I have a KingLED that pulls 375 from the wall and it floods a 4x2x6 tent. I also have two 50 watt UFO’s that I use to point lateral when the plants get tall so I have a little light broadcast from the sides. Seems to work well for me. I exhaust out and induct in from an HVAC so my temps never get over 80F
So that’s 46.875w, call it 47w, per square foot.
Realistically, given the claims of some of these “Grow LED’s”, that’s right in the “50w per sq.ft” window and could be included at the “higher end” depending on led/driver/etc longevity.
This is where we need a Sheldon, someone who can work out a formula that allows us to get the “ultimate” $ per w per sq.ft. including initial outlay, average hours until replacement and average energy usage over a specific amount of time per year, in a matter of seconds…
Would be 48 cubic feet for me but if I SCRoG or lollipop the plants hard, would you only calculate square feet and not cubic feet based off of the tent volume? I want to nail down my lighting as well so any help would be great!!!
Wouldn’t be 48 cu.ft, your light is not actually illuminating that complete volume and will likely be a more “rectangular based trapezoidal” illumination area coming downwards at a 60° angle, with the intensity strongest in the centre and weakening as it spreads outwards, the area covered being governed by the height from plant.
Precisely. Cubic feet is not accurate and square feet does not account for penetration. There is also distance and intensity of light, etc. I have seen a bunch of formulas but, I was hoping to find a simple calculation method
Most of that is not difficult to find if light manufacturer gives you usable specs to work with. Most of the leds available on amazon don’t, so too much guessing involved. I certainly couldn’t do it in seconds, but a few minutes not a problem with the right data.
For one plant, that’ll grow it, but if you have 2, then you’ll be in business. My first year growing I used one in a 2x4x5 tent for a sea of green (6 plants), and got a bunk harvest. My 2nd year, I put 2 of them in the same tent & had a wonderful harvest off of 2 plants. I also have 2.5x5x7 in which I grew several autos under 900w of those lights & harvested a nice bit of bud.
This coming grow, I’m using 900-1200w of them in one 2.5x5x7 AND a qb light in a second tent of the same size.
Most of the LEDs on Amazon, etc, cannot be trusted for one simple reason.
You see a rectangular fitting, but the chart under it showing light levels and distribution are either square or “conical”. Unless there’s some trickery involved to make individual LEDs point in a way to produce such a footprint, then these pretty pictures are all lies as a rectangular fitting will only produce a rectangular footprint without some serious trickery to change the footprint.
Yet that is one thing EVERYONE overlooks, despite it being the most obvious clue that outrageous claims are being made.
Yup, that’s not usable data.
And there’s the problem, for every single one of them uses the same “conical” or “square” layout for alleged ppfd/par/poop/whatever irrespective of shape of fitting so nothing in any of the ads can be trusted. As I’ve said before, it’s a minefield for the uninitiated and is why I moved to “wasting” small amounts of money on my DIY builds to get a better understanding of how these things work for horticulture rather than sling bigger amounts of money at something that just didn’t add up. Not all are like me, however, so it’s easy to get sucked into fake reviews and dodgy advertising.
That’s the joys of AliE, you may wait longer but you get the same thing at a lower price BUT, more importantly, poor reviews and feedback tends to be left in, I trust what gets posted there more than I trust anything on Amazon.