Mish-mash of lights for first grow

M

MountainMedic1206

Member
Good day, all! I am preparing for my first grow and am doing my best to be informed and prepared. Naturally, I will have questions for those of you with some experience and who have high expectations and standards. I am starting out growing in my basement and have worked hard to clean it up, bleach it, seal up any holes against insects and seal up any areas of moisture leakage. I believe my basement is ready. I have sourced seeds from Seedsman and have germinated five seeds to start in coco coir. The baby seedlings are currently under a small, cheap blurple light at about 14 inches in a 2x2x4 grow tent...

I will eventually move to a 4x8x6 grow tent with one Advanced Platinum p150, one Advanced Platinum p300 and a Kind K3 L450.

The reason I have such random lamps is because these are what I was able to source on sale.

So, for five plants in 7 gallon fabric grow pots in the above mentioned tent with the above mentioned lighting... what are your thoughts? I believe I am going to order a PAR meter to figure out the lighting layout but I am thinking that the layout may be a little wonky given the different lights. Will this matter terribly?

Also, I am open to run a little CO2. I am trying to purchase intense, quality lighting in order to use CO2 but I am honestly unsure if I have enough light to implement CO2. Thoughts here? I am willing to hunt down another 300-450 lamp, if necessary.

I absolutely appreciate any constructive criticism you may offer and thank you in advance.

P.S. I did try to include links for the above mentioned items so that you could better review my equipment but I am brand spankin' new here and the forum does not all me to post links yet. My apologies.
 
Gond00s

Gond00s

Well-Known Member
Well if u get a tent that is the same size just way taller get a 400 watt hps ducted and youll be good
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
The large tent you mentioned - you’re not planning on covering that with this light array are you? It would take 2 600-watt HPS to cover that minimum to flower. What’s that short tent for?
 
M

MountainMedic1206

Member
The short tent is strictly for seedlings.

Honestly, yes, I do plan on using that tent with these lights. I plan on using a PAR meter and moving/consolidating plants in order to maintain appropriate light exposure.

I know that both you and Gond00s mentioned HPS but I plan on sticking strictly with LED. I am wholly unfamiliar with HPS and honestly lack an understanding on equating LED with HPS. I would really prefer to keep the discussion focused on LED and thoughts on best implementation. I absolutely appreciate your input, though.
 
Gond00s

Gond00s

Well-Known Member
Yea after not being as high it’s just gonna be better if u get two 600 watt hps ducted will be the best bang for the buck not kidding I added 600 watts to my flower and I’m still fine at 70f at night it gets very low to 66
 
Helltownhero

Helltownhero

Well-Known Member
MountainMedic1206 said:
Good day, all! I am preparing for my first grow and am doing my best to be informed and prepared. Naturally, I will have questions for those of you with some experience and who have high expectations and standards. I am starting out growing in my basement and have worked hard to clean it up, bleach it, seal up any holes against insects and seal up any areas of moisture leakage. I believe my basement is ready. I have sourced seeds from Seedsman and have germinated five seeds to start in coco coir. The baby seedlings are currently under a small, cheap blurple light at about 14 inches in a 2x2x4 grow tent...

I will eventually move to a 4x8x6 grow tent with one Advanced Platinum p150, one Advanced Platinum p300 and a Kind K3 L450.

The reason I have such random lamps is because these are what I was able to source on sale.

So, for five plants in 7 gallon fabric grow pots in the above mentioned tent with the above mentioned lighting... what are your thoughts? I believe I am going to order a PAR meter to figure out the lighting layout but I am thinking that the layout may be a little wonky given the different lights. Will this matter terribly?

Also, I am open to run a little CO2. I am trying to purchase intense, quality lighting in order to use CO2 but I am honestly unsure if I have enough light to implement CO2. Thoughts here? I am willing to hunt down another 300-450 lamp, if necessary.

I absolutely appreciate any constructive criticism you may offer and thank you in advance.

P.S. I did try to include links for the above mentioned items so that you could better review my equipment but I am brand spankin' new here and the forum does not all me to post links yet. My apologies.
Click to expand...
I just finished up a crop in a 4x8 tent woth 2 1000w hps..never had a issue with heat..they were air cooled no co2 dense dense nugs!!
 
M

MountainMedic1206

Member
Okay... I am NOT looking to go away from LED. I DO NOT care about HPS. Literally every response is speaking to HPS. Again, I am sticking with my LED. My question only is to wether or not it will matter that I have a small, medium sized and large LED lamp in the same grow tent. What about different lamp heights and how to spread the light equally.
 
Helltownhero

Helltownhero

Well-Known Member
MountainMedic1206 said:
Okay... I am NOT looking to go away from LED. I DO NOT care about HPS. Literally every response is speaking to HPS. Again, I am sticking with my LED. My question only is to wether or not it will matter that I have a small, medium sized and large LED lamp in the same grow tent. What about different lamp heights and how to spread the light equally.
Click to expand...
Then u want small yeilds....drop the led get a 600w hps..cheap hood reflector. Will work 10000000 times better than a led
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
MountainMedic1206 said:
Okay... I am NOT looking to go away from LED. I DO NOT care about HPS. Literally every response is speaking to HPS. Again, I am sticking with my LED. My question only is to wether or not it will matter that I have a small, medium sized and large LED lamp in the same grow tent. What about different lamp heights and how to spread the light equally.
Click to expand...
Read the manufacturers recommendations for coverage. The instructions should indicate the most effective footprint. You’ll have to use grid paper to figure out your optimal coverage.

Edit add: meaning to say you’re not going to be able to cover it all efficiently. Not with your present lights.
 
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GBAUTO

GBAUTO

Well-Known Member
MountainMedic1206 said:
Okay... I am NOT looking to go away from LED. I DO NOT care about HPS. Literally every response is speaking to HPS. Again, I am sticking with my LED. My question only is to wether or not it will matter that I have a small, medium sized and large LED lamp in the same grow tent. What about different lamp heights and how to spread the light equally.
Click to expand...
No, it doesn't matter if you mix lights.
The fixtures you have use relatively inefficient diodes so plan on the same minimum wattage requirements as an HID fixture(600w/4x4). I won't take the time to look up the actual power consumption of those fixtures but I suspect you have enough lighting to cover about 1/2 of your grow space.
 
M

MountainMedic1206

Member
Okay! Thats what I'm talking about! Many thanks to hotrodharley, GBAUTO and SPLFreak808 for your commentary!

Although I cannot post links yet, here is some information from the manufacturers websites for the lamps I have. Given the different manufacturers, the information will be in different formats...

Advanced Platinum p150:
HID Replacement: 250w HPS
Max Coverage at 18″ Height: 4.5’x3.5′
Core Coverage at 18″ Height: 3’x1.5′
LED Quantity: 50x3w
VoltageAC85-260V
Bloom Power87 watts
Veg Power50 watts
Amperage (Veg + Bloom)0.8A @ 110V / 0.4A @ 220V
Amperage (Veg Switch Only)0.5A @ 110V / 0.2A @ 220V


Advanced Platinum p300:
HID Replacement 400w HPS
Max Coverage at 18″ Height 4.5’x3.8′
Core Coverage at 18″ Height 3’x2′
LED Quantity 100x3w
VoltageAC85-260V
Bloom Power180 watts
Veg Power93 watts
Amperage (Veg + Bloom)1.6A @ 110V / 0.8A @ 220V
Amperage (Veg Switch Only)0.8A @ 110V / 0.4A @ 220V

Kind K3 L450:
SpectrumFull Spectrum (380-730nm)
Diodes120 (3w, UV, IR)
Max Wattage270w (±5%)
HID Wattage Equivalent450w
Input Voltage100-240V AC Power Input
Output VoltageUL Stnd. < 76V DC
Amperage2.25A @ 120V / 1.125A @ 240V
RMH (Recommended Mounting Height Above Canopy)18"
Footprint (RMH)2' x 3'
PPFD Peak (RMH)579

SPLFreak808... thank you very much for the calculation. I do understand that you are dividing your wattage by the number of square footage you are dealing with but what constitutes your wattage? It may be that you were making an estimation of what you anticipated the wattage to be. What, though, should you ideally use to calculate/represent as your wattage?
Also, what wattage per sq/ft should you be shooting for? What is the threshold for using CO2?
You say that I am at the lower end of optimal. I have the opportunity to buy a Kind K3 XL600 which would provide the following...

Kind K3 XL600
Spectrum Full Spectrum (380-730nm)
Diodes 150 (3w, UV, IR)
Max Wattage 320w (±5%)
HID Wattage Equivalent 600w
Input Voltage 100-240V AC Power Input
Output Voltage UL Stnd. < 76V DC
Amperage 2.67A @ 120V / 1.33A @ 240V
RMH (Recommended Mounting Height Above Canopy) 30"
Footprint (RMH) 3' x 4'
PPFD Peak (RMH) 663

Would you recommend this and then try to organize the lights according to my PAR readings?

Hotrodharley... I appreciate your recommendations on using a grid to figure the best layout. I think that will be a very helpful tool in the future.

GBAUTO... I appreciate knowing the recommended threshold for HID units as that helps me to understand how to compare them to LED's and gives me context. Thank you!


SO, again, thoughts on wether or not I should order the Kind K3 XL600 to complete the tent?

I know that I am going about the lighting situation a little crazy but, in my opinion, I have been able to purchase some high-quality lighting units, that I know are not knock-off's, for a very good price. For the three that I already have I have paid a total of $500. If I purchased them on amazon or elsewhere, they would total roughly $1300.

GBAUTO... to your point of using the same minimum as the HID of 600w per 4x4, would you think I could use the manufacturers HID equivalency and trust it? The HID equivalency of the three units total is 537 assuming that the Platinum lights are switched to BLOOM.
If I purchased the XL600, that equivalency is 600w. Seems that would power one half of the tent and maybe use the two larger lamps that I already have to power the other half?

Again, I am planning to ScrOG a total of five plants in a 4x8 tent.

Thank you so much for your useful input!
 
coreywebster

coreywebster

Well-Known Member
MountainMedic1206 said:
Okay! Thats what I'm talking about! Many thanks to hotrodharley, GBAUTO and SPLFreak808 for your commentary!

Although I cannot post links yet, here is some information from the manufacturers websites for the lamps I have. Given the different manufacturers, the information will be in different formats...

Advanced Platinum p150:
HID Replacement: 250w HPS
Max Coverage at 18″ Height: 4.5’x3.5′
Core Coverage at 18″ Height: 3’x1.5′
LED Quantity: 50x3w
VoltageAC85-260V
Bloom Power87 watts

Amperage (Veg + Bloom)0.8A @ 110V / 0.4A @ 220V
Amperage (Veg Switch Only)0.5A @ 110V / 0.2A @ 220V


Advanced Platinum p300:
HID Replacement 400w HPS
Max Coverage at 18″ Height 4.5’x3.8′
Core Coverage at 18″ Height 3’x2′
LED Quantity 100x3w
VoltageAC85-260V
Bloom Power180 watts
Veg Power93 watts
Amperage (Veg + Bloom)1.6A @ 110V / 0.8A @ 220V
Amperage (Veg Switch Only)0.8A @ 110V / 0.4A @ 220V

Kind K3 L450:
SpectrumFull Spectrum (380-730nm)
Diodes120 (3w, UV, IR)
Max Wattage270w (±5%) PAY ATTENTION TO THESE BITS
HID Wattage Equivalent450w IGNORE THESE BITS BECAUSE ITS A LIE.
Input Voltage100-240V AC Power Input
Output VoltageUL Stnd. < 76V DC
Amperage2.25A @ 120V / 1.125A @ 240V
RMH (Recommended Mounting Height Above Canopy)18"
Footprint (RMH)2' x 3'
PPFD Peak (RMH)579

SPLFreak808... thank you very much for the calculation. I do understand that you are dividing your wattage by the number of square footage you are dealing with but what constitutes your wattage? It may be that you were making an estimation of what you anticipated the wattage to be. What, though, should you ideally use to calculate/represent as your wattage?
Also, what wattage per sq/ft should you be shooting for? What is the threshold for using CO2?
You say that I am at the lower end of optimal. I have the opportunity to buy a Kind K3 XL600 which would provide the following...

Kind K3 XL600
Spectrum Full Spectrum (380-730nm)
Diodes 150 (3w, UV, IR)
Max Wattage 320w (±5%)
HID Wattage Equivalent 600w
Input Voltage 100-240V AC Power Input
Output Voltage UL Stnd. < 76V DC
Amperage 2.67A @ 120V / 1.33A @ 240V
RMH (Recommended Mounting Height Above Canopy) 30"
Footprint (RMH) 3' x 4'
PPFD Peak (RMH) 663

Would you recommend this and then try to organize the lights according to my PAR readings?

Hotrodharley... I appreciate your recommendations on using a grid to figure the best layout. I think that will be a very helpful tool in the future.

GBAUTO... I appreciate knowing the recommended threshold for HID units as that helps me to understand how to compare them to LED's and gives me context. Thank you!


SO, again, thoughts on wether or not I should order the Kind K3 XL600 to complete the tent?

I know that I am going about the lighting situation a little crazy but, in my opinion, I have been able to purchase some high-quality lighting units, that I know are not knock-off's, for a very good price. For the three that I already have I have paid a total of $500. If I purchased them on amazon or elsewhere, they would total roughly $1300.

GBAUTO... to your point of using the same minimum as the HID of 600w per 4x4, would you think I could use the manufacturers HID equivalency and trust it? The HID equivalency of the three units total is 537 assuming that the Platinum lights are switched to BLOOM.
If I purchased the XL600, that equivalency is 600w. Seems that would power one half of the tent and maybe use the two larger lamps that I already have to power the other half?

Again, I am planning to ScrOG a total of five plants in a 4x8 tent.

Thank you so much for your useful input!
Click to expand...
 
coreywebster

coreywebster

Well-Known Member
I highlighted the important bit in your post.

Pay attention to the power consumption listed and ignore "equivalent to" BS.
 
coreywebster

coreywebster

Well-Known Member
How much are these lights costing you?
The XL 600 looks like it cost £650-750 over my neck of the woods.

Im pretty sure there are better options for that price. Since its only going to be enough to light a 3x3 space.
 
M

MountainMedic1206

Member
Very good, my man. Thank you for that!!

If I were to purchase the Kind XL600 and used that along with the Kind KL450 and the Platinum P300 that that would be acceptable for 5 plants that are ScrOG'd?

I'm honestly doing my best to buy good equipment but I have a budget to maintain. Maybe I should have bought two very large ViparSpectra lights but what I was reading was that the Kind and Platinum were significantly better brands although not top-tier like Black Dog, California Lightworks and the like.
 
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