DIY led grow

Dude...this thing gets hot!

I thought my 360w light got warm, that's things a ice tray compared to this 18w cree globe. You can't even touch the heatsink for long before it gets too hot. On the bright side...it's really bright. Way more light then the 24w cfl I pulled out. Hard to believe it'll last the 10 year warranty, good to know these things can handle a bit of heat.

After my last sucky attempt at germing seeds it's time to improve that area of growing. Making my old mini veg room/storage a germination and cloning area. Probably going to get a smaller cree globe for starts and unrooted cuttings, then fire up the big one for a little growth.

Could definitely grow some herb with these things..

Yeah those CREE bulbs can get hot. I'm touching a 9.5 watt right now and I can't believe how hot it is. Heatsink needs a heatsink .

No pictures but this could be helpful- led holders in various voltages

http://www.te.com/catalog/products/en?n ... ed+holders

Thanks for the link pet..bookmarked.

So current grow is good. My new soil mix was a little low on nitrogen but some Peruvian seabird guano fixed that up quickly. Hopefully the biochar is charged up now...ever since I've incorporated it seems I start nitrogen deficient.

Put a bubba in, she's got a 5g geopot to herself, biggest I've used in a while. So 4 plants filled this 4 x 2 quickly. You can see the growth they do in two weeks..pretty nuts...from small topped bush to full size plant.

This 730nm is wrecking my brain. First pistils started the same with or without. But I may be noticing a bit slower flower development as the days march on. When and how they finish should be the ultimate indicator. May take another run or two to fully understand its function...or not.

Welcome to the jungle...

Lovely looking jungle.....lush and green....

So you are running the 730nm again?

Chron..no I'm going to leave it off till these girls finish up. Then I'll probably turn it back on again for a full run, another quick comparison.

Little side project..just a few more parts needed until I start assembling. In the meantime I've got some studying to do on working with 200w 1a high voltage drivers.

Pictured are the cxa 3070 in 3k and 4k in the middle. Eventual sinkpad/osram 660 stars. Ideal holder and reflector adapter. Looks like the reflector adapter will actually reflect a little on its own. Reflector adapter will be a bitch to get lined up but I'll give it a go

Layout subject to change...been bouncing around with how I want to do it. I could just run 10 cxas, but I think broad spectrum is the way to go. Probably be best to just run 8 cxas initially and add what I think appropriate after a run.

Idea building...good times. Im already back to the drawing board on my newest design...

Awesome looks like its coming along pretty good...

★★★kushed_out★★★

Very nice.
I like the 8 cxa baseline idea.

Thanks guys..DIY I'm finding is quite addicting. Gonna have to put the brakes on after this light and get back to just growing. After this ill have more light than I can afford to run..or need to run really. Maybe change components...but light building done! Soon will be just time to enjoy fruits of the labor..

Here's some un-scientific things I've noticed on 730nm. Went back to my camera log for as exact dates as I could get. I try to stay on the obvious side of things, I know exact logs of grow details are best but I've got a balancing act at home and I already max out my time with this stuff.

About 20w 730nm always on week three flower. Major stretch. Quick flowering response.


730nm light trigger. Week 3 flower. 5min before lights out 5min after. Less stretch. Similar quick flower onset.




No 730nm supplementation. Week 3 flower. First pistils roughly the same at one week. Flowers appear to develop a little slower. Not as much daily flower growth.



So that's where I'm at now. I have a feeling the trigger will be sticking around next run when I turn her back on. Still need to see how and when these finish though.

Is the third pic from week 3 too?

This is great. Conclusive results! Just what I wanted to see regarding 730nm for years. You're the man!! Thanks running the control.

Thumbs up(like button not working) question??? How do yu feel about uv?? Do yu think its worth it in veg or just flower??

★★★kushed_out★★★

Church> yup..3rd week. Thanks for catching that..edited.

Had to do some testing! The science is there behind it..but still..wanted to make sure. And all the different light choices have different far red levels..so some may need it more so than others. But I thinks it's safe to say 730nm light triggers are a good way to ensure fast flowering

I'm thinking of using a little uv in veg, maybe just a few hours, but I haven't got there yet. My veg space is too small for another light right now.

I think it's worthwhile to give plants the full spectrum for the entire life cycle. As pet has mentioned before, the plants have adapted to full spectrum in nature. I don't think it's a good idea to leave things out.

But to save electricity..it does seem you can get the majority of benefits of uv by just using it in flower. I'll probably keep doing it that way for now..

Here is a weird observation from using LED bulbs. I got a HomeDepot Cree 65 watt 6500K bulb and a Walmart LED bulb. The Walmart bulb attracts and kills fungus gnats!




The Cree bulb has a slick silicone feeling coating on the bulb so I don't know whether the gnats are getting fried by it also and then just falling off or what.

Cheers,
Mo

I need to get one of those Wally World ones then. I just made my last batch of soil in a wheelbarrow. Threw topsoil and manure that had bugs in it in the mix...now I've got a major gnat problem. Plus some little yellow mini caterpillar looking things running on the leaves.

Still got some gnatrol from past problems...need to use some of that soon. My grow room has been infiltrated!

I am having the same problem this year. I think it is the Mykos I added to the soil.

Mykos and gnats? No way. I've been using Mykos since day 1 and the only time I get gnats is when I go to the hydro store for Happy Frog. Never heard anything about gnats and Mykos. Got any posts or articles about it?