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Need to upgrade grow light

LAShugars
LAShugarsstarted grow question 3 years ago
I'm looking to buy a stronger light for around 200$ that can adequately cover a 4x5 space for veg/flower. I've been researching for weeks but can't decide. I'm currently running with two TOAD LED Grow Lights 600W, actual watts 85. They are Blurples. Any suggestions?
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Week 4
Setup. Lighting
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NobodysBuds
NobodysBudsanswered grow question 3 years ago
you won't find a quality light for a 4x4 or 4x5 space at 0. if you only run autoflowers, you can use fewer watts and sufficiently cover a 4x4 or 4x5. if you intend to grow photoperiod plants in a space like that, you will need a true 600-some watt light... the more efficient the better... good lights cost a bit more upfront, but will save on each monthly electric bill for 5-7 years of use, or more. in some cases, your driver may fail before teh diodes dim below 90% of original intensity... (the longevity curve gets a steeper decline as time, i.e. it dims at incrasing rates, although slowly at first) The lamp linked below lists smd 3030 diodes... this is a generic term. the LM301 is an smd3030 chip. SMD - surface mounted devices. 3030 = size of the diode. Since they do not list the manufacturer, that's a BIG and bright red flag warning you to stay away. the one good thing it has going for it is that it is runniing the 972 diodes at a fairly low per chip wattage.. without exact spec sheet, there is no way to see L90 (point at which it is 905 of intensity on longevity curve) or any number of important specifications about this chip... this doesn't happen on accident. Lack of information improves their sales. the info will most likely push you away from their product so they make it impossible to see. never trust teh par maps if they don't give the spec for your diodes... An anecdote that is a parallel -- Day 1 the very expensive Luminus COB LEDs are stronger than the cree cob LED (comparing top of the line of each manufacturer at the time -- luminus whatever vs cree cbx3590 something or other) Anyway.. day 1 the luminus is brighter but within just 10,00012,000 hours of use it will quickly dim relative to the Cree COBs. if you only used it 12/day for bloomphase, that's only 2 years of use before it starts dimming like the total piece of shit they are, LOL, while the cree cob continues to give you intense light similar to day 1 for another 40,000 hours. it lasts 5x as long. So, longevity and efficacy are two things that are often glossed over by the cheap lights. i'd suggest saving up more money... buy onen off alibaba if you want the lowest price. can probably get a 600-somew lm301 chip "bar or strip style" light with better even coverage than a qb for less than 0 to 0 delivered. Or, pay 900-1200 somewhere else for the same thing. If running only autoflowers, could run a 480w high efficacy light in same space. This is directly proportional to hours of use.. 12 hours vs 18 hours or more, etc. you need 2/3rds the amount of light over 18 hours vs 12 hours and still provide same DLi to the plant. This would obviously be a cheaper light. alibaba has some risk. make sure the vendor is covered by "Trade Assurance." It involve negotiating directly with a manufacturer, which is not comfortable for all ppl. the initial listing will only show the lowest, cheapest configuration, even if it lists something else in the title... lots of bait and switch going on. salesmanship wiht zero integrity.. kinda par for the course worldwide if you don't split hairs. you may even find a generic SMD3030 - if licensed from samsung this is going to be a lower bin options but still can be okay if in greater numbers. this is an additional risk that the vendor isn't just lying to you to sell you a piece of shit BWahahahah... but hey... such is life. anyway, i'd save up a bit more... or, piecemeal it... buy a light to augment what you got but in future can be paired with another one to properly cover teh space... this way you could spend a bit less today... cover more space while also using your old equipment.. then in future buy a 2nd one to complete it. ~480w for autoflowers in a 4x5 and 600-some watts if doing photoperiods in a 4x5... this assumes it is somewhere near 2.7-2.9umol/J efficacy, otherwise a few more watts might be wise.
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Organoman
Organomananswered grow question 3 years ago
Save up longer and get decent lights, no 0.00 light will ever be adequate for a 4 x 5 space. A 400 watt metal halide or high pressure sodium combination (veg/flower) might be your cheapest option, but running costs will be very high and they produce a lot of heat too.
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m0use
m0useanswered grow question 3 years ago
If you need any other help shoot me a DM' Your inbox Is the little green arrow in the bottom right hand corner of your screen. Good Luck!
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WeGrow
WeGrowanswered grow question 3 years ago
I just found another one, Bloom Plus BP-4000 - I know people who use this one and are very happy with the result!
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Wicked_Stix
Wicked_Stixanswered grow question 3 years ago
I run quantum boards with samsung lm301 diodes and meanwell drivers. I use the straight 3000k with 660nm red. I have been using them for a couple years now and I love the buds they produce. I order mine direct from a manufacturer in China, but shipping is pretty slow right now. Check out enfun on amazon. They had the 240 watt boards with lm301 diodes for around 0. I would run 2 of them in your grow space, but 1 will get you by until you are able to get another one.
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Hempy_The_Kid
Hempy_The_Kidanswered grow question 3 years ago
If that's your best budget. I'd go with HID.
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m0use
m0useanswered grow question 3 years ago
If you don't want to stick to LED's HID lighting is also an option. CMH for vegging and HPS for flower. Some counter points. They run hot, need extra venting Consume more power on average 600W ish. Bulbs will also need changing but they don't cost that much. Its cheap in the beginning and more expensive in the long run.
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m0use
m0useanswered grow question 3 years ago
If you want to stay with LED's look for something that is full spectrum with a descent par map. MarsHydro higher end line up is good, but their lower tier stuff is not avoid it. Spider farmer has some nice units as does vipar spectra There are a lot of companies and a lot of the products are quite similar, so it boils down to a few things. Build quality, will it last, is it waterproof? diode brand/spectrum - this matters for overall output on ppfd per watt. Watts - more almost always equals better in terms of lights, and can dim it to be less. Anything 250-600W should be great. some go as high as 1000w Cost, some of them cost a lot of money. others are more moderately priced. It will cost a good chunk though. and style, quantum board vs strip - strips are looking promising and QB are better then what you got. Side note on watts a good company will advertise the actual pull of watts not its theoretical like the blue/purple ones you have. most LED's are rated for a lot more then they pull on the light, this gives them a lot longer shelf life. Best Of Luck!
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WeGrow
WeGrowanswered grow question 3 years ago
You could try this one, it is frequently on lightning sale for 245 USD....should fit your space and customers are very happy with the 300W version! https://www.amazon.com/SUNRAISE-Dimmable-Upgraded-Spectrum-Commercial/dp/B08N1J8TPX/ref=sr_1_8?crid=2VPPD4FD6LZNL&keywords=led%2Bgrow%2Blight%2B4x5&qid=1644699399&sprefix=led%2Bgrow%2Blight%2B4x%2Caps%2C202&sr=8-8&th=1
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Papa_T
Papa_Tanswered grow question 3 years ago
Ohhh no please don’t buy that. That’s bad friend. Look at Mars Hydro, spyder farmer and find something within your budget. Or try to up the budget a little and buy something worth your time and money. But please stay away from that TOAD garbage.
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