# Homemade LED Spotlights



## creepingdth (Sep 10, 2009)

where do you get the led lights?


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

creepingdth said:


> where do you get the led lights?


I got mine off of ebay. Here is the seller I have used in the past, but look around. I would suggest finding ones that come with resistors, and are at least 10,000 mcd.


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## Big_B (Oct 20, 2008)

Just ordered some green ones and blue ones. I was looking into getting some led spots this year, and for only a few bucks these will probably work. Thanks!


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

Genius. What if you buy your LEDs and resistors seperate? What wattage should you be looking to match?


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

Also FIY you can take film capsules and create the came effect, only depending on the size of the hole you drill in the cap will depend on the amount of lighting.


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

ryanrgrnt said:


> Genius. What if you buy your LEDs and resistors seperate? What wattage should you be looking to match?


Here are some good resources:
Wolfstone 1
Wolfstone 2


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## Big_B (Oct 20, 2008)

nightrideproductions said:


> Here are some good resources:
> Wolfstone 1
> Wolfstone 2


This reminds me why I hated second semester physics. I think I'll just plug some into a wall wart and see what happens!


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

This is awesome. I'm running mine off of 9 volts tho, but this will be sweet. Thanks alot!


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## Plague (Aug 27, 2008)

nightrideproductions said:


> Here are some good resources:
> Wolfstone 1
> Wolfstone 2


That wolfstone site is quite helpful. Thanks for the heads up


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

I just bought a lot of mixed colors . I cant wait for them to get here. I will be using this tutorial to make my Led's. Thank you


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

Thought I should update the thread a little...

Since I have so many spotlights, and they have to cover such a large area, I decided to make 2 sub-stations. They are composed of speaker terminals (with the 12v power running through them) attached to the back of a tombstone. This allows me to neatly and easily connect up to 50 spotlights between the 2 sub-stations.

Here's a diagram of the setup:









These are the sub-stations (power will go to them from the splitter and through the gray cords near the bottom of the pic):









New power supply:









Finished spotlights:


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

what did you use as the splitter? 
At the Substations you just connected all of those wires to just the power supply?

are you only using that 12v supply to run both sub's?


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

Sleepersatty99,

Q: what did you use as the splitter? 
A: I ended up making 3 sub stations, but only ended up needing 2, so I used the extra one. The terminals are on the back of a rock to hide them. 
Pic below:









This splitter connects directly to the power supply:










Q: At the Substations you just connected all of those wires to just the power supply?
A: Kind of; there are two wires coming off of each sub-station. These connect to the splitter:









Closer view of how the 2 cords split to get power to each terminal:









Q: are you only using that 12v supply to run both sub's?
A: Yes. At 1.75 amps, it is powerful enough to run 50 of the spotlights (and then some)

Here is the entire setup:








Green: Wire from power supply to splitter's terminals
Blue: Wire from splitter's terminal to sub-station's terminals
Red: Wire from sub-station's terminal to LED spotlight

NOTE: Each "wire" in the diagram above actually represents 2 wires: a positive (red), and a negative (black).

If you have any more questions, please ask them.


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## Big_B (Oct 20, 2008)

Wow the spiltter setup is slick. I have already been thinking about how to wire up a bunch but still make it versatile. My LEDs got here yesterday and I played with one taped to a 9v battery just to see the pattern. I'm pretty impressed for the price.

Where did you source the thin stranded wire? Maybe I'll see if they have something like that at Frys.


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

I got the wire here. Looks like they're out of the kind I bought. I think it was on clearance, so that explains it.

And the terminals:
LINK 1
LINK 2


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

Some of that wire looks like speaker wire. am I right? Now im sure you dont leave the power supply outside?


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

Yep, I used mostly speaker wire, but also some misc. wire i had in my workshop.

The power supply will be outside, but i built a full enclosure for it.


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

OK cool. i have the terminals and a ton of wire.

How long did it take for you to get your LED's from the ebay guy?
I did order 105 lights from him he told me 15 days.

Now i have to get a power supply. do you think that a power supply from landscaping lights will work?


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

It took about a week and a half. They're coming from Hong Kong I believe.

If you are talking about the low voltage landscape lights (12 volts i think?), there should be no problem.

If you haven't soldered before, or not very often, it will be a pain to do, but will be worth it in the end. I went through 2 soldering guns during the project because I used them continuously. Remember to take breaks and give the guns time to cool down.


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

Oh so i guess im going to have to solder the resistors on. Yeah the only thing i soldered have been copper pipes. lol. I guess i will learn real quick then. 

Yeah the low voltage one. I have one of them with alot of wire that came with it.


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

Yep, solder the resistor to the LED, then solder each lead to the separate wires. Once you do a few, you'll get the hang of it. take my advice and try not to breathe the fumes though


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

Oh i see take all the fun out it. I'm looking forward to this project. i think i might even use some of these for OTHER HOLIDAY THAT USES LIGHTS LoL.

I will post pics of the finished lights if i have any other questions i will drop you a line. Thanks for your help so far.


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

Yeah, please keep me updated, and good luck!


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

Thanks. By the way where in Pa ru?


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

In the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area. Not sure if you're familiar with it.


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

yup i know where it is. I have to head up that way in Oct for work.


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

*Resistors to match?*

Ok, call me an idiot but I have a Q about matching resistors to ac adapters. You said you used 12 v ac-dc adapters. I have a couple of those. How many leds did you run off of 1 adapter? You said multiple, not sure how many. Also, what resistors did you have to buy to match? 1 wat, or not that much? 1/4 wat work? I'm buying the leds off ebay that come with resistors. I just need to know b4 i order. Thank you. Anybody else feel free to chime in.


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

ryanrgrnt,
The number of LEDs you can run off of one adapter will depend on the Amperage of the adapter. If you look at it, it should look something like this (but 12v instead of 24v):










As you can see, this adapter is rated at 100mA (AKA 100 milliAmps). Each LED needs 20 mA on average, so this adapter could only support 5 LEDs. If, however, your adapter is rated at 1A (AKA 1 amp), it will be able to support 50 LEDs (since 1000mA=1A).

As for the resistor you need, use the calculator here:
Wolfstone

If you're not sure what some values mean, click on the help button to the right of the input areas.


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

OK. Basically the resistors have to handle the leftover power that the leds cannot take. ex: 20 mA leds, 100mA ac adapter, if i had 4 leds, then the resistor(s) would have to handle 20mA so the leds didnt burn out?


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

No, the resistors limit the _voltage_ that reaches the LED. LEDs use a fraction of the voltage that comes from most power supplies, which is why you need the resistor. This is also why it's important to get the correct resistors for the power supply you're using.


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## Sleepersatty99 (Aug 16, 2010)

Just got my LED's yesterday. so looks like on monday i will be TRYING to do some soldering.


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

Ordered mine friday.... They were shipped Sat. Haven't gotten them yet.. I've been practicing on some radio shack leds and resistors. Sodering is not hard. Look on youtube. Type "how to solder leds". They have a bunch of info and vids. Very simple. But I recommend 2 things: A soldering iron thats like 40 volts or watever (not gun), and buy yourself one of those stands that have the alligator clips that hold your wires in place. I think like 30 bucks a lowes. Remember people, soldering releases fumes and smoke, always do in well ventalated areas, and solder contains lead (some are lead free) so always wash your hands after your done. No reason to go stupid over soldering =P


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## Big_B (Oct 20, 2008)

I got my leds pretty quickly from the ebay seller - I think it was about 6 days, which is pretty quick caming all the way from China I would think. Pic below of the package.

I absolutely hate working with copper pipe - wires are easier. The soldering is really easy becuase the wires on the led and resistor are so much smaller. The best thing to remember about soldering is that the wires need to heat up for the solder to stick. I've only done a few so far and played with them on a variety of wall warts, but the best method I've found is to trim the short wire from the led to about 1/4" to 1/2" from the led, and trim the resistor the same. Get the soldering iron hot and put a little bead of solder on it. With the iron in the stand hold the two parts together with about 1/8" overlap and touch the bead of solder. Give it a few seconds and then pull the two away and it should grab the solder. It will cool quickly and make a good connection.

Thanks for the info on the amperage - that is what I was going to ask about.


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

Sorry I was wrong about the ampage.... Its voltage. I use a Weller 30 volt iron and it works great. Also I find that Doorbell wire seems to be best. It's super small (not even as big as speaker wire) and it's extremely cheap. I paid like $25 for 500 ft.


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## Nepboard (Sep 21, 2009)

Great TUT!. The only thing I would say is remember that doorbell wire is solid core and not stranded. If bend sharply or multiple times it may break. But it is cheap. Great job.


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## ryanrgrnt (Sep 14, 2010)

> The only thing I would say is remember that doorbell wire is solid core and not stranded. If bend sharply or multiple times it may break. But it is cheap. Great job


I agree.If you plan on only using wire nuts so you can take wires apart after your haunt, once you get the doorbell wire so crimped you pretty much have to cut it.


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## forgedblades (Sep 20, 2010)

Out of curiosity (with reference to the very first posting) what size LED did you use? I've been looking at this and the other project and I don't know if it matters but use a 10MM or a 5MM LED? the 5MM are less expensive, but i don't know how much (if any) real difference there is in the kind/amount of light they would put off. (Having never done this maybe this is a ignorant question on my part. If so I apologize) looking at ebay for supplies I am seeing stated "lumionous Intensity" of 7,00 MCd on some 10MM and 10,000 on some of the 5MM.


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## nightrideproductions (Jun 1, 2008)

I believe I used 10 mm LEDs. The size is pretty much irrelevant when you use it for projects like this. The mcd is the important thing here. Mine were 10,000 mcd, and work good as spotlights.


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