I see, I’m missing the /m2/ part of the equation and not realizing that I’ve got .33 * (m2). Yes?
You’re no dope head, you’re pretty smart:)
OK if I’m understanding you correctly, I’m not going to help myself significantly with more than 400 ppfd light. Correct?
So, right now I’ve got a magnetic 400W hps that’s costing about $100.00 per month @ $0.14 kwh. Clearly, I’ve gotta make a change. I’m stuck with 2X2 for flower.
Topic Deviation:
How much Banana Kush should I be able to grow in a 2X2 with lots of hvac ventilation?
I’m thinking 3 plants, each topped twice young, then low stress tactics.
Considering upfront cost & monthly cost what do you think is really my best option to flood the 2X2 room with 400 ppfd? (whew, I learned a lot in the past few hours - thanks again).
Actually, if you wouldn’t mind removing that link I would appreciate it.
I think if you could get to a ppfd average of 800 umols per second you would be pretty good. A 2x2 space works out to be about .37 sq/m I think. If I hit the right buttons, you would be looking at light with a ppf of 300 umols per second.
Due to lack of really good options in hid, I would check out some of the higher end led fixtures. No coincidence that a qb 135 kit is a front runner there. It’s about that in radiometric light output, under 150 watts, and runs about $200. You could certainly go bigger or better, but seems like growers that have pretty good idea of what they’re doing are harvesting 6-8 ounces from scrog type grows.
i think 800-1000 PAR is the optimum light intensity for flowering cannabis,
600-800 is the most efficient growth,
the trick is getting good PAR around the edges without getting too much in the center.!
I just saw a vid SlowOldGuy (you ain’t alone) posted that recommended 600 for a 2X2.
I have to concur. 800 should be as much as I can hope to need.
I’m happy to remove the link. I thought you’d find it interesting.
This forum won’t let me touch it after about 15 seconds.
So, I can’t unless you know something - else - that I don’t.
I’ve grown 9 oz in that space but it wasn’t Banana Kush.
Also, it wasn’t scrog. The plants were over 6’ tall.
That was with my magnetic hps.
I don’t recognize the light you’re recommending “qb 135 kit”.
I’m interested though and I’ll go back & look at the ones SlowOldGuy showed me again.
That’s it, if you go to hlg they give you the data. Since the driver is dimmable, and the leds are more efficient at lower current, there is not flat amount. They give you photon efficacy for all common currents. Watts at board x umol/joule =ppf.
Looking at the chart I see it’s for the 288, not the 135.
The 135 lacks the specs so I’m still in the dark on it.
Looking at the chart the highest ppf would be:
139.6 * 2.53 = 353.188
This must be wrong.
This would indicate that the 288 puts out a ppf of 353, not very impressive.
This would render the 135 pretty weak, not sufficient.
OK, what’d I do wrong
Tired last nite. OK I think this is finally beginning to gel.
I need a max of 300 for my space; this light delivers 353 which is more than plenty for my purposes. This light runs on a lot less than the hps.
I’m reading in the ballast specs that it’ll draw 1.4A / 115VAC? Is that right?
OK, one more concern. I learned that digital ballasts & drivers can cause EMI.
That would stop me from buying.
I looked in the spec (above) and I see lots of compliance involving EMC but I don’t see an FFC compliance.
I trust you enough at this point to just believe you . Do I have to worry about the cable guy & the cops with this light?
Also, they’re out of stock! When/where can I get it?
I’ve got babies growing, in about a month I’m gonna need that light
OK, only V1 is out of stock. Of course, I want V2.
If I put 10’ wire between the ballast & the board is that gonna cause problems? like voltage drop or something? Maybe I could use #10 wire
I think the Ffc standards are met within the others. I tried chasing them all down once but got a little frustrated. That being said, a lot of those compliance standards seem to be in line with those of PC’s and other household items and it is just a 120ish watt driver. While I don’t believe you’ll have an issue, I don’t know that there are ever any guarantees. But I would think anyone running two or more fluorescent fixtures in their house would as more likely to run into issues with rfi.
10’ of wire won’t be a problem, but you’ll never get 10awg to fit the connector.
OK thanks. I’m running 2 2-40 fls now; no problem.
This new light will run on just about the same power, 160W.
So, less than 400W for both stages.
Yep, that’s impressive. Thank you:)
So, what’s your commission on this sale? (that’s a joke).
Seriously, you should make a commission.
I’d be more than happy to validate the sale.
The #10 was a joke, of course.
I’ll put something in there.
Good. that’ll make it easy to move the light up & down.
That settles it. I’ll buy the QB 135 V2.
Thanks again for all your help; all of you.
QB 135 V2 Kit: $187.49 shipping included.
WOW! That’s just a little more than I expected to pay for a 400W hps ballast.
Backend savings will offset that in 1 month.
Without a doubt. The kit will come with wiring, but likely not enough to move your driver outside of the grow space. I usually use 18awg solid rated for 300v or 600v when building. Since I’m assuming you’ll be changing heights, you may want to go with something a little more flexible like stranded. The boards have molex connectors that you can depress and insert wire. If you go stranded I would probably lightly tin the ends with some solder.
Thanks.
Yea, I figured I’d look and see what they’re using. #18 looks good to me - but - as you mentioned - stranded; flexible.
I’d like to find a recoil mechanism to pull it back when I raise the light.
Uh oh, NEW TOPIC
Now you’ve got me thinking about my 2 2-40 fl lights - 160W + efficiency loss?.
I’ll veg 3 plants + sometimes clones for the next ‘session’.
Plants are in 5 gallon cloth pots. Clones are in a hooded tray.
In veg everything’s in a row, up against the closet back wall.
They’re on a ‘bench’ that’s about 16" wide & 8’ long.
If I’ve got 6 clones and 3 plants just pre-flower, the light for the clones is lower.
Plants veg for about 9-10 weeks because that’s the flowering period for Banana Kush.
Probably two lights using any of the 1120mm strips in 4000k. Some of the strips are a lot higher powered than others. Using bridgelux eb’s probably 3-4 strips per fixture at something like 700ma. Have to take a close look at what fits on drivers about that size. Lpc-100-700 should do 3 if you don’t need dimming.
You could probably get away for smaller lights. But vegging out 9 weeks you’ll want some good intensity to keep plants kinda compact.
I see your dropping knowledge at the moment… have a quick question for you…
You know I run oldschool magnetic ballists …
Question is , I’m going to be building a new flower room next to my old flower room and I want to keep my ballists in my old flower room and run longer cords , but i cant find any that are as long as I need , so can I just use 12/2 or 14/2 wiring and solder on the ends without messing up the wavelength that’s being sent to the bulb…? @dbrn32
You bet. What you want to look for is output voltage of your ballast to make sure you get wiring rated for it. Unless it’s really far there’s not really enough voltage drop in cable that size to worry about.
. Do I have to worry about the cable guy & the cops with this light?
