Best way to light a lower deck

[caldreamer]

I have decided to use th e L-Girder design for my new layout.  The lower level will be 12 inches below the upper level.  What is the best lighting method for the lower level?

    Caldreamer

[BigDaddy]

This guy did it with LED strips.  The glue backing isn't strong enough to catch flies, much less hold the strip up.

 

[gmpullman]

I used linkable, 48" LED tubes like these for my below-layout staging area and I have NO regrets:

https://tinyurl.com/y4qmd56l

You can use a close-coupled connector or for a little flexibility you can join the sections with short "jumpers".

I only use those sticky-back strips in short lengths inside some passenger cars and structures. I never found them very useful for general lighting.

Good Luck, Ed

[rrinker]

 I plan on using LED strips - multiple strips, for both my lower and upper level (lighting valence over the upper level). For the LED strips I put underneatht he bottom shelf of my workbench, I used small mounts they make for holding the strips, they are sort of C shaped to go over the LED strip and have holes to either side for small screws. Forget the built in adhesive. Wouldn;t be a bad idea to mount it in thin aluminum channel both for heat dissipation and also for reflection. I plan to use 2 strips of white LEDs, 1 strip of RGB to do dusk and dawn transitions, and 1 strip of blue for night lighting.

                                        --Randy

 

[BigDaddy]

Randy what are your plans for constructing the valance?

I know what RGB is, but how does that create dusk to dawn?

[rrinker]

 Same was as the upper desk, just thinner lumber since all it is going to support are some LED strips and a top of thin (maybe 1/4") plywood. My basement ceiling is actually pretty high in most palces so attaching it to the ceiling won;t work very well, so I am just building up from the bottom.

 The RGB LED strips have separate wires for the red, green, and blue elements in the LEDs - where plain one color strips have 2 wires at the end, these have 4, one for each color plus a common. You get different colors by adjusting the individual brightness of each color. The set I got to play with comes with a really junky controller, it only allows 8 steps from off to max brightness for each color, so the transitions are somewhat abrupt. However, I plan to make my own controller, with a lot finer resolution between steps. This will make for smoother color transitions.

                                    --Randy

 

[gmpullman]

rrinker

The set I got to play with comes with a really junky controller, it only allows 8 steps from off to max brightness for each color, so the transitions are somewhat abrupt.

Mine came with an IR remote like this:

RGB_Remote by Edmund, on Flickr

I haven't messed with it lately but I seem to recall that I could teach it custom colors (DIY 1>6) and sequences. Paid all of about fifteen bucks for ten meters of LED and the remote, IIRC.

Have Fun! Ed

[rrinker]

 That looks pretty much like the one I got. Cheap - and you get what you pay for. But that's the idea - I need to design custom colors and the smoothly transition between them. That controller won't, but it's pretty simple to make one - plus I need to have multiple drivers because the length of LED strings I will need will need multiple power supplies and multiple MOSFET drivers, all around my basement will be far too much for a single power supply and driver.The concept is easy though, a MOSFET (or maybe an LED controller chip) driven with a PWM output from a microcontroller to adjust the brightness. Depending on the micro, I cna get a LOT more than just 8 brightness levels per color. That will make for nice smooth transitioons between shades and simulate night into dawn into day, and day into dusk into night, combined with brightening or dimming of the while ones, and brightining or dimming the blue ones. At daylight I will effectively have 3 strips of white - the two white LED only strips plus the RGB strip showing white light, and at night I can have 2 blue strips if needed, the plain blue one plus the RGB set displaying a blue moonlight shade.

                                      --Randy

[doctorwayne]

caldreamer

I have decided to use th e L-Girder design for my new layout. The lower level will be 12 inches below the upper level. What is the best lighting method for the lower level?

 

As you may have noticed in another thread here, L-girder is not the best choice for a multi-level layout, as the benchwork is roughly twice as thick as some other methods, such as open grid.  12" isn't leaving much room for layout and lighting.

While I would have liked to have used LED lighting for the lower level of my partially double-decked layout, what's currently available here in Ontario is priced way beyond my budget, and what's being offered is inferior in lumen output to the lightweight electronic fluorescent fixtures which I did use...

As you can see, below, I used open grid framework, topped with 5/8" t&g plywood, for the upper deck, then hung the lightweight fixtures from the 1"x2"crossmembers...

The fixtures come with a plug-in type cord and a receptacle on the other end, so they can be ganged together, end-to-end.  The fixtures were low cost and provide plenty of light.

Here's a view of the same area before the upper fascia was added...

Wayne

[rrinker]

 This is probably how I will do my second deck. Yes, L-Girder is too deep for an upper level, unless you want to add extra (hidden) turns to a helix to go higher for no other purpose than to use a thicker framing. 'Tis a silly idea. I will probbaly use L-girder in places for my lower leve, jkust to span long distances with minimal legs. L-girder or not, the lower level will be designed to fit standard plastic totes underneath for storage. I doubt I will make full hinged panels though, more likely cloth of some sort, hung from clothespins glued to the back of the fascia. Level 2 will be grid, with metal L brackets like Wayne used for support. The valance level will be more of the same, but with much thinner framing and smaller meral brackets, because it only has to support its own minimal weight and some LED strips, nothing will go above it. So I am making more or less 3 level benchwork, except only 2 of the levels actually support railroad.

                                                 --Randy

 

[ATLANTIC CENTRAL]

When I built a double deck layout, which I will never do again, I made my upper deck benchwork only 5" thick, including the valance for lighting.

The lighting was simple 3" diameter flood light incandesents in sockets spaced in between the the supports, which were only 1x3's holding a two ply sandwich of 7/16" OSB, screwed and glued.

12" is not an acceptable lower level viewing window for me......mine was more like 16" and I was still unhappy with the result.

Sheldon

  

[doctorwayne]

ATLANTIC CENTRAL

....12" is not an acceptable lower level viewing window for me...

Good point, Sheldon.  The viewing window for my lower level varies between 10" and 13", but it's always been operated, even before the second level was added, with me seated on a rolling office chair, walk-around (okay, roll-around throttle) in-hand.  The view from the chair shows a complete view of all of the lower level, and allows reach-in capabilities wherever or whenever needed and the upper fascia hides the light fixtures, so I'm not blinded by them.
The portion of the layout which is single level can mostly be operated from the chair, too, but I usually prefer to stand, as some of it, from chair height, is almost at eye-level, making reach-in for manual turnouts awkward.

Wayne

[Onewolf]

I used 5 meter 2835 LED strips affixed to wood mounts. The adhesive backing on the LED strip lights is not strong enough so I use contact cement to make sure they stay in place permanantly.  I rip a 2x4 into 4 triangular pieces, coat the LED mount side with contact cement, let the contact cement dry, and then attach the LED strips to the wood mount. I mount 2 LED strips per 8ft wood mount (ie one 5M LED strip).

End result:

 

 

 

 

[caldreamer]

I am in N scale, so 12 inches should be pleanty of room for a lower deck and lighting.

[ATLANTIC CENTRAL]

caldreamer

I am in N scale, so 12 inches should be pleanty of room for a lower deck and lighting.

 

N scale, I can't even see those little things.......

Seriously, that does make some difference. I do think that N scale is actually better suited to the multi deck thing.

As I said, I tried it in HO and did not really care for it.

Sheldon

[Graffen]

I've seen a lot of comments about cheap Chinese strips.

For one thing, they have lousy Lumen and CR values.

Buy something that has a CR value of over 90, otherwise the colors will be off.

Color temperatures above 3200 K is also advisable, unless you want a soft warm afternoon light.

Light output above 10W per meter is the minimum and will often give 6-700 lumens at 1 meter above the surface.

I have had very good results with high intensity LED strips.

Mine are 12 W per metre. Which makes the 5 meter strip consume 60 watts and demand a 12 V, 5 Ah power source.