Building 4x8 Bridgelux Eb Grow Room. Need Advice :)

  • Thread starter Canna rt802
  • Start date
  • Tagged users None
Canna rt802

Canna rt802

9
1
hi folks in the planning stages of constructing my new grow room ! we move to our new 3 bedroom house the day after thanksgiving so i have some time to plan and purchase all the equipment so im ready to go when i move in !

so first off i'm thinking either a gorilla 4x8 or 5x9 grow tent. haven't made up my mind. could potentially get more yield out of 5x9...

i would like to diy my own grow light, I've been reading about the samsung and bridgelux eb series gen 2 strips and feel like i'm gonna go with the bridgelux.

for a 4x8 i was thinking of using 30 1120mm strips and 2 mean well hlg-600 drivers. i believe the 24B ? could be wrong... id like to shoot for 1200 watts

and the 5x9 using 40-50 1120mm strips and using 3 hlg-600's id like to shoot for 1800 watts

would use 1 inch x 46 inch x 1/8th inch thick aluminum flat bar as heatsink

would any of this be optimal ?

will be using 8 inch inline with 8x39 inch filter

also looking into using autopots the 8 pot xl system looks like it would work nicely maybe im wrong lol
i would like to maximize quality and yield while also keeping this simple... so automated waterings would be a bonus!

i forgot to mention but this is my 2nd post on this forum so i'm pretty stoked to get some very helpful information like i was able to get from my 1st post !

thank you everyone
 
F

FarmerDaniel

42
18
Your wattage numbers are really high! Also, I'd check out Cree cxb3590 COBs. The 3k 90 CRI has one of the best spectral distribution curves I've seen. It's way better than those Bridgelux you just mentioned; I downloaded the spec sheet. I didn't look at the Samsung, but it's Samsung...Cree is the gold standard.

You could easily run 20 Cree cobs at 1400 to achieve more PAR than you will ever need. That would be 4 drivers and about 740 watts total since 1400ma gets you about 38 watts per cob. You can run them way higher if you want but efficiency goes down. Mine are running at about 62%(of 1400) right now and putting out 460 PAR at 12 inches. So I'm not even close to 1200 or 1800 watts! When I turn them up for flower I still won't be even close to that kind of power draw. That also means less heat to manage. I suggest getting a PAR meter and run your lights as low as you can in terms of height and power. Even a $500 PAR meter will pay for itself quickly with increased yields because you can always keep your lights in the EXACT right spot.

I use the aluminum heatsinks for smaller diodes and the individual pin heatsinks for COBs.

The 8 inch fan might be overkill but do some CFM math. Calculate the volume of your room and try and turn it over at least once every few minutes. Calculate the loss for the filter also. People have some crazy ideas that you need to turn over your room a couple times a minute which is just ridiculous to me; sure it won't hurt anything but I always want to ask why do you have a jet turbine on your little closet grow?! I've had air exchange going at about once every ten minutes for years in one of my setups. I own a tropical fish business so exchanging humid air for fresh air is something I know a bit about. My goal is to be able to ramp my exchange up and down from about every minute to every ten; that gives me the control I want. If you run CO2 you'd seal the room and do no air exchange. So, i do always wonder what extra benefit these people think they are getting by running 1000 CFM's through a 250 cubic foot closet...

But definitely get a PAR meter if you want to maximize...
 
F

FutureGrower

606
93
So you're on the right track. Dont fo COBs they're great but strips are just better.

1200 watts would be ran from a hlg600 42b not 24. The 44" strips run off of 39 volts so with 24volts they wouldn't turn in.

The other major thing is dont use aluminum flat bar unless you already have it. 1" c channel aluminum with the fins facing up away from the light is the best alternative to heat sinks. Not only will it stay cooler than the flat bar, it will also stay straight. The 44" strips have alot of flex so the c channel will eliminate it.

1200 watts may be on the high side and if that's all the space you have you maybe should consider getting 2 4x4's and doing a veg and flower area.

I'm running a hlg600 42b in a 4x4 with 20 44" eb2 strips driven at 0.7amps but I may go with samsung in future just to try them out. I'm loving my strips I dont even have heat sinks on them at my 4x4 gets to around 85ish with nothing but 4 regular fans. But on hotter days it can roast so I'll he adding some c channel soon
 
F

FarmerDaniel

42
18
Talking about grow lights in terms of wattage for grow power is ignorant, simple at that. Learn about PAR and daily light integral.
 
F

FutureGrower

606
93
Talking about grow lights in terms of wattage for grow power is ignorant, simple at that. Learn about PAR and daily light integral.

Actually not really. It's a fantastic starting point especially when theres people out there with PAR meters telling you how many strips and what current they're at. You can make a reasonable presumption of your PPFD just saying...

It's a really silly habit to go on about things and not explaining them in further detail, so since you brought it up please teach this man a lesson about ppfd...
 
scubascrog

scubascrog

1,280
263
im using 800w samsung and a 350w blurple over a 9x6 room with extra light. i turned the veg off my blurple.
IMG 2543
 
F

FarmerDaniel

42
18
When doing something that can be measured, especially something so important to growth as photon energy, I would prefer to not make assumptions, even "reasonable" ones. I'd rather know exactly what my plants are getting because it's a huge variable that affects everything else. If you don't know how much photon energy you're giving your plants you can't make meaningful correlations between data points. I'm not into guessing about things that can be measured. And my main point is you're more than likely guessing more than you think if you don't have a PAR meter
 
F

FutureGrower

606
93
When doing something that can be measured, especially something so important to growth as photon energy, I would prefer to not make assumptions, even "reasonable" ones. I'd rather know exactly what my plants are getting because it's a huge variable that affects everything else. If you don't know how much photon energy you're giving your plants you can't make meaningful correlations between data points. I'm not into guessing about things that can be measured. And my main point is you're more than likely guessing more than you think if you don't have a PAR meter

I knew what you meant when you said it. Spending $200 or more on a PAR meter doesn't make sense unless you are growing commercially or you have the money to toss around for me. But if I had more money I would own one too!
 
scubascrog

scubascrog

1,280
263
or you can put 25w a square foot for qb's, 50w a sq ft for cob like is basically known and be good not getting scientific over nothing.
 
F

FutureGrower

606
93
or you can put 25w a square foot for qb's, 50w a sq ft for cob like is basically known and be good not getting scientific over nothing.

Yup, theres a few people out there that have par numbers on pieces you can order just make sure the current is similar to the one you're building off of :)
 
F

FarmerDaniel

42
18
Even if you don't want to get scientific a PAR meter will pay for itself quickly. why wouldn't you invest in a tool that will increase your yield by more than the tool is worth in a short time? If you're talking about money and being able to "throw it around" I can tell you the reason im able to "throw it around" and buy a $500 PAR meter is because I do cost benefit analysis on things and throughout my life I've made choices like getting a PAR meter because it makes financial sense, quite a bit for even a small grow.

Do the cost benefit analysis if you can make sure you're averaging 800 PAR vs 600. An inch or two makes a huge difference and without a PAR meter you're always guessing and erring on the side of caution. If you think you're getting it just right every time you've got an awfully bloated opinion of yourself.
 
F

FutureGrower

606
93
Even if you don't want to get scientific a PAR meter will pay for itself quickly. why wouldn't you invest in a tool that will increase your yield by more than the tool is worth in a short time? If you're talking about money and being able to "throw it around" I can tell you the reason im able to "throw it around" and buy a $500 PAR meter is because I do cost benefit analysis on things and throughout my life I've made choices like getting a PAR meter because it makes financial sense, quite a bit for even a small grow.

Do the cost benefit analysis if you can make sure you're averaging 800 PAR vs 600. An inch or two makes a huge difference and without a PAR meter you're always guessing and erring on the side of caution. If you think you're getting it just right every time you've got an awfully bloated opinion of yourself.

Dude I have 20x 44" bridgelux eb2 strips driven at 0.7 amps. My soil literally doesnt even have shadows til the area is entirely covered with plants. I think wasting $500 is silly unless you have the money to blow. If you have it do it! But if you are on a budget that's just stupid. Follow your plants add co2 if you need but I highly highly highly doubt anywhere is below 800 ppfd. Why? I copied someone else's build. I dont have cobs or anything that create hot spots.

I mean you're telling someone to spend $500 on something they built presumably to save money! We can go buy a QB setup or a preassembled serup with PAR readings for that cost.

Like I said if you have it it's a great toy. If you don't you can be just fine if you're resourceful. I would love to run my own numbers to compare to what I've seen, but I'm not spending $500 to brag about my PPFD lol.
 
F

FutureGrower

606
93
Oh I built that setup for $550 it would be 650ish with c channel aluminum I will remake it one day just to make it look nice. It has a small flex when I'm moving it too I want to change that... but for $100 difference I can overload a 4x4 or run at 1.4a and run a 5x5 for the cost of a 2nd driver
 
F

FarmerDaniel

42
18
On a smaller grow it's more important to maximize your efficiency. You're suggesting that a PAR meter is a waste of money, just an expensive and unnecessary thing for a home grower. Or it's only something for commercial growers.

I'm suggesting that it is a valuable tool that can be instrumental in increasing yield and maximizing a small space. And furthermore, it is worth the cost even at $500. You'll save electricity by running your lights more efficiently and giving your plants exactly what you want to give them. No more, no less. This would lead to increased yield for many and increased efficiency for even more growers. It can also be an important factor for someone having difficulty managing heat. Less wasted light, less excess heat, less money in electricity. At least if you're running dimmable leds. It adds up after awhile in electricity or extra OZs and that PAR meter is gonna last you a long time. It's a tool in the chest that certain growers find very valuable and others obviously don't...
 
F

FutureGrower

606
93
On a smaller grow it's more important to maximize your efficiency. You're suggesting that a PAR meter is a waste of money, just an expensive and unnecessary thing for a home grower. Or it's only something for commercial growers.

I'm suggesting that it is a valuable tool that can be instrumental in increasing yield and maximizing a small space. And furthermore, it is worth the cost even at $500. You'll save electricity by running your lights more efficiently and giving your plants exactly what you want to give them. No more, no less. This would lead to increased yield for many and increased efficiency for even more growers. It can also be an important factor for someone having difficulty managing heat. Less wasted light, less excess heat, less money in electricity. At least if you're running dimmable leds. It adds up after awhile in electricity or extra OZs and that PAR meter is gonna last you a long time. It's a tool in the chest that certain growers find very valuable and others obviously don't...

Right on man. It's cool to have a different perspective
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom