So I’ve been looking at LEDs and the coverage is why I haven’t pulled the trigger yet. (Looking at Amazon lights) will the outside edges of my grow suffer if the described flower coverage is 3’x3 but my grow is (for maths sake) 4’x4’. I know with my 1000w hps the difference in bud quality from the edge of my grow to the center is almost non existent. 3’x3’ just doesn’t seem like that much coverage for $400+ dollars. I know I’ll save tons in the long run in energy, I just can’t afford to buy 6 leds to replace 4 of my hps.
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For about 650$ and screwing some screws and connecting some wires you can have a nice spread in your 4x4 using quality products. Check this thread out. https://overgrow.com/t/cheap-led-strips-a-viable-alternative/22468/1787
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@Jinglepot
I went with GrowDaddy Leds - google can get you there.
Mine are spaced wide for now - I’m planning to add more bars as budget allows and run them softer.
Coverage is VERY even.
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Have you thought about 2 smaller panels, or using a light rail?
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My grow is actually 12’x12’ I just scaled down for the coverage of 1 light. With a 3’x3’ flower coverage area (that’s the description if the LED panel) I would need 12 lights… that seems excessive to me when I get great results from my 4 1000w hps
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For the money, Medic Grow Fold 8 is legit af. Super nice distribution and par readings that you typically pay twice as much for. They’re about 600 for a 5x5 footprint too, so the price is definitely right.
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Bathroom vanity lights and screw in LEDs with domes removed. Shop around, I found bulbs for down to $2 a pack of 4. Using the actual wattage draw, not brightness equivalent, You need 20-25w/sqft for veg, 30-35w/sqft for bloom
I’m using 15w bulbs in bloom, 3x3 area with 5 of the 30” (5 bulb) vanity light strips. Using 4 sockets for some reptile UVB cfl bulbs.
The ability to change heights, spectrum, and where you want the light just can’t be beat IMO
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For like 650 you can build a light pretty simply that will fill a 4x4.
14 of these https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/samsung-semiconductor-inc/SI-B8U341B20WW/5992255
Can run off 1 of these https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/mean-well-usa-inc/HLG-480H-C1400B/7704101
You can run two drivers and 28 strips and you’ll be at around 144000 lumens off 960w.
That’s 9900 lumen per square foot equally over the whole canopy.
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