apex works with PWM drivers.
Thanks for the info, so for another $75.00 for the ALC I could do it. Would have been cheaper to go witht he Apex in the first place.
The reason we are looking to upgrade is that we are going to keep the tank for a long time. The corals we have in there right now are very simple, but it would be nice to have a little reef that I could do anything in. As Brian alluded to, the heat in the PCs is annoying and also the fact you have to replace them every 6 months is annoying. I figure with the LEDs it will give me more flexibility with the tank while cutting down maintanence and making this tank easy to run which will be the goal.
Edwardw771
NJRC Member
Let me know what you come up with on this one Mike I have a 12 g jbj
I have a 24 cube I'd like to Retro to LEDs.
Found this thread to be helpful...
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=241228
Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk
Found this thread to be helpful...
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=241228
Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk
Ok so I am going to throw some stuff up here, let me know what you guys think. I have some holes in here so I am going to need those filled in.
Rapid Led Kit:
Solderless build with one dimmable driver: $145
http://www.rapidled.com/plug-and-play-biocube-14-dimmable-retrofit-kit/
Solderless build with two dimmable drivers: $175
http://www.rapidled.com/plug-and-play-biocube-14-retrofit-kit-with-two-dimmable-drivers/
Pros: Can have one or two drivers, no soldering at all, might have more choice as far as LED colors and temps go, can fit right in
Cons: does not exactly line up will have to figure that out, needs a controller
What controller would you go with??? I know nothing about controllers as I don't own one and have never even looked into them. Really clueless on what I would need.
Total cots: ??? Depends on the controller
Eco Exotic:
(Not quite sure what I need here, just throwing it up)
2 Panorama pro LED Modules: $188
Reflector (not sure if this is needed) $17
Rapid Led Kit:
Solderless build with one dimmable driver: $145
http://www.rapidled.com/plug-and-play-biocube-14-dimmable-retrofit-kit/
Solderless build with two dimmable drivers: $175
http://www.rapidled.com/plug-and-play-biocube-14-retrofit-kit-with-two-dimmable-drivers/
Pros: Can have one or two drivers, no soldering at all, might have more choice as far as LED colors and temps go, can fit right in
Cons: does not exactly line up will have to figure that out, needs a controller
What controller would you go with??? I know nothing about controllers as I don't own one and have never even looked into them. Really clueless on what I would need.
Total cots: ??? Depends on the controller
Eco Exotic:
(Not quite sure what I need here, just throwing it up)
2 Panorama pro LED Modules: $188
Reflector (not sure if this is needed) $17
24V 60 Watt Transformer for Stunner & Panorama Pro (not sure) $37
3-Way Splitter $9
Inline LED Dimmer 12-24 volt $15
Optional Stunner strip $50
Pros: Easy construction, fits in the hood with some modification, easily swap out strips for colors, known costs
Cons: Expensive, only one dimmer which is incredibly simple, again some mod work to get into the hood.
Total Cost: $316 with the stunner strip and $266 without a stunner strip.
DIY LED setup: Probably cheaper but there is no way on earth that I could put something together. I could pay someone to do it for me, but then I will probably wind up paying the same for someone to build it and if they mess up it could light my house on fire.
3-Way Splitter $9
Inline LED Dimmer 12-24 volt $15
Optional Stunner strip $50
Pros: Easy construction, fits in the hood with some modification, easily swap out strips for colors, known costs
Cons: Expensive, only one dimmer which is incredibly simple, again some mod work to get into the hood.
Total Cost: $316 with the stunner strip and $266 without a stunner strip.
DIY LED setup: Probably cheaper but there is no way on earth that I could put something together. I could pay someone to do it for me, but then I will probably wind up paying the same for someone to build it and if they mess up it could light my house on fire.
While it's nice that they are "plug and play", if I did go that option, it would be with a single driver. Reason being is that the LEDs all plug into one of two "boards" and the wires are not long enough to be plugged into one board and reach the other side of the heatsink. You wouldn't be able to run a white channel and a blue channel. It would be a mix of blue/white and would be more of a right side / left side type of control. So you would alternate the white/blue on each board and dim them all as a unit with one driver.
Controller wise, I have a RKL($119) and ALC($80) module to run my biocube, both of which you can pickup a little cheaper during a group buy.
Controller wise, I have a RKL($119) and ALC($80) module to run my biocube, both of which you can pickup a little cheaper during a group buy.
Mike, Brian jumped in before me since his post was short and sweet. But if you know me, that's not how I roll.
One thing you should know about those Rapid LED kits... they give you the choice of either ELN-60-48P or ELN-60-48D drivers.
The difference between these two is the type of signal that you get from whichever controller you select. P is for Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) signal and D is for Analog (0-10v) signal. This is very important because although it can work with mixed signal types (sometimes) it usually won't work correctly. What I mean by that is you may have it set to 30%... but it's actually working at something like 27%. Not a big deal, but the ratio is on a curve and you could be up to around 20% off at some settings.
As for a controller... if you really want to go cheap... you can just buy this:http://www.rapidled.com/diy-2-color-dimming-kit/
...And select the ELN-60-48D drivers with your order. This is a manual dimmer where you just turn the knobs to adjust intensity for either white or blue separately (if you setup each color on a separate driver/channel). You will likely need to also have to have timers for the power cords unless you want to turn them on/off every day/night by hand. You may already have your current lights on a timer though, so no big change.
If you want/need to get something more automated, you'll want to look into an RKL, Apex Jr, Profilux, or Reef Angel. Apex and Profilux would need certain accessories, Reef Angel comes with 2 PWM channels on the basic kit... so you'd select the ELN-60-48P drivers. (I think Apex is an analog signal with the VDM Module you would need... and Profilux is the same if I'm not mistaken.)
If you already have an Apex, I think the VDM module to control dimming is only like $80.
The basic Reef Angel kit is $220 or $240, depending on which signal type you choose. This would come with the following (my comments after each item):
- Head Unit (comes preloaded with basic needs that would be perfect for a nano... but you can fully customize it if you want to)
- Relay Box (8 controllable power outlets)
- Built-in Signal Booster (for PWM signal)
- HDDB15 Communication Cable (connects the Head Unit to the Relay Box)
- PH Probe
- Waterproof Temperature Sensor (you can add up to 2 more at $9 extra each)
- 2x Float Switch (with dedicated connectors on Head Unit to setup an ATO)
- USB-TTL converter cable (connects the Head Unit to your computer to upload the code)
There are other accessories that you can buy separately also, like a salinity probe, ORP probe, dosing pumps, buzzers (to warn you of whatever you want), WiFi attachment, and even VorTech modules to control VorTech pumps and/or Radion LED's. Of course all these bells and whistles will add hundreds more to the cost... but the basic kit would be enough.
Let me know if you want more info on Reef Angel, I have it and can explain almost anything about it.
One thing you should know about those Rapid LED kits... they give you the choice of either ELN-60-48P or ELN-60-48D drivers.
The difference between these two is the type of signal that you get from whichever controller you select. P is for Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) signal and D is for Analog (0-10v) signal. This is very important because although it can work with mixed signal types (sometimes) it usually won't work correctly. What I mean by that is you may have it set to 30%... but it's actually working at something like 27%. Not a big deal, but the ratio is on a curve and you could be up to around 20% off at some settings.
As for a controller... if you really want to go cheap... you can just buy this:http://www.rapidled.com/diy-2-color-dimming-kit/
...And select the ELN-60-48D drivers with your order. This is a manual dimmer where you just turn the knobs to adjust intensity for either white or blue separately (if you setup each color on a separate driver/channel). You will likely need to also have to have timers for the power cords unless you want to turn them on/off every day/night by hand. You may already have your current lights on a timer though, so no big change.
If you want/need to get something more automated, you'll want to look into an RKL, Apex Jr, Profilux, or Reef Angel. Apex and Profilux would need certain accessories, Reef Angel comes with 2 PWM channels on the basic kit... so you'd select the ELN-60-48P drivers. (I think Apex is an analog signal with the VDM Module you would need... and Profilux is the same if I'm not mistaken.)
If you already have an Apex, I think the VDM module to control dimming is only like $80.
The basic Reef Angel kit is $220 or $240, depending on which signal type you choose. This would come with the following (my comments after each item):
- Head Unit (comes preloaded with basic needs that would be perfect for a nano... but you can fully customize it if you want to)
- Relay Box (8 controllable power outlets)
- Built-in Signal Booster (for PWM signal)
- HDDB15 Communication Cable (connects the Head Unit to the Relay Box)
- PH Probe
- Waterproof Temperature Sensor (you can add up to 2 more at $9 extra each)
- 2x Float Switch (with dedicated connectors on Head Unit to setup an ATO)
- USB-TTL converter cable (connects the Head Unit to your computer to upload the code)
There are other accessories that you can buy separately also, like a salinity probe, ORP probe, dosing pumps, buzzers (to warn you of whatever you want), WiFi attachment, and even VorTech modules to control VorTech pumps and/or Radion LED's. Of course all these bells and whistles will add hundreds more to the cost... but the basic kit would be enough.
Let me know if you want more info on Reef Angel, I have it and can explain almost anything about it.