I think building a light in 2x4 sections instead of a 4x4 is solid advice. Sounds much easier to move around if needed and gives some added flexibility.
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Try mounting them diagonally it may work better
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I see most people using angle aluminum… rigidity over a sheet? Or is there something else I’m missing? Only reason I’d favor a sheet is cost. I’m inclined to want to tap the holes but if I’m going to go with sheet metal, well that’s pointless. Anyone ever tapped their mounting holes? Was it worth the effort for a cleaner finish? Obviously you don’t need to. Figure I have the tools to make it semi decent looking, I might as well.
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One other thing to possibly consider in sheet vs angle is airflow.
My space was pretty small and I wanted my light to be almost the same width and length as the tent.
If I had done that with a sheet, I’d possibly have reduced airflow since my exaust pulls up through the tent.
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Good call there, my fan will be above the lights too and I’m working on small margins. I think that sold me on angle stock right there! I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t leaning already though.
Since the strips mostly handle their own heat, and the frame is for support; could one if they chose use steel stock at the cost of weight? Not necessarily saying I want to, just hey, if it’s free it’s free. I see steel scrap more than aluminum, at least with the crowd I hang out with. I asked my old DIY buddy if he had a good place to get aluminum extrusions in town and he had as much info as I did.
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I started with aluminum, later realized they were overkill.
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You guys that have used a piece of aluminum plate, what thickness did you use?
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Need a little help specing a driver for 16 of these https://www.ledrise.eu/led-strips-modules/led-modules/powerbar-v3-led-bar-aluminium-12x-osram-oslon-ssl-leds-far-red-730nm.html
Gonna add some far red to my setup of 32 4 foot 3500k strips
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1/8" thick.
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So I am considering building an 2’x4’ led light but I want to use one light for both veg and flower. Would that be the 3500k? I have looked at the links provided, particularly ledgardner, and based on that information I would need 12 560mm Bridgelux EB2 or EB3 and a MEAN WELL HLG-240H-20B. This give me the basis for a multi-purpose light?
Reading through the posts I noticed a number of people struggling with the Wago connectors, a easier less expensive option would be the twist wire connectors 
, you typically find these used in light switches, ceiling lights and fans.
One other question I have is what would be a good 2’x4’ grow tent 60” to 72” in height?
Thanks 
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Taller usually best if you can swing it. Easy build.
I prefer the wagos. No problems.
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I was looking at the 20 volt driver for the same strips but changed my mind after seeing the table on page 4 of the spec for the strips (gen 2). The max forward voltage (@ 700mA) can be 20.6V and you have to include any copper losses between the driver and the strip. So I went with the 24V driver.
3500K is a good compromise spectrum for flower and veg.
Driving in parallel means we haves to reduce a bunch of wires to one pair. So I’m going to stack them up in oversized crimp connectors and solder them. Then use terminal block in a box.
Cheers
G
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24V to give a bit of voltage headspace. I should have clarified, can anyone recommend a brand of grow tent.
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Gorilla are probably the best, but you may get light leaks over time with the mylar cracking where it folds on the doors and window covers, I have seen this on many different makes. Not owned a gorilla tent, I have one from growlights.ca it started falling apart last week, the welds all cracked and broke on the ceiling top frame 
had to replace the majority of the frame with 2x2 it’s only 3.5 years old. The mylar started developing pin holes after a year or so.
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Just bought a 4x2x5 Vivosun and it looks decent and it was cheap. Probably about $90 US. However I have not used it yet.
My other 2 tents are Gorilla 4x4x7.5 and I have been using them heavily for 2.5 years. They are HEAVY DUTY compared to any other tents i have looked at and they are still in great condition. Zips still feel tight and unworn. Even with my OCD on maximum LITFA but also with maximum monitoring, I go into the tents so many times during the days just to check for anomalies and pests etc. Especially since COVID hit and I am working from home all day. I also have a lot of paralysis so I use the frame of the tent a lot to support my weight through one of my arms while I wrestle around to perform the tasks in there. I feel quietly confident in saying with heavy use if treated well they would last at least 5 years. They are expensive but if you stand to benefit from some of what they have to offer they are well worth the money but for some probably overkill.
PS: example for me: I have on about 2 occasions since owning the tents had a “situation” arise which has resulted in me out of control and falling hard. On both occasions I clutched at the tent/poling and it saved me without damaging anything. I thought that worth mentioning since a lot of people around here will have disabilities. They are strong enough to support some pretty erratic load/weight
PSS: I am not endorsed by Gorilla in any way 
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Wire nuts can be deceptive. Generally, when dealing with solid core they work ok though. But I hate them, so much spinning only to find out they didn’t quite engage because the nut it just slightly to big. Oh and do yourself a HUGE favor when dealing with smaller gauges (under 14awg) and get the ones with wings. Sometimes I deal with appliances either wired with the little round ones from repairs or the factory, I just reach right for the pliers. No way am I getting a grip on that by hand…
But yeah, people who don’t like wire nuts, we can get a bit evangelical. I myself haven’t trust wagos enough to try them. Always been a fan of solder and or terminals. How many of the problems people are having with their wagos are because they’re knockoffs I wonder though. Bigclivedotcom (YouTube) did a video a while back looking at knockoff wagos, comes to mind.
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You could run 17 of the 560mm eb2 off of a means 240L a b driver and wire them series. Having high amperage is just as dangerous as high voltage. So there really isn’t a difference except one strip goes down the whole light goes
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I think wagos/lever connectors are 100x better than wire nuts. Especially when trying to wire strips in parallel with 4 or 5 wires in the same connector.
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I don’t trust any type of connector I solder and shrink wrap everything so there’s no way it comes apart unless I want it to
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Yep, no messing about. If a connection gets hot enough or damaged enough to melt or break a solder joint then you have bigger problems on your hands. Soldering all the way. It may not look pretty when you are soldering low voltage, high current connections. Bulky and unwieldy but still worth it.
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