How do you store your pixel tree ?

[ItsMeBobO]

Just curious..   This year I have 100 pixel strands for my pixel tree.   I pushed them all into the black mounting strips in the summer.  Then I rolled the strips up and put them into bins.    When I pulled them out in November I was very disappointed that some of them were warped.  They did not hang straight as they did when they first came.   The gentle folds gave the black plastic a little 'memory' of being twisted for several months in storage.  

So.. does anyone keep their pixels strips straight all summer?  

Edited December 24, 2018 by ItsMeBobO

[colelini00]

Any info on this would be helpful as well. This is my first year using pixels pushed into strips. I was almost thinking of storing them straight myself

[dibblejr]

Bob - Treat them with kid gloves, I did and still lost 9 ribbons just over 1 year old. I don't know if they couldn't take the storage heat or what. This is how I stored them. Take into consideration I have 2 barns full of Christmas and Halloween décor.

I made individual shelves with 1X2's and places each "assembled" strand and emt as a unit on each shelf.

Due to the loss this year they will be strored in my garage. I will use 2" pvc this time. At $150 each those LOR strips not chancing another deep wallet hit.

Best of luck my friend.

Merry Christmas

JR

Edited December 25, 2018 by dibblejr

[sysco]

What I do and have  done since I had them is roll them up put back in original  boxes  stored in a plastic create in the basement no problem at all  Blair

[ItsMeBobO]

The ribbons need a lot of TLC.   I have 8   poles,  4 arches, and 4 in a matrix made of ribbons.   They are all held to poles or Coro and have never been unmounted.   It would be a lot of work to cut all those cable ties!   The 4 in the coro matrix are from the very first CCR year and have never been replaced.   The arches and poles I have had to replace three or four over 7 years.        But... this thread is about the SQUARE pixels mounted in the black pixel strips.   I think LOR sells the Boscoyo black strips which are the ones I have with one inch spaced 12mm mounting holes.   I don't anticipate any issues with the pixels.  Its the mounting plastic I want to protect in this case.

While I consider this plastic to be very tough and strong material.   This plastic 'remembers' being compressed or folded.   It happened on a few strips which were rolled up and had a kink here and there, and it also happened on the mesh where something was putting stretching pressure on it for a few months.  At those points the plastic did not drape the way I wanted hanging from the hook head.     I have a long 30ft shed which will allow me to store the black pixel strips holding SQUARE pixels straight and flat all summer.   But I have to build a box or shelf which I am thinking will take more than one afternoon just to keep other stuff from being placed on top of it and compressing it, giving it a kink.   

[dibblejr]

13 minutes ago, ItsMeBobO said:

The ribbons need a lot of TLC.   I have 8   poles,  4 arches, and 4 in a matrix made of ribbons.   They are all held to poles or Coro and have never been unmounted.   It would be a lot of work to cut all those cable ties!   The 4 in the coro matrix are from the very first CCR year and have never been replaced.   The arches and poles I have had to replace three or four over 7 years.        But... this thread is about the SQUARE pixels mounted in the black pixel strips.   I think LOR sells the Boscoyo black strips which are the ones I have with one inch spaced 12mm mounting holes.   I don't anticipate any issues with the pixels.  Its the mounting plastic I want to protect in this case.

While I consider this plastic to be very tough and strong material.   This plastic 'remembers' being compressed or folded.   It happened on a few strips which were rolled up and had a kink here and there, and it also happened on the mesh where something was putting stretching pressure on it for a few months.  At those points the plastic did not drape the way I wanted hanging from the hook head.     I have a long 30ft shed which will allow me to store the black pixel strips holding SQUARE pixels straight and flat all summer.   But I have to build a box or shelf which I am thinking will take more than one afternoon just to keep other stuff from being placed on top of it and compressing it, giving it a kink.   

Why couldn't you buy pvc conduit and put a screw in at the top. Slide the strips through the pvc and a small bungie cord or zip tie to secure to a screw on the other end - keeping tension. Then stand them up in a corner or hang to rafters.

JR

[ItsMeBobO]

Do you think 16 strands would fit inside of this 8 inch pipe?   I am not so sure.   My math.   pow(4,2)*pi= 50 sqin / 16 =   1.77 sqin each..  which is a square 1 3/4 each side   or a  2 inch diam circle for each strand.

 

https://www.menards.com/main/plumbing/rough-plumbing/pipe-tubing-hoses-fittings-accessories/pvc-pipe/solid-core-pvc-belled-end-pipe-schedule-40/pvc09800b0600/p-1444426397432.htm

[dibblejr]

After my loss I would store them separately. In their own conduit. The smallest diameter that will douse them.

I don’t know what happened but mine were treated with kid gloves yet I lost more than 1/2 of the strips.

I didn’t bother to ask the HD since they were a few days out of warranty.  All failed in Almost the exact same spot.

Replaced all 16 since I was worried about color variations.

The bad part- I was confident they would work so secured them to the frame for Halloween , set the tree up, bolted to driveway, fired it up to see the 9 strands out.

Had to take it all back down, cut 1000 zipties, replace ribbons. Tedious work.

I would think they will fit in an 8” diameter pipe but it’s a guess. You would know in no time and easy solution would be to run out and buy another conduit for segment two.

JR

[Larry Leonhardt]

I will have my strips on 3/4 inch square tubing, trying to find the best option to keep them safe, did not use them year because I had 4 out of 12 ribbons bad. Was thinking about making a box to hang the square tubes in that maybe attach to the fence. not sure yet. But I know I can't afford to loose more ribbons again.

  

[Larry Leonhardt]

So I was looking online at Lowes at this : ADS 12-in x 20-ft Corrugated Culvert Pipe, that should hold a few strips. Just have to make some hangers to keep it off the ground, and some kind of plug for the ends.

[~DOC~]

Is it your black pixel strip holders that are failing or the pixels themselves. It seems everyone is talking about two different things here. If the lights are failing this is concerning. Pixels are not cheap. If it’s the black strips that are getting are permanent bend then that is another issue which could be rectified by storing them on the garage / barn ceiling stretched out. Use a 2x4 and add hooks at one end attached to ceiling. On the other end add another 2x4 with hooks but use small bungee cords (20 for $6) at the other end to keep them strips taunt. You could then build a box around them with door(1/4 ply) to keep the dust etc off them. The box would only be a couple inches off the ceiling. Hope you can imagine my idea.

[~DOC~]

Oh just imagine a medicine cabinet 20 ft long on the ceiling of your garage the door swings down attach to hooks close the door until the next season

[PhilMassey]

Strange. I have 16 strands of pixels in Boscoyo strips, which I had coiled up in plastic totes which came out fine. My pixel tree strips were coiled up in garbage bags and stored in the attic with no long term distortion. The strips I use have a rough textured side and a smooth side with 1 inch hole spacing.

[Larry Leonhardt]

Mine are LOR ccr strips

 

[colelini00]

20 minutes ago, PhilMassey said:

Strange. I have 16 strands of pixels in Boscoyo strips, which I had coiled up in plastic totes which came out fine. My pixel tree strips were coiled up in garbage bags and stored in the attic with no long term distortion. The strips I use have a rough textured side and a smooth side with 1 inch hole spacing.

Phil, are your’s out in a colder shed or in a warmer environment during storage?

[PhilMassey]

The bags in the attic are seeing very high temps in the summer, cold in the winter. The totes were inside all year.

[Larry Leonhardt]

Does anyone know the temperature  range for storing CCR Ribbons ?

-20 to 300 degree ?

[dibblejr]

10 minutes ago, Larry Leonhardt said:

Does anyone know the temperature  range for storing CCR Ribbons ?

-20 to 300 degree ?

This would be great to know but I cant see temps being high enough to melt solder. I could be wrong though since I lost a great portion of mine. But the non exposed brand new spares all worked.

JR

[k6ccc]

My arches (CCPs in PEX tubing) and pixel tree (Ray Wu WS2811 square nodes) are both stored in my attic.  I measured a high of 149 degrees up there on a record setting hot day last July, but often hit around 135.  The tree was built in 2012, so lots of heat exposure.  No problems due to the heat.

 

[~DOC~]

The CCR I just looked up has and operating temp of -20 to 140f. I work in testing. One thing we do is go to environments that are hot. The one thing I have learned about electronics. Heat kills unless their made for that environment. I would try to stay under their operating temp since they don’t show a storage temp.