Most can be extremely ‘cost-effective’ cuz, jusy do some shopping around before you jump into a deal with any one company. We went with Digi-Key for the parts, they offer discounts, the more you buy the less per unit cost.
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In the almost 40 yrs I’ve been growing indoors, the lighting scene has changed drastically! lol In the mid 80s I had to cannibalize floodlights (Mercury Vapor) to make grow lights. then they came out with HPS & MH made expressly for growing, now it’s the LEDs
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I will definitely look into this. It costed my $800-900 or so for my 440 watt LED. I got no complaints about the light it has worked great, but if I can build one myself for cheaper then why the hell not.
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Sounds good, and thanks for the heads up @JohnnyPotseed.
Yes, I’m glad they have perfected LEDs over the years, large electric bills have killed grower’s wallets for many years
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lol cuz, also don’t forget… BETTER even!
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And if something goes wrong, be easier to fix if you built it yourself.
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Raises hand… I’ll testify to that!
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I got a few extras ‘in case’ lol
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I’m running the drivers at just below ‘max’ even though that’s supposed to shorten the lifespan. But at $30-$40per unit, a few years life is plenty to get my money worth lol
plus we bought the spares lol LED strips and drivers both
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How many watts does it pull? Parts list or diy available? Tried search Mr Sparkle to see if he had DIY thread.
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These are 600watt equivalent, now 1200watt due to doubling up from 6 strips&1 driver to 11strips & 2 drivers per unit.
So there are actually now just over $200/unit hanging lol
I mis-spoke sorry. they are pulling almost 600watts each, I don’t remember the equivalent.
Also @Smooth here’s a link to a tute he did years ago on LEDs
https://overgrow.com/t/cheap-led-strips-a-viable-alternative
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Is your light setup pics in the grow? I wonder what it looks like with a wooden frame. I only see metal backing on the posts I scrolled though.
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Shameless plug for my own LED with wooden frame 
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First one
doubled - hanging over plants
1x4s ripped down on table saw
There’s no ‘fire hazard’ since they don’t produce enough heat for that. The wood stays cool
Electric bill went from $600-$800 down to $200-$400
Due to needing to run ACs all the time to combat the heat from 10-12 HPS & MHs lol now we just need to run a couple radiator heaters, 1 in each room, the electric I quoted was for everything on this property, house, barn and all.
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Looks good, thanks for the reference. Did you use the same light strips as mrsprakle did or different ones? Sorry for all the questions
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He’s used a lot, but we used the ones he recommended for our needs… Bridgelux EB gen 2 - 4’
No sweat cuz, questions are how ya learn.
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Perfect, thanks man
This way works because if I need to I can get a item or 2 per payday if I have to. I’m excited to do make my own light now!
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I’m gonna check out the DIY LED thread, was gonna try to wait until 4/20 sales but if I can build a nice one cheaper AND have it in play soon that would be awesome.
Good Morning OGs!
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