Lighting Small cab, Led? Need advice

[Hues]

Hi,

I started a grow recently, a link in my signature. I want to get a led light for my cab but my cabs height disturbs me:
it's 40″, i use 2.5 liter pots and a carbon filter is on the way so they'll steal some height. mars II 400 looks really efficient
but the company advice 24"x30" hanging distance. i know there are lots of different lights so any advice would be great.

here is my cab without filter, i will get it in a few days

 

[G.Leave]

Hey...I have almost the same vertical as you. After doing much research(especially in the microgrow section) I realized that many guys are going much closer than recommended distances. In fact I saw one grow here, where the guy had the tip of his plants as close as 4" from the surface of the light with no ill effects.(though it was the 100X3w mars light)
Needless to say I went out and bought a pair of lights for my limited vertical grow area(34" vertical) As soon as I am done with my outdoor girls it will be fired up!

 

[TimTaylor]

Hey...I have almost the same vertical as you. After doing much research(especially in the microgrow section) I realized that many guys are going much closer than recommended distances. In fact I saw one grow here, where the guy had the tip of his plants as close as 4" from the surface of the light with no ill effects.(though it was the 100X3w mars light)
Needless to say I went out and bought a pair of lights for my limited vertical grow area(34" vertical) As soon as I am done with my outdoor girls it will be fired up!

Ive a galaxy hydro 300w 10 spectrum LED and my main colas generally end up about 3-4" from the LED.
Getting great results and brilliant bang for buck. Its pretty similar to the newer mars hydro 10spectrums

 

[G.Leave]

Ive a galaxy hydro 300w 10 spectrum LED and my main colas generally end up about 3-4" from the LED.
Getting great results and brilliant bang for buck. Its pretty similar to the newer mars hydro 10spectrums

And you buds are producing with the strong lighted love man! I wonder why the recommended distances are so far, when they can be run much closer than the companies recommend?

 

[Hues]

much appreciated,

what i understand is flowering is not a problem, "keep close the lights in flowering " rule works for led too..
if there'll be some issues i can veg them with cfls and then switch to led as well? maybe..
no hurry, i can wait and do some search as much as i can. mars II 400 is just an example i found, its dimensions look good and perfectly fit. i don't want to get a light which will be just a side support in a bigger tent, just in case

Hey...I have almost the same vertical as you. After doing much research(especially in the microgrow section) I realized that many guys are going much closer than recommended distances. In fact I saw one grow here, where the guy had the tip of his plants as close as 4" from the surface of the light with no ill effects.(though it was the 100X3w mars light)
Needless to say I went out and bought a pair of lights for my limited vertical grow area(34" vertical) As soon as I am done with my outdoor girls it will be fired up!

 

[G.Leave]

much appreciated,

what i understand is flowering is not a problem, "keep close the lights in flowering " rule works for led too..
if there'll be some issues i can veg them with cfls and then switch to led as well? maybe..
no hurry, i can wait and do some search as much as i can. mars II 400 is just an example i found, its dimensions look good and perfectly fit. i don't want to get a light which will be just a side support in a bigger tent, just in case

I ended up buying 2 lights both 100X3w. Grabbed an old style mars(180w real), and was advised by an exceptional grower here about a seller on ebay that has their own brand of 100X3w(165w real draw) that has a dimmable feature. I grabbed that one as I figured at worst I could veg them under restricted light if I had to. He was telling me that the ebay light has produced the most crystal out of 3 different kinds of lights he has.(mars Apollo and the ledlightseller brand iirc)
Definitely check out some journals in the microgrow section.

 

[Fuggzy]

Have you considered building a light? This is the route I went. I have a micro cab with 143²" of floor, and about 2.5' of head room. For the lights I have 4 vero 10s. 2 @ 3000k, and 2 @ 3500k. Ran at 350ma. ~26.7v * .35a=9.345w *4= 37.38w total.


By making 1 you could get a custom spectrum, layout, and cooling. In my opinion if you want full spectrum, you should go with white lights, and add supplemental colors. I don't have the links on hand to support this, but can put it in a easy way to see. Have you ever seen the sun cast a pink/purple,red, or blue light and blanket the planet with it? Beach side sunsets not included. White lights are a mixture of colors, just like the light from the sun. I'm not saying a prefab red/blue led wont rock your socks off. I just feel that if we are trying to mimic nature, "full" spectrum, should be just that. Full.

The price comparison is silly too. I paid like $7ea for my vero cobs. The above light cost me less than $50. I also have another 24 veros 10s, and ~30-3 watt led to run in a 4x2 tent. I found affordable drivers on ebay to power it all. In total I will have paid about $220 for materials used in the tent. Bridgelux is up there with Cree, and exceeding them in some of their lights. These are not cheap ebay leds that have never been tested. I do own cheapbay led btw, I'm not knocking them, just comparing them. Top notch lights + some research = a great light at 1/2 the price.

This is a plant I recently harvested. I also ran the light at ~4" above the bud with no ill effects. The temp at 1" below the light is ~95F.

The plant grew in a large V giving 2-7" budsicles. Until some new space age tech comes out, led is the only kind of light I plan on using. Best of luck to you.

 

[Hues]

Hi Fuggzy,
i've read some guides and seen some good examples. it looks confusing to me first but it would be cool to create one.
while going with cfls i can do some search and try to work on it. there are lots of thing to learn i guess. good example you have, thank you for the inspiration. now i'm looking for some information on AFN as well.
https://www.autoflower.org/threads/ksja-s-perpetual-micro-hydro.46810/ it is a good example too

why not? i'll update if i have some progress

 

[Fuggzy]

If you would like s couple good reads google "Bueno Grows w/ DIY COB LEDs" It should be the first non-advertisement link. This is where I got most the info in regards to my light. He puts TONS on info in his thread. It also show 3 grows under it.

Another guru to read from is a guy named supraspl. This guys is really smart, and where Bueno learned most of his info. Search "supraspl diy cob farmer" it is the first link. You can also just google Supraspl, and it bring up post he has from multiple sources.

Both of the above guys have lots of posted info from their own testing. They include every thing from where to source good chips, the efficiency of their lights, all the way to the spectrum they are running. I can't praise these 2 enough.

I would personally suggest Cree, Bridgelux, or Phillips. A rule of thumb I follow with my led selection is, if there is not a data sheet, I'm not buying. I feel like if the company did not find it important to test their product, then I should not either. With that being said, I also think you should get what is in your budget, data sheet or not. Most of my 3w are cheapbay buys. They where 1/10th the price of my phillips, and cree 3w. However, I will only buy "big name" cobs. The bar on the left (below) cost about ~$25, and the one on the right cost ~$3.5 including the heatsinks...

I don't claim to be a guru, but if you have any questions I'd be happy to lend a hand. See ya later.

 

[Hues]

i checked out that guys, they have interesting stuff-superb grows.. i found myself searching crees, bridgelux leds, drivers etc..
i think building a small one is good start to understanding basics. so i'll keep searching and make a start list. it would be great to read some advices. i'll try to update this threat and let's see what'll be happen through the journey. thank you for stopping by mate, much appreciated! see ya