GBAUTO
Well-Known Member
Remember that is the ppf output of the fixture.
You're distributing that across 1.5 m2, so the average ppfd is right at 1000.
Is 1000 watt HPS overkill in 4X4 tent?
- Thread starter Doug Dawson
- Start date
You're distributing that across 1.5 m2, so the average ppfd is right at 1000.
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the heads up. That seems odd to me, logically I would have thought that setting the switch to 600 watts would prevent more than 600 watts from getting to the bulb during start up or running. The ballast has to be more powerful than 1000 watts as it has a Super Lumens setting which from what I read over drives the bulbs by 10 % or up to 1100 watts so I would think if it puts full power out upon turning on than the bulbs would be damaged by the 1100 watt serge but that might just be within their tolerance. Clearly going from 600 watts to 1000 watts is a much bigger jump than 1000 to 1100. I really appreciate your input, the last thing I want to do is damage a unit due to ignorance so the information you provided was a great help. Really glad I made this post or I would likely have purchased the 1000 and the 600 watt extra bulbs. Many thanks.
Last edited:
2Hearts
Well-Known Member
If your not a good grower a 1000w in a 4x4 is going to be hard to handle. Its not the heat its the health of the plants and imo your running near max with that set up so results represent your expertise.
You see the same in the full summer sun with unhealthy plants, its not that the sun is now to hot for plant growth its that you need to grow a better plant. Shade cloth will ease the problems as will running weaker lights.
You see the same in the full summer sun with unhealthy plants, its not that the sun is now to hot for plant growth its that you need to grow a better plant. Shade cloth will ease the problems as will running weaker lights.
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
Thanks for your reply. Complete newbie grower here at present
Currently I have 1 plant going and it is only my second plant ever. My first plant produced 3.5 0z once dry and is currently curing. It was a Northern Lights Auto. I did it under 2 X 1200 watt LED'S (well labeled at 1200 but not in reality). The pic is of my current plant which got much bigger, clearly I have to work on training when I start my 4 plant run. She seems healthy to me. She is an Early Miss Auto.Attachments
Last edited:
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
The simple answer is I just started this hobby. The Northern Lights I grew was a free seed with my first purchase so I thought I would see if I can make it survive, had never grown a plant before. When I saw that I could make this work I dropped the Little Miss seed in water. That was on March 16th when it was soaked over night. She is now showing bud sites starting to develop. Yes it has gotten a bit wild as I did not really do any training on it, I put her in a 5 gallon pot instead of the 3 I used for the last one and the growth exploded. I was going to start 4 plants (Legal limit per household here) and take them to my cottage to be grown outside but due to Pandemic issues was unable to do that. I will be finishing off this plant and starting my next grow early September so my holidays don't mess with keeping their feeding schedule. Growing smaller plants if fine and dandy to say but the thing is I have no experience with either growing or specific plants so it is all a learning curve for me. Why did Little Miss grow so much bigger than Northern Lights? See if I try to answer that I cannot. Could be plant specific due to strain, could be going from a 3 gallon to a 5 gallon pot. Without practical experience it is hard for me to say. For me it is all about getting the kinks worked out.
I was pretty happy with a 3.5oz yeild off my first plant and am looking forward to chopping the next one. With each step I acquire more knowledge. I will be looking more at LST and topping once I start my 4 plant grow and will be keeping things more in line but for now I am pretty happy just to have a healthy plant. As for lighting, well another learning curve. I had the 2 led's in my tent and one started giving my problems yesterday. I replaced it with my spare but started thinking about improved lighting. That is how I ended up here asking questions. I want to give my ladies the best I can, if I treat them right they will do the same for me. Well that's my thought anyway. Here is a pic of my first plant which I was and am still pretty happy with.
Attachments
GBAUTO
Well-Known Member
Very nice effort.
I was amazed at the sea of colas on my first crop.
Made me realize I still had a lot to learn.
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
Thanks. I have learned so much and the more I learn, the more I undertand I have so much more to learn. It's going to be a fun adventure that I am glad I started. Very happy to have found this site, some great helpful people here.
getogrow
Well-Known Member
The setting for 600, 750 and 1k IS a dimmer. Its made to put a 1k bulb in it and dim it to whatever you want. I dont think you would ever have a problem putting a 600 in there on 600 watt setting but thats not how it was built. I would use a 1k bulb and prolly not dim it at all. If you can get the light 4ft off the canopy then you wont have a problem with "too much light" ......i run my 1k at about 20" from the canopy.
With that much light you will need to feed a bit more then normal too.
Out of close to 30 years , i have only seen "light burn" 3 or 4 times. its VERY rare. (these new leds are out of my range. im not sure about them)
With that much light you will need to feed a bit more then normal too.
Out of close to 30 years , i have only seen "light burn" 3 or 4 times. its VERY rare. (these new leds are out of my range. im not sure about them)
Oakiey
Well-Known Member
I've played with the dimmer.
I finally replaced my 30 year old hydrofarm 400mh with one of those newfangled electronic doodads.
I cranked it up to overdrive untill I fired that old light back up. Got it on
300 now because of the summer heat.... I haven't noticed a difference.
I've had my 1000 on 750, 20" above the canopy since I fired it up. I bought it because you can't turn a 600 up to a 1000.
I finally replaced my 30 year old hydrofarm 400mh with one of those newfangled electronic doodads.
I cranked it up to overdrive untill I fired that old light back up. Got it on
300 now because of the summer heat.... I haven't noticed a difference.
I've had my 1000 on 750, 20" above the canopy since I fired it up. I bought it because you can't turn a 600 up to a 1000.
getogrow
Well-Known Member
ive still never switched but i dont see a good reason to switch..... they "say" the newfangled ones fire up the bulb instantly and use less startup power but i aint buyin it. Plus i know for a fact we wont get our 30 years out of those things.
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the input brother, I appreciate it. I guess I am just having a hard time narrowing down a direction. Many recommend HLD lights but they are very expensive in my eyes. There are so many factors to consider.
This kit https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00P8PIOIC?pf_rd_r=2B7ZF1KNNNAZXG2G6VB7&pf_rd_p=05326fd5-c43e-4948-99b1-a65b129fdd73 would likely be all I needed for a 4 X 4 X 7 tent. I am concerned about heat and power consumption with this option. Having to run a separate AC for a small grow tent seems excessive.
This led https://www.horticulturelightinggroup.ca/products/hlg-300l-v2-r-spec is super expensive but is being raved about. It says it only has a flower footprint of 3 X 3 so it likely wouldn't be sufficient for my space and one that would from these guys would just be ridiculously priced.
I looked at the Spider Farmers https://www.spider-farmer.com/products/sf-1000-led-grow-light and this SF1000 has a 2 X 2 flowering footprint so I was thinking about possibly getting 2 of them to cover the 2 X 2 tent. 2 SF1000s have a better footprint than 1 SF2000.
When looking at all the factors the 2 SF1000 LED's seem like the best bang for my buck and have good reviews. The advantage I have is I don't have to rush this but in the end I will have to decide. I will likely only be able to do a 4 plant grow twice a year as will take the summer off. I get 3 weeks holidays where I spend 9 days each at my cottage and I don't really feel like working out some auto feeding system. I will keep reading but eventually will have to pull the trigger on an options and live with it.
NewAgeTech
Active Member
The hlg300 won't be sufficient for a 4x4 u will get major stretch on the edges which will turn into fluff anyway.
The spiderfarms has an even smaller footprint so you will need 4 of them. The spiderfarms uses the same diodes as hlg300, just less of them.
Which ever way you choose you will want 480w for a 4x4 using leds
The spiderfarms has an even smaller footprint so you will need 4 of them. The spiderfarms uses the same diodes as hlg300, just less of them.
Which ever way you choose you will want 480w for a 4x4 using leds
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
Hello, thanks for the reply. So the SF1000 says it has a flower footprint of 2X2, are you saying it is only good for half that? With 4 plants in the tent that is an SF1000 for each plant.
Last edited:
NewAgeTech
Active Member
It is good for a 2x2 as it says. But there are 4 2x2s in a 4x4 tent. So if you want to fill the tent with adequate flowering light coverage you will need 4 of those.
hotrodharley
Well-Known Member
I flower under a 1000 watt in a 4’X4’
I disagree. A 1000W HID works wonders in a 4x4' tent. You just have to have a good starting environment in the room the tent is in so that heat can be managed accordingly.
Never say never... trust me. I always buy bigger than what I need. That practice has come in handy countless times.
You might *think* you'll never go bigger, but the vast majority of times, you will.
A 1000W will work dandy in a 4x4'. If heat becomes a problem, you can dial it back to 600W. In the winter months, your tent room temperatures may be cooler, so you may be able to dial back up to 100%.
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
Fair enough, cant argue that math. Many thanks.
Doug Dawson
Well-Known Member
Thanks for your reply. The 1000W is looking more like the way to go considering the cost of decent led coverage. I have to do some calculations with power consumption before I decide. I like the idea fo LED for less heat and lower power consumption but they are ridiculously expensive. With all other things purchased I would like to see some kind of return within the decade. What I am learning does have value but as a new grower the start up costs are obviously very high, especially when you see the horrific costs of some lighting.
Last edited: