Dead Red in HC strips

[Dcroc]

Left my HolidayCoro dumb strips around my windows and doors all year.  I am noticing that in every strip, there are some dead red pixels.  I first blamed this on moisture, but they are random thru the strips.  Don't believe moisture getting in the connectors would cause one color pixel in the middle of the strip to stop working.  Sun light, maybe?  Any thoughts?  I hate the thought of dumping $200 into new dumb strips, so thinking I may just splice new pixels in to replace the bad.  Hoiwever, I am wondering if it may be better to just replace the whole strip, and not worry about the rest going bad.  This cuts very deeply into my budget this year (of $0.00 total budget), not to mention it's a ton of work.  I do not believe I will leave them out past the holidays anymore.

[gsmith37064]

Not sure of how many strands you need but you can pick up 5m strands from Ebay. I picked up 20 strands of the Super Bright 5050 waterproof brand for $7 each about 6 months ago. Don't buy the complete kit. You do not need the power supply or remote. Just the lights. It takes a couple weeks to come in from China but at that price who cares

Trying to splice them is a pain and you better be really good with soldier.

Here is a quick look for $11.65 a pop on Ebay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/USA-Bright-12V-5M-16-4ft-3528-5050-5630-RGB-SMD-300-LED-Flexible-Strip-light-/301681651381?var=&hash=item463da0aeb5:m:mb40dA5s4msDfjjIn5opmfw

Hope this helps.

[Thinkagainagain]

Probably even cheaper on ray's site if you're ordering that many.

[Thinkagainagain]

You ok

[Thinkagainagain]

Left my HolidayCoro dumb strips around my windows and doors all year.  I am noticing that in every strip, there are some dead red pixels.  I first blamed this on moisture, but they are random thru the strips.  Don't believe moisture getting in the connectors would cause one color pixel in the middle of the strip to stop working.  Sun light, maybe?  Any thoughts?  I hate the thought of dumping $200 into new dumb strips, so thinking I may just splice new pixels in to replace the bad.  Hoiwever, I am wondering if it may be better to just replace the whole strip, and not worry about the rest going bad.  This cuts very deeply into my budget this year (of $0.00 total budget), not to mention it's a ton of work.  I do not believe I will leave them out past the holidays anymore.

You ok

[Thinkagainagain]

Sorry folks... Phone texting on its own.

[Dcroc]

Yeah, butt texting in a pita.

[Dcroc]

20 hours ago, gsmith37064 said:

Not sure of how many strands you need but you can pick up 5m strands from Ebay. I picked up 20 strands of the Super Bright 5050 waterproof brand for $7 each about 6 months ago. Don't buy the complete kit. You do not need the power supply or remote. Just the lights. It takes a couple weeks to come in from China but at that price who cares

Trying to splice them is a pain and you better be really good with soldier.

Here is a quick look for $11.65 a pop on Ebay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/USA-Bright-12V-5M-16-4ft-3528-5050-5630-RGB-SMD-300-LED-Flexible-Strip-light-/301681651381?var=&hash=item463da0aeb5:m:mb40dA5s4msDfjjIn5opmfw

Hope this helps.

Is there a difference in colors between them and HC strips?  I really like the price!  I was very pleased with HC, but I really do not think that moisture is responsible for the dead pixels, which leaves me wondering about quality.  If they are going to go bad between seasons, there is no need to pay a higher price.

[Thinkagainagain]

I just ordered these.... Haven't gotten them yet, but they shipped within two days.

I ordered the 60 per meter for 25$ each... Free shipping

5M Digital RGB WS2811 LED Strip Light 5050 SMD Waterproof IP67 IP68 Addressable WS2811ic DC12V 30/48/60 Pixels Dream Color

http://s.aliexpress.com/jIzmiuyM

(from AliExpress Android)

I also ordered these, and got them in about 6 days, super pleased. 500 12v square white for snowflakes, cost 186$ total with shipping. I thought that was a good price.

18AWG wire 100pcs/string DC12V square type WS2811 addressable RGB led smart pixel node,with all WHITE wire,IP68 rated

http://s.aliexpress.com/2AfaIvq6

(from AliExpress Android)

I like supporting local sellers, but the pre sales are drying up, and you can't beat the prices.

[gsmith37064]

1 hour ago, Dcroc said:

Is there a difference in colors between them and HC strips?  I really like the price!  I was very pleased with HC, but I really do not think that moisture is responsible for the dead pixels, which leaves me wondering about quality.  If they are going to go bad between seasons, there is no need to pay a higher price.

I am going to have say yes there could be a difference.

16 strands show a nice white color when all channels are turned on. 4 Strands have a blueish tint to them when all channels turned on. I don't think it really matters who you go with.

They are all made in China so you never really know. This includes HC's as well.

Now here is something to consider... I was mounting some on PVC last season and took my hand and rubbed over the strips to help sill it tighter. I heard a couple snaps and cracks but did not think anything of it. What happen is that i cracked the green LED on the the strip. Do you think you could have done that to the red LED? It does not take much pressure to damage them Lucky for me i was able to cut them down and use them on my mini trees. So it all worked out.

But I am on my 2nd year and the 20 strands that i ordered are still going GREAT!

Edited June 28, 2016 by gsmith37064

[EmmienLightFan]

Moisture or bending the strip could be responsible.

 

I use all Ebay/Amazon strips. I have been lucky and only had one problem which was my fault. Ray has them but you can get them even cheaper from AliBaba.