Long time reader first time grower

Ok so update time, my clones were cut yesterday so hopefully the 3 root. Am keeping them under clear propagation tray lid and spraying 2-3 times a day so far, is this the correct method?

And thank you heaps @Sixpackdad i watered to run off and plant seems alot happier

Looking at building led just wondering what peoples thoughts are as to what spectrum, brand and simple diy advice is???
. It will be for flower room in a 2x1.5 cabinet with 3 small plants at different stages of flower, not scrog maybe more sog.

I have been looking at the cree cobs that look like a star/flower kinda thing or philips lumiled boards and supplimenting the white with some 660nm, UV and IR.
I can’t seem to find a solid foundation or answer that makes sense, is 2700k or 3000k better? And who has the highest CRI vs Lm/W??

60 air changes per hour is a recommended rate on summer whereas it’s more 12 per hour in winter, i have only read this though not yet tried it.

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If you’re limited height go with strips over cobs. If you use something like 3000k-3500k 90cri would eliminate needing to add 660 and ir. And if you want to do uv, I wouldn’t bother with anything other than uvb. Highest cri doesn’t really do a lot for you under every circumstance, so pay attention to the distribution graphs.

That leaves a couple options from cutter, plc strips, or Phillips fortimo that I know of in pcb mounted.

Hey mate, thank you for your help so far and steering me in the right direction
I found a pcb product through one cutter, was thinking 5 of these with dimmable option the hlg drivers seem to be on everything so will go with a “b” series to locate the pot and driver stealth but accessible.
So would i look for a “constant current” driver rated for 240v(5x48v boards)@1a?

The data sheet for j series cree shows a “dip” between 450-530nm and drops off quickly after 660ish, would a supplement be needed or is this reasonable enough?
The website states they can run at 1amp and get 50w with heatsink
Specifications

  • 560mm x 15mm x 1.5mm, Aluminium Metal Core PCB
  • LEDS Cree J series JK3030, 190 lumens per watt, 3000K Min 90 CRI
  • Forward Voltage 48V
  • Drive Current typ 500ma, max 1200ma
  • Lumens: Typ 4500 Lumens at 560ma, 9000 Lumens at 1.2A

Will also get a small uvb board, would that be better set periodicly?

I’m just starting flower now of my first grow. What kind of issues did you have in flower in hopes I can avoid them? I’m growing bubble gum,Jack Here and OG Kush ~ All auto’s in a soil/perlite mixture. Doing pretty decent so far, just curious of what issues you had since that is exactly where I am at. Thanks.

I overnuted and had plants with wildly high ppms in the run off - 4000 to 7000. I also wasn’t PHing right (5.8 for coco). I also wasn’t watering right for coco, not watering to runoff and not frequently enough. See what I did to my plants-they survived thanks to the help of good folks on this site. Good luck

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I caught myself early regarding not watering to run off and testing. Ive got that figured out. I had also used Miracle Grow and had been using Fox Farms nutes less than 50% solution of the recommended. I started to see some issues and immediately flushed them till I had 6.2 coming out. (About 4-6 gallons per plant). Thanks for the reply

I’m familiar with the cree j series, is that what you’re wanting to go with? If so I wouldn’t run them at 1 amp, 500ma is a better option. There is a meanwell driver that would run up to 6 at that current available with external dimming leads.

The uvb board I’m not sure about. Depending on intensity it may be something suited for a small portion of lights on. Or could be completely fine running entire light cycle. @Aolelon can probably help you more with that.

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I would need to check out the intensity of the UVB output. Most likely, after working your way up in small dosages. You could have it on during the whole time with lights on.i was using on of the strongest UVB bulbs on the market right now for 4 hours a day toward the end of flowering with zero problems so.

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The j series is what cutter has on the pcbs, I downloaded their data sheet and spectrum looked good at 90cri and at $65 for 5 I was thinking that might have maxed at 250w(true) with space for customisation later. Basically that is where I am at thought wise but what would your recommendation be?
I just started learning more about this tech then it’s maaad as household lighting, so am young, fresh and green

@Aolelon I was thinking another pcb added into the others separate driver and switch also remote pot. Problem being i can not seem to find uvb(280-315) in this format only cfl/led spirals mostly advertised at 11-14w(idk true etc?).
Any suggestions?
Also can you please link that journal for me?

5 of them is fine, but running them at max current is out of reasonable efficiency range and would require additional cooling. Go for 500ma, if you want external dimming hlg-120h-c500b. Plenty good in a 2’x1.5’ space. If you want a little more, add the 6th strip instead of going up in current.

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So 5@500ma making 125w(true)? And that would enable me not needing heatsink/fan?
Once again all reading no experience but I have read the formula for correct lighting during flower is 50w/sqft?
This is where my confusion starts…lol… So once again thank you for your time and patience with me :laughing:

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You probably wont find a UVB pcb… UVB diodes are really expensive, which is why most people opt for reptile bulbs. Which do the exact same job, for way cheaper

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Well I could see how you would think that, there’s a lot of contradicting information and even more uneducated opinions. Most people that say that aren’t growing with that kind of led tech. I know one person that is, here is what 30 watts per square foot looks like with those exact strips.

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Really the whole 50q sqft or 30w sqft is just entry level guides, you should be targeting ppfd levels,

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It was my first grow. Things got better with grow 2, although they suffered a bit too while I learned how to manage nutes and pH. They were also autos which don’t eat as much as photos. Here my journal. It’s a lot to read but scroll down to see what plants with excessive ppms and incorrect pH look like. In the end they survived and produced thanks to people on this site.

https://ilgmforum.com/t/first-time-grower-mistakes-white-widow-auto-indoor-soil-400w-hps-400wmh/16354/83

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On about day 35 after a rough start for the poor plants here is a much happier update
The PH and TDS pens came in couple days ago and wowee I am having run off at 6.8ph and 4200-4400ppm. My standard tap water is 6.2 and only 20ppm which is mostly what they have been having other then light batch of Seasol health treatment and a very light addition of Seasol Powerfeed.
Now I am thinking should I try and flush with tap water?
Also wondering what organic ph down is around that others can reccomend?(i am in Australia so don’t seem to have the wonderful world of home depot or walmart, ya lucky folks)

Decided to change up the veg room a bit, considering I am going led for the flower room very shortly, I added the 70w HPS and took out one of the 150w cfl(more moved it and turned it off) less power better light and the youngen is loving life finally.
The 3 clones i managed to get are on day 6 of trying to root, have been spraying them 3-4 times a day mostly water sometimes with a bit of “multicrop plant starter” to help stimulate roots. It’s active ingredients are 0.05g/L Indole Acetic Acid and 0.05g/L Naphthalene Acetic Acid.
Today I left them in the veg room for 2 and a bit hours without a cover, figure it is about time to start hardening them and also make them wanna root to find water from medium instead of the leaves.

Plan is 30-40 day veg then 12/12, this gives me time to purchase and setup the flower lights

Here are some pics, am looking at an attachable camera for better quality photos so again sorry for the terrible quality of photo.

The clarity on the pics makes it tough to tell how the plants are looking. Is there a lot of yelloinging?

4000ppms is really high and 6.8ph is on the high side. I do not know much about pre-mixed soil, but yours appears pretty hot. Also, when was the last time you watered? I think flushing it is a goo idea, but you may need to be careful about overwatering.

I use bottles pH up an down I get from Amazon. I am not sure about organics, but I have heard people using lemon juice for pH down.

Nah they are deep green, smallest amount of yellowing on clone leaf tips.
I watered today and flushed with plain water on tuesday, could it be the blood n bone etc?

I am not sure. I’ve always bought pre-mixed soil called Roots Organics.

If the leaves look good, maybe wait a day or two, and then flush with your tap water at 3x the container size. You want the runoff ppms to be less than 1500ppms at the end. Others may say flush now, if the plant looks healthy.