This is my first attempt at indoor grow. I am actually using a 10,000 lumen led garage light 4 ft long 4 tubes mfg. states equivalent light out put of 100 watts. My seeds are Grandaddy purple 4 of the 6 plants the other two are from my first seed order- mix pack ! First outdoor grow started late July harvested in September!
Question is what light will I need to promote flowering and bud maximizing ! I’m hoping to increase my yield. Already started lst on two of my plants. They were the tallest ones. I know everyone says don’t use miracle grow but mine are potted in that potting mix along with an organic “ plant-tone “plant food mixed in at a rate of one cup of the plant good to two gallons of potting soil.
I am not using a tent for my grow
Using my laundry room since only had one small window to cover to control light.
I’m on an 18 on 6 off cycle now!
Help me choose the right light but also as inexpensive as possible !
Plants are 4 weeks since germination !
They are currently in one gallon pot but will soon move to 5 gal grow bags. I use two heaters to keep it warm in there ! And a small fan for air movement
So any help or suggestions will be greatly appreciated!
Mainly the light for flowers and buds !
You are going to need red spectrum for flowering and an overhead garage light won’t get the job done. Suggest buying a light built with Samsung LM301 series diodes.
You need ~50 watts of lighting for each square foot of canopy. It works out to ~200 watts per plant for medium sized plants.
Lighting is one of the most important factors for healthy, productive plants. You can’t really go cheap with lighting and still expect to get a decent harvest.
What you will need for good growth is a quality cannabis soil that is buffered for cannabis. Plant Tone might be fine for tomatoes, but cannabis has specific requirements. Fox Farms, Jack’s, Advanced Nutrients, and General Hydroponics all make very good cannabis fertilizers.
Here’s the scoop on Miracle Grow. It has time release nutes in it that nuke your plants with nitrogen and submarine your pH every time you water. Some people do get away with using it, but you may start having problems.
What he said 
Lighting is a must for a good yield and thick dense flowers. I use 2 HYPHOTONFLUX HPF4000’s in a 4’x8’ tent.
On sale at Amazon for $399
HYPHOTONFLUX HPF4000 LED Grow Lights 4x4 ft Flower Coverage with Samsung LM301B Diodes & MeanWell Driver, Dimmable Daisy Chain Commercial Grow Light Bar, Enhanced Red Full Spectrum 3000k 4000k 660nm
Agree with what’s been said, there’s no cheaping out on light for this hobby. That’d be like going deer hunting with a BB gun. It ain’t going to cut it. You’ll have to bite the bullet and get a real light, like an HLG, or wait to grow when you can get one.
@LateNightGardner on your profile it says that you are using the HYPHOTONFLUX HPF4000 plus other lights. How do you use your lights?
- Starter or clones
- main light for most of the grow
- add red for flower?
I have Mars Hydro TS 3000 for a 4x4
last grow I had heat issues and could not turn up my lighting even with the driver outside of the tent. I now live in a cooler climate and I may be able to turn up my lights but I am still concerned with sub-par results. Hence, I am looking for alternatives.
The $400 price tage is impressive but why not get something like the Mars Hydro FCE4800 vs HYPHOTONFLUX HPF4000?
I like that light!! I would think cooler environment will help. Heat can destroy your plants. Airflow and air getting replaced are crucial. They need fresh air.
I got the HYPHOTONFLUX HPF4000 a couple years ago and based my selection on electronic package; Samsung and OSRAM Diodes with the MeanWell Driver. In addition to the bar design and ability to move the driver outside of the tent. Overall the performance has been excellent.
I use a four foot dual tube T5 florescent for germination. Into a bubbler cloner until they get some feet.
I use the HYPHOTONFLUX from seedling to flower as the main light for my DWC hydroponic grow.
I have added the deep red for the Emerson effect and flower development. Morning and evening.
The UVA to increase resin and trichome production 4 hours midday.
I’d like to see how your light performs with the additional cooling.
I saw some HLG 30 watt UVA bar lights. I here they are made in China. That can’t be true, can it?
@LateNightGardner. You seem to become very defensive when there is a negative comment about your brand of lighting. But at the same time, you take every opportunity you get to slam HLG. Have you ever used a HLG light?
Just asked where HLG UVA Bar light are made.
When have I slammed HLG?
I get the “Chinese made” when I post about my lights. I ask if the HLG UVA bar light is Chinese made this is your response.
I did post at some point that my neighbor had purchased the HLG 600 Rspec 600w.
I liked his setup and was ready to replace my MH and HPS fixtures.
I did my research and purchase the HYPHOTONFLUX HPF4000.
At the end we compared grows. He had some good stuff but we both agreed on which was better.
I bought another HYPHOTONFLUX HPF4000 that went onto a 4’x9’ tent that I also bought.
I was using DWC hydroponics verses him was using Fox Farms soil.
BTW I also get the hydro vs. soil thing.
It’s all in good fun.
But…this jest of the forum to help out. That’s all I been trying to do. No hidden agenda, no “bro science”. Now what was the question posted about??
Grow lights cheap
I stand by what I said, if you are going to dish it out, be prepared to take it also!
You are right about the country of origin of the UVA light being China, and this was discussed at length on a previous thread. I don’t recall anyone including HLG stating otherwise.
HLG’s LED boards for their in house lights, are manufactured by Samsung which is a South Korean Company. And it appears that they have minimum investment in China, and seem to be reducing that.
The divers depend on who makes it, and where they choose to manufacture. The small MeanWell driver in the picture was made in Taiwan, and the larger MeanWell was made in China.
Just tying to get a top quality led grow light and pass on the information to others that have the same interest.
With the opening of the world’s policy on cannabis cultivation, the demand for plant lighting is increasing, but the quality of the LED grow lights on the market is uneven, and the cheap grow lights cannot even guarantee the health of the grow lights, let alone maximize the harvest. And a professional LED grow light may even cost thousands of dollars.
As a plant lighting manufacturer with 11 years of experience, we established the brand HYPHOTONFLUX in 2019 to provide growers worldwide with commercial-grade LED grow lights at the most affordable prices. All of our parts are sourced from well-known brands such as Samsung, Osram, Seoul, MEAN WELL, etc. They are of high quality and low price, and are very popular with growers
Ok here’s my next question
I have four Grandaddy purple feminized
How long till I need to up grade my lights once they start to flower ?
On the light topic :
I now have 2 - 10,000 lumen lights
200 watts equivalent
Can I just supplement with a red and blue light when they begin to flower
Since I’m pushing 200 watts of white light ?
First timer growing indoors !
Please help me to gain more knowledge!!
I don’t think the lights that you have should be rated at more than 50 watts each. Here are the specs on my first LED light. It is a 130 watt input, and puts out 23k lums.
– Vegetative footprint: up to 3′ x 3′
– Flowering footprint: up to 2′ x 2′
– Light Specs: 23,140 lumens, 4000K full-spectrum
– Total Output: 316 micromoles (μmol /PPF)
– PPFD Efficiency: 2.5 micromoles (μmol) per watt
– Power Specs: 130w, 1.08A @ 120v
If you are using a light with an PPFD efficiency of around 2.5. Then you will need a minimum of 20 watts per square foot, and a maximum of 40 - 50 per square foot.
As I am sure you know, some light specs can be misleading, or out right lies.
Upgrade now, supplementing I’ve been at and finding out it can cost as much as a grow light, and doesn’t take care of heat or safety (exposed wires, home made brackets etc) but it can be done, especially if you have used, free, surplus lighting supplies.
First, what is white light on your lamp? 5000k I assume aka day-light, crisp white etc…
Listed on a MarsHydro box I seen was 3000k and 5000k, plus IR and UV.
Check out the Bestva BP Series. I have two of their BP2000 ($110/ea. Amazon Black Friday Sale Price) w/an old blurple light wedged between in a 5x5 tent and that set up works really well.
I picked up a BP4000($227 Amazon) for my garaged veggies I am wintering and had to cut back to 50% @ 8x9.
They have the 301 Samsung Diodes and dimmers!
I have 2 brand new HLG 350Rs. Still in box if your interested.