LEC - Light-Emitting Ceramic

blowincherrypie

Well-Known Member
I'm in a 5x5, with just two of the LECs.
I'm thinking of switching and putting one of my LECs in veg, with a combination or LEC, A51 W90, and A51 RW-75 in flower.
In a 5x5 I wouldn't switch anything out and just add to and see if i noticed any improvement. I don't see how a sun system and two small panels would cover it.. Maybe I'm missing something..

Idk unless you're planning on doubling your veg space all you would be doing is taking light away from your flowering space and adding a lot to your veg.
 

GroErr

Well-Known Member
This is what I'm thinking. 315 in the middle, 12-14 LEDs around the periphery. With 14, the difficulty will be in sizing a driver adequately so it's still maxing out efficiency. Any suggestions on that?

14 CXB3070 BB bin @ 700ma would add how many useable watts/par watts?
14 CXB3590 CD bin @ 700ma would add how many useable watts/par watts?

i was thinking it'd be somewhere in the vicinity of 300-400 additional watts. LEC would be good for a 3x3 area raised 18-20" above the canopy. You could raise it higher but I think the main benefit LEC has over LED would be penetration (at least judging from the thickness of the buds produced). That would start to be wasted the higher you raised it. It would probably be better to let the 315 cover the inner 3x3 and use the LEDs to fatten the outer plants/branches.

If anyone would like to add some calcs to this, I'd be interested in seeing them. This is the design I'm going to run with first (although I'm still unsettled on number of COBs needed for the perimeter). I may change down the line but this will strike a nice balance between efficiency, penetration and it'll be fun to see how it produces.
^^^ That I'd like to see ^^^, imo you'd be fine with the 12x shown in the drawing but will let the folks with more COB knowledge chime in on the numbers. COBs could even be pushed out a bit imo, you'll get some overlap from both the LEC and COBs and be pushing out 600+w total over the 5x5. 3100k bulb in the LEC and 3500k COBs should play very nicely together in that config.
 

borbor

Well-Known Member
In a 5x5 I wouldn't switch anything out and just add to and see if i noticed any improvement. I don't see how a sun system and two small panels would cover it.. Maybe I'm missing something..

Idk unless you're planning on doubling your veg space all you would be doing is taking light away from your flowering space and adding a lot to your veg.
Yeah I definitely wouldn't do it until I got a few more cobs
 

TheChemist77

Well-Known Member
In a 5x5 I wouldn't switch anything out and just add to and see if i noticed any improvement. I don't see how a sun system and two small panels would cover it.. Maybe I'm missing something..

Idk unless you're planning on doubling your veg space all you would be doing is taking light away from your flowering space and adding a lot to your veg.
1 315 watt cmh can easily cover a 4ftx4ft area at 2 ft above canopy and produce 400-450 grams. so 1 315 and even a small cob can cover a 5x5. i have the boulder lamp 315 but im assuming the sun system should cover the same area. the only difference i can see is the sun systems bulb is verticle wile the boulder lamp bulb is horizontal in the reflector. also just to note i was advised from boulder lamp not to use the 4200k cmh bulb, it will work in my fixture but they said testing proved the 3100k phillips agro bulb is superior in both veg and flower.
 

blowincherrypie

Well-Known Member
1 315 watt cmh can easily cover a 4ftx4ft area at 2 ft above canopy and produce 400-450 grams. so 1 315 and even a small cob can cover a 5x5. i have the boulder lamp 315 but im assuming the sun system should cover the same area. the only difference i can see is the sun systems bulb is verticle wile the boulder lamp bulb is horizontal in the reflector. also just to note i was advised from boulder lamp not to use the 4200k cmh bulb, it will work in my fixture but they said testing proved the 3100k phillips agro bulb is superior in both veg and flower.
Yes but people are getting that same 4 out of a 3x3 and even if you pushed it to 4x4 at 2ft above you would need high ceilings or run sog or scrog to reach those numbers and show me what small cob that would cover the other 9square? You would need another 2 or 300 watts of cob plus the sun system to do any sort of justice.. That little single vero a51 sure isn't going to do it and neither would the 75
 

GroErr

Well-Known Member
I don't look at it as a win-lose, both techs have their merits and both techs grow nice bud. They're different to grow and manage environmental controls but if you take advantage of what each has to offer either will give you a nice return. The extra heat from those lamps vs. COBs actually helps me keep temps where I want them in the winter, the LED's would be better in the summer in my area/room. Watt for watt I'd run CMH anytime vs. hps, newest COBs I think would have an advantage being more efficient watt for watt and same grower/environment.
 

genuity

Well-Known Member
I don't look at it as a win-lose, both techs have their merits and both techs grow nice bud. They're different to grow and manage environmental controls but if you take advantage of what each has to offer either will give you a nice return. The extra heat from those lamps vs. COBs actually helps me keep temps where I want them in the winter, the LED's would be better in the summer in my area/room. Watt for watt I'd run CMH anytime vs. hps, newest COBs I think would have an advantage being more efficient watt for watt and same grower/environment.
Sounds just like my room...right now,I got 4 1000 watt DE going,no AC,just 8" fan,that I have to set on low..just to get a canopy temp of 77-80...Im going to be putting 2 LEC'S in the room (4200)bulb..

DE-lec-DE-lec-DE-DE...the last DE will be testing different DE bulbs..
 

a mongo frog

Well-Known Member
Sounds just like my room...right now,I got 4 1000 watt DE going,no AC,just 8" fan,that I have to set on low..just to get a canopy temp of 77-80...Im going to be putting 2 LEC'S in the room (4200)bulb..

DE-lec-DE-lec-DE-DE...the last DE will be testing different DE bulbs..
How tall are your ceilings? like regular 9 footers or?
 

BOBBY_G

Well-Known Member
Presently, some suppliers are suggesting that a 315 watt CDM (ceramic metal halide) lumiere (all in one grow light system) can replace a common 1000 watt HPS lamp and reflector with remote ballast. That’s 315 watts versus 1000 watts.

wow its like LED all over again!
 

ttystikk

Well-Known Member
Presently, some suppliers are suggesting that a 315 watt CDM (ceramic metal halide) lumiere (all in one grow light system) can replace a common 1000 watt HPS lamp and reflector with remote ballast. That’s 315 watts versus 1000 watts.

wow its like LED all over again!
It's a damned lie that an Arkansas mosquito can carry off a cow singlehandedly;

"It takes two."
 

hillbill

Well-Known Member
Ran 4" ducting from heat vent to tent, put HID's in storage. Keeping soil warm and transpiration higher is a concern in cooler months. It can be almost like bonsai with little nut-hard nugs. Too cool and overwatering and nute burn as well as gnats are common troubles.
 

ttystikk

Well-Known Member
Ran 4" ducting from heat vent to tent, put HID's in storage. Keeping soil warm and transpiration higher is a concern in cooler months. It can be almost like bonsai with little nut-hard nugs. Too cool and overwatering and nute burn as well as gnats are common troubles.
Watch out for those gnats, because not all are fungus gnats. There's been an outbreak of root aphids lately, and they spread in a flyer stage.
 

TheChemist77

Well-Known Member
Like Chinese LED marketing if that's what they're claiming. They do grow a lot of bud but let's not get carried away - lol

This batch (2x 7gal) is running close to 3x4' under one of these 315's, Day 40 with 2 weeks to go. The one coming up on the end is under the 210w bulb to see what it can do. About a pound ;)
View attachment 3579924
agreed, no way can 1 315 compete with a 1k hps, possibly the same area at a 3ft above canopy height, but no way yield the same as a 1k hps. 3ft above the canopy that 315 will grow plants in a 5x5 area but thats really stretching that light..
 
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