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Fully Automated Indoor Grow 1st Time Grower!


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1 minute ago, PsyCLown said:

I misread, sorry.

 

LED, assuming you have Quantum Boards or lights with Samsung LM301B/H diodes, the 600W of LED would be around 1200 umol.

So a lot better than 600W HID, although still a bit short if you want to try end up with the optimal output for flowering plants in that size tent.

You want around 900W - 1000W of LED in that sized tent to get around 2000 umol which is optimal.

 

One thing to keep in mind is the spread / coverage of the lights. You could get a few big COB's but their spread wouldn't be as great as multiple smaller diodes like we see on strips and Quantum Boards. You want to try achieve a nice even PPFD throughout the tent as well. 

I have the semi bar QB style lights with overkill leds on the boards and the settings on the lights and power supply, are at the most efficient setting possible, so I am running 600w but the supply's are rated at 320w each. The outside LEDs quantity are plenty, with far reds, and feel the reflection off the white walls, makes up for the less than desirable output. I have plans to upgrade again, when I have an income or any work at all.

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i must chime in here with my past meter readings for HID systems... electronic ballasts may be more accurate than the magnetic ballasts with stated wattage, but until you have checked the wattage, dont believe the rating.

it may put out 400w of light, or 600w of light... but the draw from the wall can be significantly higher.

the magnetic 400w i used to use had a draw of 670w out the wall

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Let me throw my 1c in here, I used a 600w HPS for a long time and just before I converted to LEDS i used  a 1000w HPS, first thing the heat off those things is crazy, having to run your extractors on all day costs cash plus add in the costs of running such lights to your electricity bill, Was it worth it? Have i seen better yield using HPS rather than LEDS? I cant say because i haven't run true 1000w LEDS to be able to compare, what i will say is for less watts than HPS I get a pretty damn close yield with LEDS, less heat also meant I didn't have to run my extractor all day, meant I saved on electricity bill, less watts for the same outputs or close to those of HPS aswel. So no matter which way you look at it, LEDS are a win win

Edited by Marzcanna
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I run my extractor all day and night anyway, with LED, the cost for me, doubled as soon as I added the aircon to the party, for those days when the room gets to 25deg with the doors open and extractor on. I didnt notice much change in power with fans, or extraction 

Bigger one out the room, and smaller back into the room.

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Edited by The_StonedTrooper
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24 minutes ago, The_StonedTrooper said:

I run my extractor all day and night anyway, with LED, the cost for me, doubled as soon as I added the aircon to the party, for those days when the room gets to 25deg with the doors open and extractor on. I didnt notice much change in power with fans, or extraction 

Bigger one out the room, and smaller back into the room.

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This structure is great! Looks super sturdy and those extra poles are nice to add more items inside the tent. 

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On 5/19/2021 at 8:51 AM, Beardedbruuh said:

So just recently got this setup going by help of Detour Hydroponics. Super keen to see the progress. Be sure that i'll be asking a lot of questions to help us grow! Specs for the grow:

2 x220w Samsung Full Spectrum

420 Soil Mix

120x240x200 Tent

Terra Aquatica Tri Part Nutrients

Automated Drip System

Mantis 20l Fabric Pots

Let me know what you guys think!

 

IMG_2019.thumb.jpg.73d8da0de78314797f199a6b214992a2.jpgIMG_2018.thumb.jpg.4bfd6562b58689cb5b4137e5fdcc02d0.jpgIMG_2017.thumb.jpg.ce2f92bb8226cb1ad832c2cc3620dfa1.jpgIMG_2016.thumb.jpg.7f5d228afb2500321703a18d4faafb5b.jpgIMG_2015.thumb.jpg.1c263ad73d092301fad1e49a8dcbef33.jpg

 

Got 6 x Fat Banana, 2 x Supercheese F1, 2 x Skittlz / Manderin Cookies 

 

Brother, I must first say, you are starting out, with what most here have built over years. Good show and you got the right start and come to the best place too.

Your system is somewhat impressive 🙌

Then, as always, but still on topic, we semi hijacked your thread, so apologies for that.

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26 minutes ago, The_StonedTrooper said:

I have the semi bar QB style lights with overkill leds on the boards and the settings on the lights and power supply, are at the most efficient setting possible, so I am running 600w but the supply's are rated at 320w each. The outside LEDs quantity are plenty, with far reds, and feel the reflection off the white walls, makes up for the less than desirable output. I have plans to upgrade again, when I have an income or any work at all.

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Are those the Ripper lights? I recall those having a lot more diodes and in theory you'd be able to push more power to them - not sure how the heatsinks are but often having a fan blowing over them is sufficient to drop temps drastically.

 

If that is the case, then I would consider upping the power a bit. Ultimately you'd want to use a quantum sensor to see what your  average PPFD is at canopy height for your tent and whether it meets your needs or falls within the recommended range.

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15 minutes ago, PsyCLown said:

Are those the Ripper lights? I recall those having a lot more diodes and in theory you'd be able to push more power to them - not sure how the heatsinks are but often having a fan blowing over them is sufficient to drop temps drastically.

 

If that is the case, then I would consider upping the power a bit. Ultimately you'd want to use a quantum sensor to see what your  average PPFD is at canopy height for your tent and whether it meets your needs or falls within the recommended range.

GrowOpz lights, custom frame, and the diodes running at the set rate, will make them last longer, so don't want to push them, rather add to them, efficiently. 

I have fans on each heat sink, and the power supply's have their own heat sinks 2.

Yes the early 6 bar, and then the overkill test ripper

Happy so far I guess. 

Added, I prefer the goods and products to last me than get great stuff for a season or two.

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Edited by The_StonedTrooper
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52 minutes ago, The_StonedTrooper said:

GrowOpz lights, custom frame, and the diodes running at the set rate, will make them last longer, so don't want to push them, rather add to them, efficiently. 

I have fans on each heat sink, and the power supply's have their own heat sinks 2.

Yes the early 6 bar, and then the overkill test ripper

Happy so far I guess. 

Added, I prefer the goods and products to last me than get great stuff for a season or two.

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I get that, although the diodes will still degrade with time. As long as you can keep them cool, that will help slow down the rate at which they degrade.

Majority of people run these Samsung diodes below their max rated. Even 120W for a single QB288 is below what Samsung rate the diodes for. So pushing it up to the same power level as your typical QB should not be an issue and with the cooling you have I highly doubt it would make much difference if any in terms of the speed at which the diodes degrade.

I did the maths once, from what I recall a QB288 (so 288 of the LM301B/H diodes) were capable of 164w or something around there, according to Samsung.

 

If you'd rather not, that is perfectly fine too. These diodes are more efficient when run below their max as well, after a certain point efficiency does take a slight dip in terms of watts and PPFD output, a bit more goes towards heat. Difference would be negligible although adds up over the years 🙂 

 

Is that a metal enclosure of sorts which your driver is on top of? To help keep it cool?

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I suppose they could go higher yes, and I might do that, but happy and might just add to the mix a little more as time goes and stay at the max rates I have the supplies at.

That they are on is a piece of aluminum extrusion, cut from the medical arms for the pendants I used to manufacture. So huge heat sink.

Also keeps them away from the tent material and the heat to not transfer to the tent.

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Edited by The_StonedTrooper
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@The_StonedTrooper very cool and clever, will draw the heat out of the driver very quickly and effectively I am sure.

I am putting a bit more faith into the Meanwells and hoping I do not have issues and if so, that their warranty will cover it. 5 and 7 year warranties is pretty awesome! That is also if they run 24/7 for 5 or 7 years straight is their supposed lifespan.

Mine are just on some cardboard on top of the tent to help prevent any damage to the tent material and to help insulate the heat from the tent. lol

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4 hours ago, PsyCLown said:

@The_StonedTrooper very cool and clever, will draw the heat out of the driver very quickly and effectively I am sure.

I am putting a bit more faith into the Meanwells and hoping I do not have issues and if so, that their warranty will cover it. 5 and 7 year warranties is pretty awesome! That is also if they run 24/7 for 5 or 7 years straight is their supposed lifespan.

Mine are just on some cardboard on top of the tent to help prevent any damage to the tent material and to help insulate the heat from the tent. lol

For me, if I may.

Prefer the heat sink for the power supply's, as I believe it helps lengthen the life, even of on warranty for years, and especially feel that the cooler it runs, the more efficient and effective it will be in using that power and lengthening the life hopefully. 

Each to his own though🤗

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44 minutes ago, The_StonedTrooper said:

For me, if I may.

Prefer the heat sink for the power supply's, as I believe it helps lengthen the life, even of on warranty for years, and especially feel that the cooler it runs, the more efficient and effective it will be in using that power and lengthening the life hopefully. 

Each to his own though🤗

I agree with you there. Just haven't had anything to help cool the drivers and not willing on forking out money to cool them as a big chunk of extrusion like that isn't likely to be cheap to begin with.

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48 minutes ago, PsyCLown said:

I agree with you there. Just haven't had anything to help cool the drivers and not willing on forking out money to cool them as a big chunk of extrusion like that isn't likely to be cheap to begin with.

If you in CT, I will bring a piece down for you next time I drive through. I will bless you with it.

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I love how this page is already on 2 pages! hahaha. Thanks for all the insight guys, this is for sure a learning curve and i'm very fortunate to start my first grow with such a great setup.

Had some issues with the watering in the past week, way too much over watering happened. So was struggling a bit to get it sorted. But i believe its fine now. So it gave the plants 15mins of water each day, which resulted in the pic. As you'll see, complete shi* show! But thankfully i got the watering dialed in now, restricted the flow more and also only put the water on a timer for 6mins x twice a day. Let's see how it goes! I honestly believe that I should not add more drippers and such. 

I'm thinking about getting only a single 600W HPS light to be added to this grow, to ensure enough light and also, to raise the temp a bit in the room as its cold AF! With it being in a garage, didn't think that it'll be such a big concern. Temps are hovering at 23-25 celcius and humidity is at 55%. I take updated pictures of the grow this weekend.

Let me know what you guys rate.

 

Side note! I have a small 80x80cm tent in my house, i'm trying this method out to be replicated to the big grow. I've got two Fat Bud's in doing well, under 140w samsung LED with meanwell driver. I am running the Easy2Grow Autopot System. Working like a dream! And feeding them Horticulture Nutrients. Super happy about how they are doing. Will be putting a SCROG in the tent tonightGrow1.thumb.jpg.a877c3778307812055a309c4b5cf7369.jpgGrow2.thumb.jpg.6309b74f637d13d01340a11460a1e046.jpg

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