light layout ? for you pros

3

3rdbase

Active Member
im setting up a new grow and the equipment in ? is as follows 5 600 watt digis and 5 4/4 trays .my ? is this how would you set your light layout .. example would you just use 4 4/4 trays 1 light over each and 1 un the middle or 5 trays .. by the way the trays if using 5 would be in a U shape so the light i dont thing would bleed too well ... lumens per sq foot right or more trays .... if using 4 trays they would would be next to each other like a square..... please help :wall::confused::peace::wall:
 
Im no hydro guy but by trays do you mean DWC?

How many plants on each tray. I would put them close enough together to barely walk in between with a light on each tray and one in the middle.:bigjoint:
 
ya ebb and flow ...sorry 4 white 4/4 trays .... and as for how many plants im not sure what would be the best method ... for the best yield sog or 30 per light or 50 per light how many plants would you put in the 4 tray setup for max yield using purple kush and grand daddy purp .....should i max out or grow say 12 per light ... what would be optimal...
 
3rdbase said:
ya ebb and flow ...sorry 4 white 4/4 trays .... and as for how many plants im not sure what would be the best method ... for the best yield sog or 30 per light or 50 per light how many plants would you put in the 4 tray setup for max yield using purple kush and grand daddy purp .....should i max out or grow say 12 per light ... what would be optimal...
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1 plant per square foot is a good amount for sog ebb&flo
 
babygro said:
Plants in seedling and clone stage require about 400-500 lumens per square foot. In vegetative growth they require about 2,500 lumens per square foot and in flowering, they require about 10,000 lumens per square foot.

The most important thing about light, is to understand that it diminishes rapidly the further away it is from the target. Now, As I'm sure you know, HID systems output a fair amount of heat and that means they cannot be used particularly closely to the plant tops for fear of burning them, so for a 400w (or 430w) system it would need to be about 2 feet from the plant tops. So if a 400w system outputs 53,000 lumens at source, it's represented as 53,000 lumens at a distance of 1 foot from the target. The Inverse square law is light intensity (output in lumens) divided by distance (distance the target is from the source) squared. So for a 400w system outputting 53,000 lumens we now know this will be outputting 53,000 lumens divided by 2 foot squared (53,000/2x2) which is 13,250 lumens at the plant tops.

So if we wanted to give the plants 2,500 lumens per sq foot for vegetative growth, we need to work out how far the lamp could be away from the source and that would provide us with the sq area. 53,000 lumens at 3 foot is (53,000/3x3) 5,888 lumens, at 4 foot is (53,000/4x4) 3,312 and 5 foot is (53,000/5x5) 2120, so we know that to deliver 2,500 lumens per square foot allows the bulb to be about 4.75 feet from the source which would illuminate a square area of 4.75 x 4.75 or 22.5 sq feet.

Light movers increase coverage by about 25%, so it looks to me like if you wern't using a light mover you would probably need 2 x 400 systems for flowering and vegging and perhaps 1 x 600 for both using the light mover. Now you have the math, you can work it out.
Click to expand...

bongsmilie

edit/ps- note that his distances are for fixtures that are NOT vented or cooltubed. with a cooled fixture you can get a 400w as close as 6-8 inches without bleaching. the placement stays the same tho. follow the inverse rule to get the desired lpsf(lumens per square foot), then place your lights accordingly...

and yes, 1 plant per sq. foot is ideal for sog.. read this thread, by Al B. Fuct
 
so 16 is the magic number is what you say.....and heres the loaded ? what kind of yield would that theory produce givin with everything on point in a closed room setup using co2 ..and proper growing know how ....the only reason why im asking is bcuz im really trying to figure in a 2/half month cycle what would be the best sequence grow for a week then flip the lights or flower st8 from clone ...like for example how many plants would you grow per light for how long b4 flipping and and what you would expect at the end with the 5 light 4 tray setup
 
I have a 600 watt HPS covering a 4' x 4' area, and it does a sufficient job. I recently bought a light meter, and found that I'm getting a little over 5000 lumens(at the tops) in the center of the grow area, and just over 3000 lumens at the outer edges. That is with it set about 16" from the tops of the center plants. Also, I'm using one of those 4' umbrella reflectors, so you might be able to get a more even coverage with a different design. A good idea is to spend $30 for a light meter on Ebay, and then you'll know exactly what you are getting(lumens per square foot). A light meter for photograpy will work perfectly, and tend to be a little cheaper than those marketed from growing.(they are the same thing) You'll be surprised to see how intense the light is at the areas where the lights 'overlap', and that'll allow you to spread you're lights out a little further, covering your entire setup, effectively.

I'm running one 600 watt and three 400 watt HPS lights in a 5' x 6' area, and am getting some excellent coverage and penetration.(about 6000 lumens average) You should be averaging over 4000 lumens per square foot, which is totally sufficient. But remember...more is always better.(to an extent) :wink:
 
how many plants are you covering and what kind of yield do you get if you dont mind me asking thanks ....you helped alot what do you think about 5 trays versus 4 trays ..with the five lights for maximum production..by the way i dont smoke its for people i know around me who are sick ...and need stuff to get through the day.. so producing a nice amount would go around the gov dont care about the people so someone does ... so more info the better for me to do the good mans work......cancer is the devil.
 
i did check that link out thanks but it dosnt seem to have any lighting diagram or setup examples ....for optimal harvest
 
thanks for all your inputs ...but what would you do 5 trays 5 lights... or 4 trays 5 lights using xtrasun hoods air cooled 600s sould i space it out ... in the U shape as i said previous ..im tryin to just get it right 4 once:wall:
 
4 trays 5 lights. Arrange the trays in a big square if you can and then you can do the same with your lights with the fifth light in the center like the five on a pair of dice.
 
yes they do.... now how many plants would you do for max yield ... and given a closed room eviro with co2 and everything in check what could you expect yield wise... i know many things change the outcome but roughly...given the the 5 light 4 tray look.....this will be my last ? thanks i appreciated it ...
 
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