Led light suggestion

Gweedo · Aug 2, 2019

Honestly saying led technology ie the latest and greatest is totally wrong the strips and cobs im using are not for horticulture they themselves are repurposed by us for growing there is no hype or magic with them they put out the color spectrum you order at the wattage you run them at data sheets are easily accesed so please dont lop us diy guys in with the high dollar big money "hype" crowd,, not taking away from your work its fine for your purposes but for a larger canopy say 4x4 cobs and strips will rule

Aqua Man · Aug 2, 2019

Gweedo said:
Honestly saying led technology ie the latest and greatest is totally wrong the strips and cobs im using are not for horticulture they themselves are repurposed by us for growing there is no hype or magic with them they put out the color spectrum you order at the wattage you run them at data sheets are easily accesed so please dont lop us diy guys in with the high dollar big money "hype" crowd,, not taking away from your work its fine for your purposes but for a larger canopy say 4x4 cobs and strips will rule

Can we not refer to it as hype? Some people can justify spending more to have the same technology put together and tested for them.

Nothing hype about it. Facts are facts and yes you can do it diy cheaper than some of quality manufacturers but that doesn't make it hype.

Don't forget these hype manufacturers are the ones that spent money on R&D that led (no pun intended) to the development of the parts your able to buy and other companies knock off and sell cheaper.

Guess what happens when a company losses all its profits to that? No more R&D and no more advances.

I'm no different I save a buck when I can but at least I'm honest with myself about it.

Rant over

FFS why do I even bother reading led posts anymore lol.

Gweedo · Aug 2, 2019

Did you read what wrote sir, lol samsung and bridgelux doing retrofit panels has nothing to do with the grow industey we brought that stuff into the grow rooms

Aqua Man · Aug 2, 2019

Gweedo said:
Did you read what wrote sir, lol samsung and bridgelux doing retrofit panels has nothing to do with the grow industey we brought that stuff into the grow rooms

I did and you called it hype that is what I'm responding to asking can we not refer to this as hype. It's all legitimate it all grows plants... The difference is only the quality of components, efficiency and spectrums which I agree is a lot but the only real hype is the marketing.

And I would disagree that we brought it into the grow room.

hawkman · Aug 2, 2019

Gweedo said:
Honestly saying led technology ie the latest and greatest is totally wrong the strips and cobs im using are not for horticulture they themselves are repurposed by us for growing there is no hype or magic with them they put out the color spectrum you order at the wattage you run them at data sheets are easily accesed so please dont lop us diy guys in with the high dollar big money "hype" crowd,, not taking away from your work its fine for your purposes but for a larger canopy say 4x4 cobs and strips will rule

use 12by12 led panels for sidelighting = 15% increase in yields if not more Strips would work well and could run them on all walls

az2000 · Aug 2, 2019

hawkman said:
the only down side is the # of strips one must use ? lets say a 3 foot long and 2 foot wide ?

I'd like to hear that answer. (The height might influence that. How tall is the grow space?).

You have 6 sq ft. That should require about 120w (at 20w/sq ft, I assume). But, the strips are in 80w units. Maybe if you had 3 and ran them at 50% watts? (That would be immensely less expensive than the $800 you're thinking about spending).

If it were me, I'd want to spread those watts around the plants better. More angles, coverage, closer. If you bought 6 and ran then at 25% you could do that. Still under your $800 target. (Not sure those are meant to be used that way. Just thinking out loud. You could also use two at 50% on top, and then use four household LED lightbulbs, one in each corner, for the remaining 40 watts.).

Why are you looking to buy LED instead of CMH (35w/sq ft) or T5HO (40w/sq ft)? Is the price of electricity high? Or, do you live in a hot climate? Those other sources of light are simpler to get your head around. The CMH would fit a 3x3' space perfectly. If the space were 4-5' tall, T5HO would work well. The plants would get UV from these lamps. (As far as I know, LED doesn't produce UV.).

Not trying to deter you. Just wondering if you've thought about why you've chosen LED?

hawkman · Aug 2, 2019

az2000 said:
I'd like to hear that answer. (The height might influence that. How tall is the grow space?).

You have 6 sq ft. That should require about 120w (at 20w/sq ft, I assume). But, the strips are in 80w units. Maybe if you had 3 and ran them at 50% watts? (That would be immensely less expensive than the $800 you're thinking about spending).

If it were me, I'd want to spread those watts around the plants better. More angles, coverage, closer. If you bought 6 and ran then at 25% you could do that. Still under your $800 target. (Not sure those are meant to be used that way. Just thinking out loud. You could also use two at 50% on top, and then use four household LED lightbulbs, one in each corner, for the remaining 40 watts.).

Why are you looking to buy LED instead of CMH (35w/sq ft) or T5HO (40w/sq ft)? Is the price of electricity high? Or, do you live in a hot climate? Those other sources of light are simpler to get your head around. The CMH would fit a 3x3' space perfectly. If the space were 4-5' tall, T5HO would work well. The plants would get UV from these lamps. (As far as I know, LED doesn't produce UV.).

Not trying to deter you. Just wondering if you've thought about why you've chosen LED?

the space is 3 by 2.5 - 8 foot in height right now in the space running 2 - 300 watt led's -

az2000 · Aug 2, 2019

hawkman said:
the space is 3 by 2.5 - 8 foot in height right now in the space running 2 - 300 watt led's -

300w actual? That's 80w/sq ft. (That's more than people run HPS). Why did you choose LED in the first place? It must not have been heat or lower energy cost?

I'd run CMH in that space. 35w/sq ft. $300.

Why are you looking to replace your existing LED?

hawkman · Aug 2, 2019

like HPS and cfl's - just wanted to run led's - there was a marked increase with yields, terpene;s, ect - and cheap run-ing

Migrower · Aug 2, 2019

hawkman said:
Name of some good LED's ?? other than kind, ect

Fluence bioengineering ,chilled logic,timber,hlg. There are actually some more

Aqua Man · Aug 2, 2019

Migrower said:
Fluence bioengineering ,chilled logic,timber,hlg. There are actually some more

+1

Gweedo · Aug 2, 2019

Cmh or cobs are great for that size space id go cmh with the high cieling space, good example of space constrained light choice there strips dont work out as well in that size space

visajoe1 · Aug 2, 2019

JonnySuicide said:
These are LED tubes not florescent bulbs, is that still the same?

probably. fine for vegging seedling/clones, but you'll want more power for flower. hey that rhymed!

for DIY lights, check out cobkits.com

az2000 · Aug 2, 2019

hawkman said:
like HPS and cfl's - just wanted to run led's - there was a marked increase with yields, terpene;s, ect - and cheap run-ing

Something I think would be cool (for a space your size, maybe 3x3): articulating-arm mounts on all four walls (the kind used to mount an LCD teevee on the wall.). Put surface mounted LEDs (like strip lights) on each articulating arm. (Have 3 arms per wall so you can illuminate from the top, middle and bottom).

Wouldn't that be the ultimate grow space? You could move panels out close to the plant. Tilt the top panel downward. Tilt the bottom panel upward. (Complete light immersion.).

Each "panel" (mounted to the articulating arm) could be a tri-fold (hinged "wings" on each side, contouring to the plant).

With LED becoming more efficient, I think *that's* where the gains are. Moving the light closer to the plant, more shaped to the plant. Painting each leaf with light (not just blasting from the top down).

On each panel you could mount warm and cool white, and blue and red (mono) diodes? You could control those diodes (an electronic "kit?") so they had deep red/warm in the "morning," blue/cool in the mid-day, red-warm in the late evening. As the the plant enters flower, shift the "days" to warmer light.

If I were really into DIY, I'd do that.

Kingjoshh · Aug 2, 2019

Aqua Man said:
Can we not refer to it as hype? Some people can justify spending more to have the same technology put together and tested for them.

Nothing hype about it. Facts are facts and yes you can do it diy cheaper than some of quality manufacturers but that doesn't make it hype.

Don't forget these hype manufacturers are the ones that spent money on R&D that led (no pun intended) to the development of the parts your able to buy and other companies knock off and sell cheaper.

Guess what happens when a company losses all its profits to that? No more R&D and no more advances.

I'm no different I save a buck when I can but at least I'm honest with myself about it.

Rant over

FFS why do I even bother reading led posts anymore lol.

Yeah man I have stoped commenting on led posts with the amount of stupid circle conversation

Edinburgh · Aug 2, 2019

If you insist on getting a cheap light for with a hydro crunch 600w led, veg, bloom and veg and bloom, 2 cycles, I bought a mars 300w light to sprout my seedlings with, it's only full spec so you can't flower, you say you have a 4×4 tent? My friend does to, so do i, sold by home depo over the net light is heavy, however he only paid around $200, don't buy mars! Viperspectra sells a 600w 2 cycle light for under $200 This light though big and cumbersome is not a bad veg light I'm running one right now but only for veg and yea it does the job, but I allso own a California light works solar storm 110 bloom booster, I live in a city were cultivation is legal so I can only grow autoflowers and with my booster my plants for the most part are decent, now my 600w viperspectra 600w reflector is supposed to replace a 600w mh and they both go in a 4×4 tent, now my viperspectra is supposed to have cooling wells, I don't know about that the light does throw heat, but no nearly as much as mh, I have never tried to flower a plant with it. The booster cost allmost $400 and worth every penny, my cheap Chinese light is an ok veg light but that's about it, if I had known about hydro crunch I would have bought that, I have $600 saved up for a proper light like black dog, but in reality if not for my booster and side light in veg I don't think I would do as good as I do and lately this is pretty much all I have going on, pic 1 was dark devel auto at day 42, now it's 53 days old, can you see the improvement of flower formation after only 11 day under my booster? A cheap Chinese light is ok to veg your plant but most don't have enough red to realy flower them right, so since your dipping your toe in the water and have a 4×4 tent and need a cheap light you can't get anything good for under $200 I think my viperspectra was $189, I would buy either a 600w hydro crunch full cycle led, 2 a viperspectra 600w reflector series, that's it, now you can buy a beautiful mh hps light with bulbs, ballast, fan ,everything dirt cheap , downside triple the heat triple the juice, we all do the best we can with what we have, you can grow a decient plant with 1 of those lights, but in the end you get what you pay for, you know that $600 I have saved for that black dog? I have another g to go so we do the best we can but these are the only 2 cheap lights I can recommend.

jumpincactus · Aug 2, 2019

Ace9137 said:
First off, LED's are okay, they are nothing near what is claimed on most web sites. I bought Meizhi's and they lasted about a year and a half a piece, actually one still works and produces white lights and lacks intensity. My honest opinion,(based on three years of LED's only), would be to look at your planned grow style. Fluro's are nice, they do not really get canopy penetration, LEDs are great if you can get past price and the fact they are not as long lasting as claimed, Then there HID's, I like them personally, I still won't suggest them only because of heat. Heat is not an issue here in the northern US. I would suggest that before you jump on the LED bandwagon you consider a few factors, canopy penetration, nutrient consumption, and of course light quality. Most US made LED lamps are awesome, yet, price kills the chance of me ever buying from them. Even with my bias towards LEDs, I don't rule them out, I just would wait until the tech is better as well as the regulations on the claims of said lights.

I dont agreewith your claim. You are correct that most ebay and other sites dont even come close to the published claims. I have been itching to move away from HID systems for years now. However I haven't puled the trigger yet. Reason for that is, the push for and claims about leds potential arent realised in most products until you get in the arena of professional commercial applications. My partner is pulling damn near HID yeilds with led and the colors are much more diverse and the terps are so different with the same cuts and strains. Now I will say to get into that arena yes it takes a bite out of your wallet. The old adage you get what you pay for even holds true to leds and cannabis.
Here is the system homie uses and I must say its impressive. Lighting is all about satisfying the DLI of any crop you grow, cannabis included. /even urban myths cannot change that fact. Peace out

SPYDRx Plus Vertical Farming Grow Light | Fluence

The SPYDRx Plus is Fluence's more powerful version of the SPYDRx close proximity grow light. Visit to buy direct from Fluence.

fluence.science

heres the newer better model https://fluence.science/store/spydr-series/spydr-2i/

And with higer ppfd and par you will need to step your game up on your enviros to get the max usage out of these systems

About PAR, PPF, And PPFD

If you're shopping for horticulture grow lights, you may have seen the terms watts, lumens, LUX, foot candles, PAR, PPF, PPFD, and photon efficiency.

fluence.science

jumpincactus · Aug 2, 2019

Kingjoshh said:
Yeah man I have stoped commenting on led posts with the amount of stupid circle conversation

Well read my latest post and then lets chat. Some folks know what they are talking about round here.

Aqua Man · Aug 2, 2019

jumpincactus said:
I dont agreewith your claim. You are correct that most ebay and other sites dont even come close to the published claims. I have been itching to move away from HID systems for years now. However I haven't puled the trigger yet. Reason for that is, the push for and claims about leds potential arent realised in most products until you get in the arena of professional commercial applications. My partner is pulling damn near HID yeilds with led and the colors are much more diverse and the terps are so different with the same cuts and strains. Now I will say to get into that arena yes it takes a bite out of your wallet. The old adage you get what you pay for even holds true to leds and cannabis.
Here is the system homie uses and I must say its impressive. Lighting is all about satisfying the DLI of any crop you grow, cannabis included. /even urban myths cannot change that fact. Peace out

SPYDRx Plus Vertical Farming Grow Light | Fluence

The SPYDRx Plus is Fluence's more powerful version of the SPYDRx close proximity grow light. Visit to buy direct from Fluence.

fluence.science

heres the newer better model https://fluence.science/store/spydr-series/spydr-2i/

And with higer ppfd and par you will need to step your game up on your enviros to get the max usage out of these systems

About PAR, PPF, And PPFD

If you're shopping for horticulture grow lights, you may have seen the terms watts, lumens, LUX, foot candles, PAR, PPF, PPFD, and photon efficiency.

fluence.science

Amen you can't increase one variable without accounting for all the others. Your grow is only as strong as your weakest link.

Ron B · Aug 2, 2019

HLG.......NUFF SAID !

Led light suggestion

Led light suggestion

Gweedo

Aqua Man

Gweedo

Aqua Man

hawkman

az2000

hawkman

az2000

hawkman

Migrower

Aqua Man

Gweedo

visajoe1

az2000

Kingjoshh

Edinburgh

Attachments

jumpincactus

Premium Member

SPYDRx Plus Vertical Farming Grow Light | Fluence

About PAR, PPF, And PPFD

jumpincactus

Premium Member

Aqua Man

SPYDRx Plus Vertical Farming Grow Light | Fluence

About PAR, PPF, And PPFD

Ron B

Led light suggestion

Led light suggestion

Gweedo

Aqua Man

Gweedo

Aqua Man

hawkman

az2000

hawkman

az2000

hawkman

Migrower

Aqua Man

Gweedo

visajoe1

az2000

Kingjoshh

Edinburgh

Attachments

jumpincactus

Premium Member

SPYDRx Plus Vertical Farming Grow Light | Fluence

About PAR, PPF, And PPFD

jumpincactus

Premium Member

Aqua Man

SPYDRx Plus Vertical Farming Grow Light | Fluence

About PAR, PPF, And PPFD

Ron B

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Privacy & Transparency