Background

Our IT shop recently relocated to a new space. This space had previously been configured as a engineering classroom. As we began to move into this space, it became apparent that the harsh, non-defused fluorescent lighting was going to be an issue for folks that stared at a screen all day.

With all the lights on a single circuit, the inability to remove some bulbs due to code and no budget to replace the existing fixtures, I began to ask if there was a way to provide an alternate lighting source that could be adjustable for certain areas, yet still provide acceptable light levels for code issues without relying on the existing fluorescent fixtures.

The space had what are referred to as "clouds", but in actuality are really 10'x10' drop ceiling sections to help with noise and echo. There are a total of 12 of these "clouds" throughout the space. I thought that maybe if LED strip lighting was installed around the bottom edge of each of these "clouds", it could provide adequate, controllable and dimmable lighting for the space. WLED would be the perfect controller solution. Besides being free and having hundreds of optional effects, it has the ability to sync multiple controllers together, or to control each individually.

Goals

Besides the obvious of replacing the harsh fluorescent lighting, the project had the following goals:

Adequate and acceptable lighting levels throughout the space, without the existing fluorescents
Individual panels should all be synched and act together, but with the flexibility to control individual panels
Standard wall controls to turn lights on/off at entrances to the space
Basic controls accessible to all staff members, but with password protection to administrators only for items such as configuration, wifi settings, etc.
Possibly tie lighting into campus alert system, so that lights change color/flash in the event of an emergency.

Parts List

Each "cloud" or pod install requires the following parts.

*Some links may be Amazon Affiliate links. This does not affect your cost but this blog may earn a small commission to use on future projects.

Qty	Item	Notes
3	WS2812b LED Strips (5m 60 pixels/m)	Based on 10'x10' square install
1	Aluminum LED Channel
1	LED Channel Mounting Clips
1	5V 40A Power Supply
1	Wemos D1 Mini
1	Logic Level Shifter
1	ElectroCookie Mini Proto Board
1	18-gauge stranded wire
1	JST 3 pin connectors
1	DC power pigtail connectors
1	14-gauge AC Power Supply Pigtail
1	Smart Plug
1	3M Mounting tape
1	3D printed enclosure for WLED controller	Use the mini enclosure for a D1 Mini and full size for a NodeMCU/full Electrocookie
	Misc. wiring, solder, etc.

Build Plan

Since each cloud was 10'x10', a modular design approach was taken to allow the build to occur at home and then transport to work for installation.

Rough, hand drawn sketch of the design

To make transport feasible without a van or truck, each side of the install would consist of (2) 4-1/2' segments. This would allow 4" at each end and 4" between segments for wire connections to cover each 10' side. All connections would be via either JST connectors (for LEDs) or barrel connectors (5V) for ease of install onsite, since the clouds are approximately 10' off the floor and all installation would have to occur on a tall ladder.

The LED strips were installed in aluminum channel and to assure better adhesion long term, double-sided tape was used between the strips and the channel.

Power injection points (using barrel connectors) would be added midway through the install and at the end of the strip (lower left corner and upper right corner in the above diagram - the start of the strip, pixel 1, is also in the upper right). The LED strips would be cut with leads at the opposite corners in the event more power injection was needed (it wasn't).

Each segment was numbered, along with the data signal direction so that there wouldn't be any mistakes or confusion onsite during install.

All other components were prewired at home to make onsite install easier... just plug and play. I added smart plug between main power and the power supply in the event that the WLED controller needed to be power cycled. In my home installs of WLED, I found that on rare occasion, the WLED controller would drop off the network and be inaccessible and the only way to get it back was to power cycle. Since this install was going to be 10' in the air, I wanted a way to power cycle the WLED controller without a ladder if needed. The addition of the smart plug allowed this to occur from the ground.

Test installation

For the initial test installation, the LED channels were installed on the top side of the "cloud", reflecting up towards the ceiling.

The aluminum channel for the LED lights fit nicely on the upper aluminum sides of each "cloud" pod, using the supplied aluminum channel clips and small sheet metal screws.

While this provided nice "effect" lighting, due to the height of the actual ceiling, this wasn't going to provide enough light, especially downward towards the work areas to replace the fluorescent lighting despite a total of 656 pixels and two additional power injection points. So the second install would be on the bottom of the cloud, pointing down.

Expanding the install

So the second installation used exactly the same components, layout and parts, but in this case, the LEDs were mounted on the bottom of the cloud, pointing down towards the floor.

The drop ceiling panels allowed the JST wiring connections between segments to be "tucked up" over the panels for a neater install. Just a slight amount of wiring is visible at the end of each segment. All connections and other wiring occurs on the top side of the cloud.

When the fluorescent lights were turned off, as in the above photo, the LEDs do provide ample light in the immediate vicinity. In discussion with my staff, most felt that if all the clouds were completed in this manner, it would be adequate and local desk lighting could be used if desired (like on the left of the above photo).

However, there would be problems. As you can see in the above photo, there is an area to the right where there will eventually be a couple of conference rooms and an office. The walls will extend to the ceiling deck and these areas to not have "clouds". There is another large area that is currently storage that is designed in the same manner. And again, since all the fluorescents are on a single circuit, there would be no way to light the "non-cloud" areas with overhead lighting.

I also have concerns about OSHA and fire codes if this was the primary lighting in the space. It might be fine in a residential situation, but probably wouldn't fly in a commercial/business situation.

Updated Future Plans

So, given that the original plan to replace the primary fluorescent lighting likely isn't going to work, the idea is to continue to expand the installation to other clouds over time... not as primary lighting, but as accent or feature lighting... maybe alternating the overhead and underside installs. These could still be used for special occasions, holiday gatherings, after hour get-togethers, etc. And I'd love to find a way to tie them into our emergency notification system for visual indication of a campus emergency via automation. I will update this article as I continue to expand the installation over time.

Also on the future "to-do" list will be an easy way for all staff to interact with this lighting... without allowing access to the full setup/administrative parts of WLED (such as configuring WiFi, number of LEDs, max power, etc.). This would likely be some sort of switching with NodeRed or similar. But that's even farther down the road!

More Information

If you are interested in details on how the WLED controller was built, I have both another blog article and a YouTube video for how to build your own:

YouTube: Build your own LED controller for under $6 with WLED

Blog Article: Building your own LED light strip controller (for cheap!)

For more information on how I use the LED aluminum channel with LED strips, you can see the following video and blog article:

YouTube: Motion activated LED stair lighting

Blog Article: Simple Motion-Activated LED Stair Lighting

Let me know if you have any thoughts or ideas. I'll update this title of this blog whenever I make significant changes and update the article.