Lighting TOPled The Manual.

[Animatey]

light height is something I think about everyday lol. I look at the plants and the lights and think "I could totally lower that" "should I lower that?" etc etc.

I feel like LED light distance can be very tricky. For me it has been the hardest part of working with LEDs.

I emailed TOPLED and asked them how far I should keep my UFO from the plants and here was their reply:

12~15inch above the plants. thank u​

Here is the light I was asking about specifically:

http://www.topledgrowlight.com/cata...ed-grow-light-60x3w/category/16/#.VF5I8ofY1El


I have been using it in one grow, and it had good results in veg, in flower I nute burned the plant so hard that no light would have really made a good yield out of that situation so... can't really comment on how effective it is, but it got to me very fast, was shipped discreetly, and it's pretty quiet. It feels great too. Quality is legit. Even the fan holes are like all stylish and what not (not that I generally care about that sort of thing, but it definitely compliments the sturdy build quality).


I also purchased this light, and have been using it for one grow so far:

http://www.topledgrowlight.com/cata...ed-grow-light-60x3w/category/16/#.VF5I8ofY1El


The build quality is there for sure as well. I really like the "old model" as they seem to call it on the topled website. The only thing I will say is they run a little hotter than other LED's I have had, but they also pack a lot more LEDs into the space. When I compared numbers to my old LEDS of the same size, the topled's pack a lot more (all are 3w individual LEDS).

One thing I did experience when growing leafy plants with these LEDS at this distance is magnification burn. I grow (horribly) in tiny spaces usually and a user here (Grey Bear) pointed out to me in pictures that I had magnification burn (which I had thought for a long time was nute burn or something like that). It happens when leaves touch and sweat on each other. The sweat is like a magnifying glass and with the LEDs so focused and so close they will burn the plant up. I even had fairly low humidity but the leafs so packed together caused sweat anyways.

It's not really a problem with the lights, it's really I guess a ventilation issue. Once I got a fan pointed up through the canopy (and trimmed off a bunch of the burnt leaves) it seemed to stop happening.


I have never seen any bleaching from these lights even at about 8 inches from the top.

 

[1guy1plant]

I moved mine from 20 inches to 24 inches.

 

[1guy1plant]

I am wondering if I could go six 3 gallon pots under the 2 leds. The space is 2.5ftx4ft.

 

[Chester]

I am wondering if I could go six 3 gallon pots under the 2 leds. The space is 2.5ftx4ft.
View attachment 398252

Yes you can start w/ 6 x 3 gal pots ... as you become a better grower you'll find 2-3 plants will fill the space but six should be no problem initially ...

 

[1guy1plant]

Thanks, I have 3 mixed auto mephisto seeds and 2 mephisto sour cracks coming and I still have one nirvana blue mystic. I want to plant as soon as my 1st grow is done.

 

[mauricem00]

I would like to make a suggestion for your consideration. my first attempt at a comparison grow between a 300 watt mars hydro and a 160 watt fluorescent fixture failed because spider mites attacked the led crop. the fluoro crop was in a separate cabinet less than 10 feet away in the same room but the mites left them alone.in looking for and answer to this I found this article http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/160/1/145. apparently the spider mite did not like the small amount of uvb produced by the fluorescent bulbs and left those plants alone.this would suggest that adding a "SMALL" amount of uvb to your grow room when using led lights "MAY" give them some protection from insects,fungus and mold.this is the only reason I can find for why the spider-mites attacked my led crop and left my fluorescent crop alone.maybe others can benefit from this experience. many believe that a small amount of uvb can increase resin and cbd production and this may be an added benefit.just remember to turn of the uvb when you enter the grow room.it can cause cancer and blindness in humans over the long run. just my 2 cents worth

 

[1guy1plant]

Maurice, I have read the same thing. Not so much about pests but adding some UV helps in bud and resin production. I have 8 cfls hung as side lighting to help. I have also read that some will add a reptile light and run it a few hours a day as well to add the UV. Good to know about pest control as well.

 

[Hansbricks]

Well I've joined the TOPled/Mars club, got my Mars II 400w yesterday "Bailers Booya" This will be replacing my 300w Vipar, which has had two rows of LEDs go out and no longer under warranty... Looking forward to see what this beast can do next grow. Really happy with the initial impression of it, much bigger and more heavy duty than I thought it would be :Cool bud: Also I figured this would be shipping directly from China but was pleasantly surprised when it shipped out of Ontario, so no duty to pay and had it in less than a week... so even better deal for any Canadians interested in these lights :smoke:

 

[Trapper]

Welcome to the Club

Love the lights I have from them....

Man, as a designer though, I wish they would have spent a little more time on their new logo/stickers....

I know Ronin is pretty happy with his Mars II's

 

[medic grower]

Welcome to the Club Hans i just recieve my 2nd 180w ufo now the lil Dr 60 is shiny bright... soon some Mars 2 for the bigger room(x mas common come round the corner )