400w HID or 300w Mars Hydro LED for 2x4x5 space?

[DreamingTrees7]

Hello,
I am new to this forum and I am trying to get a small grow started. I turned an old dresser into a little sealed grow space with an air tight door on the front. The space is as air tight as possible with caulk and weatherstripping. I'm going to be using one 6 inch 200 cfm inline fan with a carbon filter for exhaust and make a smaller 4 inch intake hole toallow air to be sucked in or another smaller inline fan to blow in air from outside via ducting. I will have the exhaust fan hooked to a thermostat to control temperature and fans inside to blow the air around.

I will also be growing in soil using fox farm veg and bloom nutrients. I don't have very much money to spend so I'm researching every step thoroughly. I need to know if a 300w mars hydro led will be strong enough to get a good, quality yeild from a couple of plants topped and trained scrog style in my 2x4x5 dresser grow space. If not then I will just get a 400w hps/mh cool tube.
Information on led grow lights for this small of space is what I need. That and some seeds. Any seeds. I'm from texas and I'm not sure which seed banks are reliable.

 

[fanleaf]

No, you need at least a Mars 600. The 300 only uses an actual 130w of power. That's only 16 watts per square foot. Flowering cannabis for a good result takes at the very minimum 35w per square foot up to 50w per sq ft. Even a mars 600 only uses 280 actual watts and that would put you right at the 35w per sq ft minimum. Go with either the 400w hps or the mars 600 (280 actual watt).

 

[Mars Hydro]

Hi DreamingTrees7, @fanleaf is right! Our Mars 300 is only around 130w, which is not enough for the 2x4 space, you will need at least Mars 600; or Mars ECO 600 to cover that space. If you want better growing result. You can try our Reflector 144 or Mars SP 200; Those can really save energy and help you grow better than your HPS light.

 

[LED209]

Hey there! another thing With LED’s I recommend getting more than 1 for better light distribution. So if they recommend a 600 watt I would rather get two 300 watt lights. I recommend the reflector series from mars hydro. Very cost efficient and I bought my first ones two years ago and am still using them. I run 5 of the reflector 144 in my 4x8 tent, you can see them in my profile pic. 420 mag also has a couple of seed banks as sponsors. I have never bought from them but many on this forum recommend seedsman. If you have any questions I can help with or want more info please feel free to message me. Good luck dude!

 

[Mars Hydro]

Hey there! another thing With LED’s I recommend getting more than 1 for better light distribution. So if they recommend a 600 watt I would rather get two 300 watt lights. I recommend the reflector series from mars hydro. Very cost efficient and I bought my first ones two years ago and am still using them. I run 5 of the reflector 144 in my 4x8 tent, you can see them in my profile pic. 420 mag also has a couple of seed banks as sponsors. I have never bought from them but many on this forum recommend seedsman. If you have any questions I can help with or want more info please feel free to message me. Good luck dude!

 

[NOOOBIENOT]

Hello , I would go with the led in that small of a grow space as a hid will only create too much heat and you won't have the height to move the lights up far enough with out cooking them , if it was a larger area I would go with the hids , unless you want to get into the $1000.00 plus leds for a 4x4x8 area .Hids need to be a lot further away from the plants than leds but if you have the space they are cheaper dollar for dollar on the light but they do cost a little more to run (hydro ).Mars makes a middle of the road led and they do give good results , there are better leds on the market but they are a $1000.00 plus , I would spend the $200.00 bucks on a taller tent and $200.00 on a 600 watt hid but that's just my opinion, different strains have different height needs , so why be restricted by a height problem , you are spending at least $400 bucks either way , I like to be able to grow indica`s and sativa plants not just auto indica`s just my 2cents .

 

[SlightlyDistracting]

Hello , I would go with the led in that small of a grow space as a hid will only create too much heat and you won't have the height to move the lights up far enough with out cooking them , if it was a larger area I would go with the hids , unless you want to get into the $1000.00 plus leds for a 4x4x8 area .Hids need to be a lot further away from the plants than leds but if you have the space they are cheaper dollar for dollar on the light but they do cost a little more to run (hydro ).Mars makes a middle of the road led and they do give good results , there are better leds on the market but they are a $1000.00 plus , I would spend the $200.00 bucks on a taller tent and $200.00 on a 600 watt hid but that's just my opinion, different strains have different height needs , so why be restricted by a height problem , you are spending at least $400 bucks either way , I like to be able to grow indica`s and sativa plants not just auto indica`s just my 2cents .

Very well said. I am in that very process right now. I love my LEDs but you either needlike 5 or 6 cheap ones, to fill a tent, a really expensive one, which sucks lol, and you have to have them close to the plants. I just added a Gavita 1000watt dimable HPS that I am going to run on 600 or 750 to loose some of the heat.
I love the way my LED's worked, but the simplicity and coverage of a higher up HPS is so nice.

 

[DreamingTrees7]

Hey y'all, thank you so much for the responses with advice. I ended up getting the mars upgraded Eco 600watt full spectrum grow panel. I ordered it before I saw what led209 said about the two 300's having better light distribution. Since I'm so ready to have some plants I'm going to just go with the Eco 600 at first and see how the bud is. Do you think that Eco 600 will be enough to produce good bud? It sounds like I'm going to need at least two 600w mars LEDs to get good bud. I have black indica feminized and blue dream feminized seeds. Will my box be tall enough to grow both of those? Will the Eco 600 produce good, dense bud?

 

[fanleaf]

Hey y'all, thank you so much for the responses with advice. I ended up getting the mars upgraded Eco 600watt full spectrum grow panel. I ordered it before I saw what led209 said about the two 300's having better light distribution. Since I'm so ready to have some plants I'm going to just go with the Eco 600 at first and see how the bud is. Do you think that Eco 600 will be enough to produce good bud? It sounds like I'm going to need at least two 600w mars LEDs to get good bud. I have black indica feminized and blue dream feminized seeds. Will my box be tall enough to grow both of those? Will the Eco 600 produce good, dense bud?

Put a 300 in there with it. Then you would rock that grow space!

 

[DreamingTrees7]

Put a 300 in there with it. Then you would rock that grow space!

how would be the best way to align a 600w and a 300w both at the same time for light coverage?

 

[NOOOBIENOT]

Hello I am growing 2 blue right now and I don't mean to be nasty but my 2 plants are 12 days into flower and from the ground they are 3 1/2 ft tall and still growing ,they have been topped and lolli popped . my cloth pots are 12 inches high so I would be hard pressed to believe you can grow a descent yielding plant in only 5 ft of height, 1 ft for the pot and 2 1/2 ft (minimum ) for the plant and 18 inches for the light , that is going to crank your temps in that space to a very very high level .I don't think that you will be able to use the 300 watt led in there also as it will add even more heat , the extra light would be great but it will just add to the temps in a already to small of a space, I would only grow 1 plant in that space or you will not have enough air flow (co2 )needed in flower .plants will almost double in size when done flowering and the yield will be very low (1 oz dried if lucky ), I would be more worried on how you are gonna get the heat out of that space come 12/12 time , 6 ft is the min height to grow a good yielding plant i.m.h.o. yes led`s are a lot cooler running but they still require at least 14 inches from the top of your plants or you cook the buds at the top of the plant witch are the best yielding part of the plant .

 

[Sctanley007]

My space is also a 2x4x5 tent and I currently have two older Mars 300’s plus two UFO’s in the center. I Have a birthday in a few weeks and another Mars 300 is first on my wishlist.

Having the same dimensions and light brand I find two 300’s as sufficient but three is probably best. Only concern might be temps. With my setup as is my temps are low 70’s.

 

[NOOOBIENOT]

I agree but it depends on what the initial room temps are before the lights are turned on , my house is kept at a steady 71-72 degrees and then add the heat from the light and a good air flow to replace the co2 in the grow room , plus plants need movement to grow a good steady root ball to support them .no stale air. how do you get your temps low 70`s with the lights on especially in the summer when it's already 80 degrees outside , are you running a air conditioner in to that area then ?

 

[Sctanley007]

My tent is actually in my closet so the temp is a bit lower initially. I have two small clip fans in the tent along with the exhaust.

I tried growing through the summer and the temps got really high but additional fans and ac helped but it was a struggle.

This spring the tent will be closed and I’m going to run auto’s outside in buckets and maybe a few in an old enclosed area once used for chickens. Those plants should be interesting

 

[fanleaf]

Hello I am growing 2 blue right now and I don't mean to be nasty but my 2 plants are 12 days into flower and from the ground they are 3 1/2 ft tall and still growing ,they have been topped and lolli popped . my cloth pots are 12 inches high so I would be hard pressed to believe you can grow a descent yielding plant in only 5 ft of height, 1 ft for the pot and 2 1/2 ft (minimum ) for the plant and 18 inches for the light , that is going to crank your temps in that space to a very very high level .I don't think that you will be able to use the 300 watt led in there also as it will add even more heat , the extra light would be great but it will just add to the temps in a already to small of a space, I would only grow 1 plant in that space or you will not have enough air flow (co2 )needed in flower .plants will almost double in size when done flowering and the yield will be very low (1 oz dried if lucky ), I would be more worried on how you are gonna get the heat out of that space come 12/12 time , 6 ft is the min height to grow a good yielding plant i.m.h.o. yes led`s are a lot cooler running but they still require at least 14 inches from the top of your plants or you cook the buds at the top of the plant witch are the best yielding part of the plant .

You clearly have a lot to learn grasshopper. For one, a plant's height has nothing to do with how much yield you can get. I never let any of my plants get over 3ft tall and I have no problem getting 10 to 12 oz and that's after it's dried and cured. I prefer to grow my plants wide than tall and stretchy. A plant that grows real tall is usually simply because of lack of proper lighting

 

[DreamingTrees7]

Hello I am growing 2 blue right now and I don't mean to be nasty but my 2 plants are 12 days into flower and from the ground they are 3 1/2 ft tall and still growing ,they have been topped and lolli popped . my cloth pots are 12 inches high so I would be hard pressed to believe you can grow a descent yielding plant in only 5 ft of height, 1 ft for the pot and 2 1/2 ft (minimum ) for the plant and 18 inches for the light , that is going to crank your temps in that space to a very very high level .I don't think that you will be able to use the 300 watt led in there also as it will add even more heat , the extra light would be great but it will just add to the temps in a already to small of a space, I would only grow 1 plant in that space or you will not have enough air flow (co2 )needed in flower .plants will almost double in size when done flowering and the yield will be very low (1 oz dried if lucky ), I would be more worried on how you are gonna get the heat out of that space come 12/12 time , 6 ft is the min height to grow a good yielding plant i.m.h.o. yes led`s are a lot cooler running but they still require at least 14 inches from the top of your plants or you cook the buds at the top of the plant witch are the best yielding part of the plant .

you're not being nasty, I appreciate your honesty. that's what I'm looking for. I've got a 6 inch 180 cfm duct fan on the top right of my dresser to extract air and a 4 inch hole with a screen on the bottom left to let air in. I'll probably have that fan on all the time when the light is on (with timer) unless the temperature gets too low. if that happens I'll hook the fan to a thermometer switch instead of the timer. for my first grow i think I'm going to focus on one plant. do you think the black indica will have enough room in a 5 foot tall space? I have the 11 inch wide air pots. they're about a foot tall. I'm going to train it to be a screen of green. so, 2×4×5 with mars eco 600, 1 foot tall air pots, good ventilation, nutes, and happy frog soil, scrog. will I be able to grow two plants or one? and what about blue dream in this 5 foot tall space?

 

[NOOOBIENOT]

You clearly have a lot to learn grasshopper. For one, a plant's height has nothing to do with how much yield you can get. I never let any of my plants get over 3ft tall and I have no problem getting 10 to 12 oz and that's after it's dried and cured. I prefer to grow my plants wide than tall and stretchy. A plant that grows real tall is usually simply because of lack of proper lighting

does this look like I have a lot to learn ,I send you pics for about 20 other grows if you like and you did say 3 ft on your plants so all I was saying is it is gonna make it very difficult for a person who doesn't have a lot of experience growing a real challenge .

 

[DreamingTrees7]

does this look like I have a lot to learn ,I send you pics for about 20 other grows if you like and you did say 3 ft on your plants so all I was saying is it is gonna make it very difficult for a person who doesn't have a lot of experience growing a real challenge .

Those are beautiful. I’m going to do the ScrOG method and maybe flower a little early. I’ve got extraction going. Air tight door. Ducting to control what air goes in and where it goes out. Fox farm nutrients. Happy frog soil. Air pots. And a 600 watt mars hydro eco light. I’m just waiting on seeds and I need to put hooks around the edges to tie string to create a screen. That should give me so good results right?

 

[Mars Hydro]

Very healthy plants!

 

[NOOOBIENOT]

mars 2- 900 watt and 400 watt m.h.hid in 4x4x8 tent love the combo lighting , I think they compliment each other .