I'm currently vegging with a Mars 300 light in a 4x4 tent. I would like to up my lighting a bit and am interested in trying the QB132 boards. Unfortunately I get totally confused when trying to figure out power consumption and light output of these boards. So I will start with a few hopefully easy questions for one of you who understands these things. How much power will they draw if I use four of them? Are they dimmable? How does just one board compare in light output compared to the Mars 300? Thanks for any help.
The QB-132s max out at 75 watts per board. You don’t need to run them at full power in veg, but obviously they will kick ass in flower. I have 4x 132’s in a 3 x 3 and have been killing it in that tent ever since. The 132’s are bad ass boards. I love my 132s so much that I purchased 46 more of them for my commercial grow. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
They are dimmable if you use a Meanwell driver with a built-in potentiometer. I wouldn’t run the 132s by themselves. Put them together! That’s why HLG sells them 4 in a pack Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I wasn't planning to use just one of the boards, but I wanted to know how one board would compare to the Mars 300 as far as light output. I don't pay for the electric on this room, so I want to keep the wattage to about 200w max for the veg tent if possible. I do all the work and buy all the supplies, the harvest is split the with the owner of the room, I don't want to raise his electric bill too much. My goal is to start with the veg lighting and then if all goes well, swap out my 400w HPS to QB's for flowering. Then with the wattage saved I can run the QB's for veg at full power. What driver do you recommend that is dimmable, and how low will it go as far as wattage used?
I use the HLG-240H-C1750A for each set of 4 boards. It is dimmable. Output is ~ 250 watts Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
one 4000k 135w 13x9 board is about equivalent to a 24 inch t5 and I believe that is the light they were originally designed to replace and will cover about a 24 by 18 inch area for superb veg. The footprint really potentiates with these boards as in two is more than double.
Is that 250 at full power? Do you happen to know what percentage you can dim it down to? I'm assuming you are talking about a HO T5, correct?
Yes. Full power. It could probably go up to 260. Those Meanwell drivers put out about 10% - 15% more than what they say they will do. I’m pretty sure that’s accurate. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I have 4 four board QB132 fixtures I made and I use the Mean Well LRS-350-36 LRS-350 driver to run each of the fixtures at 300w. It's not a dimmable driver but, a dimmer can be added, also a DIY add-on. I agree with you though, @918AutoGrower , they frickin rock and I too have been killing it since I started using them! My buds are ridiculously big and dense compared to before. Lol, gotta love it!
I had a Viparspectra PAR450 over each plant. Couldn't yield more than 2 to 3 oz per plant. Switched to the QB132 quads and pulled 3lbs off 4 plants, 14 oz x 2 and 10 oz x 2 with first grow using the 132s.
what I mean is, estimate for one board about what you would estimate for a 24 inch t5 fixture in terms of where you would place things..