Halloween Lighting!
I wanted to share with you all, even though this is not a fastLED project. I have done most my learning about LED’s here, thanks to this great community. So far I only have a simple orange and purple pattern working. I have a little under 300 leds using waterproof strings (https://amzn.com/B01AG923JK). Next I have to get some patterns working with Christmas colors.
Nice! I hope to start on a similar project on my house soon, while it’s still warm out. 
Looks good. @Roger_Guess , did you install the 12V or 5V version? And how did you setup power for them? I’m considering some and am debating 12V or 5V.
Ha, just noticed that on that Amazon page it notes that they work well with the FastLED library.
I did 12v so I would not have to worry about the 4 wire extensions length causing power issues. I needed to get it all back to a single power source for ease. In some cases, the extension runs down along side a 2nd string. I did not try to daisy chain strings, though I imagine with 12v you could. I still needed to run data to each string separately (fadecandy does 64 led strings max). I used 6 strings of 50 leds ( and cut some off the end when I had too many). I used this for extensions (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DPQMKBS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). Used this power supply (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MAC9MO6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 )
I also wrote to the seller of the leds (ALITOVE), and suggested he would do well from sales to communities like FastLED if he sold strings with waterproof connectors! 90% of the work was splicing strings, adding extension wires, and terminating everything. I prefer the round/bullet type led’s, but the spacing was too close together for my project.
Thanks for the info.
Almost exactly what I’m in the middle of right now, but with FastLED at the core. Half the lights are up (and working!)… hoping to finish before the Manitoba cold sets in and the wires get too stiff to run inside the soffit.
I’m just sealing the ends of the strip’s clear tubing with a marine silicone. My strips are mounted on aluminum J-trim and the trim is then screwed directly to the aluminum soffit. That way I can take down individual sections for repairs if needed.
The strips are just a couple of inches from the wall, so very well-protected from weather under the soffit.
Nice job!
@allanGEE I think that is a great approach. This time around I used plastic clips (one per light). I would much rather have a more permanent solution as you describe. In my case, the materials used for soffits (thin particle board) were not among the best choices made by the builder. I did not want to puncture that board and risk introducing moisture all up and down the edge. Also I do not have much room to hang down and still be invisible. Ideally, when viewing from the street, I want you to see the tip of the led/diffuser sticking down when they are on. When they are off, you would not see a thing.
Do share when you get finished.
@Roger_Guess If you get bored, post a daylight closeup shot of your lights and soffit. I grew up in a construction family. Maybe together you and I can come up with an alternate mounting method for the future.
Thanks @allanGEE , here are some shots and a sketch:
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Google+ is weak… only one image per post
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@Roger_Guess Around here we call that stuff Masonite/hardboard/pressboard… depending on who you talk to. What about the part your clips are attached to? Real (solid) wood?
The pressboard is what hangs down and it seems pretty soft. It is 1/4" thick. The clips grab on to the pressboard.The clips are generic from walmart.
My first thought is aluminum J-trim screwed to the backside of the piece your clips are attached to (or glued/siliconed to it if it’s not solid wood).
The back of the J attached to the backside of the wood… the bottom of the J at the bottom… and the short part of the J facing the house – so the J creates a continuous “hook”.
You could fasten each bulb unit to the vertical face of the short part of the J, on the house side – and all the wiring would be tucked up into the J-trim.
If you can use screws to mount it, you’d be able to build it on the ground and install it in sections (and take a section down for repair if needed).
If you can’t use screws, then maybe switch to something with a “checkmark” profile instead of a J. Glue one checkmark – right-side up – to the backside of the wood your clips are currently mounted to. Then you can hang an identical inverted strip from the glued one. Kind of like a french cleat. A little screw through both every couple of meters would make it “wind secure”.
You could adjust the final height by adjusting the height you mount the first strip at. By adjusting the angle on the checkmarks, you should also be able to have the lights shine at whatever angle you choose.
Looks great! How did you find the fade candy? I got one a while ago not realizing it needs a computer or rpi to run and since I’m mostly doing wearables, it’s just gathering cobwebs in a drawer. Might have to dig it out for the holidays!
I think that I may keep them up all year and change the patterns to suite my mood or the session… Looks great.
Using Fadecandy seemed straight forward for what I wanted, but now I am wanting to play with FastLED now that the lights are up. I need to figure out how to map them…