DIY Permanent Holiday LED Lights: The Install
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- Опубліковано 7 вер 2024
- I decided to install LED lights on our home that we could enjoy year round - This may turn into one of those crazy "sync to music" homes eventually, but initially I'm just doing the roofline and the peaks of our home.
What I found though is the learning curve for this project is VERY involved! There are so many things to know and a lot of trial and error and "buying things hoping they'll work"
So - I'm doing a series of videos to share what I have learned to help you do similar projects without all the pain and suffering I've been going through!
Links to the pieces I'm using in my set up are below. This is not a paid endorsement, the opinions in this video are my own - please do your own research.
NodeMCU ESP8266: www.amazon.com...
12v-5v Converter: www.amazon.com...
12v Power Supply (LED Strip): www.amazon.com...
12V Waterproof Addressable LED Strip: www.amazon.com...
Connecting Wires: www.amazon.com...
Flat Channels w/ Diffusers: www.amazon.com...
45-Degree Channels w/ Diffusers: www.amazon.com...
This is the best video for install I ever watched! Thank you !!!
Glad you like it!
Thank you Dad. Nice video cool idea clean install.
Love the uncovered AC connection...
As mentioned in the video, that was temporary only. Agreed that as shown it’s a very minor risk mounted 8 feet up on a wall in my garage.
This is a great video, showing a lot more than most videos. Thank you
My pleasure! Glad you found it helpful!
Thanks for this man! I was just thinking about piecing together my own setup. Very helpful!!
We just bought and sold this past summer so next year my install will be up, well phase one and two, managed to do some small installs inside on shelves and counters but they mostly just stay blue because my wife absolutely loves blue led on the shelves , especially on the back edge of glass floating shelves so they glow.
Using quini dig quad controllers can control more have fuses, and has wifi or ethernet to reprogram without disconnecting. It allows WLED APP to control your lights from a phone.
The chips that I have also are mobile enabled over Wi-Fi. I control the whole thing from my phone now. I’m looking at the digi quad as part of the next upgrade though as it enables a few more options that I want to use as I expand
Great video thanks!
Very nice! I just finished installing my first floor 1500 LED's and my ps and control board is a mess on my work bench, so great to see your mounting option to give me some ideas.
Very nice! My setup is 1600 LEDs on the roofline and another 600 in the peaks (530/200 logical). I just added some RGB Wi-Fi lights to the front of the garage that are programmable with some simple effects as well to unify the look.
I really like the color/effect pattern I had for Halloween - not fully in love with my Christmas setup but it’s a good start at least
@@AskDIYDad Well keep the vids coming!
I think in the off season I will build some prop with the 12mm LED's and get them ready for Christmas 2023. As you noted it is nice to have the strips permanently installed to use throughout the year and there is no having to put them up, take them down every again!
@@graphguy And there are so many holidays to celebrate - if you are using WLED, check out the Fireworks 1D effect.. I will DEFINITELY have my house lit up for the 4th... and New Years.. and St Patricks Day.... and Valentines Day... and Groundhog Day 🤪🤣
??? The mains terminals are exposed. They should always be covered even inside an enclosure. It is a major fire risk in that condition.
That was my first attempt years ago - that control box has been completely overhauled since then - all are now covered and in a waterproof plastic enclosure
Wow, nice, proffetional
Great start, but you need fuses asap! When an LED burns (not if, when) you’ll
Wish you had fuses.
Keep having fun but safety first!
Happy to add them! Can you point me to a resource to dig into that? Most of what I’ve seen with the need from fuses is in the context of the power flowing through the controller as opposed to a standalone power supply setup like mine.
Any idea on how the diffusion covers will hold up to UV and exposure? Looking to do something similar, but my eves are brown so will likely do some tape a channel with holes where lights clip in.
No idea.. I’ll definitely let you know though!
Good job! Power injection and connections are so time consuming
Excellent to see this video! I have been thinking of doing this for the last couple years, good to see it in real life instead of my head!!! Ha Ha! I subscribed and may ask some questions? Also where are you? I'm in Canada?
Are you asking me if you’re in Canada? 🤣 I’m just south of you in Minnesota.. which is practically the same thing. Feel free to ask if there’s something I can help with - I’m not an expert by any stretch of the imagination but I’ll happily share what I’ve learned. You can email me at askdiydad@gmail.com as well
Lol! Thank you.
Looks good but I have noticed one issue that I consider to be a huge safety issue, and that is the 110 power being very easy to touch. On the lower right corner for your AC, you might want to consider using Wago connectors so you can't accidentally touch or short the AC wiring. Also, the same wires on the power supply's should have some sort of plastic shield covering the 110 volt terminals. I do understand that you are going to make a cover for the whole board, but protecting the AC should be done so there is no chance of touching those AC wires. Not only is is a safety issue, but it is also a huge liability issue. Thanks for the video.
I don’t disagree! I have a plan to cover the entire thing and replace the terminal strip with a directly wired programmable timer switch. As it is, the current system is wired to an extension cord and mounted about 7 feet off the ground on my garage wall. So the risk, while present, is somewhat mitigated by an unpluggable source and the need for a ladder to access the install.
@@AskDIYDad Having exposed 120volt connectors in your garage isn't just a bad idea, that's a major safety hazard. This is not a "yeah, I should fix that" situation. It's a situation where you should unplug the system immediately and don't repower it until you've addressed it. DIYers have a responsibility to learn how to be safe and then do it.
@@AndrewMetcalfe Agreed - This is not a system I left plugged in when off and that particular issue was resolved by me several weeks ago - I just have not had time to put up the video showing the remediation as yet.
@@AskDIYDad With all due respect, you should not publish videos with setups like that. There are people who will follow your example.
Great job! get some inspiration here. I have a question for you, maybe a dumb. Can you connect a pixel string from middle of another string (that is being powered)? and still works?
thanks.
You can.. but it will treat the two legs the same from a pattern standpoint. You wouldn’t be able to control the offshoot separately.. does that make sense?
Heavily consider an esp32 like a digquad it can handle 4 data lines and its fused. Also consider a few relays and smaller power brick to leave the esp chips powered and the relays can power off and on the big power supplies when the LEDs are on. Wled supports that natively just have to specify the gpio pin the relay is on. Saves a ton of energy when idle.
Appreciate the insight! I have been looking at the Quad for the next evolution of this - part of the learning curve seems to be picking a path and then comparing it against other choice’s pros and cons.
I intend to hardwire this into my garage in a coming upgrade and add a digital timer switch to power down everything including the esp chips when the system is idle. Old school fix but then I know it’s truly off
Why these lights over the pixel lights?
Mainly because I wanted them to disappear when off and didn’t want the little dots from the bulbs. Purely an aesthetic choice on my part.
For those looking to purchase what he is calling conduit, they are called LED channels. Conduit is showing else completely different.
You’re completely right - I did swap that term a bit. I linked in the description in a way that doesn’t rely on me saying the right word in the moment 🤣
@@AskDIYDad I didn't recall you calling them that and know how frustrating it is searching for 'aluminum thing for LED strips' from my first project. 🤣
@@ugh635 Oh 100% and I appreciate the clarification! I did check out of curiosity and searching "LED Conduit" on Amazon DOES bring up LED Channels.. so I must not be the only one out there that thinks "It's like a cable conduit.. but for LEDs" hahahaha
Can you show how you connected strip to strip. I assume there is a break in the strips at every turn.
Hi! I used in-line crimp connectors either to go from Strip to 3-wire at the corners and connection points (www.amazon.com/dp/B09PR418WZ) or to connect directly from strip to strip (www.amazon.com/dp/B09BQMWNWD)
The direct strip-to-strip connectors fit in the angled channels but not in the flat ones. If you look closely you can see where the direct crimps are as they cast a small shadow but you have to know where they are.
The other thing, from my experience, is that you really only get one good crimp.. so you want to make sure your alignment is solid before crimping into the LED Strip - more than half the time I went for a second crimp or had to re-align I broke the strip.
Do you have a view of what this looks like at night? Im tempted to do my tol eaves the way you did up agaisnt the house under the eave
Yes! If you check my shorts there are vids from Halloween - or tell me what colors you want and I’ll go film one quick :)
See if this works.. Did this for my daughters 6th birthday..
ua-cam.com/users/shorts3T0jxyE2HD0?feature=share
@@AskDIYDad looks awesome. Appreciate you making the video
Would it be possible to get a wiring diagram? I am about to move into a house and this is one of those projects the wife wants done by Christmas next year.
See if these help:
The Basics - ua-cam.com/video/XM7CTy21Ddk/v-deo.html
Planning the Install - ua-cam.com/video/Uu-y3ZDzu1k/v-deo.html
With the chip in the garage, I assume distamce between esp8266 and 1st led is atleast 20 ft, did u not experience data loss?
No noticeable loss, no. The distance from chip to first led I’d estimate at about 25’ by the time you go up and then over and out. 18ga wire. But I guess.. I’m not doing any crazy matrix panels or anything.
The only issue I’ve encountered occasionally is a sync delay between the chips, but that’s due to somewhat sketchy Wi-Fi in my garage
Led light strips don’t last more than a year or two in extreme cold. Pixel lights are more durable. I am interested in how long your install lasts.
I will definitely let you all know as I maintain it - see what kind of longevity we get out of it :)
I'd be interested to see how you calculated your power needs, and all the planning that went into this.
Check the playlist - there’s a planning video :) - that being said I know I’m over-provisioning for my actual needs and could have probably run more than one injection wire set per channel of my power supply.. but it wasn’t cost prohibitive to do it this way and keep it simple.
I figured injection points about every 50’ based on testing how far I could go before the strips started fade and flicker
@@AskDIYDad I still wish I could do my house for the $400 you did yours for. I'm over $600 just for the LED strips for what I'm looking to do (estimated).
@@jeffh4505 I'm lucky in that my roof line is pretty simple and contained - my home is a 4-level split but it presents from the street as a smallish rambler. I considered trying to outline the various rook peaks but as you can see in the planning video from the aerial shot that would have been WAY more expensive.
My install is simplistic but looks great and already has my neighbors planning their own. I think it was worth it at least for my investment level - I normally strongly dislike lighting houses for Christmas before Thanksgiving but I will admit that my lights have been on far more evenings than not in a "celebrate the snow" color pattern.. hah
@@AskDIYDad I'm guestimating I have 200' of roofline alone, and that's only doing the front and one end of my house. That doesn't include the openings on my front porch that I'd like to also do, that will add another 200' (again, estimating for now). It all adds up quick!
@@jeffh4505 Agreed. It's not cheap (but certainly far cheaper to DIY than to pay to have it done). Maybe consider doing it in phases?
Please help I was trying to make this It's not working.
I have connected NodeMCU v3 ESP8266 data 1 > data input WS2812B and that's all but the strip doesn't react for some reason.
Wiring is good for sure, the strip is working with Arduino but not with ESP8266
The blue LED on NodeMCU v3 ESP8266 is lighted up.
I tried to connect NodeMCU v3 ESP8266 to my phone hotspot and it did connect.
I can turn off and on the esp8266 but LED strips will reponse HELLPP!
Hi Gerry - If you are running a separate power supply you need to run a common ground. You can't just run a data line from the ESP8266.
Run a wire from the GND pin on the ESP8266 to the White wire on the LED Strip. That should allow the chip to talk to the LEDs
I hope you don't mind but i think i have to steal this set up. I have pretty much the same equipment for my house the only thing i didn't have for my set up are the terminal strips. and i do like the 14/2 solid wire being used for power. if it can handle 120v it can handle 12v lol I feel like i got the best info from 2 of your videos than like the 100 that ive watched on UA-cam about this stuff. DR.ZZs has some GREAT info but i feel like no one really explained the part of if you got with 12v you can go much longer before needing an injection point vs. 5v. so i switched my 5v LEDs out for 12v. One thing i dont think you showed was how you connected your strands of leds together. did you solder them?
I used plastic crimp connectors like this to connect the strips together - and a variation to connect to bridging wires when I needed to jump from peak to peak or go around a 90 degree corner
RGBZONE 10Pcs LED Strip Connectors 3 Pin Gapless Solderless Quick Connector for 10mm Waterproof and Non-Waterproof WS2811 WS2812B LED Strip Lights (3pin Strip to Strip) a.co/d/7sYNOEy
@@AskDIYDad Oh ok i have those! i just didnt think they would fit in the diffuser channel. i havent tried that part yet but that makes life a lot easier not having to solder them and such.
@@joelwerline3294 They don't fit in the flat low-profile channels but they do fit in the 45-degree angled channels. I believe I only had one place where the flat channels needed to go beyond 16' and in that instance I gapped the diffuser on either side of the crimp connector. I prefer the aesthetic of the angled channels unless you're mounting them on the underside of a surface pointing down like in the peaks. I may swap my run of vertically mounted flat channels for angled ones next summer.
I want to add - you can see where the crimps are if you look for them because even though they're clear they cast a shadow so you have a subtle darker space in the run that you would not have if you soldered. I just.. personally.. kinda stink at soldering 🤣
Also - you only really get one shot at crimping so make sure they are lined up right before you press them closed. My experience with re-crimping is that you break the strip about half the time
I did my permanent LED over last week, did you think about using a Digiquad?
I discovered the digiquad late in my exploration and already had the 8266s in hand. I plan to look into the quad for the next evolution/expansion
@@AskDIYDad Funny, I was almost in the same boat. I really love this stuff
The string lights adorn your house and look cool, your video shots are thorough and the products on display are appealing. I really like your work and I have an innovative LED string light. Are you interested in cooperation? Sincere inquiry.
Email me - askdiydad @ gmail . com
Any review or feedback would be straight forward and honest. I can promise, though, to give you a chance to respond to any major concerns with the product before anything is published to the platform
Put your 120V junctions in a box please. This is not safe at all.
Agreed! I believe I mentioned that I would be boxing the whole setup when I replace the extension cord currently feeding it with switch and hardwire into the garage electric.
As it is this is about 7 and a half feet off the ground so the risk is minimized, but I agree that it’s not safe the way it currently sits
All this video but not a night view with light on 😂
Plenty of those in my shorts
How about I buy your plane ticket to Las Vegas to come help me complete this project. I’ll buy all the material and do all the work…just need supervision and know how. Yes…I’m serious.
Hah! Free trip to Vegas to install some LEDs.. I'd actually be very tempted to accept if I wasn't positive that my family would change the locks while I was gone.
Dude with all the new led lights coming out, there is NO REASON for all that garbage!
The Tech has come a long way in the last two years