Sup Grasscity! First time grower here looking for feedback and expertise! Please see setup information below: 2x4 grow tent MARS HYDRO SP-250 LED (18/6 light schedule) 6inch AC Infinity Inline Duct Fan w/ humidity & temperature controller FoxFarms Happy Frog soil mixed with perlite 3 gallon fabric pots Nutrients: General Hyrdoponics Flora Grow Series Botanicare CalMag Plus PH = 6.5, using dechlorinated tap water while keeping humidity 40-60% and temperature range around 75-85F. I started with 3 Blue Mango (Coastal Genetics) seeds from Pacific Seed Bank and somehow only 2 of them continued to grow as 1 suddenly stopped growing right after sprouting. Not sure why, I used to the same amount of water and germination process for all three seeds. Oh well, lesson learned. I'll order more seeds next time. I am now on day 14 for both girls: Plant #2: She's growing slightly slower than the other plant, but still coming along nicely. Are they ready for LST or should I wait? What do you guys and girls think so far? Please let me know if anything seems off or any input would be GREATLY appreciated.
I too am rocking the mars hydro 250sp I got two of them in my 5x5. Your plants look pretty amazing man! Very healthy! Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
No dude that's over kill. You need one per 2x4 space, each light is has the brightness of a 400 watt, and it's already blinding in there. 4 to 5 would be heat and light over kill. I would at most put 3 but then I don't want my temps above 84. Look at op's pics he needs to actually raise the light look at his internode spacing. At this point it's more about nutrients and pot size than light because the pics don't do it justice. Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
im just telling you based on 40 watts per sf, and that’s generous as the Mars units use old SMD diodes not lm301h. A 5x5 is 25 sf. 25 x40 watts per sf = 1000 watts needed to flower a 5x5. Or 4 Mars SP250’s. I was the first US tester of the SP150’s when they came out to challenge quantum board LEDs. They’re ok lights, but those are the wattage requirements my friend.
You're telling me that based on an elementary and out dated and narrow principle. I'm only utilizing 4x4 in there as I need 6 inches of space on all sides. Also it's not about the wattage (250 actual watts out of the wall but 400 watt light comparability), but the lumens and light spectrum. (Because wattage is energy and plants use light to create energy, not energy to create energy, trust me I'm a biologist) The intensity of the light is what is paramount, not simple wattage. That thinking is out dated due to newer technology because not everyone is using bulbs. Different lights can produce different intensities depending on the mechanism of converting that energy. Have you grown buds with this light (you haven't because you only TESTED the 150) If you grown any bud with that 150 please let's see. Because I'm certain it will be enough for me but i guess only time will tell my friend. This is the way LEDs are designed because they are supposed to be energy efficient. 4 to 5 lights would cost over a thousand dollars and I don't think you would have growers doing that. Mars would not be able to sell like that, trust me. Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
That’s why most growers know not to buy Mars stuff. It’s lower end. The old adage, you get what you pay for comes to mind. I gave you sound advice. Do with it what you will. Equivalent watts are meaningless. Actual watts gets an average grower in the ballpark without a lux or better yet, par meter. I’ve been building and testing these newer LEDs for 3 years now. I was the first to build the qb96 elite engines and Or_Gro and I documented and mapped them. you need a minimum of 40 watts per sf of canopy to get the most from your lighting system in flower. That equates to around 800-900 ppfd during flower. Even Fluence and Gavita LEDs science agrees as their newest versions are 630-650 watts per 4x4
Still no picture of results, you're just spouting off about numbers and wattage and ignoring the actual science behind plant growth. I don't care if you're an electrician, numbers are useless without results and you have none to show me. All you got is hear say but just pull up a seat and watch an actual trial and not just spit numbers out and assume. That's not sound advice. Just because you tested one mars light without even growing anything, doesn't give you adequate knowledge. Grow something with the light and the same way you'd grow with other lights and then compare. That's how you give sound advice. Building lights and testing wattage is not the same thing. Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Let the pics be the judge and the yield and bud quality at end. Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
I just told you, we already did all the work beforehand. QB96ELITE V2 ***No BS, information only*** Once you understand spectrum, you’ll note that the Mars SP series lights are best in veg. Once you understand efficiency, you’ll note the SMD diodes are technology from a few generations ago. Still a better light than blurples, but today’s modern PROFESSIONAL lights are using LM301b or h diodes and achieving efficiencies 15-20% higher, but also charging more. MARS is simply falling into a price point with these lights. They are great at marketing. If you keep your canopy under those SP250 lights to a 4x3ish, you’ll do fine. If you pack the the 5x5, you’ll have a ton of larf at the perimeter. Remember, a 5x5 is more than double the space of a 4x3. you’ve had some nice little crops there, but those aren’t 5x5 spaces and using different lights. I’m just a guy that has an interest in lighting as well as growing my own medicine to slow the spread of a terminal cancer. Here’s a couple recent pics of a flood and drain coco experiment in veg. I’m cloning off all these for buddies that grow outside. It’s still cold and wet here so I’m getting a bit of a backlog. Mother Nature teased us in March Peyote Gorilla and Chem Beyond Diesel clones in 15 gallon pots of Living Organic Soil. Vegging under 240 watts of Vividgro GroMax. Currently flowering one Rainmaker in a 4x4 space under 600 watt Vividgro FlowerMax and flowering a Peyote Gorilla and Monster Genetics Pebbles under a four qb120 build (255 watts max, set at 200) and a two qb96 elite v2 engine build (354 max watts, set at 300). A few pics from the past
Okay thank you now that's the response I was looking for. Definitely adding an additional light for flower, thinking about an MH blue bulb on a dimmable 600 for this 5x5. I agree with you on the larf, i hate that and I'm hoping to do some good trimming to expose only the best branches and rid the rest. Thoughts? Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
if you want my straight up answer on a board that I know will add potency to your grow, check out HighLights in Australia. @Prawn Connery developed these with some of our help at Cannalysts. I was sick during most of the design phase so I missed out but the added UV/ IR was nice. Throw one of those in the center maybe Double High Light, Heatsink, Driver Combo (350-450W max) - Grow Lights Australia
Wow that's perfect actually. Thank you for the legit answers Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
I have SO much to learn! Both of your plants look super nice! Thank you for sharing! I must admit, it was somewhat overwhelming deciding on which light to buy for my first grow. The length of the light seemed like it would offer perfect coverage for my 2x4 setup. Let's just say I returned my $40 LED Amazon light (that nearly made me blind) and went with the MARS light instead. The MARS SP250 is much easier on the eyes. Day 19: Just finished up some LST on both ladies. How do they look? I tried to make sure each potential bud site had access to light. On the next grow, I'll make sure to add a little more soil so the plant doesn't sit so low. This will hopefully make LST easier. helion - I adjusted the light up a few inches. Thanks for the heads up. I'm right at 22 inches from light to top of plant. Before I was around 18. I'm watering every 2 or 3 days or so. It's really every 2 days. Is that normal for day 19 of veg? I water whenever the leafs start drooping down and top soil seems dry. Are there any other tricks to know when its time to water? I want to stay away from over-watering as much as possible. For weeks 2-4, I am adding 2ml of CalMag, 2.5ml Micro, 2.5ml Gro and 1ml of Bloom per gallon. Plant #1: Day 19 Plant #1: LST Plant #2: Plant #2: LST
I think you're doing great man, your plants look better than mine at the same stages so it looks like you got it for now! Hope you are checking ph before and the run off. Also checking ppm of the nutrient water solution before feeding you don't want that too high like over 900. People will tell you different numbers but just keep that in mind. Do you have a fam blowing their stems? That's important as it makes for hollow big stems that's what you want. Sent from my LM-V405 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Thanks!! My last PPM reading came out to 752 PPM. I've been increasing water every feeding. Right now, each plant is receiving a little over 1 liter per plant. Should I be watering the plants enough to get runoff at the bottom this early into veg? I really don't want to over-water them. I have a fan above the light that points down on the plants. I will try to adjust it so the stems get more airflow.
Day 20: The plants responded well to the first round of LST. I have a feeling I have more work ahead of me to keep the canopy even. Plant 1: Plant 2: