Beginning the Journey (and what a journey it has been so far) - Advice Welcomed

I would love to hear about your research on LED lights and which you choose. I’ve done some research but it’s a little confusing for me to pick out the info needed among the ad promises :thinking::upside_down_face:

I originally ordered Niello 300W, which according to the research delivers about 295 PAR. Way under what they claim, so I am returning them. I am replacing them with Meizhi 300W, which delivers over 500 PAR. Viparspectra also rated well (500+ PAR). All of them run at similar watt usage of 135.

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Welcome, as you can see we’re all wanting you a successful grow! Lots of really good people have responded to you. Just wanted to say hi!

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@Laurap Thanks. It does look like a great community. Hopefully, I will be able to contribute something of value as appreciate the advice and have been given and the advice I AM SURE I WILL NEED in the future.

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I think you want about 35-50 watts drawn from the wall per square foot. PAR is the best spec but absent that, watts from the wall is all you can go by. All the manufactures just pull a number of “watts” out of their behind and say that’s their rating. Of course even then, LED drivers can be very efficient or they can be lousy. LEDs can be driven with high current and produce a lot less light per watt than more LEDs driven with lower currents. If everybody would just spec their PAR, then we could make rational choices.

HURRAY!!!

It is an exciting day as everything arrived today. Put the tent up, set-up the ventilation, moistened the soil, and sowed the seeds.

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Lights came today. Put them in, hooked everything up, and stealthafied the area (you can stand right next to it and not know it is there). Now I wait impatiently for the plants to poke up through the soil.

On a side note, the total cost for everything is now at $1,030.00. I am sure there will be some small purchases, but other than electricity this should be close to the final (unless I get another light). Sure hope it works!

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You’ll like the Meizhi 300 watt. I use them for my nursery and veg and you can get a lot closer than 18". More like 6". That’s where mine are now.

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@Myfriendis410 The info that comes with the Meizhi suggests 24" seedlings, 18" veg, and 12" during flower. I am sure they are conservative, but clearly the lights can be a bit closer than their recommended distance.

Do you have footprint issues that close?

None whatsoever @Medforme. I run 9 lights during flower but only the 3 at this point during veg. When they are seedlings they see 1 light and that’s when the light is 24" inches away from the plants.

Seeds have been in the ground for 75-76 hours now. No sign of sprouts, but still early.

Yippie!!! :slight_smile: An AK 47 has popped through the soil. At least I got one to go for sure.

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Pics.

Stealth :slight_smile:

Behind the Curtain

Sprout

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The Great Circle of Life begins anew!

Seriously though, great stealth job. How’s your ventilation? Can anybody nearby hear your fan running?
You can hear mine walking up to the front door, but nobody ever does. Several acre ranch with big scary dogs and an electric gate.

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@1BigFella Ventilation seems good, but I only have one light going. Temperature stays around 74 degrees.

As far as the fans go, I had the inside fan, both lights, and the duct fan going to see how loud it was. Unless you got up real close you could not hear it. That is partly because the furnace is not too far away and I keep that fan going all the time and it makes considerable noise.

Right now it is vented through a charcoal filter and into the basement. However, if that is not sufficient the tent is right next to the dryer and I will be able to vent it out the dryer vent. This would never be a noise issue, only a smell issue, but unless it is bad that is not a problem either.

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Excellent. Looks like a real sweet setup. Now just keep your plants low enough for that tent and you should be fine.

Hurray! Number two is beginning to press through. I think she will pop out of the soil completely today.

I planted four seeds in hopes of getting three or four, but at least now, given no major issues, I will have a decent grow :slightly_smiling_face:

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It has been five and a half days since the seeds were sowed. Two days ago (49 hrs) number one popped through the soil. Number two popped 24 hours ago. Twenty four hours later there is no sign of three or four and I am starting to get worried that they are not going to make it. I want so badly to dig into the soil to see what is going on. They were sowed about 1/3 of an inch deep.

I can likely get a good grow out of two (they both look healthy), but I wanted the opportunity to experiment a little. AND, of course, I wanted a full tent!

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32 hours after number two popped to the surface and no sign of three or four. I am wondering if I should germinate another seed. :frowning:

Patience is the hardest part of the grow @Medforme In the beginning it’s the waiting to see the seeds sprout and at the end it’s watching for the trichomes to reach the best color. Are your seeds from ILGM? I looked back but I didn’t see if you mentioned that. If they are don’t toss them as I think you can send them back for replacements. Also, did you soak your seeds or just put them in the soil? I believe the soaking helps them sprout quicker so if you didn’t you may want to give them some more time. Keeping my fingers crossed for you. ~ AB

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