Which A/c Hood To Choose

[burn4me]

OK how is everyone? I'm considering a new Hood. I need to get something with great coverage to shoot for a dog method. There are a few I've seen that caught my eye. Firstly is one from hygiene called the big daddy its 3x3. That's the biggest I've seen. But also damn near 100$ just for shipping. Second is a Hood by a company named Maverick Sun. Its 40"x 34" I think it was. Then a few others like xxxl magnum and like. So any suggestions? Recommendations? And reason for the choice. Just trying to Max out use of 1k over a 5x5 tent thanks

 

[lollipopman]

Don't know what kind of tent you have but getting something like 3x3 hood would be heavy and might bend your tent framing. I'd say something around the 25/28 inch hood would be good.

 

[deacon1503]

You didn't say anything about which ballast and bulb setup your running so imma recc the ac/de with either a solis-tec or Gavi digitstar.

 

[lollipopman]

You didn't say anything about which ballast and bulb setup your running so imma recc the ac/de with either a solis-tec or Gavi digitstar.

You talking about a de bulb in a tent?

 

[DANKSY]

the DE bulbs and ballasts are badass... i have a few in open hoods and some in the ac/de... i think the 6/750 gavita DE with the aircooled AC/de would be best in a tent... but if you already have a reg ballast i would go with the magnum xxxl ocho with the flip down glass... i have a few of the old ones and the glass is a pain to clean compared to the hinged ones... fwiw

 

[Skuna Tuna]

The bigger the hood doesn't necessarily mean the wider the spread. The industry has used the "bigger is better" sells technique for years. The bigger the hood = the more distance light has to travel from its origin before being reflected. Which finally results in loss of intensity - sometimes up to 10%.
I would look closely at the angle of the hoods sides, this will help u see the predicted footprint. IMO I would go with a Sun Systems hood, always quality and plus they're made in the USA. Check out the blockbusters or the blazers. Magnums are huge and bulky, I still have two and hate them. Just my .02
Sküna

 

[sixstring]

my thought is the bigger the hood the more steel there is to heat up and radiat heat back into the grow.its what drew me to cool tubes with wings,theres nothing to them and the wings are adjustable somewhat so you can change the footprint to suit your area.plus the air really moves through them great.for your lamp i would use the 8 inch tube.i run about 12 of the 6 inch singles and 2 of the 60in dual tubes.other than gavita its my only choice.

 

[burn4me]

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Still undecided but glad to hear first hand experience
keep em coming people.

 

[Natural]

Been using Raptors with 6" vents with hinges. I like em..at first I thought I would regret not getting the 8" ones..but they stay really cool. Can put my hand on top of them and they don't even feel warm..super thin profile and huge light spread. Keeping the glass clean and using fresh bulbs, I get the same weight as I would using open parabolic hoods. Winter time I found they cool a little too good..gonna have to get a day/night temp regulator to keep the cold in check lol. They are weighty..but I'm sure a quality tent frame can handle it..np.

 

[DirtySanchez]

AC/DE is pretty much highest light output as far as air cooled. Single ended the Evolution from Sunlight is pretty similar to Acde style. If you're looking for a square pattern Blockbuster or Radiant might be a good option.

Just my 2c