Whatever light or lights you decide on this site has a lot of good info and reviews, make sure you look at the review section there are a lot of good lights out there.
Thanks for all the input. I decided to start small with two Lighthouse Blackstar 180w v2.0 (UV and HO, flower and veg lights) for my 2x4 autoflower tent. They are supposedly 105w actual draw -- which is 26w per sq. ft. After I get some experience I'll decide what to do about my 4x4 photosensitive tent.
I came close to buying the Mars light. But, some things gave me doubts/concerns:
1. The relative efficiency of 3w lights using reflectors/lenses to make the most use of every stray bit of light, or 5w which is strong enough that you don't need the expense of those material/labor intensive accoutrements.
"Efficiency" can be measured different ways. Electrical, time and cost of materials and assembly, etc. I've got a feeling the 3w lights produce more "light per watt" than the 5w light. But, per dollar, the 5w (probably) produce more light.
Being new to this, I'm not sure which should be more important to me. My primary goal is to reduce heat. So, I think energy efficiency (3w with added labor/material cost of lens and reflector) is what I should lean toward.
I would have bought their 192x3w "Reflector" light, but it was out of stock in the US.
2. The $90-$100 surcharge for buying a veg and flower light put me off. These are standard spectrums. They shouldn't require custom assembly.
This gets back to my quandary about efficiency. I get the feeling it's more efficient (labor and materials) to just fill a light with full-spectrum bulbs and throw more energy at the plant so it gets whatever it needs at whatever stage of life it's in.
Again, I can see the value of that. But, for me, I may want to get a taste of what I believe to be more conservative, energy efficient, veg-/flower-specific lighting.
So, paying almost
triple to get veg and flower together seemed excessive to me. I could understand double the price. But, those punitive surcharges (for what are standard spectrums) gave me pause.
I'll get some experience with the Blackstars and decide whether to go higher wattage. If I get a Mars, I can get a flower spectrum and continue to use my T5 lights for veg. My T5s work fine for veg, but I feel they're lacking for flower. I can also keep the tent open during veg if I have any heat issues. It's during flower when it really needs to be sealed up (and lower-heat LEDs would give me a bit more leeway).
It's an interesting topic. Whether investing in engineered lens/reflector design is better than larger lights. I wish this stuff was rated in terms of PAR values so we could make comparisons like this.
