Build guide My Leaping Arch build with LDPE air seeder tube

Anything you would do different if you re-made them Mate? Going to build mine on the weekend.
 
From my perspective, build one first and be happy with it before mass producing. Cut your tube long enough for the lights + what ever distance the top part of the inspection T piece is. My first one I had strip at 2500mm and cut the tube at 2550. Missed the first few pixels as they were hidden in the top of the T piece. Fixed that for the remainder by cutting the tube at (I think) 2650mm (cut longer then you need and trim after). I went with the smaller tube, which meant I had to use the smaller T piece. issue with that was I was not able to push the pigtail out the back of the T piece in one piece, so I had to cut and solder each one.
Only other thing is definitely brace them. I didn't and they were just all over the place (as you can see here
View: https://youtu.be/E3P5hSarBEY?t=10m41s
).

Last thing I found it difficult to measure and cut with the tube bent. I would have *tried* to get the tube straight (leave it out for a few days flat in the sun?).

Brad
Handyman skills - zero
 
+1 on build 1 first to ensure its right for what you need.
Mine used 2.5m of strip, but the air seeder hose/tube was cut at 2.6m so that the lights were above the T-piece joins for the feet.
I did not use a brace and just used tent pegs through the feet to hold them in place - they didn't move all Dec. Most of my weather comes from the West which is the house direction, so my lawn is slightly protected, but build to meet your own conditions.
More info on mine here:
View: https://youtu.be/Cd0-0sAJ-pE?t=33s


Cheers Graham
 
Thank you for posting this, I have the air seeder hose and pixel strip but I had been struggling on how to build them.

How did you anchor the pixel strip inside each arch so it doesn't move?

Cheers,
Michael
 
I would have thought that the strips simply slide in, and are held in place by the plugs at the end with the aid of a cable tie... that’s how I planned it anyway.

We planned to put ours on top of a fence (1800mm high) so we will need to consider wether or not to go to bulbs as strips ‘may’ had a dead-spot underneath... don’t know yet.
 
Mine just sit in tube. The base feet where the pigtail come out off I made sure the pigtail is very sug so will not move, but a cable tie on the inside will also do the same, if not better trick.
 
Mine also just sit inside. Once put together there is no movement of the strip.
 
I ended up cutting some short 1cm pieces of some 15mm PVC pipe I had. Then pushed it inside the air seeder hose at each end. This presses against the pigtail tightly and keeps the pixel strip tight and against the inside of the arch of the air seeder tube. No hot spots, looks really good.
 
cdjazman said:
The PVC Pipe clips are slightly large but they are just to hold arch distance. I can always add some layers of electrical tape if I want to have them hold firm.


40mm pvc clip (20 per box)
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/122160471331
Click to expand...

I have started to make some of these ( Thanks @cdjazman )

I did find the 40mm clips are now at bunnings. Also I found if you cut a 15mm piece of the 32mm conduit you can fill the gap in where the 40mm clips wont close down to. Perfect fit
 
Just an add in I have found that an Ally strip 3mm X 10mm is great to stick the LED strip to. It can be bent to the shape of the tube & it just slides in, it can be secured at each end with a small wafer tek screw. Also available at Bunnings.. I used 10mm Ally tube as the spacer, no need to cut it just squash the ends & bolt it up tp the 40mm clips. :thumbsup:
 
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