Lighting DIY Mars to Cree Cob conversion

[Ripper]

@BigSm0, Yes that what happened with one of the Mars lights, the diodes started to not come on and it was a series of them too and it just kept getting worse and worse. I had theorized that I may have has that particular light hanging to close to the 400w cmh and the xtra heat caused the diodes to fry. The Mars fixtures have 4 drivers inside listed on label as IN: AC100V-240V (48/60HZ) OUT: DC55V-100V(0.55/0.6A), the 3 fans appear to have their on driver. I WAS thinking 4 72v 3590 crees, one for each driver at .55 for...idk 39 watts or so... ??? But that could be costly for a project you know ??? Truthfully I was hoping one vets of the rebuilt Mars would give me some suggestions as how I could get the maximum out of a minimum budget.

Your idea is great all you really need is the heatsink to replace the diode board and the shitty heatsink inside . ..the COB's at $36.00 each are not bad I paid 55 each for my first ones.. You will turn that light into a beast of a light..

 

[SpaceGhost]

Your idea is great all you really need is the heatsink to replace the diode board and the shitty heatsink inside . ..the COB's at $36.00 each are not bad I paid 55 each for my first ones.. You will turn that light into a beast of a light..

. @Ripper, Im still learning how to function on this thread so please bare with me. Yea I was looking at heatsink usa trying to find the right heatsink today, even called and spoke to them, the one I'm looking at seems like it may be a tad big to fit in the case though.

 

[Ripper]

. @Ripper, Im still learning how to function on this thread so please bare with me. Yea I was looking at heatsink usa trying to find the right heatsink today, even called and spoke to them, the one I'm looking at seems like it may be a tad big to fit in the case though.

I used 2 7 inch heatsinks for mine they were the 4.085 heatsinks

 

[SpaceGhost]

@Ripper, I measured the old diode board and I got roughly 8"1/8 wide and 15"1/2 long. How does that translate ???

 

[Ripper]

@Ripper, I measured the old diode board and I got roughly 8"1/8 wide and 15"1/2 long. How does that translate ???

They make a bunch of sizes how big is the opening at the bottom where the diodes stick out as there is a lip I know

 

[BigSm0]

The Mars heat sink is shit. It's like 1/4 inch thick. But you can use it and I would suggest doing cheaper cobs like the 2530's or citizen where if they burn out on the og sink your not out as much money.

 

[Baxterwolfe]

Im running 4 2530's in 2 of my converted Mars 300s and 1 that is running 5 2530's with no heat issues at all using the Mars heat sink. But like @BigSm0 was saying above if you run like 3590's you should deff upgrade the heat sink. Here is a shot with all 3 lights running a total of 13 cxa2530's, 3 5000k and 10 3000k. With all 3 lights I should be in the ballpark of 130 par watts total and 14.5 par watts a sq. ft.

 

[Ripper]

Im running 4 2530's in 2 of my converted Mars 300s and 1 that is running 5 2530's with no heat issues at all using the Mars heat sink. But like @BigSm0 was saying above if you run like 3590's you should deff upgrade the heat sink. Here is a shot with all 3 lights running a total of 13 cxa2530's, 3 5000k and 10 3000k. With all 3 lights I should be in the ballpark of 130 par watts total and 14.5 par watts a sq. ft.

View attachment 623666

Very nice .. I updated the heatsinks in all of mine as I am running the 3590's...

 

[Baxterwolfe]

@Ripper I'll post a pic in a little bit of how much veg growth I have had in the last 6 days as that pic was taken 8/23. My clones have rooted pretty well so its time to flip the girls into flower Im really excited to see ow well the converted lights perform. I have all 3 strains growing outdoor as well so that will be a nice comparison to see how well the 2530s do in flower. Do you have a grow going with your new converted lights yet? I also want to build a fully custom setup in the near future using Citizen CLU048s with HLG-120H-C700 drivers.

 

[Ripper]

@Ripper I'll post a pic in a little bit of how much veg growth I have had in the last 6 days as that pic was taken 8/23. My clones have rooted pretty well so its time to flip the girls into flower Im really excited to see ow well the converted lights perform. I have all 3 strains growing outdoor as well so that will be a nice comparison to see how well the 2530s do in flower. Do you have a grow going with your new converted lights yet?

Sweet I look forward to it ..