Led Users Unite!

ColoradoLove

Well-Known Member
Ledbudguy, dunit, and irishboy are the ONLY people on RIU I've seen do anything with LEDs and NONE of them are using Blackstar. If you don't want to be another person who feels like LEDs are junk, don't buy junky LEDs

ledbudguy and dunit are using ISIS and Magnum respectively, both are from the same parent company. irishboy uses spectra. I wouldn't buy anything other than those two. If you can't afford them, you can't afford to grow with LEDs. Please don't waste your time or your money!!
 

Hudsonvalley82

Well-Known Member
I don't think you've done enough research buddy...

Ledbudguy, dunit, and irishboy are the ONLY people on RIU I've seen do anything with LEDs and NONE of them are using Blackstar. If you don't want to be another person who feels like LEDs are junk, don't buy junky LEDs

ledbudguy and dunit are using ISIS and Magnum respectively, both are from the same parent company. irishboy uses spectra. I wouldn't buy anything other than those two. If you can't afford them, you can't afford to grow with LEDs. Please don't waste your time or your money!!
 

longranger

Active Member
Hudsonvalley the 240 vegg model is spectacular for vegg. Trying them for flower right now in a grow with some kessils. Jury out on the flower phase between 4 and 5 week in.
 

ColoradoLove

Well-Known Member
I don't think you've done enough research buddy...
Dude you subsidize your LEDs with a 1k HPS. You can grow dank bud with just the 1K, your LED addition is worthless. I've read literally EVERY LED journal on here. The only three getting acceptable yields are the three I mentioned. I see you in all the journals I'm talking about so I know you know whats up. Quit telling these kids they can get quality LEDs at Walmart prices. You can definitely veg with a Blackstar, but you can veg with a 13w CFL. I'm talking solely flowering value. I have yet to see a Blackstar put up anything compared to the ISIS/Magnum/Spectra journals. If you would like to prove me wrong PLEASE shoot me a link to some pictures and a grow journal. If all you want to do is talk, please don't respond.

longranger - please post pics of your flowered buds so we can compare them to the Spectra and ISIS/Magnum grows. Maybe you can be the first to legitimize the Blackstar panels
 

ChucklesD

Well-Known Member
How are those vegging for you? I am scoping them out big time...

I love the Veg/Clone "HO" model for veg. They work great so far. Not sure about how they flower though. I'm not sure if I'm going to try just them for flower though. I might supplement with a 400w hps or 1 or 2 flowering model 240w blackstars.
 

longranger

Active Member
Chuckles that is exactly what i am doing now. Too early to say for sure but my plants do not look like they want to make as much bud as I would expect with their size and structure. This is an experiment that may not end the way I hoped but hey I went in knowing that. The best zones in my 14 plant grow are currently under magenta kessils, 1 per plant. Will update as things get further along. My flower phase has also been hurt by some low temps in my tent so they may still rebound big time. We shall see.
 

JJSP420

Active Member
Hey every one,
I am considering LED lights for my 4x4 VEG tent, I have a flower tent which I use HPS in and have great results. In the past i have vegged with a 600W MH and have had good results but want to look into a more energy efficent veg light. Any suggestions ?
 

Cereall

Well-Known Member
I think blackstar has a veg only unit

my hydroponics hut lights have a ton of white lights, about 1/3 the total leds are whites

and it is switchable so you can have only the whites or both for full blown flower


i would research hydroponicshut.com and gotham hydroponics and make your choice, lots of people running blackstars and happy with them
 

ChucklesD

Well-Known Member
Hey every one,
I am considering LED lights for my 4x4 VEG tent, I have a flower tent which I use HPS in and have great results. In the past i have vegged with a 600W MH and have had good results but want to look into a more energy efficent veg light. Any suggestions ?
3 or 4 240w Veg blackstars would work I think. It would cost you around a grand for 4. Depends what kind of deal they will give you.
 

Cereall

Well-Known Member
hmmm blackstars still pull like 150-160 watts so that would be the same wattage and not very energy efficient as i dont think they are switchable

when i veg with my pro grow 260s, each panel only pulls like 60 watts, so i am using 240 watts total to light up a 5x5 area more than enough
 

ChucklesD

Well-Known Member
hmmm blackstars still pull like 150-160 watts so that would be the same wattage and not very energy efficient as i dont think they are switchable

when i veg with my pro grow 260s, each panel only pulls like 60 watts, so i am using 240 watts total to light up a 5x5 area more than enough
Can you turn them all on at the same time?
 

Cereall

Well-Known Member
Confused....

I can veg mode, total off .53 amps or 60 watts
Or veg and flower for total of 167 watts

Or flower only which was around 120 total watts
 

ChucklesD

Well-Known Member
so you can do veg, flower, or veg/flower mix? That seems pretty nice.

Also, does anyone know of a good site to buy LED parts to build your own? I've been searching around but don't trust ebay and can't seem to find a legit looking site. I really would like to just make a giant panel over my grow room.
 

dankog

Member
Hey every one,
I am considering LED lights for my 4x4 VEG tent, I have a flower tent which I use HPS in and have great results. In the past i have vegged with a 600W MH and have had good results but want to look into a more energy efficent veg light. Any suggestions ?
I've had excellent results vegging with a 28w Grow Panel from Sunshine Systems--I'm amazed how well its working for vegging. I'd get 4 for a 4x4. You won't be disappointed.

If that's too pricey, you can get two blackstar 240w lights--they've been really good as well. I think the Sunshine are more gentile use less electricity, but the Blackstar is very effective as well.
 

dunit

Active Member
so you can do veg, flower, or veg/flower mix? That seems pretty nice.

Also, does anyone know of a good site to buy LED parts to build your own? I've been searching around but don't trust ebay and can't seem to find a legit looking site. I really would like to just make a giant panel over my grow room.
Check out digikey they are a wholesaler so won't offer you much in the way of hands on customer assistance but if you know what you're buying it doesn't get much more wholesale.
 

dunit

Active Member
i dont think its gonna weigh that much. in the beginning the lights were too close and the plants didnt grow that tall..i'll be lucky to pull 7g off each plant...that will barely put me at a 1/2 lb. This wasnt my grow from start to finish..I acquired it for some debt that was owed to me. The next grow i do will be a lot better, and i hope the yield will reflect the new changes.

and yes i believe they are the 602s..i'll check when i go over to the house later today.
Hey it's all about learning and improving. I didn't know enough about the strain I was growing with and I also just found out they are a strain that uses low nutes. The last three days I really felt like they stalled like they were having lockout and did a flush and the third flush was still producing run-off over 1500 ppm so definately f-ed up and it's gonna hurt my yield some but hopefully I caught it soon enough not to really hurt me.

Sounds like we are both on out first serious LED grow so just finishing puts us ahead of a lot of grow journals I've read :-)
 

dunit

Active Member
Hey every one,
I am considering LED lights for my 4x4 VEG tent, I have a flower tent which I use HPS in and have great results. In the past i have vegged with a 600W MH and have had good results but want to look into a more energy efficent veg light. Any suggestions ?
Except for the rare few lights that are solely Veg lights the rest of the panels are heavy in the reds as they are designed to produce in flower. Some panels have a veg and flower mode but all that does is turn off the blue or red spectrum. Because most of them are heavy on the reds to begin with, when you turn off the red or "flower" spectrum you lose about 70% of the output of the panel.

Short version is if you just buy a regular panel and turn off the flower spectrum you are wasting a good portion of your investment.

If you just want to use it for veg I would look for a panel designed for veg only. Stealth Grow has one for sure and I don't remeber who else does. I'm waiting for the ISIS veg light that is supposed to be in the works.
 
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