I’m going to be building an entire grow space with 2 rooms, both rooms will measure 8’ x 8’. One room for veg and one for flower. I would like to be as “efficient” as possible when planning/purchasing. I’d like a lot of reliable power at the most reasonable pricing available.
Right now I’m using Phlizon lights. 1-3000watt with 6 Cree Bulbs and 1-15000watt grow light, on both sides. Both are using the same power and lights just on different timers. They’re “borrowed” lights as a favor of storage.
I’m open to all or any suggestions or thoughts anyone has! Thanks again everyone!!
@dbrn32, would you have any opinions/advice for me, again?! Lol. Thanks!
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Quantum Boards are the best fit for a budget, but Rapid LED sells kits you can put together also. Either choice will lead you down a better path than the ones you have, with better coverage and efficiency.
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I’m starting to see a lot about these quantum boards but know very little.
I’m looking for maximum coverage and output. Not really trying to “cheap out” on the rooms but, of course, would love to spend as little as possible.
@Covertgrower I really appreciate it as that has been one of my top ideas. I’ll have to start researching them a little more now
Edit-I’m also looking, mainly, for life expectancy
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Look for HLG, or horticulture lighting group.
Rapid LED specializes in COB LED’s. If you’re decent at wiring things together that would be the way to go. Entirely up to you. Either choice won’t be a bad one, it’s just what you prefer.
I personally purchased the Rapid Kit for a 4x4.
dbrn32 Will be along shortly to offer a lot of the same things I mentioned. Do you have a budget in mind? That will help.
Edit life expectancies of either fixture will be a long time. You’ll probably want to upgrade based on efficiency before it actually wears out.
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Assuming you want led? Dropping four 600 watt hps fixtures into an 8x8 will flower it well and not cost a lot.
I would look at a couple of things first. In terms of space, you don’t need an 8x8 veg to feed an 8x8 flower space. If other factors dictate having two identical spaces, you can certainly just adjust how you light them. The other thing is that you’ll have some dead space in your flower room to access the plants right?
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I was really hoping to go LEDs for electricity efficiency. I wasn’t even thinking about the need for more flower than veg space. Thanks! Although it’ll just add more to flower or the opposite room which will be a small closet type space for cloning and storage of supplies and products.
Yes, definitely am going to have dedicated walkways for plant accessibility!
I’m going to do “experiments” with some plants in veg. More or less plant design and such. I just finally got a good manifold to survive and is in flower now
I’m thankful for all the advice guys!
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The caveat with LEDs is that they take a few years to generate an ROI. Like DBRN mentioned, HID lights are quite affordable, extremely effective, and efficient enough. It could be years before LEDs save you enough in electricity to justify the capital investment.
Considering the size of that space, you have to factor in the volume discount you can get if you do a scratch build instead of an HLG kit.
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I have available also, a 1000watt MH/HPS reflector, ballast and both bulbs. Single bulb light.
Say I cut the veg area down to 8’ x 5’, would maybe a 1000watt MH and a 600watt MH be sufficient, in your opinion?
…flower to 8’ x 10’, with walkway separations, what would you suggest for that area? Minding you that the “4500 watts” of LED/Cobb is using less electricity than the 1000watt HPS and my plants are responding much better to the LED/Cobb in my, roughly, 5’ x 5’ flower area now
Thanks a bunch guys!!
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I’m far from an expert, but I know light movers can help you run far fewer watts. It’d be worth exploring.
I just approach things in a pragmatic way. Do 6m and 3 year cost analyses on all scenarios and pick based on that.
@dbrn32 would know better than me, but I believe that if you use bleeding edge LED strips, you’ll save about 40% on electricity over comparable HID solutions.
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If you make flower area 8’x10’ and put a 2-3’ walkway directly down the middle you would be in pretty good shape. Say it would leave you with two areas roughly 8x3-4’… You could go with 4 led lights designed for 4x4 space in your flower room. I’m not really sure how to setup a veg space that size. It would be a lot more critical to know where your access point to room is.
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I’m building them so I can put doors where I’d like them. I’m going to have a room-to-room door between all three. I’m definitely going with a 2’ minimum walkway due to my intentions to run a few scrog plants in both as well. That’s where the initial equal sizes came from. Although, I made those sizes quickly and not with much real thought
Also going to have an exit door from each room as well. Planning on trying venting air to the big room I’m making the little rooms in if I need to fight heat issues
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This is kinda dependent on what you are paying for electricity. I went from a buttload of blurple LED fixtures down to 3 DIY lights using Samsung EB strips: it halved my electrical demand and I saw a drop of $60 in my first month’s electric bill. I figure they have more than paid for themselves now.
I would put the LED fixtures you have now in the same efficiency category as MH/HPS. You will have to run approx 50 watts/square foot in flower versus high efficacy lights more like 25 to 30.
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…budget, I’d really like to keep light cost under $2000
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Are you handy? If you are, a DIY build of some kind could save serious $$. And not at all hard. There are board kits, strips and heatsinks, COB’s as well.
For space requirements like @dbrn32 said; veg space could be 50% of flower space. And in that space you could use tailored spectrum (5,000K) while your flowering space sees 3,000K. Also in veg you will start out with your small plants crowded under only one light fixture. As pot size increases you inevitably have to spread em out. Power requirements in veg are about half of flower.
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I would concentrate on the flowering space first and figure one Quantum Board per plant. If you have access to aluminum then the DIY approach could save you a whole lot. That’s why I went DIY and each fixture cost me right at $200.
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What coverage do you get with those lights? 2’x4’?
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More like 2 X 3: the fixtures are 23 X 30". My SCROGs are 24 X 36".
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Extending that cost to (2) 3’x8’ areas, that’s only $1600, and they could probably get a steeper quantity discount
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I’m all about the DIY! Lol. I’m an auto mechanic and a pretty good handyman. I don’t have to pay for services for just about anything. I do everything myself.
I have a little sheet aluminum left but have places nearby where I can purchase some. I’m handy and everything just need to know(sorry, but detailed) what I need to have and a basic concept of how to use it/build to spec/make a modified version. I’m also a whiz with numbers so even just specs on what equipment would suffice for what coverage would be amazingly helpful. I’m building the rooms myself. Still have to design them. It’ll be at tax return time, around March so I figure I have a little time to design
Edit-room is 19’ long and I’m going to build 8’, inside length, rooms
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This is very long, it has a lot of B.S’ing but this is where you would want to start.
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