Lights Advise

[HowTheHell]

For the record, ordered 2 sf1000's and kept 1 Viparspectra 450. Expecting good things!

[swegrow]

Ok thanks. Probably not suitable for my setup, just a 5' tent. I'm worried about running out of height so am kinda looking for lights that can go quite low. The QB types seem to fit the bill better in that regard as I understand it. I would sacrifice a bit of yield to have the peace of mind .

Good luck!

[HowTheHell]

Ok thanks. Probably not suitable for my setup, just a 5' tent. I'm worried about running out of height so am kinda looking for lights that can go quite low. The QB types seem to fit the bill better in that regard as I understand it. I would sacrifice a bit of yield to have the peace of mind .

[swegrow]

I have them about 100cm during veg, and about 50 during bloom. I got the TGL 220 and last grow that was all I relied on for a 1x1m space so put it quite high to get full coverage. Got me 2 60w TGLs aswell and planning to get me 2 more next months to really get an even spread and penetration.

I did get 200 grams of dry flower on 1x1m last grow, and it was my first time indoors (including alot of misstakes and so on), so the TGL seems to be a very good light.

[HowTheHell]

These are from barcelona, extremely popular here. I have one and am very pleased with it so far.

https://www.todogrowled.com/gb/tgl-l...l-2203590.html

Cheers, how far from the canopy are you running those guys? Does not seem to mention in the spec.

[HowTheHell]

HTH, if you're stuck with using that tent you're going to either keep the plants really squat(most qb type fixtures need 20" headroom from the canopy) or use multiple light strips run at lower wattage/strip.
8 sq ft of canopy will need about 240 watts of top-tier diodes, so 2 qb panels or as many strips as you can afford/fit into the space.
If you're somewhat mechanically inclined, a simple DIY solution would be a aluminum baking sheet as a frame/heatsink for strip lights.

Thanks, from what I read for SF1000 lights people say more like 12 to 18" height, which seems better that other types of led from what I can see. Any recommended strip lights to have a look at?

[swegrow]

Hi people. Wondering if anybody could offer some solid advice based on first hand experience ideally. New to all this and have setup a grow tent. Hastily bought 2 Viparspectra 450's. Found great reviews on line but since I bought them I have come across a lot of bad comments about flowering and not enough red spectrum.

I am considering returning and getting something better. Bear in mind my tent is only 5' high so that may rule out anything COB from what I understand. Also it's in an attic that's hot at times so guess this rules out traditional bulbs or makes them less attractive at least.

Maybe the QB types make sense? another factor is the tent is 2×4 so I am thinking one long light instead of square would be best suited and possibly avoid the need for getting two.

In summary I guess I'm asking can anybody recommend a proven single QB light setup that suits a 2×4×5 tent? Budget maybe 400 to 500 euro max. Also I'm in europe so US brands not too available from what I see. (Or alternatively advise that im talking rubbish)

A spiderfarmer 2000 looks to fit the bill but im finding on line reviews hard to trust at this stage. I found lots of vipar reviews that were very positive with no mention of flowering issues. I'm guessing they are sponsored or whatever in hindsight.

Another alternative is bloom booster lights but not sure.

These are from barcelona, extremely popular here. I have one and am very pleased with it so far.

https://www.todogrowled.com/gb/tgl-led-grow-lights/47-tgl-2203590.html

[JDU]

Thanks! That's how they are now but I was 2nd guessin myself. I can't tape it off though that's where I enter the tent & the AC comes in & some of the fans live in those 2ft

[Obi-Wan]

I’d tape off the 4x4 section and center the 2000 in that 4x4 area. Then I’d put a SP600 on opposing corners on either side of the 2000 with the other lights filling the other opposing corners. So it would look something like this.

600—150
—2000–
150—600

[JDU]

Not to hijack yer thread here HowTheHell but I wanted to ask Obi-Wan a question while I have him here & y'all were talkin about smaller vs larger lights.... So I have 1 big (Mars TSW 2000) & 4 small (2x Mars SP600, a Mars SP 150 & an old generic 1000w (lol- pulls 150w) blurple in a 4x6x8 ft tent. I use about 4x4 of it & some branches drift beyond that. How would you arrange that collection? Center the 2000 & put a small on each corner or stick the 2000 in a corner & the rest above the plants however they may spread?

[gbauto]

HTH, if you're stuck with using that tent you're going to either keep the plants really squat(most qb type fixtures need 20" headroom from the canopy) or use multiple light strips run at lower wattage/strip.
8 sq ft of canopy will need about 240 watts of top-tier diodes, so 2 qb panels or as many strips as you can afford/fit into the space.
If you're somewhat mechanically inclined, a simple DIY solution would be a aluminum baking sheet as a frame/heatsink for strip lights.

[HowTheHell]

Personally, I think you’d be better of with 2 of the SpiderFarmer 1000 lights, 3 would be best if you can squeeze it into your budget. More smaller lights will give you better spread and a more even cast of light across the entire 2x4 area. The 2000 is 25” long so you’ll see a drop off in light on the 12” of canopy on both sides of your tent. I like your way of thinking trying to get the fixture closer to the canopy for light penetration but lighting follows the inverse square rule so if you set them at 12” in flower the fixture won’t cast its light beyond its physical dimensions.

Seems on the spider website 2 1000's is same cost as one 2000. Not quite as efficient on Amazon. Either way it's a nice bit cheaper on the website so yes makes sense to have the flexibility for the price. Could afford two alright.

I'll keep 1 vipar eitherway at this stage as i have some seedlings under it now. Could return the other and get the 2 SF1000's.

Anybody have any thoughts on height issues? Would the QBs run lower to the plants and therefore give more effective height in the tent?

[HowTheHell]

Thanks Obi Wan. I hear you in that regard, I know more small lights is more flexible but had a look at the cost and it's a bit much for me. I would be happy with the single light, I will be doing two or three of the same strain each time I plant, all planted at the same time so dont think i will need as much flexibility as others. I can live with the lack of efficiency too I guess if I'm already stepping up from the vipars.

To be honest my concern about being able to keep the light low is that I'm just afraid of running out of head room in a 5' tent. I figure a light that is both thinner and can get closer reduces the risk of that.

Is this a legit concern, will it be a struggle with the height if I stick with the vipars and even with the spiders? First time grow so completely clueless. It would be a shame to run out of space and mess it up at the end, burning the plants and all that. It really would.

I have standard 3 gallon pots too, I'm half thinking of swapping for wider more squat pots of similar volume to save a few inches. Not sure if this is advised csnt find any info on it.

[JDU]

Sensitive strain. 32 is perfect for the rest.

[Obi-Wan]

Personally, I think you’d be better of with 2 of the SpiderFarmer 1000 lights, 3 would be best if you can squeeze it into your budget. More smaller lights will give you better spread and a more even cast of light across the entire 2x4 area. The 2000 is 25” long so you’ll see a drop off in light on the 12” of canopy on both sides of your tent. I like your way of thinking trying to get the fixture closer to the canopy for light penetration but lighting follows the inverse square rule so if you set them at 12” in flower the fixture won’t cast its light beyond its physical dimensions.