Can you cut CCB's at the end of strings?

[JD123]

I have a string of CCB's that are about 15 CCB's too long for the roofline.  I can let them hang at the end, or double them back and simply not program the end of the string but they look pretty awful hanging off the roof.  A much cleaner solution would be to simply cut the end of the string off.

1) I'll bet that voids the warranty, correct?

2) I understand that the protocol simply strips the next bulbs command and sends the rest to the succeeding bulbs. I'm guessing there is no handshaking back to the controller so the data going to the cut-off bulbs would be just thrown on the floor causing no issues.

3) I'm guessing power is fed to all bulbs in parallel so there would be no power issues.

4) If a bulb fails in the future, you could splice them in, correct?

Anybody do this, or come up with a better solution to a big string of bulbs hanging off the end of a roofline?

Thanks!

[EmmienLightFan]

If you can just hang them off, then do that.

 

If when you cut them off you are not going to use them for anything else, then you may as well leave them and leave the warranty intact. When it is out of warranty you can cut them off the end and splice in as you need to.

 

1) Yes

2) Yes. That is correct

3) Correct again

4) You can

 

Don't program the end pixels or just go and delete all sequencing for them, and if it is a corner just hang them up like the other ones. You could even put them in gutters, but they may not be 100% waterproof.

[Dennis Laff]

I cut all my strings to fit looks neater

[JD123]

Seems like the thing to do would be to wait until they are out of warranty, then cut them. The fringe benefit would be that I would have extras in case I lost a pixel down the line. I do see that LOR offers 60% replacement after the warranty is out, however.

[lightzilla]

You could black tape the extra bulbs out & then roll up the extra lights. I have done that before.

[LOR Staff]

Seems like the thing to do would be to wait until they are out of warranty, then cut them. The fringe benefit would be that I would have extras in case I lost a pixel down the line. I do see that LOR offers 60% replacement after the warranty is out, however.

 

The 60% replacement is for controllers only, not pixel strings or other items.

[JD123]

Thanks everyone.  Looks like I will just tie up the string and see if it looks awful.  If so, I can always cut it after the warranty is up.  It would be nice if LOR could come up with a solution for this.  A modular way to replace, or subtract lights would be great.  The lights seem to support it, but I do understand it probably isnt cost effective to support and maintain. 

[larryk5]

Part of the problem is the CCB controller will see 100 pixels and can't be changed. As stated above, you would have to delete the channels in SE. You hay have problems setting them up in the visualizer as CCB's, since it will put in 100 pixels.

[Crimson Lane Lights Etown]

How about put the bulbs closer together and use all of them in the space provided.  For the money paid I would want to see all the goods displayed.

[robigd]

I have the same issue as you with basically my entire roof line and I just put electrical tape over the bulbs I am not using, bundle them up nicely with a zip tie and stuff them in the gutter (leaving room for rain water to flow under them). If cutting them doesn't affect them, I would really love to give that a try though, because clutter annoys me, lol.

 

I cut all my strings to fit looks neater

 

I know it is probably easy, but can you describe how you did it to the "non-electrically inclined" people?

[Zartan]

JD, how many CCB units did it take to do your roofline?  I'm trying figure out since the controller is in the middle with 50 CCBs on each side what do you do if 1 isnt enough? 

 

/threadjack

[k6ccc]

Part of the problem is the CCB controller will see 100 pixels and can't be changed. As stated above, you would have to delete the channels in SE. You hay have problems setting them up in the visualizer as CCB's, since it will put in 100 pixels.

 

None of those would be an issue.  The controller does not know or care how many bulbs are actually out there.  You can leave them in SE, just not program them.  I have channels in SE that are not there - either they are planned future or used to be there.  Same thing with Visualizer.  It does not know or care if the channels are not used.

 

BTW, having unused channels in a sequence WILL cause the Verifier to flag the channels as never used.  I set unused channels to turn on for one of the first few timings of the sequence solely to avoid that issue.

[robigd]

For those that have done it, are there any special precautions that need to be taken when cutting CCB's? What is the process for sealing the cut end?

 

Thanks!

[k6ccc]

Obviously don't short the wires together.  I have never cut CCBs, but I have cut plenty of WS2811 strings, and the process should be about the same.  With the power off, cut the wires, separate the individual wires and insulate each one with either electrical tape of better yet, heat shrink tubing.

 

Now I'm going to surprise you.  On my pixel tree, the strings end at the bottom of the tree and they wires are just cut off evenly (so there is no wire extending beyond the insulation) and left open.  These get quite wet because the sprinklers for the lawn water the bottom of the pixel tree just fine every few days.  They have been that way for three seasons without any problems.  It's only 5 volts and the water is reasonably clean.  For splices (such as replacing a failed pixel), I solder each wire and insulate with heat shrink tubing and then an outer layer of heat shrink tubing that has the goo inside to seal it.

[robigd]

Obviously don't short the wires together.  I have never cut CCBs, but I have cut plenty of WS2811 strings, and the process should be about the same.  With the power off, cut the wires, separate the individual wires and insulate each one with either electrical tape of better yet, heat shrink tubing.

 

Now I'm going to surprise you.  On my pixel tree, the strings end at the bottom of the tree and they wires are just cut off evenly (so there is no wire extending beyond the insulation) and left open.  These get quite wet because the sprinklers for the lawn water the bottom of the pixel tree just fine every few days.  They have been that way for three seasons without any problems.  It's only 5 volts and the water is reasonably clean.  For splices (such as replacing a failed pixel), I solder each wire and insulate with heat shrink tubing and then an outer layer of heat shrink tubing that has the goo inside to seal it.

 

Thank you very much!

[robigd]

I have another question about cutting CCB's.

 

After cutting my strings, I will have some fairly large sections left over, in some cases, 5-7 feet. Am I able to splice together these sections into a string and use with another controller as long as the count doesn't exceed 50 bulbs?

[robigd]

Anybody that has cut CCB's and spliced together individual pixels, can you please answer a question for me?

 

I cut a 4 pin pig-tail connector to connect to some of the CCB's I cut off and each wire in the pig-tail connector has color coded insulation (R/G/B/Ground). I noticed the CCB strings are not color coded and was curious if it was documented anywhere which order they are in. I tried to download the CCB datasheet from the website, but it is a bad URL.

 

If anybody could advise, it would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks!