farmingfisherman

Well-Known Member
I'm really starting to favor the mars FC line and the SP line
So many choices... Price, company, reviews and actual feedback from real growers. Big money in the lighting business these days but the components are limited. My mind and pocketbook looks at design, coverage, wattage and finally value. LEDs are great but so are hps/mh and CMH under the right conditions.
 

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
So many choices... Price, company, reviews and actual feedback from real growers. Big money in the lighting business these days but the components are limited. My mind and pocketbook looks at design, coverage, wattage and finally value. LEDs are great but so are hps/mh and CMH under the right conditions.
I cant see the right conditions where I would ever choose a HID over LED anymore
They have such extreamly better light distribution, plus can pay for themselves in energy savings, and not replacing bulbs in just one year.
 

Buddernugs

Well-Known Member
Their is no better light coverage in that price range fir 2x4,4x4,4x8 tents.....I had mine on top of ilgm white widow and ilgm blue dream and pulled 400g jarred off the white widow and another 224g off the blue dream for a total of 2.08 grams per watts......highest pull off that light to date, and it’s their og model before they upgraded their diodes and drivers....I know people who run hlg and gravita 1700’s that don’t hit that 2gpw even with co2.....all comes down to genetics and skill
 

farmingfisherman

Well-Known Member
I cant see the right conditions where I would ever choose a HID over LED anymore
They have such extreamly better light distribution, plus can pay for themselves in energy savings, and not replacing bulbs in just one year.
Think about a cold space running LEDs. How much money do you spend on heat to keep the space warm enough to make the plants except the light the LEDs provide?
 

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
Think about a cold space running LEDs. How much money do you spend on heat to keep the space warm enough to make the plants except the light the LEDs provide?
Yes if its really cold, but then you still have night to worry about.
My basement sits at about 66 or so, when the LEDs are on, it gets up to 78 or so (82 in the tent). I do also have 750w of light though.
I run a heater at night to keep it at around 75
 

farmingfisherman

Well-Known Member
The extra yeild is undeniable though for sure.
Here for example, is two mars sp3000 in a 4x4 (600w of LED), next to a 600w HPS.

View attachment 4824707View attachment 4824708
Sure that's great but a person might need to run another 1000 to 1500 watts of heat to make the plant happy and healthy enough to use that light well. If I could avoid doing that by running a DE bulb and eliminate the need for daytime heat I'd have to consider it.
 

Wastei

Well-Known Member
The extra yeild is undeniable though for sure.
Here for example, is two mars sp3000 in a 4x4 (600w of LED), next to a 600w HPS.

View attachment 4824707View attachment 4824708
Don't want to bash anything but that comparison is invalid. HPS run at 24" and LED's at 21.25".

Like many other LED manufacturers numbers they are invalid and all over the place. Not saying LED's aren't superior in most situations, I'm just tired of all the false advertisement. Cheers!
 

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
Don't want to bash anything but that comparison is invalid. HPS run at 24" and LED's at 21.25".

Like many other LED manufacturers numbers they are invalid and all over the place. Not saying LED's aren't superior in most situations, I'm just tired of all the false advertisement. Cheers!
Its actually not invalid.
This is setup to reach a maximum of 1000 PPFD. (The most a plant can absorb without damage or issues unless you have enriched co2)
Both are set up that way and how those heights were found.
Even if you dropped the HPS, the center would jump to levels too high, and the edges and corners would still be way too low.
There is absolutely no justification to the extreme difference in that PPFD spread. It doesn't get any better than 800 in the very corners, and 999 at the center. You will never get close to that with a HID
 

Wastei

Well-Known Member
Its actually not invalid.
This is setup to reach a maximum of 1000 PPFD. (The most a plant can absorb without damage or issues unless you have enriched co2)
Both are set up that way and how those heights were found.
Even if you dropped the HPS, the center would jump to levels too high, and the edges and corners would still be way too low.
There is absolutely no justification to the extreme difference in that PPFD spread. It doesn't get any better than 800 in the very corners, and 999 at the center. You will never get close to that with a HID
This is veeery anecdotal if anything. What reflector was used with what bulb and ballast? Data is clearly lacking. Was different reflectors used? Cooled hood with glass or free hanging barn style?

To many variables to give a clear answer IMO. If you want to compare lights correct and fairly they have to be run at the same distance. Otherwise you compare apples to oranges in my book.
 

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
This is veeery anecdotal if anything. What reflector was used with what bulb and ballast? Data is clearly lacking. Was different reflectors used? Cooled hood with glass or free hanging barn style?

To many variables to give a clear answer IMO. If you want to compare lights correct and fairly they have to be run at the same distance. Otherwise you compare apples to oranges in my book.
If the results were somewhat close, I would agree that those things REALLY matter, but its only a few inch height difference. They just used a different standered for the base line than you think should have been used.

You have to be willing to agree that no matter how close, or how good of a hood, that HPS has, it will never come even close to the average or useable PPFD that a LED array can produce.

Above you mentioned "numbers that are invalid and all over the place."
But the mapping for the sp3000 were real world tests done inside of mylar barriers, those PPFD measurements are really what you get when you use those lights. Even if you think the HPS map is understating its output.
 
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farmingfisherman

Well-Known Member
Its actually not invalid.
This is setup to reach a maximum of 1000 PPFD. (The most a plant can absorb without damage or issues unless you have enriched co2)
Both are set up that way and how those heights were found.
Even if you dropped the HPS, the center would jump to levels too high, and the edges and corners would still be way too low.
There is absolutely no justification to the extreme difference in that PPFD spread. It doesn't get any better than 800 in the very corners, and 999 at the center. You will never get close to that with a HID
What are you using to measure the light output with? I use a free app and it is okay but I feel its only a rough starting point. Oh and had to download it to my tablet rather than my phone. The app on the phone maxed out, I guess the camera makes a huge difference in reading the output.
 

farmingfisherman

Well-Known Member
22 degrees here currently, running two hlg 260s at 75% and the heater.. If I had my 315 CMH hung I'd likely not need the heater..
 

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
22 degrees here currently, running two hlg 260s at 75% and the heater.. If I had my 315 CMH hung I'd likely not need the heater..
But even if you are still consuming the same wats in the end, you are getting a better light distribution than with HID, so those corner nugs aren't so larfy.
What are you using to measure the light output with? I use a free app and it is okay but I feel its only a rough starting point. Oh and had to download it to my tablet rather than my phone. The app on the phone maxed out, I guess the camera makes a huge difference in reading the output.
This was taken with a real ppfd reading device.
Here is the video the screenshots were taken from
 

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
So today I hit her with the defoliation. Day 18 of 1212, could not make it to 21.
Things were crazy in here, and I was beginning to struggle to control the RH. Highs were getting close to 70%.
I'm not sure if this is considered shwazzing or not, but I did my best! This took about 2 hours to do as it is.

Now humidity is a bit too low for my VPD haha
She will recover and start transpiring heavy again soon.
20210215_191037.jpgScreenshot_20210215-191019_Gallery.jpg
 

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
Day 23 of 1212 and things are great.
Screenshot_20210220-230521_Gallery.jpg
Screenshot_20210220-230510_Gallery.jpg
Sure hope this one in the front right stops stretching sometime soon. They're all huge at 24-28" tall
Screenshot_20210220-230532_Gallery.jpg
But the one in the front right has an insane stretch and is towering at just about 39" tall.
Screenshot_20210220-230458_Gallery.jpg

I got some clones in stasis right now for the girl in the back right. She grew amazing in veg, no deficiencies anywhere, now she has finnished stretching more or less and is very bushy. The perfect amount of growth, I am looking forward to the next run with her.
 
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