RGB strips, water proof etc

[Lincoln Lights]

So I have bought three different rgb "dumb" strips from Aliexpress. two orders of 10, and one order of 12. Three different vendors.

1st order: "Water proof" The water proofing was a raw strip (copper metallic circuit board) inside a silicone strip / sleeve. Very delicate and easily bent / malfunction. Good for testing, do not trust to put up outside.

2nd order: "Water proof" 5050 300/m strip in silicone, no separate sleeve. ip65 water proof, but consumes 72w at all white. I placed a section in a bowl of water for a few minutes and continued to work. I left out side for 36-48 hours, and there were some showers, and they continued to work. This one also had a 3m cover on the back that you can pull off to use the adhesive. This one was a white in color.

3rd order: "Water proof" identical to 2nd order, but these are 150 / m. 36w's at full white. These are the ones I will reorder.

Here is the question....

When it is all said and done, I will have 70 to 80 of these strips in my display. I want to protect them. They say they are water proof, and I looked up what ip65 means. It sounds "good" but I still have my doubts.

Here is what I am thinking of doing.

1. Buy liquid clear dipping rubber and coat all strips in this stuff. one gallon is about $70, and I have been spending about $17 per strip. I have found ip68 / 67 strips for 30 + per strip. So at 17 per strip x 70 strips, new cost is 18 per strip.

2. I have bought liquid silicone spray and I am going to test this on a few strips.

3. Do nothing, gamble on about 1100 on lights.

Has anyone used either one of these type of products.

Also, I plan on packing my cat 5 connections with dielectric grease to prevent water damage to the connections.

Fishing for thoughts....

[Crazydave]

What id dipping rubber discolors ..what about UV protection..... also what is the value of your time

[edvas69]

If these are the strips that just have the coating on the top and then just tape on the back then these have been proven to fail outside over time as the coating can lift away from the strip due to thermal fluctuations exposing the board.

The silicone tube is actually not a bad choice as far as weather proofing but it does need to be mounted to something to give it some strength. I use electrical conduit to mount that strip on for my gutter, roof line and window frames which has worked great for the last 2 years.

The community has done lots of testing in the past on different strips and just basing a choice on cost alone could end up costing you a lot more in the long run.

[Arteom]

I never had those RGB strips from China, but I have had COUNTLESS SMD warm white LED strips used for landscaping from China (eBay), the "waterproof" LED's are NOT waterproof, if you bend them, thats it, Water will get into them, and they already come on a roll, so that silicone is pretty much pointless.

Your best bet is to try and seal them in any way shape or form you possibly can! Since the silicone on the waterproof LEDs only covers the top, there is a seam, cover them 360º, and try to avoid using them in the rain or snow, let them dry out first. I seal mine with pure clear silicone, I made a little funnel type thing with acrylic with an square end, the opening is enough to cover the strip 1/8" - 1/4" on all sides, one tube of silicone lasts for around 1 - 1½ 5M rolls. I fill the funnel with silicone, and pull the strips though, It's extremely tricky however so I ditched that method, it works really well nonetheless and is very cost effective. It also disperses the light really nicely.

I hate answering a question with another question, but can you please share your experience with AliExpress when you get the chance? I've always been nervous trying to order from there.

[edvas69]

I deal with Ray Wu and have since he first opened his shop, he has become a reliable supplier from China for most of the DIY community and has a proven track record.