I had tops 8 to 12 inches from my QB last grow with little to no ill effects. I'd say thats pretty close. Besides, he is growing in a closet. Last time I checked most closets are not 4 feet tall.
A 135 watt QB288 kit from HLG will crush whatever light you are currently using and won't produce a ton of heat.
https://horticulturelightinggroup.com/collections/kits/products/135w-qb-v2-led-kit
Indoor the longest I've vegged is 8 weeks. Indica dominant hybrids, about 3 feet tall when i flipped them and a bit under 6 feet tall at harvest. Outdoors there was no specific veg time... i just got them in the ground as early as i could.
97 is pretty hot for a max temp. I would try to keep it from getting that hot again if possible Some strains will handle it, some won't.
Other than that, the plants look healthy and it seems like you did your homework before you started which already puts you in a better position than most...
I have QBs and mounted my drivers outside my grow space when i first got them, and i actually ended up putting them back on top of the slate because my space actually got cooler than i wanted. whereas mounting the ballasts for my HPS external from my space made very little difference as most of...
I was just being overly cautious. As I was saying earlier, the other seedling in my space is irreplaceable to me. I actually think I figured out the issue, and it is actually all grower error if I'm right.
A light trimming to minimize the chance for mold in a tightly packed, high humidity space is about the only reason (aside from lollypopping when i run scrog) i ever take a scissors to my plants. If you cant get you RH under 55% with airflow and dehumidifiers then I'd say a LIGHT trim would be...
I might be quicker to blame the soil, but I've had great success with the FFLW many times, and the other seedling is thriving in the same medium in the same exact enviroment. Oh well. Time to medicate and relax before I get too worked up about .. lol.
I think what your looking at is perlite. But I'm looking again and it looks a little discolored. That usually only happens if I'm bottle feeding and the nutrients discolor the perlite. Hmmm...
I will say this... last run with the same genetics was challenging. She is a picky feeder, super sensitive to pH fluctuations, hates even a little too much N... just generally a bitch to grow. The final product is worth the ass ache.