LED Strips with 12v batter
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- aviator_60
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2014 9:20 am
LED Strips with 12v batter
The LED strips I bought here are rated for 12v. I want to drive them (via mosfet) with a 12v security system battery. However, the batteries output is higher than 12v (~14v). Will this be a problem and if so how do I solve it?
- adafruit_support_mike
- Posts: 67446
- Joined: Thu Feb 11, 2010 2:51 pm
Re: LED Strips with 12v batter
If it's actually around 14v, you can use an LM7812 voltage regulator.
The lm78xx series has been around for decades and the design is solid as a rock. They aren't used as much these days though, because they need about 2v of headroom to work properly. The excess power gets burned off as heat, and when you get down to a 5v output voltage that 2v of headroom represents about a third of the power that flows through the regulator.
Knocking 14v down to 12v is only about a 15% loss, and represents ideal operating conditions for an LM7812.
The lm78xx series has been around for decades and the design is solid as a rock. They aren't used as much these days though, because they need about 2v of headroom to work properly. The excess power gets burned off as heat, and when you get down to a 5v output voltage that 2v of headroom represents about a third of the power that flows through the regulator.
Knocking 14v down to 12v is only about a 15% loss, and represents ideal operating conditions for an LM7812.
Please be positive and constructive with your questions and comments.