4 Kessil H350 - 600W HID Comparison; the highlight reel

jcmjrt said:

If you pay full retail on Kessils, I'd have to agree about them being overpriced but growershouse.com has H350s for $251 and at that, I think they are very reasonably priced as they work and last...which is probably why I ended up with 4 and a spinner. I haven't seen a better build quality LED yet other than some diys.

Multiple smaller units is the way to go...or larger on a light mover is OK too.

Now as to the size of your space...big grow there! You need roughly 30 - 45 watts/ft2 (LED light but this varies up or down depending on the quality of the light, coverage, etc) but at least rough planning...20 x 10 = 200 ft2 200 x 35 = 7000 watts HID is roughly 50 to 65 watts/ft2 so 200 x 55 = 11000 watts...so you'd need 11 thousand watt HID units to adequately light your space...or 7000 watts equivalent in good LED. Since you've got 10 foot of height, I'd guess that you want some tall plants so you should be looking at high wattage LED chips 5W or larger so you get penetration.

I really like both T5HO and LED lighting but one limitation on them both is they grow well only what is almost directly under them. Take the size of the actual panel and add 2 - 6 inches/side...so add 4 - 12 inches to the dimensions given and that's how much they will actually cover for good flower. Additionally, T5 needs to be kept close to the plants (inches) as the penetration is limited compared to HID...so smaller plants are in order...3 footers maybe...and LED usually does better with smaller plants/even canopy as well although the higher wattage LEDs will penetrate well. Make a scale drawing of your space and panels and see what you think. You could always add some cheaper HID (HPS & MH) and the T5/LED lighting will help keep the heat down or grow a few less plants the first time round. Another thought is looking at CMH; I haven't checked it out closely as I'm firmly on the LED path but some people are having excellent results with CMH.

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Kambo said:

JCMJRT,

Thank you very much for your input! Let me explain why I chose this setup over smaller more flexible panels. I plan on expanding the grow I have now and ordering smaller units for the grow size I'm planning would not be very cost effective. There aren't many 5W panels that are quality made(that I know of anyway) unless you build your own. I would love to build my own but I do not have the ability/time to do this. As for penetration I will add more Kessil lights on the sides to shine on the lower stalks of the plants, supplemented with T5HO which is linear so it would be than just the top lighting.

My ultimate plan is to design an effective setup for (1) 20x10x7 tent and then just duplicate/expand from there. Ideally I'd like to grow 3-4 tents but that would cost about $200k according to my math. I know I can get a more cost effective setup via MH/HPS lights but I plan on growing exclusively using LED+CFL.

Basic numbers:
LIGHTING
--AdvancedLED 800W [400 diodes drawing 758 W]
$2,000 x 12 = $24,000
--Kessil H350 [2 diodes drawing 73W] (18 Magenta 18 Deep Purple)
$260 x 36 = $9,360
--Evergreen T5 [4ft x 8 drawing 54W each] (ATI Bulbs Blue and Red)
$360 x 4 = $1,440 (Fixture = $180 + 8 Bulbs = $180)
--Reptisun 10.0 UVB T5HO [8 UVB Bulbs] (Increase Trichomes)
$25 x 8 = $200

TOTAL = $36,000 per tent for lighting only

Price not including grow system, fans, environment controller, nutrients, and accessories. [$8,000 est]

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Beefbisquit said:

Have you looked at Area 51's new CREE panel? 165W, and ~1200umoles @ 12".... badass. They use 5W LED's too.

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