Voltage regulator from 12v to 5v to power led strip

Other Hardware Motors, Mechanics, Power and CNC
1

Hi All,

I have project on Mega 2560 board a 200 leds. I am using 20 amps 5V separate power supply to power arduino and separately led strip.

To power all this I need 200*60/1000 = 12 Amps power source at least + arduino board itself.
Because my power source is 5V and 20 amps (which equal 100 W power) required which is not very safe I got an Idea to power my project with another power source 12V. In this case to provide the same 20 Amps I will need (100W / 12V = 8.3 Amps). Because arduino can tolerate 12V and regulate them to 5V.

So, th question is:
Is it true statement that if I use separate 5V regulator for led strip and use 12V 8.5 Amp power source? Will it be enough and equal to my using 5V 20Amp power source and considered as "more safe" approach?

Thank you for your attention.

2

Suggest you use 5v, add fuses to prevent flames.

Divide your circuit into sections, have a separate fuse for each section.

3

larryd:
Suggest you use 5v, add fuses to prevent flames.

Divide your circuit into sections, have a separate fuse for each section.

Thank you for the response, but could you please elaborate? :confused:

My goal is to have some understanding why one or another approach is "better".

4

High amperage power supply outputs should have some kind of current protection in the event something shorts or fails.

For example: you power the Mega with an external 5v power supply that is rated at 20 amps.
You connect the external 5v to a 1 amp fuse then to your Arduino.

5

Secure each consumer separately with a fuse.

Arduino: Fuse 1 amp
LED-strip: Fuse 12 amp