Best lights, lighting for a 4x4?

[TheChemist77]

i love my ceramic 315watt,, way better than my old hps/mh grows....

 

[Feisty1UR]

i love my ceramic 315watt,, way better than my old hps/mh grows....

What wattage were your MH/HPS bulbs?

 

[nevergoodenuf]

A friend has a test going for me against a 315 and a double 315. The veg results speak for themselves. All conditions were equal. Led is a mix of 4000k and 3000k @ 500 watts (so not even a veg light). Flowering results will be in a couple months.

 

[TheChemist77]

What wattage were your MH/HPS bulbs?

over my 4'x6' table i ran 3 400 watt hps, then 2 400 hps 1 400 mh, after that 2 600 watt hps, and did 2 runs with a 1k hps,, yields wer best with the 2 600's, over 20years of growing with hps/mh..in 2013 i bought a couple 315 watt cmh, and tested thinking no way could 1 315 cmh compare to a 600 watt hps,,,well 1 315 is not equivilent to 600 watts hps but is far more efficient,,1 315 is more like running 450 watts hps,2 315's at a total of 630 watts is comparable to a 1k hps, and 3 315's at a total of 945 watts beats out 2 600 watt hps at 1200watt total...yields under 3 315's (945watts) pull over 1300 grams dry weight and plants finish a week sooner and overall health of plants (crystal production,densness of buds etc.)way better than under hps or the hps/mh combo..

 

[Woyaboy]

I'm trying to find out which would be a better light source for yield, so much debate...

I made so many mistakes in my first grow, I'm trying to correct everything this time around. upgrade everything so it's all at its best possible potential.

How much did you end up with roughly from a 600?, If you could control the heat would you go with a 1000w. In your own opinion.

Take the fact that their is so much debate to be that their is more than one way to skin a cat and there is no best way, just the best way for YOU.

 

[Indefinately]

Take the fact that their is so much debate to be that their is more than one way to skin a cat and there is no best way, just the best way for YOU.

The best way gives you the stickiest and heaviest bud.
At a reasonable cost.
Start up and ongoing cost.....

Some care more about cost then quality.
Others care more about quality then cost.
It's a balancing act really.

 

[Shag Pile]

over my 4'x6' table i ran 3 400 watt hps, then 2 400 hps 1 400 mh, after that 2 600 watt hps, and did 2 runs with a 1k hps,, yields wer best with the 2 600's, over 20years of growing with hps/mh..in 2013 i bought a couple 315 watt cmh, and tested thinking no way could 1 315 cmh compare to a 600 watt hps,,,well 1 315 is not equivilent to 600 watts hps but is far more efficient,,1 315 is more like running 450 watts hps,2 315's at a total of 630 watts is comparable to a 1k hps, and 3 315's at a total of 945 watts beats out 2 600 watt hps at 1200watt total...yields under 3 315's (945watts) pull over 1300 grams dry weight and plants finish a week sooner and overall health of plants (crystal production,densness of buds etc.)way better than under hps or the hps/mh combo..

When buying a cmh setup. Do you buy 1 bulb for entire grow or 2 bulbs at different colour temps? Say for when you switch from veg to flower, as one would with a mh/hps combo.

You're really selling these lights to me so far.

 

[TheChemist77]

When buying a cmh setup. Do you buy 1 bulb for entire grow or 2 bulbs at different colour temps? Say for when you switch from veg to flower, as one would with a mh/hps combo.

You're really selling these lights to me so far.

just one bulb,, i recommend the 3,000k agro bulb for both veg and flower.. that one bulb will last 3 years w/out replacement.. alot of guys are opting for the 4100k bulb for veg and the 3k for flower,however imo and ive been told by boulder lamp co, that the 3k agro bulb is best used for both veg and flower.. using the 41k for veg then the 3k for flower promotes stretch wile using the 3k for both will get short,closer nodes,less stretch plants.. pluss bulbs are like 90-100 bucks a piece now,, in 3 years or by the time its time to replace bulbs, prices may be lower,,,ill hold off and use the 3k alone,,its up to you though,,,grow well n be well

 

[bryan bozz]

I have been an outdoor grower for some time. Due to new Oregon laws I went to indoors and was told I HAD to use phantom or Gavida lamps. Being I don't usually just do what I`m told I researched a lot of lights. A very good friend in in the grower supply business and told me about these new lamps, boulder lamps. So, being I am a bit of a scientist I bought both the boulders and Gavitas. The plants were from the same mom, same room, same dirt, same feed EXACT SAME EVERYTHING except the lights. 30% increase in yield, healthier plants, much bigger and the boulder side was WAY cooler. The power bill was much lower by hundreds of dollars a month. I am selling those other lights and buying another batch of boulders. I am not a dealer for boulder, not a blogger for them and retired military so I just tell the bottom line. If you want bigger and better plants with a larger yield then go boulder lamps. Jake is THE MAN at Boulder and has always treated me great.

 

[HydroRed]

I have been an outdoor grower for some time. Due to new Oregon laws I went to indoors and was told I HAD to use phantom or Gavida lamps. Being I don't usually just do what I`m told I researched a lot of lights. A very good friend in in the grower supply business and told me about these new lamps, boulder lamps. So, being I am a bit of a scientist I bought both the boulders and Gavitas. The plants were from the same mom, same room, same dirt, same feed EXACT SAME EVERYTHING except the lights. 30% increase in yield, healthier plants, much bigger and the boulder side was WAY cooler. The power bill was much lower by hundreds of dollars a month. I am selling those other lights and buying another batch of boulders. I am not a dealer for boulder, not a blogger for them and retired military so I just tell the bottom line. If you want bigger and better plants with a larger yield then go boulder lamps. Jake is THE MAN at Boulder and has always treated me great.

Claims not a vendor......first post ever is a pitch. Welcome to RIU

 

[purplehays1]

I've heard waaay too many controversial topics on people saying CMH, or Gavita are better than HPS, MH lighting setups. They never come to a final conclusion..

Apparently you can get away with 315w of light from a CMH, and still pull the same numbers from a 600w Air-cooled HPS. According to statistics the CMH has 4x PAR but I don't know if that's a myth or true..

I was going to buy an Air-cooled Hooded 600w MH, and then possibly switch that out for a 1000w HPS during flower,

Can somebody offer me advice on what I should buy for the area I have?

Cheers

600w should be plenty for a 4ftx4ft. Ive never used anything but HPS so no recommendation there. You can probably get more weight with a 1000w but it will be overkill.

 

[Crab Pot]

I have been an outdoor grower for some time. Due to new Oregon laws I went to indoors and was told I HAD to use phantom or Gavida lamps. Being I don't usually just do what I`m told I researched a lot of lights. A very good friend in in the grower supply business and told me about these new lamps, boulder lamps. So, being I am a bit of a scientist I bought both the boulders and Gavitas. The plants were from the same mom, same room, same dirt, same feed EXACT SAME EVERYTHING except the lights. 30% increase in yield, healthier plants, much bigger and the boulder side was WAY cooler. The power bill was much lower by hundreds of dollars a month. I am selling those other lights and buying another batch of boulders. I am not a dealer for boulder, not a blogger for them and retired military so I just tell the bottom line. If you want bigger and better plants with a larger yield then go boulder lamps. Jake is THE MAN at Boulder and has always treated me great.

I'm very interested in Boulder lamps. Great to hear such a positive review. Did you go with the LED argo attachment?

 

[themullet]

CUrious as to opinion on a 220 w draw 1000w equivalant led measuring 12x18 " fixture is capable of producing quality smoke in a 4x4 tent. Im thinking another light is going to be needed. Its 33000 lumens over 3x3.5 ft coverage

 

[coreywebster]

CUrious as to opinion on a 220 w draw 1000w equivalant led measuring 12x18 " fixture is capable of producing quality smoke in a 4x4 tent. Im thinking another light is going to be needed. Its 33000 lumens over 3x3.5 ft coverage

Any light right now that claims 1000w equivalent but draws 220w is lies I'm afraid dude. The most efficient LEDs at 220w draw would probably be equivalent too 400w hps maybe a little bit more.

 

[PetFlora]

just one bulb,, i recommend the 3,000k agro bulb for both veg and flower.. that one bulb will last 3 years w/out replacement.. alot of guys are opting for the 4100k bulb for veg and the 3k for flower,however imo and ive been told by boulder lamp co, that the 3k agro bulb is best used for both veg and flower.. using the 41k for veg then the 3k for flower promotes stretch wile using the 3k for both will get short,closer nodes,less stretch plants.. pluss bulbs are like 90-100 bucks a piece now,, in 3 years or by the time its time to replace bulbs, prices may be lower,,,ill hold off and use the 3k alone,,its up to you though,,,grow well n be well

Hmmm, 4100K would keep plants short with tighter inter nodes. 3k makes plants stretch, how could starting with 4100 then switching to 3K cause stretch compared to 3k throughout?

 

[Wigiberto]

You cannot go wrong with either 2 315 LEC ( Ceramic Metal Halide) lights OR ONE 630 LEC.

Low heat. Less energy usage, more savings, higher quality buds IMO with more trichome coverage.

 

[themullet]

Any light right now that claims 1000w equivalent but draws 220w is lies I'm afraid dude. The most efficient LEDs at 220w draw would probably be equivalent too 400w hps maybe a little bit more.

KInd of what i was thinking. Already made the decision to invest in a second light. So ill have two primary lights and a pair of supplemental flouros. Doing a run of autos for a cheap kick.

 

[Jeeyah]

9-12 COBs (CXB3590)

 

[TheChemist77]

Hmmm, 4100K would keep plants short with tighter inter nodes. 3k makes plants stretch, how could starting with 4100 then switching to 3K cause stretch compared to 3k throughout?

the larger the difference in kelvins from veg to flower the more stretch.. just like going from a 6500k mh in veg to a 3000k hps in flower = alot of stretch,,, going from 4100k cdl veg to 3000k cdl in flower less stretch than the previous but more than using the same bulb.. if u grew w/ mh alone yield would be less but very minimul stretch,, if u use hps alone they would be taller than mh aolone but u also get a better yield.. most people prefer mh in veg then hps in flower because the mh in veg creates a short stocky plant then put them under the hps in flower they can triple in height in the first 3 weeks,, the stretch actually helps the bud sites get more light and we all know the far red from hps is way better than mh...anyways the rule is the larger the difference in kelvins the larger the stretch...

 

[Big smo]

I just finished up a 4x4 space with 4-50 watt cobs and pulled 13oz. Not epic by any means but an easily manageable space with low wattage.

This is the second round going in here now.