Need help understanding my new Viparspectra LED dimmable grow light

[Dagmar]

I just got a Viparspectra dimmable 450W LED growlight. My plants are 4 weeks into flower and have been under CFL up until now (in soil). This light does not have a veg switch or a flower switch - it has 3 dimmer switches for each of the white, blue and red lights. The instruction on how to use the lights were too simple and only said that the lights should be 16" - 22" away for flowering plants and that, when first using to the LED, for the first 3-5 days of being under the LEDs the lights should be put on 50% so that the plants could acclimate themselves and then adjusted all three switches up to 100% for the rest of flower. I plan on adjusting a little bit each day from 50% up to 100% over the 3-5 days. Because the instruction are so short and simple, I felt compelled to ask the GWE community for their experience in this area. Do these instructions work for cannabis?

For seedlings, 28-32" away from light with 80% of Blue and White and 50% Red light.
For Veg, 22-28" away from light with 100% Blue and White lights and 50% Red light.
For flower, 16-22" away from light with 100% Red, White and Blue lights.

[D.A.A.S.69]

I wish I could help you but I don't know anything about your light. As far along as your plant is I believe i would hang it high enough where it wouldn't burn your plant maybe 20 or 24 inches and run it wide open , and keep a close eye on her. Maybe some one will be on here in a minute to help you much better. I heard those are good lights. Good Luck Dagmar

[Vapo69]

I agree with D.A.A.S.69 , I would err on the side of caution as led lights can be powerful, go high then lower to suit dude

[Guest]

Hi Dagmar, I personally know someone using a 600W viparspectra LED and i can assure you its a powerful light source. Light burn was an issue even at the height of the instructions, so be careful!
The dimmers should make it easier for you to prevent light burn if height becomes a limiting issue.

[LuckyAcres]

I run two Viparspectra 1200. I first followed the manual for height. 20" distance from canopy. This number works great when acclimating plants but they can take a lot more than that! Last grow by the time of harvest some colas were barely 10" from the leds.the cool thing about that is I know now how to control the stretch better and increase the light depth in the canopy. Sooooo....know your strain, use caution and take risks, it's worth it! And don't underestimate the possibility for burning either!

[Dagmar]

Thanks, great to know! I think I really needed to hear 'use caution and take risks'. My girls have only 4-5 weeks to harvest so caution is important. But I want to go full throttle and let this light really fatten up the colas. Have you done any experimenting with the distance of the light from the plants and how that changes the 'foot print' of light covering the plants? It would seem that the light would have a smaller footprint the closer it is to the plants and farther away would have a larger coverage. There must be an ideal distance that balances how many plants (or how large the plants are) and the distance.

[Dagmar]

Thanks all for your responses. I think, without your help, I was well on my way to burning my plants. I started with the light about 16" away from my flowering plants but at 50% on the Blue, Red, and White lights. I moved it to 22" this morning and I'm slowly increasing the intensity of the lights over a 5 day period until I get to 100% on all spectrums. Maybe I shouldn't have switched half way thru flower but I was so excited to make the move from CFL to LEDs. The closet has dropped 4-5 degrees with the switch. HUGE difference. I know I'll be saving $$ on my electric bill.

[D.A.A.S.69]

Right I couldn't see any change in my light bill using my led plus lots cooler too ,I hope you have good luck with your light Dagmar, keep a close eye on your plants for a little days.