hey guys I need a little help before i waste a ton of money. im replacing my 1000w HPS but i want something that will do the job not some burple cheapo LED. ive been looking into LM301b quantum boards that are near 3000k. Im not worried about veg lighting. im looking to spend $300 to $400 if the light is worth it. ive found 2 or 3 different lights so far that are cheap verisons the HLG or spider lights. Please take a look and let me know what you buy if you were looking. my space is about 5x5. here are the 3 lights ive found that I think might work
this is a chinese company that sells light boards cheaper
Any advice would be so appreciated. I dont have a lot of cash so i need to make a smart choice here i cant afford to make a mistake lol might be the last stimulus money we get so i gotta make this count hahaha. thanks in advance
Buyer beware on the HLG knockoff kits. Keep in mind that even the best companies make a few defective products; what distinguishes them from the bad companies is how they respond to the customer. HLG customer service is excellent. Who knows about the knockoff… Keep in mind, Samsung grades their chips into tiered quality bins. The cheaper manufacturer might be using bottom-bin chips to save money. And if they’re really shady, they might be using counterfeit chips.
With a $400 budget, you could buy a light that covers 2’x4’, but you couldn’t replace the coverage of a 1000w HPS. Maybe you could buy a really efficient LED that covers part of your tent, and run a 600w HPS with it until you can afford 1-2 more LED fixtures. Or maybe you can make a panda film curtain to partition your current space so it’s smaller.
Keep the old adage in mind; buy nice or buy twice. So many people on this forum tried to buy cheap (or in some cases expensive) LEDs that never measured up to the umol/j efficiency of HPS, let alone current cutting edge LED.
He is right, some of those knock of kits are decent but others not so much. For a 5x5 I usually recommend going with three of the 260 xl kits. With addition of 350r you could do two of those, or equivalent. Even going with knock off kits, i don’t think it’s possible on $400.
I always do my research. So company reputation and product reviews are key. I love HLG. Yes they are more expensive but in the long run very much worth the money.
Thanks everyone. this really helps me. I think ill try to raise a little more money then and try to get some of the HLGs
@dbrn32 is this the light you recommended I get 3x of for a 5x5?
i think i could pull off 2 of these and run my 1000w HPS on 600w. I have good air intake and exhaust. im just worried when summer comes i wont be able to keep this 1000w running without a huge electric bill from running the A.C. nonstop. if anyone has links to anything they consider better please let me know. thanks again and MERRY CHRISTMAS