Hey guys hope everyone is doing well. I wanted to say hi and see if anyone was still around from fives years ago or so?
Anyway… I’m finally getting around to setting up a tent in the garage and was wondering what everyone’s thoughts were?
I don’t really have a max budget but don’t want to waste money… I’m thinking just some sort of basic high end tent / led combo and wanted to get this forum’s opinion… browsing Reddit got me looking at HLG lighting with AC infinity tents… not partial to any brand … I really just want a nice setup.
Thanks everyone. Glad to be back on here. Sorry for the new topic but I did want to say hi too it’s been like 5 years.
Definitely going to record everything from start to finish on here
I’m not gonna start breeding or anything. I just want a high-quality grow set up … Probably a 3’ x 3’ space or something like that… whatever is optimal.
INDEED…WELCOME BACK!!! You’ll be just fine, plenty of knowledgable/SUPER HELPFUL members abound. Seedwise, PLENTY of TOP NOTCH Breeders also. You don’t need to expend MAX to score EXCELLENT Member-produced work, thus able to spend more for equipment. AGAIN, w-e-l-c-o-m-e back. Take care, stay safe and, be well…mister
Oh man I’ve been waiting to do this proper since I was 16… turned 40 this year and just got the green light from my wife an hour ago so I had to come here and post … definitely ready to make a decent investment.
Plus live in the land of $400 ounces and I’m only growing for 1 … I’ll do some forum scouring and follow up when I have a cpl ideas formed.
Just had a section of my Scorpion Diablo go out on my center board. Sent in a photo and purchase date and they replaced it no questions asked. Just asked I send back the malfunctioning light all on their dime.
ACinfinity also replaced a controller after a few minutes of troubleshooting with a tech. Had one in the mail that same day.
Depends on budget really… I’ve seen guys kill it with lesser lights but honestly the warranty and service I just received was on point for me to say I’d buy from them again. I’m actually using two cheaper lights right next to this SD. Both are by Mammoth.
Here is AMG Sour x Royal Kush at day 63 from a member here on OG I’m currently growing. Just took these quick shots right now. These are under the HLG SD. This run was for seed so I’m pushing these plant very hard.
So… Setup for a 4x4, or a 4x8 tent. Get some grow bags, or even totes for earth boxes. or DWC hydroponics. Fight out which direction you want to go.
It’s gonna need some 500w+ lights for a 4x4. Better lights = better buds. Those new ac infintiy ionframe look nice. like 6 or 8 bars. or HLG. whatever you want. I started with a szhlux 500w LM281 diode light, and it’s been nice. They’re the super cheap ones on amzn for like 160-180. Actually. those IONBEAM U-4 UV lights are great for side lighting. UV-A lights add a lot of purples to the plants. Just get a really good light… LM281’s are old tech. LM301H EVO’s are the current top-of-the-line.
Clip on fans. Inline exhaust fans. carbon filter. (probably 6" for that setup)
Then it’s gonna be nutrient feedings, waterings. I use an auto-water RainPoint pump setup, from a large tote with air stones. That way the chlorine gets out of my tap water. Plants love aerated water.
If you just use a tote, you can water every few days. more soil, less waterings.
I’d go through them instead of HLG as they’re the same diode. Otherwise, AcInfinity tents are pretty good you’ll want to add their gen 2 oscillating fans to that a tray for the floor, inline fan of your choice, and you’re set.
All right, so I’m a little bit confused here already.
Thank you guys for the post. I think I need to back up a little bit on this technology.
It looks like the tent I’m looking at through AC infinity.com comes with a 240 W LED panel with the lm301h evo diodes and is set for a 3 x 3 three plant set up. That is a bundle for $699. Maybe a bundle is immediately out of the question due to the low power light.
Now looking over on HLG website I’m looking at $1000+ for the light panel alone at roughly 400- 600 watts. And then the lights listed above at half the price of that.
I’m sorry I’m so out of the loop but what kind of wattage are we looking at for a 3 plant grow in a tent based setup? Am I just seeing brand name prices vs wholesale prices with these vast differences between HLG and stuff in the above post? I would imagine support comes along with the brand purchase as well.
I like the idea of buying a bundle so everything fits together nicely, but I’m also not willing to skimp on the light quality much - if at all. Though im not opposed to running straight 2700k through flower/veg… do ppl still do that?
I’m not even dead set on a tent… it just seems like an efficient way to control the environment.
@99PerCent you still around man? How’s that greenhouse?
All right now that I’ve looked at things I’m gonna go with the AC Infiniti 4 x 4 tent through amazon.com.
I haven’t decided whether to order the bundle that includes the ionframe lighting system or to order the tent and light separately.
I’d like to get all the accessories that come with the AC infinity tents like the Wi-Fi monitoring and all that stuff sounds cool if it works right. @synapse57 what’s your opinion on the ion frame lights that come bundle bundled with the AC infinity tents?
Ideally, I’d like to buy AC Infiniti everything with all the accessories and then by the light separately but I feel like I’m gonna get gouged if I do that.
At this point, it all comes down to what the quality is like on those bundled lights with the AC tents
You might be well advised to have a chat with our resident AC Infinity vendor @Ris He can help you with a bundle or single item.
On the HLG… be aware that they are killer lights, but mostly older technology (quantum boards) which give off more heat than newer bar style options. However, HLG to my knowledge has no bar style offering under 700ish watts. Which would be ok in a 4x4 as it’s dimmable. If you were to go with a quantum board light, a tent with a 1’ extension for the top would also help. I run an HLG 600R in a Gorilla 4x4 with extension and must run ac in warmer months in my detached 12x20 insulated garage.
Might want to look at Migro as well, they seem to be a quality fixture across the board.
If cost was not much of an issue, speaking with @Ris could get you into a fully automated wifi setup.
Been reading all morning. So yeah, you’re right. It sounds like HLG set ups tend to run into some heat issues Due to the board design on smaller set ups but are second to none as far as light quality.
I mean, I love gardening so I’m not looking for automation. I’m obsessive with it. I’ll be checking them multiple times a day but it is 2024 and I’m building from the ground up so I’d like to take advantage of current technology if possible.
Thank you I will take a look at some post by him. Yeah I mean so far definitely leaning toward an AC infinity tent, but I’m not sure on the lighting yet… it definitely seems like options become better at 4‘ x 4‘ and above coverage.
I wish the AC infinity tents didn’t come with underpowered lights. That’s a bummer. My main concern right now is dropping for a high-end tent set up and then ending up with a light that doesn’t fit in there correctly because it wasn’t designed for it.
could also just build a ‘tent’ out of wood and Sheetrock…So many options!
I’d like to keep the main setup around $2000 or less- looking to grow 3 plants at a time.
Priorities are light quality and airflow. Live in Alaska so lung room temp is about 45 - 55 in the garage.
Take a look at this YouTube channel. He makes lights under the Migro brand, but more importantly he tests other manufacturers offerings… and he’s not biased to his own brand.
I have two ion frame evo 3s they’re solid and integrate well with the newer controllers. A buddy of mine also just ordered the Evo 6 he loves it.
They have bar style lights now. Came out the beginning of this year. I can speak to the heat of the quantum boards they do get warmer but my ac whether in house or in my new space(2 ton mini split) usually kept it in check with not too much of an issue. But I run my grows warm around the 84-86F mark.
1 year warranty plus ordering from China and shipping back if you have to return it for whatever reason doesn’t sound like a good time to me.
Understand that, but not under 700w as I stated. I reached out to them about a 350-450w bar light for my 3x3… they said they had no plans to offer them in the lower wattage. Tomahawk series is what they call that line iirc.
… I’ll do some forum scouring and follow up when I have a cpl ideas formed.
