48"x48"x80" Tent- Advice on setup and use

SFPLRR35

New Member
Imo spectrum king makes a great light. If you are considering building your own, it will probably be a move backwards though. Building your own allows you to customize it for exactly your space. For the price of an sk600 you could build a far better light using COB or quantum boards, or both! Being able to spread that intensity over your entire canopy is very beneficial and with your light sources being modular it gives you the flexibility to dial the spectrum in to your liking. You can also incorperate monos to compliment your main light source. For instance, a channel of far reds and one of far blues that you can alternate running between veg and bloom. It may be something you have to build up to, but a diy build will allow you to modify as you go. If you feel you can build your own light, i say go for it. Some people just dont even want to consider it. For the, spectrum king is on my list of suggested lights, though not the top. Pacific light concepts and horticulture lighting group have some top notch rigs and both of their owners are members of this forum! As is cob kits if you are considering diy.
Alright, thats a lot of good information and definitely makes we want to look at LEDs more; especially DIYs. Thanks for the help
 

SFPLRR35

New Member
Intake air doesn't smell, you don't need to filter it for smell.

You need to ensure you are taking more air out of the tent than is going in (negative pressure - tent walls get sucked in slightly). That way air going out HAS to go through your carbon filter and will come out non smelling. If you add a fan to your intake you run the risk of putting more air in than is going out, which is positive pressure (tent walls bulge outwards). That means air will try and escape any way it can and not always through your filter. That means unfiltered, smelly air escapes - seriously not good.

If you want to stop stuff coming into your tent what about putting a fine mesh over the intake or some kind of cooker hood filter / HEPA filter which will still allow airflow but stop insects etc. I don't use a tent personally but I am sure you should be able to rig something up.
Okay, Ill make sure to look into that.
 

SFPLRR35

New Member
Yeah I understand, it's easy to jump the gun your first go, but it will definitely be a positive learning experience, and you will get some bud from the light.

I have no experience with spectrum king lights, but I did check out the specs on a couple rigs and it seems overpriced. Weak mid range diodes that are over amped. Basically means you will get bad efficiency and mediocre output of par photons. The whole name of the game when it comes to led grow lights is efficiency. If less energy is going to par photons than heat then you might as well just go with an hid and save yourself 1000$. And the price tags on some of those units are just crazy for what they actually are.

Look into diy cobs. If you add 2 Rails of 4 cobs each to go on each side of the unit you already have, you'll be perfect. Get hlg-185h-c1400 drivers with some citi 1212 cobs and you can build eah rail for about 180$ a piece, 360$ total price. That driver wires in series so it's extremely simple to build, in fact growmau5 has a great step by step guide to building a 4 cob rail on YouTube.
WOW, thats definitely good advice. For sure will look into that. My only concern is having something that will cause fires. You can only trust internet DIYs so far
 

SFPLRR35

New Member
Some filter in front of the intake hole to prevent dust is more than enough in my opinion. No need for an intake fan or filter at this size. You will never smell anything, because of depression.

I did some Bridgelux EB series addon to my light, to get a better coverage. Maybe something you want to consider. I really like ghese strips. Just swapped every light I had for them, and customized perfectly for my cabinet. The 4' strips would be pretty good for you, as alternitive to qb & co.
Yeah, I know it would be good for mold and other cantonments to have a filter, I just didn't know if I needed a fan.
 

innerG

Well-Known Member
WOW, thats definitely good advice. For sure will look into that. My only concern is having something that will cause fires. You can only trust internet DIYs so far
The SKs are a bit more expensive than DIY, but you get a warranty and everything and I didn't have to worry about electrocuting myself so that was a bonus for me. Also nice knowing it's waterproof.

No matter what light you use though, just get what you can and get started growing. Getting hung up on a certain piece of equipment isn't the best way to start. Once you do a grow you'll see what you need to improve on/invest in for your own environment/setup.
 
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