I am building out a small grow room with a 3’ x 6’ grow footprint. No tent and one side will be open with no reflector. Gonna go HLG and given the shape I assume I need two lights. Looks like the 320 Rspec FR, 325 Max and 350 Diablo would all work but I have no clue what the real difference between them is. Any guidance would be appreciated.
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The proper metric for lighting a space is ~40 watts per square foot. A 3x6 is 18 sq ft, so you would need ~720 watts to light a 3x6 space. How many plants do you intend to grow in the space? If it is only 1 or 2 plants, then you can get away with less wattage. If you want to fill the space with plant canopy, then go with 720 watts. If you just have a plant or 2, then go with 200 watts minimum per plant.
Generally just wattage output. All new HLG models are built with Samsung LM301h diodes at a minimum.
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Thanks for the info. Looks like the 350 Diablo will come closest to that 720 mark.
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I would reconsider. The diablo 350 is a great light, but probably not the best for your application. The geometry of the fixture doesn’t really line up with the measurements of your space. Two of their hlg 325 would be a better fit and cheaper.
I don’t think they make hlg-300L rspec anymore but 2-3 of these would make really well in that space if you could find them. Maybe as refurbished?
Make sure to check google for best available discount code too.
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They make a 320 Rspec FR, but it is same dimensions as Diablo at 35”x9.5”. The 325 Max is 24”x20”. Is 640 to 650 watts adequate?
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Ya. Back in the day the original setup for a 3x3 was a qb260 kit. This not going to pull every last gram out of tent but was a very efficient setup. There was several members pulling 7-8 zips out of 2x2 regularly with the single 288 board qb135 kits. The led lights i ran in 3x3 were 300 watts and not nearly as efficient stuff available now.
I ran a 260XL in a 2x4 when I had one. It wasn’t optimal, but it did an okay job.
I currently run 3 HLG 135 Rspec boards above each plant in a triangle configuration. It gives me ~1,100 PPFD at the center of the canopy. There are sharply diminishing returns with PPFD the above 1,100.
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I think I will go with two HLG 325 Max lights. The literature says it is designed for 3’x3’ so should be ok. Unless you have a better suggestion. I am not terribly concerned about quantity, more interested in quality. This is only for me and one lucky best buddy.
HLG is a great choice for those looking for quality. I own a half-dozen HLG lights. I had a driver go bad on me a couple of years ago. I called HLG, gave them the serial number on the bad driver, and I had a brand new driver at my door the next day since they FedExed the replacement to me. Others have had similar experiences with them. Quality and customer service is why so many growers are big fans of HLG.
Also, HLG uses LM301h diodes where others (e.g. Mars Hydro and Spider Farmer) are still putting out lights with the LM301b diodes. The h model is about 10% better than the b model in terms of PPFD output per watt.
It’s been years now, but there was a technical notification released by Samsung that identified an error on the lm301h datasheet. This error made one cct appear to be more efficient than the lm301b in said cct. There was a group of small lighting manufacturers that took this information suggesting the lm301h was more efficient and ran with it. However, has since been proven that lm301b and lm301h is same voltage and flux bins perform the same. Therefore the 301h is not 10% more efficient than the 301b. They’re basically the same led, one is supplied with horticulture performance specs and the other with general industry performance specs.
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Thanks for posting this. I was unaware.
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Exactly what I did a few years ago for my 4x4 tent. I took 2 HLG 300L- Rspecs and plants have been doing great. Solid advice as usual sir.
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Well I understand why everyone likes HLG. Tried to order what I thought was the right light twice and could not get order to go through so called them this morning. The guy not only kept me from buying the wrong light but hooked me up with a 20% discount and some sunglasses.