Let's talk DIY lights

@Onlythebest79

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Got approval to send lights back to company so will be doing so today or tomorrow. Once in the mail I’ll be purchasing 2 of the sets

and building me own frame to my specifications of a 4x4 tent and from looks of it I’ll try to center the lights in frame so they’ll be centered in each 2x2 section of the tent. I hope you understand what I’m saying

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sweet @Onlythebest79

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12/30 was a week ago, right?

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I smell what you’re cooking!

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Lmfao I thought I typed 1/30 omg when I was right in what the website said lmfao

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No worries bud.

Well I guess my light is officially a grow light now.

she is celebrating her 4 week birthday.

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Ya it is! So ready to share what kind of experiments you’ll be running with them?

I will start my journal when they go into flower so everyone doesn’t have to wait months to see how it goes.

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You must be doing something right! None of my plants have ever looked so green. They are all some shade of lime.

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Lol thanks but I think it’s half genetics and half food @1BigFella

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@MattyBear @AmnesiaHaze or anyone else, when I have a little more free time I can go over driver selection. Or anything else really. Probably start a new thread or something, but I’ll tag you guys when I do. Hopefully in the next few days if that’s cool. But if there’s anything specific you’d ever like to know, I’m always happy to try and help. Just come and post here or tag me. I usually check in a couple times a day.

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Okay that sounds great no rush I would be happy you did that, it would contribute a lot here, as for myself, I’ll be building new QB boards but they do have a new line coming out in February I might start saving now :no_mouth: I’m out of likes so a big :+1: thumbs up

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If someone starts a new thread please tag me - I am going to have to make driver decisions when I expand my current DIY fixture - I’ll probably end up running a separate driver for each rail but I am not sure if that’s the best option or not…I like it from a redundancy perspective (if one fails I still have two working), but not sure if it’s the best configuration. I have to think about it and in order to do that, I need to be better educated. :slight_smile:

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You’re definitely thinking on the correct lines. On a cost per watt basis the hlg-185 is the cheapest. There are scenarios when it’s best to use a different model, but you can essentially get two of the hlg-185 which is 200 Watts in most applications, for about the same price as an hlg-320. Based on that, I always look for how the different led configs will fit the 185. In your case, running the 1212 at 1050ma meant you can squeeze an extra cob on there and take advantage of a little boost in efficiency. Not a hard decision to make at $9 a cob. If it were a cxb for instance that runs a little more efficient and is $40 a cob, it makes a little more sense to go with four at 1400ma.

The vero’s open up a different part of the game having 3 different voltage options and being a little better at higher power. The hlg-185 not the best for 4 of the 36v as it’s limited to 1400ma. Stepping up to the 240 would be necessary, but would leave some voltage available out there from driver. The 320-2100 is about a perfect fit. But running the 69 volt version two cobs fit about perfectly on the hlg-185 if you’re looking to crank out the Watts.

It’s merely a function of finding the fv of desired cob at given output current, and then adding up the voltage of desired amount of cobs, and seeing if there is driver they fit in the output voltage range. There’s obviously more to which line of drivers you want to use, but I’ll cover all of that.

I’ll be sure to tag you when I get there.

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I think a lot of people would benefit from a 101 type intro on what specs to look for and how par/umols/jules/Watts, etc. are used and calculated for growers. I don’t know lol. Just spitballing.

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There is even more to it then that too. The coverage area that you want has to be taken into account because of your spacing requirements for your cobs. So figure out the number of cobs or QBs you need then the power you want, then start your backwards math. It worked well in my circumstance @MattyBear @Bogleg

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All would be great info to have in a beginner 101 course! Thanks for adding that

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I’ve been thinking about that some. Wondering if it may be less confusing to keep as much of the led stuff separate from the driver stuff? Except where necessary anyway.

Maybe two separate threads anyway? What do you guys think?

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