Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

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johpe
 
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Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

Post by johpe »

Hi

I've got two questions about the LPD8806 RGB LED Strip.

First I want to submerge it in my small pond, its about 2 feet deep, according to the IP code I should actually use IP67 or IP68 for that. So my question is if it would be possible to use your rgb strip for this (even though it is IP65 rated).

And the second question is how to power a full 5m reel? You have a 5v/2a power supply but according to your recommendations I should actually use a 5v/10a power supply to power 5m, where can I find one of those or is there another way of doing it?

Best Regards,
Johannes

sparr
 
Posts: 196
Joined: Tue Nov 04, 2008 5:21 pm

Re: Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

Post by sparr »

I am planning a submerged installation where the fragility of the strip is also a factor. My plan is to install it dry, then inject acrylic into the waterproof housing to encase the entire strip in a solid block of acrylic. I don't know how well this will work, just wanted to share the idea.

As to your power supply question, most of the people posting here are using ATX (computer) power supplies, which are often rated for 10-30A of 5V supply. You can buy dedicated 5V supplies on other sites as well, usually in slimmer form factors.

johpe
 
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Oct 24, 2011 4:57 pm

Re: Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

Post by johpe »

Searching around a little there are places that sell IP68 rated LED strips but most of them have unspecified chips (some have the tm1809 or ws2801 chips which also seem nice) but I think the LPD8806 seems like a good approach and would prefer to have that.

An ATX PSU seem like overkill to have running all the time only for the ledstrip, I've found some 5v/10a power supplies but they seem pretty expensive, isn't there any way to connect two 5v/4a or similar to the strip?

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

isn't there any way to connect two 5v/4a or similar to the strip?
You can power the strip in sections this way. The grounds should be common, but the separately powered 5v rails should be isolated from each other.

johpe
 
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Oct 24, 2011 4:57 pm

Re: Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

Post by johpe »

Ok thanks for the reply adafruit!

I've actually found a few 5v power supplies that can push between 12 and 30amp now which doesn't seem bad. But could I really feed, say, 20amp through a 10m led strip without melting it?

And what about the IP rating? Is it a major no-no putting the led strip in a tank of water or could it work, but you don't rate it higher to be on the safe side?

johpe
 
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Oct 24, 2011 4:57 pm

Re: Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

Post by johpe »

Come to think of it, I've also got another question, what kind of LEDs are in the strip, smd5050 or smd5060 or something totaly different?

sparr
 
Posts: 196
Joined: Tue Nov 04, 2008 5:21 pm

Re: Submerge a LPD8806 strip and its power draw

Post by sparr »

Support has stated elsewhere that they do not recommend running more than 5m of strips from a single power connection. If you want to run 10m it is recommended to simply connect Vcc and GND to both ends of the strip. If you want to run more than 10m then you need to break the Vcc and GND lines every 5-10m and connect them separately.

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