scfm69 said:

I don’t know that I’ve been stoned in decades. It’s maintenance.

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A few of us are working on maintaining a state of stonedness.

ComfortablyNumb said:

Some of us are stoned and forgot what we read above.

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And others are just old, and still others both. Like myself, lol.

freezeland2 said:

And others are just old, and still others both. Like myself, lol.

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Yeah, I wasn't gonna bring age into it. LOL No spring chickens in here.

ComfortablyNumb said:

A few of us are working on maintaining a state of stonedness.

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I haven’t tried to just keep going in a while. Ya know what, I’m not doing anything. I’m going to run a test.

There is an exception. In LA I was smoking and eating, drinking THC in excess. I swore edibles did nothing for me. To prove it to myself I bought and ate a 500mg brownie. This was after smoking and eating other candies all day, and smoking on the way back from the dispensary after eating it. I was in the house 30-40 mins. It was Grandads place. I had to pass out and knew I had seconds at best. I said I thought jet lag was getting me….I’d been there 2 weeks. lol. I passed right out for the night.

ComfortablyNumb said:

Yeah, I wasn't gonna bring age into it. LOL No spring chickens in here.

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I am certainly not one. 52 now, I think.

scfm69 said:

Yea, I ran across a review that really put me off. It’s all driving me crazy and I certainly didn’t mean for anyone to argue. Had I noticed I would have said earlier I looked at them and wasn’t impressed just visually. For better or worse, that’s a consideration. I should just go with my original choice but the reviews of it are that it draws 100 more watts than stated. Not a big deal for the pocketbook but why is it off so much? Not knowing these brands etc makes it that much harder. I go crazy picking a TV and I know what I’m looking at with those. The tent and exhaust advice I got was used and those are on the way.

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Lights are in the same category as death and taxes. Do not discuss in public.

If it's picking between the Trump light and the Biden light I know which one I'm choosing!!

Freedom lights.

Well another LED deserving of continued discussions here.


Thank you @1diesel1 for this gift to the community.

The best advice I can give is over build. I tried to cheap it out and was not happy with the results. Now I have over built my system and am crushing it. It costs more then you want to spend but you don't end up buying it twice. I had a Sf4000 in a 4x4 tent and was not happy with the result. No problem with the light it's great just to small for a 4x4 in my opinion. It's killing it in a 32x32 though.

badbluerubi said:

The best advice I can give is over build. I tried to cheap it out and was not happy with the results. Now I have over built my system and am crushing it. It costs more then you want to spend but you don't end up buying it twice. I had a Sf4000 in a 4x4 tent and was not happy with the result. No problem with the light it's great just to small for a 4x4 in my opinion. It's killing it in a 32x32 though.

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This is along the same lines of my thinking.
We get these ppfd maps that show how well the light is focused into a particular area. The maps themselves prove that the light is not uniform and is incorrectly spaced. It may be more than enough light, but it's all concentrated. To (in my mind) correctly cover the entire 4x4 I bought 2 lights that supposedly cover 4x4 each. I can run them at almost half the power for the same result and better coverage. Of course it cost me double, but I used less expensive lights. There is less heat as well, even though that seems weird. I expect these to double their lifespan because they never get run full out. And they daisy chain dim which to us is a very important option. The larger the grow area, the more this comes in handy. Now we just need to convince them to put all the controls on a remote wire that can be outside the tent.
The whole problem is the size of the boards. I was happy to see the rail lights come out, but they are fixed and cant be moved. They should be able to move sideways and piviot up to 10 degrees either direction.

scfm69 said:

Hi. I’m brand new and don’t even have the indoor equipment yet. I have picked out what I believe I want and need. I just have so many questions still. I’ve decided a 5x5 tent for room inside for incidentals that may be needed and elbow room. Planning 4 plants still. The lights I’m looking at (driving me crazy) have a veg footprint of 5x5 but 4x4 for flower. I need a step up light? I’ve seen grow rooms with these lights unless the videos are all faked. I really could use a mentor or someone for a longer conversation. I just have a bunch of questions that once answered will speed me alone. My disastrous outdoor grow this summer taught me not to jump in blind. Be ready. I’m trying to do that. I’ve received a lot of help here as far as what to do about my outdoor girls. I know this is the right place. Thanks all!

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I read a couple pages of the post and will offer advice on the lighting. When starting out on budget, you need to stay away from MH and HPS because of they heat they generate. It isnt that hard to overcome, but requires cooling air flow, and one more expense. Those lights also consume more electricity, making them both more expensive to run and more demanding on the circuit in that room.

The "Hot Ticket" for lights has been HLG's quantum board setup - but they are pricey. HLG's system is based on Samsung LH301 diodes and meanwell drivers. Any other brand with the same diodes and drivers, operating at the same current draw will have an identical spectrum to the HLG system. Once you know that little tidbit, you are armed to find a good system at a good price.

Before you look though, you might want to reconsider getting a single large light. A single large light will predominantly illuminate under the light, with rapid falloff of PAR values as you move away from the light - not good. If you get multiple smaller lights, then you can do a better job of illuminating the entire space evenly.

So that said, you will find several suppliers with the 301 diodes. The choice I made was for BESTVA (link https://www.bestvaled.com/collections/pro-series) and I have been very pleased. Personally, I use both the 2000's and the 1000's. I like the 2000s for mounting higher yet being able to still provide enough light. I now believe the best set up is getting all 1000s. It is cheaper that way, more flexible and you get better coverage. I have a grow space that is approx 3'x5' and have 2 2000s and 2 1000s in it. The minimum set I would go for is a 5x5 would be 6 1000s and would prefer 9 (for even coverage). I like to have one 1000 per plant.

One of the problems with cheap powerful lights is that you can give your plants too much light. Be sure to watch for the signs, or even better, get a light meter and use it. PAR is best, but Lux will do (the first measures only light that plants use, the second measures all light). If you dont have the meter be sure to follow the recommended distance from the canopy!!

Last piece of advice - get a decent PH meter and check the PH of the water you use for feeding.

If you need any other help, let me know.

I won't say you can't grow nice plants under a China light, because you definitely can; but not all 301 diodes are the same. The H at the end on the some signifies being rated for a horticulture application. Samsung sends the best ones to HLG. The China lights are built from out of spec byproduct of making HLG's.

I still think the r600 is a good option. Did you cancel the other because of price? Have you looked at the HLG quantum board kits? You could build 2 260w lights for $297 each and have nearly the output of the r600 with more flexibility.

weedshoes said:

I won't say you can't grow nice plants under a China light, because you definitely can; but not all 301 diodes are the same. Samsung sends the best ones to HLG. The China lights are built from out of spec byproduct of making HLG's.

What is LED Binning?

Blog about LED Binning. A way of sorting the chips so that all the LEDs from one particular bin look the same and have similar light output.

www.any-lamp.com

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My profession was in electronics, and I am very familiar with solid state devices. I will just say that, yes, all Samsung 301 diodes are the same chip. There are suffix letters (like "H") that denote the diode packaging, testing and environment, but they do not change the diode's performance or output , just the packaging.

totamus said:

My profession was in electronics, and I am very familiar with solid state devices. I will just say that, yes, all Samsung 301 diodes are the same chip. There are suffix letters (like "H") that denote the diode packaging, testing and environment, but they do not change the diode's performance or output , just the packaging.

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Good to know. Thanks for sharing your expertise. That article I posted is from 2018. The last paragraph reads:

"In fact, it has been confirmed that the introduction of the LM301H is only to differentiate the "Horticulture" market from the general lighting market. Technically, it is the same product. As we have shown in our tests, it is only the best binning that matters. Special features such as increased sulphur resistance are also characteristics of both product types.

In the future, however, specialized spectrums will be marketed under the LM301H designation, as was the case with the LM301H One.We'll have more on the new Samsung LED chips soon."

Can you confirm whether they are still the same in 2021?

weedshoes said:

Good to know. Thanks for sharing your expertise. That article I posted is from 2018. The last paragraph reads:

"In fact, it has been confirmed that the introduction of the LM301H is only to differentiate the "Horticulture" market from the general lighting market. Technically, it is the same product. As we have shown in our tests, it is only the best binning that matters. Special features such as increased sulphur resistance are also characteristics of both product types.

In the future, however, specialized spectrums will be marketed under the LM301H designation, as was the case with the LM301H One.We'll have more on the new Samsung LED chips soon."

Can you confirm whether they are still the same in 2021?

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The 301H is still the same. The general rule is that the number changes when the part is no longer interchangeable with its predecessors.

Ponky said:

Cheap tents are fine. Get one with a known good zipper. You can only plug in so much per room. So consider the amount of electricity you can use. Growneer has a good zipper. If your light budget is small get 600 watt HPS combo. With a vented hood. Cheap. Gets good yield. A good LED array can cost 8 to 10x more. Are you trying to stay under 1000 bucks to start?

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i try to soap( just regular unsented soap) or use bow string wax on my zipper every week or so it helps a lot with smooth feel of a zipper !

scfm69 said:

Hi. I’m brand new and don’t even have the indoor equipment yet. I have picked out what I believe I want and need. I just have so many questions still. I’ve decided a 5x5 tent for room inside for incidentals that may be needed and elbow room. Planning 4 plants still. The lights I’m looking at (driving me crazy) have a veg footprint of 5x5 but 4x4 for flower. I need a step up light? I’ve seen grow rooms with these lights unless the videos are all faked. I really could use a mentor or someone for a longer conversation. I just have a bunch of questions that once answered will speed me alone. My disastrous outdoor grow this summer taught me not to jump in blind. Be ready. I’m trying to do that. I’ve received a lot of help here as far as what to do about my outdoor girls. I know this is the right place. Thanks all!

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Update!
I have now ordered the major parts. Gorilla tent, AC Infinity exhaust (including muffler), and a PhotonTek X600 Led. All incidentals I can get locally and am making that list now.
I just wanted to thank everyone for their time and great advice. I did listen to everyone & then made my choices feeling like I had a better grasp of what I was looking at. Thanks!

Aqua Man said:

Calcium will be CaCo3. In most cases with your ppm it will be high and mag will be very low. IMO This imbalance will cause issues if not accounted for at that ppm

Sodium you want under 20ppm imo.

Don't use any water through any softener.

Preferable with that ppm you will want RO and at a min 50/50 tap/RO.

I'm off to get some sleep but be back in a few hrs. If you have any queations

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Hi, I hope all is well. Came to resurrect this as it seems easier. If it’s ok maybe we could do a direct message. I think this will wrap it for me. My major pieces are here and the countdown to dropping a seed has begun. I have decided to get the RO because if I’m inviting these ladies in they need to be treated right. Would you do a 7 stage with re-mineralization, or is that overkill? Remembering we will be drinking and using it for coffee. Yes, the amount of water we buy made the decision easier.

About the RO/tap split ratio. In the report I shared with you we draw from two wells, one with a sodium of level of 33.9ppm and the other at 70ppm. Would you split it differently or just not use it? I spoke with the plant manager. He doesn’t know why they don’t list the cal/mag and just lump it in a hardness level. The remineralization puts those two, among others back. I’m sure at acceptable levels. Thank you for any advice.