NEW! Rapid LED 12g Nanocube Retrofit Kit Build

After a long string of emails with the awesome folks at Rapid LED, we believe we have come up with an LED solution for my 12g JBJ Nanocube. For those of you who aren't aware- they have a kit for the 14g biocube, but not one for the 12g Nanocube... until now!;D

Measuring

I started off by gutting the hood and cutting a piece of clear plexi to the size of their nano-sized heatsink. I then placed the plexi sheet where I felt would be ideal for the heat sink so it would fit within the section where my PC lights reside.

Once I had it in place, I took a permanent marker and marked where the holes (4 of them) are for the current lighting screws. I then sent it to Rapid, so they could use it as a guide to drill the heatsink.



Ordering

I then ordered all of my other components-they ended up being the same as the biocube kit, though I did choose my own LED colors.

I just got the kit in the mail today and it looks like everything is good, though the big test will be the heatsink. They had to offset the holes slightly due to where the fins were and I am a little concerned that they may have been shifted in the direction that won't allow it to fit. (I guess we will see).

I moved a few things around- the box was actually well packed when I received it...



Install

Alright, so I started off by removing all of the stock lighting:

Took off the clear guard by removing all 10 screws




Then removed the stock bulbs



Once the stock bulbs were out I could unscrew the stock reflector. There were five screws holding it on- two on the left that also hold the bulb brackets, two on the right, and one on at the top (pictured).



The reflector could then be pulled away to expose the wiring though I didn't want to cut it yet. I then moved it off to the side to ensure the heatsink would fit before disabling my light (in case I couldn't get it to work).




I then placed the heatsink upside down to ensure the holes would line up. It was perfect!



Since they lined up, I decided to cut the wires and remove all of the contents per the directions that came with the kit. That left me with just the two stock fans and the hood. I also did not remove the stock switch for the moonlights, otherwise, I would have had a hole. I suppose you may be able to use that if you have a dimmer knob though.

Next, I placed the fan that came with the kit near the side of the hood and used wire nuts to connect the positive wires from the 2 stock fans, the new fan, and the 10V adapter. I then repeated with the negatives.



After that, I tried to attach the heatsink, only to realize that the screws were too short and the heatsink was slanted due to the slant of the hood. This was an unforeseen problem...I certainly can't blame Rapid since I was using the items that came with the Biocube 14g kit. I decided to remedy it with #6 1-1/2" screws and 4 7/8" fender washers.

I put the fender washer between the heatsink and the screw posts to create a flat "platform" on which the heatsink could rest. I also tried getting 1/4" ID metal spacers, but while they fit over the posts perfectly, they wouldn't fit between the fins of the heatsink. I also tried re-installing the stock reflector as a "platform", but the area was too small. In the end, the washers worked perfectly as all 4 posts were already the same height for the stock lighting, leaving me with a level heatsink.




Once the heatsink was installed, everything else went exactly as described in the instructions. I took the LED's tested them with the tester they sent (all lit up) and then I began securing them to the heatsink after placing a dab of thermal grease on the back of each one. I decided to only go with 10 LED's instead of 12, so now I have 2 back-ups.



After putting all the LED's on the heatsink, I realized I needed to flip the middle row (after a little help from my 3reef pals) in order to be able to wire them in series.

Next was the driver. I took it and used wire nuts to connect the blue/brown wires to the included power cord, which I previously threaded through the hole in the back of the hood, next to the one that I used for the fan cord. Then I connected the driver to the string of LED's via wire nuts. I used the zip-tie to secure both the light and fan power cords, so they wouldn't be ripped out if they were pulled.



Last step- put the clear shield back on.


And...VOILA- We're Done!

 

Now fully updated

 

Looks good!

My 700ma driver got really HOT after running for a few hours. You might want to remove the driver outside the hood. I have all three of my drivers next to a fan.

 

Thanks for the heads up.

I have 3 fans blowing in there with the kit fan blowing directly across the heatsink and driver. The 2 stock fans pull the hot air out of the hood, so I think I should be alright, but I will check it today to make sure there are no issues.