Strip LEDs in the garden of Paradise

In case you're wondering, I'm a big fan of Paradise Seeds. I've grown many of their strains over the years, and nearly always found something I liked. For this grow I've just started to flower six Acid and two Sensi Star plants from femmed seeds. This is the first time I've grown Acid (a Diesel hybrid), and the first time I've grown femminised Sensi Star. The Sensi Star are growing well, and the Acid are all pretty uniform - though they weren't always that way. I'll start from the start in a moment . . .

It's been almost three years since my last grow, mainly due to work. I'm a bit rusty, so I've gone back to the basics that served me well for many years of indoor growing:

Straight coco
2-gallon grow pots
2-gallon catch pots (pot-within-a-pot system)
Timed drip feeders (two 4mm lines per pot, fed five times for one minute every 12-hour lights-on period)
Aerated 15-gallon reservoir
Run-to-waste (cheap garden hose that runs outside into the garden)
Organic-based nutrients
Silica additive
pH 5.8-6.3
Natural pest remedies if/when needed

What has changed for this grow is I'm using Samsung strip LEDs. 220w for vegging and 480w+ for flowering. I've always been a die-hard HPS bare-bulb vertical grower, starting back in 2003 after being inspired by Krusty's bucket grows on Overgrow. I grew in a 4x4' with 1200w (two 600w bare bulbs hanging one on top of the other) and averaged 1.3-1.4 grams per bulb watt each grow.




11oz Catpiss Haze (grown as test seeds, now sold as "Atomical Haze" by Paradise.


Catpiss Haze mid-flower from about 10 years ago.


8oz Sensi Star regular at harvest.


Everyone laughed at vertical growers when we first began - much like everyone has laughed at LED growers over the years - but the results speak for themselves, and there are many advantages to going vertical (head space, columnular cooling, better use of light etc).

We tried some blurple "UFO" LEDs about seven years ago, but were really disappointed with the results. Lately, though, LEDs seem to have reached the point where they can equal - possibly best - HIDs without the prohibitive start-up costs - especially if you build your own lights.

So I knew nothing about LEDs a few months ago until I started browsing this forum and want to thank everyone who has contributed for helping me "see the light", so to speak


I use straight coco because you cannot overwater if you have proper drainage, so there is really no point adding perlite/vermiculite or hydroton. Hydroton takes up space for roots, and perlite/vermiculite requires more waterings and doesn't hold/buffer nutrient as well as straight coco, so is not as ideal for a run-to-waste system.

The coco above is buffered with Calcium and Magnesium. It's important to use a good quality coco, as many of the cheap bricks/bags have high amounts of sea salt that need to be leached prior to use (by flushing with warm water).

Contrary to popular belief, RTW systems do not waste a lot of nutrient. In a recirculating system, you have to dump your reservoir every one-to-two weeks max. With RTW, most of your nutrient is being used by the plants, and any excess is constantly flushed out of the pots, leaving a healthy balance and very little salt build-up. Waste nutrient can also be diverted back into your garden. My system will probably go through about 15 gallons of nutrient solution a week.

I've always used Canadian Xpress nutrient, as it's made locally (Australia) and the coco blend is formulated for tap water. Most limestone-based tap water already has a decent amount of calcium and some magnesium in it. Your mileage may vary . . .

CX was the first to develope "fusion" nutrients (as far as I know), which use a mineral-based Part A (with micronutrients) and an organic-based Part B. I draw buckets of tap water and let them sit for 48 hours prior to use to dissipate any chlorine in the water. My tap water does not have chloramine.

Monsta Bud is another local organic-based product which is a one-part stand-alone flowering formula which I use as a PK supplement to the CX. I normally start off with about 3.5ml per litre CX of Part A and B, then slowly replace the CX with Monsta Bud from Week 3 until harvest.

Budlink is another local product, and one of the first commercial silica additives. It's been around for years, and I feed it as a Part C at 2.5ml/l (you can also foliar feed it). Tap water usually contains a small amount of silicic acid, but silica is an element usually missing in hydro/coco and it does provide benefits by strengthening cell walls, thus providing drought and some pest resistance.


As we're coming into summer, it's about to get bloody hot here. That's why - despite being a sativa diva - I chose indicas to grow first up. They're more compact, won't stretch as much in the heat, and I don't have to worry about mold at this time of the year, which is when indicas are least prone to bud rot.

I started a 10-pack of femmed Acid by dropping them in a glass of water until all the seeds sank (the next day), indicating they had absorbed enough water to germinate. I then laid the seeds out on a damp paper towel, covered with more paper towel, and put them in a dark cupboard. Some seeds started showing tails the next day, and nearly all had fully germinated within three days of soaking.

One Acid seed failed to germinate - it cracked open but didn't go any further - while another was slow and got desiccated. This can happen if you place the germinated seed near the surface of the coco, and the surface dries out before the tap root can reach down into the moist coco below.

The seedling pots are straight coco soaked with 1/4 strength nutrient solution at pH5.8.

About six days after germinating the Acid, I decided to germinate two Sens Star seeds just in case a couple of the Acid didn't make it. I needed eight plants for my flowering tent. 10 seeds (8 Acid, 2 Sensi Star) made it, and I had to cull two Acid a few weeks later - but I kept clones, just in case . . .

Equipment

First the lights - as I know that's what many will be interested in. After lots of reading and lots of questions on these boards, I decided I could build my own light frames using Samsung strip lights. I wanted to replace a 250MH in a 2.5'x2' tent, so figured the best place to start would be with a 240w driver that could be dialled down if necessary.

I bought 4 x 2-foot (559.70mm x 39.80mm) Samsung F Series double row strips in 5000K, part # SI-B8R521560WW. I also ordered 4 x 600mm lengths of 40x25x3mm aluminium U channel for the strips, and 2 x 460mm 25x20x3mm L channel for the ends. Screws were 4x6mm self-tappers.



Hook-up wire is 18agw single-core (all same-length to equalise voltage drop) with Wago connectors. I ran 5m of 14agw insulated twin-core from the frame to the driver using detachable spade-type crimped wire connectors, similar to these. I crimped and soldered the wires into place.

I deliberately designed a remote driver system because it was no extra work and I did not wish to add any more heat to the tent.


The wiring is straight parallel wiring of all four strips for 48v/7.2a max. I went with the Mean Well HLG-240H-48A driver because it operates like a constant current driver up to 48v and can be adjusted for both voltage and current via two small screws that are protected by rubber covers. I wanted them set-and-forget.

The HLG-240 drivers are good value, and usually offer the best $-Watt ratio of all the HLG series.






Everything worked well. I adjusted the driver down to about 220w (46.4v and about 4.8a) and eventually hung the light frame about 14" above the seedlings. The U channel was warm enough to touch, so there didin't seem to be any heat issues. The seedlings loved it, with no heat stress at all.

In fact, the lights were so good, I would have to increase my normal seedling feeding routine (1/4-1/3 strength) to counter a very slight deficiency. This may also have accounted for why the Sensi Star seedlings soon caught up with the Acid seedlings - even though they were a week behind - as they started on a slightly higher nutrient concentration (about 1/2 strength).

It might also have had to do with the fact some of the Acid seedlings were mutated when they first started growing. This is genetic, and usually nothing to worry about, as many plants that start off deformed will grow out of it. It's often a sign of Blueberry genetics somewhere in the strains' lineage.


Deformed leaves.


Fused leaves


Twisted and deformed leaves.

A perfectly normal Sensi Star seedling three days after planting.

After two weeks for the Acid and one week for the Sensi Star, a couple of the mutants were still behind, but most plants were growing normally. At this stage, I was hand-watering every pot every 1-2 days, ensuring a small amount of runoff with each watering.




Sensi Stars are the two plants right in the middle. The deformed Acid on the far left was eventually culled. Another plant that started showing variegated leaves was also culled.

Look closely at the plant at the top left: that is the start of a calcium-magnesium deficiency. As calcium also affects uptake of phosphorous, you will see signs of P deficiency as well.

So how to tell if it's a Ca-Mg deficiency and not P toxicity (that locks out Ca-Mg and shows similar symptoms)? In this case, the affected plant is the biggest, healthiest, fastest-growing plant - it makes sense it is suffering a deficiency, as it has the highest nutrient demands.

Secondly, P toxicity usually first shows up as burning around the leaf margins, whereas Ca/P deficiency shows up as random "rust spots".

Mg deficiency - before it gets to the interveinal chlorosis stage (yellowing between the leaf veins) - can be seen with slight curling of the leaf margins.

Finally, I had run out of de-chlorinated water, so decided to use RO water. The deficiency showed up straight away, as the natural Ca and Mg in the tap water was missing in the RO water.

I dechlorinate my water to propagate beneficial microbes in my coco at the root zone from the organic-based nutrients.

One issue with coco is that it is susceptible to Ca-Mg deficiencies. The fibres - which usually contain naturally high levels of Na-Cl (sea salt) - will ion exchange, bonding the Ca-Mg and releasing the Na-Cl. Coco naturally bonds with free metal ions, so will lock up Ca-Mg.

Mg is instrumental in photosynthesis, whilst Ca is very important to the onset of flowering, aiding flower development.

I see a lot of Ca-Mg deficiencies on these boards that are not deficiencies at all!

Indoor growers such as Uncle Ben have been lamenting the abuse of phosphorous for many, many years on canna boards, and yet the propensity to add too much P still exists. The single biggest cause of Ca-Mg deficiencies I see - in my humble opinion - is either directly due to, or exacerbated by, excess P locking out other micronutrients.

Rant over!







At three weeks of veg for the Acid, and two weeks for the Sensi Star, the veg tent was starting to fill up. I let them veg for three more days and then flipped the lights to 12/12. I still had not built my flowering frames, as I was waiting on the availability of some Nichia strips that never arrived . . .

Instead, I had to go with Plan B - Samsung H series strips in 3000K. These strips would be slightly cheaper than the F series all-up (due to bulk buying), but would also allow me to mimic my veg frame current and voltage draw whilst spreading the strips over 6x U channels instead of 4, allowing better light and heat distribution.

In hindsight, the F Series strips were a lot easier to work with, but the H series are going OK.

I managed to complete my flowering frames just in time. Here is my veg tent after 1 week of flowering, just before being moved to the flowering tent. It was getting crowded in there.

Working! good stuff, man. in for the ride!

With the Samsung strips and HLG-240H-48A drivers I was on to a good thing. I don't have lux meters or any of that stuff, but plant response was good and heat build-up was certainly manageable. Building my own frames took up a little bit of time, but I was able to put everything together for much less than the cost of a ready-made system.

Plus, I was learning many things along the way. It was worth doing my own build just for the knowledge curve.

Being space limited, I only had room for a 4'x2' tent. From experience, an air-cooled 600HPS would be about right for that space, so I needed to plan the equivalent in LED. I figured 2 x 240w drivers for a total of 480w would be about right.

The Mean Well HLG 240 drivers will actually power as high as 260w each, so fully cranked, that would give me about 520w. I could always dial it down . . . though - as you will read - I haven't had to dial them down at all.

Here are the two flowering frames side-by-side. They are very similar to the veg frame, using 6x U channels instead of 4x, and 96 diodes per channel (2x48 diode H strips) instead of 144 (1x F Series).

The H Series strips are part # SI-B8V11156HUS

I wired each frame with two strips in series, and each pair in parallel (6) for 48v and 7.2a max - exactly the same as the F Series veg frame. Each frame is powered by the same HLG-240H-48A driver.

Wiring is as per the veg board, with slightly longer 6m leads going to the remote drivers.

Below is my attic grow with the veg tent on the left, and flowering tent on the right. Ducting is 4" (100mm) sound-insulated connected to a 4"x4"x6" Y-joiner on top of a 5" (125mm) Blauberg fan (very quiet), which sits on a 5" carbon filter. The ducting into the veg chamber is deliberately longer, and with more turns, than the flowering chamber. Air takes the path of least resistance, so the fan should draw more air from the flowering tent than the veg tent.

I may yet redesign the ducting - possibly hanging the fan and filter closer to the outlet (less ducting, more direct route = more efficient extraction), or maybe drawing air from the veg tent into the top of the flowering tent via 4" ducting, and then using 5" or 6" ducting from the flowering tent straight into the fan (no Y joiner). This would draw warm air in from the veg tent, but it would probably be ducted straight out through the top of the flowering tent, not adding any heat to the plants and lights at the bottom. Only way to find out is to test it . . .

I love these Gorilla tents - they're built really well and worth the premium, IMO. The veg tent on the left will also double as a drying tent. I have a piece of sheet aluminium to place over the light frame to prevent light shining directly onto the drying buds above. While it is not ideal - it's always best to slow-dry your buds in a dark, airy place - I need to eliminate all smell. The only other option is to buy another dedicated drying tent.

With everything in place, it was time to transfer the plants into their new light chamber.




You will notice that the two frames have been bolted together to form one, long 4'x2' (actually 1170x500mm) 520w light frame.

I deliberately built two frames, with two drivers for flexibility, as I have plans to go vertical LED at some stage. This would entail hanging each frame vertically at either end of the tent, and placing four plants with trellises in the middle, with floor fans either side, in-between the plants and light frames, blowing directly up. I am still a very big fan of vertical lighting.

Also, 2x HLG-240 drivers were cheaper than 1x HLG-480 - go figure!

Hell yeah, this is how to do a journal. Looking good! I have never run any paradise seeds, will have to take a gander. Subbed.

Plumbing

I can't stress how important it is to have good drainage with coco. Without proper drainage and runoff/flushing, you will soon see a build-up of salts in your coco that will burn your plants.

Coco has many advantages over both soil and hydro. Coco is hydro, so it's much faster than soil and easier to manage in terms of nutrient, as you always know what's going in and what's coming out. This also applies to peat-based soilless media, which already have nutrient.

The advantage over other forms of innert-media hydro and water culture (NFT etc) is that coco retains much more moisture, so if you have a pump or timer failure - and I have had many timer failures over the years - your plants don't die straight away. You normally have two-three or more days to catch the problem before the plants dry out and you lose your crop.

Deep Water Culture - bubbler buckets - are also great until you have an air pump failure - then your roots drown and are susceptible to root rot. DWC is also temperature sensitive.

Coco is a great buffer (a bit like soil), so is more forgiving than other forms of hydro in terms of nutrient management.

It is a natural and renewable resource that does not alter pH as much as rockwool, as well as holding more water. It can be recycled in your canna grows at least once or twice, or can be used as mulch/soil improver in your outdoor garden.

Coco does biodegrade over time, and loses its aeration properties, so it cannot be reused indefinitely.

Best of all, if you grow in a hot climate, coco handles the heat better than anything other than soil. You do not have to worry about root rot with high reservoir temperatures that leach oxygen and promote anaerobic conditions, while the coco insulates the root zone, drawing fresh oxygen down with every watering.

The more you water coco, the faster the growth - as long as you have proper drainage!

Coco does attract pests - notably fungus gnats - so these have to be managed.


This is my 15-gallon (60 litre) reservoir. It has a 10-litre-a-minute pond pump (550 litres, or about 140 gallons, per hour) and runs 1/2' (13mm) line to a 180-degree sprinkler inside the tank, and then outside the tank to a tap, and finally to the feed-line system.

The sprinkler is a bypass that sprays water back into the tank, aerating and mixing the nutrient solution at the same time.

You can use aquarium pumps and stones, but what you find with organic-based nutrients is the bubblers oxygenate the nutrient, which falls out of suspension and leaves a brown sludge on the bottom of the reservoir. The bypass system eliminates this and is also quieter, as it only splashes when the pump runs - which is for one minute, five times every 12-hour lights-on period.

The bypass and line-feed are regulated by a tap outside the reservoir. I can turn the tap open for more line feed to the pots and less bypass, or turn it down for more bypass and less line feed. Above is with the tap closed.

Each one-minute watering delivers about 200ml to each pot. There are eight pots and 16 lines - two for each pot. I always run two lines to each pot just in case one blocks with nutrient. I do not run nutrient cleaner through my reservoir/lines until the end of each grow - there is no need, and nutrient cleaners can add a lot of phosphorous to your solution.

I don't like line cleaners during grows.


Here is the line-feed system - since modified. With the tap fully open, you get maximum line feed with some bypass.

In use, the tap would be opened and closed at different stages of growth to regulate the amount of nutrient solution going to each pot, whilst maintaining enough bypass to oxygenate/mix the nutrient solution in the tank.

If I need more water, I simply add another water cycle to the timer. I could water anywhere from 4-8 times a day.

There is no point watering during the lights-off period.


The raised platform is essential to pot drainage. As long as the pots are higher than the final drainage point (end of the hose), the drainage lines can lie on the ground. Gravity will do the rest.


Catchment pots are plumbed to cheap garden hose. These are linked to a drain hose that exits the tent and drains outside. The plant pots sit inside these catchment pots.

Super descriptive, step by step, great looking setup and healthy happy plants. In gonna grab a chair and join for the ride

I see that you are feeding only during day time. What are your thoughts on night time feedings? I had an interesting discussion recently with an agronomist friend of mine who mentioned that it would be beneficial to feed small amounts during night time mainly prior to wake up. Something about maintaining proper oxygen/moisture ratio and that the plant is not stopping the transpiration process during night time.

Keep it up!

My lights are on at night, when it is cool, and go off during the day. I time my waterings so that there is at least a two-or-more-hour gap from the last watering until the lights go out. This means the pots are starting to dry out just before the lights go out. They continue to dry out during the lights-off period. The pump comes on just before the lights come on to deliver a fresh hit of oxygenated nutrient solution to the pots.

Yes, plants continue to transpire, but the coco holds enough moisture. And yes, plants continue to grow and produce cannabinoids during the dark period, but they are using up stored starches in the leaves, so don't need any more nutrient, as they are not photosynthesising.

That is my understanding.

In reality, I have tried both, and have had better results with no waterings at night. At least, there seemed to be no appreciable benefit.

Finally, everything is in place and I am hoping that I switched to 12/12 at the right time to prevent my 4'x2' tent from being overgrown!

One week and four days of flowering.

Two days later . . .

Here is why I don't remove fan leaves during the first few weeks of flowering: the branches being shaded will stretch more than those in the light. Eventually, you will start to see some pretty even top growth, as the shaded branches emerge. This gives a more even canopy with more bud sites.

One of the great things about strip lights is they provide an even spread of light across the canopy. But they don't have the same penetration as more powerful single-source lights, so really they should be ideal for scrogging or sogging.

I have not grown horizontally for more than 15 years, so this is very much renewed territory for me. I hope I manage it OK.

View attachment 4054807
And back to the first photo. This is how they look a couple of days ago. I'll try to update at least once a week and am happy to answer questions when I can in the mean time.

While I have some experience in growing, and have formed my own ideas based on that experience, I'm also very open to new developments and knowledge - so I'm happy for anyone to challenge anything they read here if they have a sound basis for their argument.

I have a pretty thick skin, so I don't mind a bit of "argy bargy". Measured debate is conducive to learning.

I'm also happy for anyone to share their own experiences in this thread - I'm not precious about these things - so post away.

klx said:

Hell yeah, this is how to do a journal. Looking good! I have never run any paradise seeds, will have to take a gander. Subbed.

Click to expand...

Mate, any fan of Mad Max is a friend of mine!

Do yourself a favour: if you like indicas, get some Sensi Star - there's a reason it's been around so long and won so many cups.

If you like sativas, try Atomical Haze. They're my favourites at either end of the spectrum. A friend of mine grows Wappa - which I test grew and selected the final clone - and it is a great commercial strain. Very sturdy plant with excellent yields and a positive high.

Prawn Connery said:

Mate, any fan of Mad Max is a friend of mine!

Do yourself a favour: if you like indicas, get some Sensi Star - there's a reason it's been around so long and won so many cups.

If you like sativas, try Atomical Haze. They're my favourites at either end of the spectrum. A friend of mine grows Wappa - which I test grew and selected the final clone - and it is a great commercial strain. Very sturdy plant with excellent yields and a positive high.

Click to expand...

Im pulling up a chair
.Great to see you up and running,.
Nice clean setup
I keep saying to all about the Sensi Star being the dogs ballicks, Paradise Seeds definitely rock for me too!

subbed for all the great info. thanks!

nice..i have1170 mm x 25mm single row 160 lm 561's

i have vegged with them at various densities...and theydo good

but never flowered

That's why I built the veg frame first, to see how it performed. I was impressed enough that I decided to go ahead with a strip build for my flowering tent. I really wanted to build some 2000K Nichias from Cutter because I liked the look of all that red (https://www.cutter.com.au/proddetail.php?prod=cut3318), but they'd run out and weren't sure when they'd restock. I couldn't get enough 3000K strips either.

Initially I was looking at LED boards, but availability again seemed to be a problem and once I'd spoken to a few people, I realised I could build something similar for less cost with arguably better light and heat distribution. Living in Australia is what kills a lot of options for me, as shipping can be expensive and local heatsinks aren't readily available.

However, strips and drivers ship for free from places like Digikey, Arrow and Mouser, and there's no sales tax - bonus. Aluminium U channel is plentiful and can be cut to size when ordering - even better.

With the H Series frames, I just cranked the drivers up as high as they would go and the plants love them. They hit two weeks of 12/12 today and now that everything is plumbed in and automated, they're growing as fast as any HID set-up I've seen. For coco, anyway.

The veg frame, meanwhile, has been dialled down as far as it goes - about 120w - to strikes some clones. I love the flexibility of being able to turn the volume up and down on these drivers.

Here's a tip: store clone cuttings in a glass of water in the fridge. I've struck clones up to six weeks after cutting and storing them that way. Just remember to change the water regularly.

Prawn Connery said:

Mate, any fan of Mad Max is a friend of mine!

Do yourself a favour: if you like indicas, get some Sensi Star - there's a reason it's been around so long and won so many cups.

If you like sativas, try Atomical Haze. They're my favourites at either end of the spectrum. A friend of mine grows Wappa - which I test grew and selected the final clone - and it is a great commercial strain. Very sturdy plant with excellent yields and a positive high.

Click to expand...

Paradise dutch kush pretty good...

Looking good man.

This is a very nice and clean little set up you have there. When you say "pot in pot" is it a named brand premade solution or is it actually a 3 gallon pot in a 5 gallon pot? I am guessing there is a void between the pots and your drain outlet fits in the center of that gap and the coco sits in the smaller pot above.