Permanent Holiday Lights 1 Year Update

[@reedrobb]

Thanks for these videos. I think I’ll tackle this when the weather gets better this year. I see this strand company has some 24v LEDs available and they have a very nice waterproof injection cable available. Also, I found some metal flashing today at home depot that appears to conceal the light wiring but will hang down an inch or so from my eaves. I too would worry about the Swallows, wasps and critters nesting in those open channels. We have been getting the nastiest stink bugs the last few years. Massive infestation. They would love those hiding spots. Thanks again.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for taking time to comment. 24v would be a good option I think. So far as the bugs, just stay on top of it. I’m sure a pest guy could spray in there quarterly and probably keep them at bay.

[@kenm8162]

Thanks for posting a 1yr update.. Just watched your install a few days ago in research for my summer project.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Nice! Will be a great project for summer!

[@scottrentfrow5964]

I did the exact same project and looks amazing. Thanks for all your knowledge and mad skills lol.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hahaha, thx Amigo! Appreciate the kind words. Glad to help out! 🤘

[@ericwerner2109]

Definitely inspiring me to take on this project. Between the first video and this one, you make it look quite easy. So I know to allocate 1.5x the amount of time that I THINK it will take. ;) Hoping to have mine done by the time my son's high school graduation comes around, so I can display school colors around that time.

[@DadDoingStuff]

That’s a great idea. So many cool use cases!

[@ericwerner2109]

@@DadDoingStuff My wife surprised me for my birthday, and started buying the components needed here. I've just about got the shopping list done, but I'm curious about your 50A breaker. Where did you find that one, or which brand is it? I'll I'm coming up with right now is the common household switch circuit breaker.

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@ericwerner2109 Great question. I ended up getting it at the auto parts store. www.oreillyauto.com/detail/c/blister-pack/lighting---electrical/fuses---flashers/circuit-breaker--universal-/7ecadf681588/littelfuse-blister-pack-50-amp-circuit-breaker/lit3/813050bp?pos=0

[@michaelcardoza9371]

Great Video. Can't wait to do this same thing to my own future home.

[@DadDoingStuff]

I know a guy that could help you.

[@brianm8943]

I started out with 5V as well and quickly realized the same issue with the gauge of wire. Ended up going with 24v LEDs instead.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Yeah 24v is probably really ideal. Are you able to use 18awg everywhere?

[@brianm8943]

I still used 16awg just to be safe. Furthest injection point is close to 80ft from power supply.

[@MattWells0]

Awesome to see your update, any chance that we might see even more stuff for Christmas like we talked about? You're control box looks way smarter than mine do xD love the ferrels on all your wires

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hi Matt. Possibly, but we also have a lot of travel coming up in December, so it will be all based on how much time I can dedicate. Appreciate you watching and the feedback!

[@taildragger77DK]

Thank You so much!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Happy to help!

[@snjairbeater]

What brand and model is your enclosure and backboard? It looks very nice.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Links to everything here. www.daddoingstuff.com/ledprojects

[@Wolf-3.5.9]

Where did you find the great looking box for your setup?

[@DadDoingStuff]

amzn.to/3URm7ej

[@snjairbeater]

I just asked the very same question. 🙂

[@Jacquesous]

Can you give us links on the items? Like the esp32, the board it is mounted to, the power supply, the cables, the case, how it’s mounted, the connectors and anything else that cost money. All of that stuff. Also, is there a way to prepare the channels without a drill press and a table saw?

[@DadDoingStuff]

If you go to my original video I have links to everything, how I mounted it, etc… kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHbLlGRobZh3hNU Regarding the channels, a drill press is for sure going to be the easiest. I suppose you could hand drill them but you would likely get pretty inconsistent results. To avoid the table saw part (which makes a pretty big mess, BTW) you might look for vinyl J channel. I’ve had a lot of viewers comment that they used J channel instead of the gutter downspouts like I did. J channel wouldn’t require any ripping on a saw. There not a lot of J channel available to me out here where I live, but it’s pretty common in other parts of the country.

[@devhammer]

One thing I'd consider if you don't have a drill press is making a jig to drill the holes. You could make a jig in a U shape the width of the vinyl channel, with the hole size to be drilled in the flat of the U, with a pin, peg, or dowel of the same size spaced the distance you want your holes apart. Then, once you've drilled your first hole, you can just drop the jig pin in the freshly-drilled hole, and drill your next hole via the jig. Rinse and repeat down the channel.

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@devhammer That's a fantastic idea! I almost made something similar before I got my hands on the drill press.

[@devhammer]

@ Definitely can’t take any credit for the idea. Inspired by folks like Izzy Swan, who is an absolute genius when it comes to jigs and mechanisms to facilitate repetitive operations, and Tamar from 3x3 Custom, who also highlights the value of jigs. 😁 Can be a nice time-saver, not having to measure over and over.

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@devhammer Love both those channels!

[@kmcegardner]

Trying to figure out where I’m making my mistake. 1 long run…500 pixels. 5V All on one data channel. I’m getting pretty sever voltage loss. I added a second cable from the DigQuad for power injection and started at the end of pixel 100. I inject at the end of each 50 LED. Based off of what I’ve read and watched this should be working. Do I need to inject power at the beginning as well as the end? Or is this a good layout and I went cheap on my AWG? It’s either 16 or 18, I really can’t recall.

[@DadDoingStuff]

That AWG wire is your biggest challenge with 5v. 18awg wasn’t cutting it for mine. You likely need to bring in fresh injections from the Dig Quad that go straight to the latter part of your run. And because those are longer, I’d look at 12AWG wire. Will make a huge difference. It did on mine.

[@whest8085]

Before you upgraded your gage wiring between the Power Supply and DigQuad/power injection did you notice any melted wiring? That had been my concern with starting this DIY, I’d hate to look at my wife when the fire department shows up and tell her it was my fault…lol

[@DadDoingStuff]

That’s a very fair concern, but no. I was running a pair of 18awg wires and didn’t have any issues with them. I’m sure my new 6awg setup is better, but even my smaller wires were probably fine. I also don’t want any fires……while I was doing this install last year, our neighbor couple of houses down accidentally burned their house down. So fire safety was front and center for me when I built this. Hope that helps!

[@whest8085]

@ I appreciate your reply. I’m going to start buying LEDs and J-channel over the next few months. Just have to get my measurements and power calculations figured out!

[@diveman54]

How did you mount everything to your backplate? I have the same enclosure that you have and trying to mount the power supply the same way. Plus everything els. Please help.

[@DadDoingStuff]

amzn.to/40MGmNz I bought this set of miniature screws and nuts. It’s more than you need, but I figure I’ll probably need something similar on some other project later. These were thin enough to fit through those holes. What I did was to mark my spots with a marker, insert screw from the back side, then put a nut to attach it to the back plate. THEN I mounted the PSU and DigQuad to those screws and added another nut on top to hold them. So they are actually spaced just above the surface of that back plate. Hope that helps!

[@GarrettThornburg]

You mentioned not wanting to run your power supply 24/7. Is that a concern around wearing it out too fast, causing fires, or just wasting power? I would like to just set it and forget it, letting the controller manage schedules and programs if possible.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Great question! I’m really not worried about a fire, but power consumption and just wearing out the PSU. Keep in mind the controller still manages the schedules and programs. It retains its config even when shutdown. Turning off the power to the power supply during the day won’t have any adverse affect, so long as that power is restored before the controller is scheduled to start running one of the scheduled programs. I’m using a smart outlet turn off the power during off hours, but you could also use a manual timer. With the way I have mine done, it’s pretty much set it and forget it. Hope that helps!

[@robertt8273]

Another reason to put the system in a switch is, even though the LEDS are off they are still powered waiting for a data signal. Constant power could cause them to wear out faster. And short anytime if interrupted.

[@danmcgill3465]

Dude! Do you have a merch store?? Where does a guy get a sweet DDS hat? 👊🖐️

[@DadDoingStuff]

I know a guy and can hook you up!

[@MIKExMASSACREx]

I’m wondering why he has to run power injections? Why can’t he run parallel power off the actual LED 1 outputs?

[@DadDoingStuff]

See my reply on your other comment.

[@simplescents3309]

How much is this project

[@DadDoingStuff]

I’d recommend watching my original video on it from 2023. But that said, I spent about $700 in materials and I put lights on 202 linear feet of roofline.

[@simplescents3309]

@DadDoingStuff thanks buddy

[@NilLam-7]

Hi, are you interested in reviewing car accessories?😊

[@DadDoingStuff]

Depending what it is, I might be up for that. Please go here and send me your contact info. Thx! www.daddoingstuff.com/contact

[@MIKExMASSACREx]

Why does he need power injectors? Why can’t he just wire each string of lights in parallel? It seems like you did this the hard way?

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hi Mike. You can do that, but you will have a massive voltage drop. The end result is that the further down the line, the pixels will be dimmer and discolored. If you want even color over long distances you have to add the power injection lines straight from the power source. And the lower the voltage (5v in my case) the heavier gauge wire you need to carry that voltage. It would be cool to just plug them end to end indefinitely, but the end result would not look good.

[@MIKExMASSACREx]

@ why would you have voltage drop if you run each string in parallel? That’s the whole point voltage doesn’t drop when you run circuits in parallel you get higher amps but the voltage remains the same. The power injectors act as a parallel circuit added after the fact. What I’m asking is why can’t you just wire it all in parallel to begin with and just have the data cable running in series through all the circuits. Basically like wire the first string of lights like normal, than at the end, instead of just wiring the next string in series and having an injector why don’t you just connect the data cables only and run the power off a parallel circuit

[@DadDoingStuff]

I’m tracking what you are saying now. Sorry, I misinterpreted your previous comment. Probably could have done it like that and saved me some solders. I’ll be honest, I didn’t even think to do it like that. I’d seen some other wiring diagrams online from other users that wired it first, then added the power injectors so I went with that. If I do any more LED projects, I might try it like you suggest.

[@MIKExMASSACREx]

@ haha sorry man sometimes it’s hard to even explain stuff like that over comments. But I’m glad you were able to get it. Thanks for the video tho I think I’m going to give this a try!

[@MiddleSiggyGames]

What are your trays made of? and how did you go about drilling the holes?

[@DadDoingStuff]

Check out my first video. (Link at end of this one). I go over all that in detail.

[@kevinknight195]

Ohm's law baby, more voltage less amperage, less amperage smaller wires 100%

[@DadDoingStuff]

💯 Definitely wish I’d thought about that a bit more from the get go! I keep learning more crap as I go!

[@testtai9160]

Can you put it in layman term? Do you mean he should use a higher voltage power supply and use a lower gauge wire?

[@kevinknight195]

Wire size depends on amperage.. voltage is the speed of the flow amperage is the volume of the flow. Watts = voltage x amps. If you need 10 watts of power with 5 volts you need 2a. With 12v you only need .83a.

[@DadDoingStuff]

That’s correct. 5v requires larger wire than 12v, just as Kevin described. One confusing thing to note however is that wire gauge is backwards from what you might expect. 12awg wire is substantially LARGER than 18awg wire. So the smaller the number, the bigger in diameter the wire. (Makes complete sense 🤪)

[@blazenlights]

Waterproof connectors shouldn't matter if you use a water displacement protective coating. It's under the eaves and water shouldn't be there anyway.

[@DadDoingStuff]

I agree with you….they definitely are tucked in there out of the weather and I don’t think they see any real moisture.

[@blazenlights]

@DadDoingStuff have you every used any hydrophobic protectant? Do you ever get any corrosion?

[@DadDoingStuff]

I've not used that stuff before. We have pretty low humidity here, so things don't tend to corrode too bad if you keep them dry.