Repairs to smart pixel strips

ShellNZ said:
I also use clear 12.7mm heatshrink. I dont just put a dab of silicon in there, I put oodles in there so when I heat it the silicon oozes out the sides :) That way I know its sealed :)
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Correct you need to put in enough silicone so it comes out when you shrink the tube, also I find it best to that apply more silicone to the side you are shrinking first, this way as you shrink all the way around and then along the tube the silicone then gets spread across the whole join making an impervious seal
 
(This will be my first year with pixels, and I have strips, so sorry for all the clarifications)


So lets say my strip of 50 pixels has the first 22 working, and then the rest are dark. You could cut out the 22nd and 23rd pixels (the last one that was working and the first one that wasn't working), and take a new section of two pixels and place it in between. Right so far?


Then you are putting two sections of heat shrink tubing on, one to cover each cut. Then solder the strips into place, gob on the silicone in 4 places (that is both ends of each piece of shrink tubing and shrink them up.


Is that what you are saying? I made the assumption above that the original waterproof sheathing over the strip was kept on the new mini 2-pixel section that was spliced in.


Does anyone have a picture of their end handiwork? That might help clear some things up for me.
 
toozie, the original silicon is kept on the small 2pixel piece, you are just putting blobs of silicon over the 2 joins as you said and then clear heatshrinking over the 2 joins.

You can also add the 2px section to the end of the full length of strip, you will still have 2 joins (one in middle, one at end join) but if theres any problems with it when its mounted you know the added bit is at the end rather than looking on the roof for where you joined "that bit". Just a thought as I have done that before :)
 
Sounds good. Thanks for the clarity.


All things considered (properly stored and weight restrained), how often are you having to fix pixels?
 
I've just got my old 2811 strip re-wired so I can attach it to my controller. I now know that it is only the red that is not working on the one pixel that is playing up. Blue, green and funnily enough white all still work. Does this mean I should still take out the pixel before it or does it mean the problem is in the pixel playing up as there is only one colour out.

I still figure it can't be fixed.

I just checked again and it does look a bit blue when on white, so obviously the red is required to get pure white.
 
Thought I would give it a crack whilst waiting. Didn't cut out the pixel before as it went against the fiscally challenged (tight) part of my personality. Thought if worst come to worst I could cut it out later and I just got more practice joining strip. Anyway it was a lot easier than I thought. Didn't take long and it all works. It's easy peoples, don't be scared to give it a crack.

Haven't heatshrinked it yet just in case someone tells me to take out the pixel in front.
 
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