Pepperhead
Well-Known Member
Thanks again for the info
Might have to get a new bulb!
4100k
Might have to get a new bulb!
4100k
Spectral Intensity Distribution For Common Grow Lights vs The Sun
- Thread starter The Physicist
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- #22
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
As far as LEDs go here is Black Dog LED Spectrum and HPS. While they claim to add IR and UVA the total energy in the IR and UVA bands is smaller than the LEC. Especially the infrared is significantly low after 700nm almost negligible.
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- #23
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
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- #24
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
Gavita 1700 LED Spectrum:
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- #25
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
All in all,
My lighting choice for total square footage of 8-9 ft2 would be as follows:
1. CMH, is my choice as the king of lighting. For comparison this is like a bodybuilder who is on a mostly non-red meat based diet with the little steak once a week. For overall yield, overall quality, overall closest natural lighting to the sun, overall broadest spectrum, energy bands in UVA down to 350nm and IR bands out to 850nm. This provides the full range of plant capability from seedling to Harvest. The broad spectrum enables the full range of terpenes and thc potential. Proven to produce over a Pound in 2x4x6 tent with 8 plants.
Cons: While not as hot as an HPS/MH, the CMH does get a bit toasty so keeping it 18” from the plants is required and a bit of airflow over the canopy as always. No hood cooling required.
Top Choice: Hortilux 315W with Hortilux Ballast and Reflector.
2. LED (250W Wall Draw), for very close competitor to the CMH. It would be like comparing a bodybuilder who used only a non-red meat based diet, like chicken or fish. Works perfectly well and gets the results you wish for with zero disappointment. The PPFD is higher with LED than CMH, about 1.5x however this is due to the optimized red/blue (blurple) aspect of the spectrum that all LED companies focus on. Black Dog LED is one of the few companies that introduces a very tiny amount of UVA light into their spectrum. Most companies do not because UVA leds are very expensive.
LED brands range all over the place. Full Spectrum LED is the only way to grow plants properly though. While Blurple works, you starve the plant of potential flavor and other tiny factors that can make buds have a more fine dining wine at 16$ a glass taste compared to the 25$ bottle at the grocery store. Very close in potency, crystal density, and flavor. But the CMH still has about 5% more on average from readings in trichrome/thc density and terpenes. This results mainly from the broader spectrum in the far IR and UVA bands.
Top Choice: Black Dog LED, they specifically worked with cannabis to show that UVA was beneficial in increasing trichrome density and thc. Publications are in my signature highlighting some of these efforts.
3. HPS/MH (600W). This is the bodybuilder who does his chicken, and protein shakes, the diet etc, but skips leg day at times and doesn’t train cadio as much as they should, because they focus on upper body.
These were the standard since the 70’s and aren’t going anywhere. 600/1000W HPS is the mass producer big flower big yields. But man its hot. Requires cooling and ducting or keeping the light high above the plants. This induces a lot of stretching so using HPS you need a fairly tall grow area. With LED and CMH you can get away with a 5’ ceiling and have no issues with only a fan.
Top Choice: Hortilux 1000W HPS. The “old but gold” standard.
My lighting choice for total square footage of 8-9 ft2 would be as follows:
1. CMH, is my choice as the king of lighting. For comparison this is like a bodybuilder who is on a mostly non-red meat based diet with the little steak once a week. For overall yield, overall quality, overall closest natural lighting to the sun, overall broadest spectrum, energy bands in UVA down to 350nm and IR bands out to 850nm. This provides the full range of plant capability from seedling to Harvest. The broad spectrum enables the full range of terpenes and thc potential. Proven to produce over a Pound in 2x4x6 tent with 8 plants.
Cons: While not as hot as an HPS/MH, the CMH does get a bit toasty so keeping it 18” from the plants is required and a bit of airflow over the canopy as always. No hood cooling required.
Top Choice: Hortilux 315W with Hortilux Ballast and Reflector.
2. LED (250W Wall Draw), for very close competitor to the CMH. It would be like comparing a bodybuilder who used only a non-red meat based diet, like chicken or fish. Works perfectly well and gets the results you wish for with zero disappointment. The PPFD is higher with LED than CMH, about 1.5x however this is due to the optimized red/blue (blurple) aspect of the spectrum that all LED companies focus on. Black Dog LED is one of the few companies that introduces a very tiny amount of UVA light into their spectrum. Most companies do not because UVA leds are very expensive.
LED brands range all over the place. Full Spectrum LED is the only way to grow plants properly though. While Blurple works, you starve the plant of potential flavor and other tiny factors that can make buds have a more fine dining wine at 16$ a glass taste compared to the 25$ bottle at the grocery store. Very close in potency, crystal density, and flavor. But the CMH still has about 5% more on average from readings in trichrome/thc density and terpenes. This results mainly from the broader spectrum in the far IR and UVA bands.
Top Choice: Black Dog LED, they specifically worked with cannabis to show that UVA was beneficial in increasing trichrome density and thc. Publications are in my signature highlighting some of these efforts.
3. HPS/MH (600W). This is the bodybuilder who does his chicken, and protein shakes, the diet etc, but skips leg day at times and doesn’t train cadio as much as they should, because they focus on upper body.
These were the standard since the 70’s and aren’t going anywhere. 600/1000W HPS is the mass producer big flower big yields. But man its hot. Requires cooling and ducting or keeping the light high above the plants. This induces a lot of stretching so using HPS you need a fairly tall grow area. With LED and CMH you can get away with a 5’ ceiling and have no issues with only a fan.
Top Choice: Hortilux 1000W HPS. The “old but gold” standard.
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- #26
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
Here is a comparison grow by Nebula Haze on instagram for LED vs CMH. She shows the same results with CMH over producing thc/terps by about 5% compared to LED. About the same weight and size plants.
315W CMH Pacific Punch
HLG 300 QB LED:
315W CMH Pacific Punch
HLG 300 QB LED:
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- #27
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
HLG 300 QB LED Spectrum:
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- #28
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
Next Light Spectrum:
While they claim they incorporate the HPS spectrum, any full spectrum LED board will. Nothing fancy here.
While they claim they incorporate the HPS spectrum, any full spectrum LED board will. Nothing fancy here.
Slicknick909
Well-Known Member
Budget LED series 3+
- Thread starter
- #30
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
Budget LED series 3+
Thanks for sharing!!! Much appreciated
I like the uva 385nm diode they put in for the thc boost. Definitely would like to see a journal with it used
Slicknick909
Well-Known Member
I just started a journal with mine, growing GG4 under it, this is a picture from my last grow under itThanks for sharing!!! Much appreciated
Stunned
Well-Known Member
Since Horticulture lighting seems to behave very similarly to the way in which the technology of Intel chips seem to evolve, any insight on whats on the horizen?
Slicknick909
Well-Known Member
I'd do very bad things for a 1000w DE CMH
- Thread starter
- #34
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
Cheaper more efficient tunable LEDs are being developed right now all around the world for higher brightness all lower wall plug efficiencies.
LEDs will over take all grow lights eventually just because of the nature of the technology. Higher efficiency means lower heat, potentially higher brightness, and more control over every stage of growth without the need to ever move the light.
Quantum dots are really the next big thing. Packing those bad boys in tight with high brightness with high efficiency means very compact very bright tunable wavelength sources. The ultimate tool.
I’d give it another two years at which point LED won’t have any more competition and will reign king of lighting.
LEDs will over take all grow lights eventually just because of the nature of the technology. Higher efficiency means lower heat, potentially higher brightness, and more control over every stage of growth without the need to ever move the light.
Quantum dots are really the next big thing. Packing those bad boys in tight with high brightness with high efficiency means very compact very bright tunable wavelength sources. The ultimate tool.
I’d give it another two years at which point LED won’t have any more competition and will reign king of lighting.
Stunned
Well-Known Member
I'm in awe when I think about how quickly it changes.
My comparatively "new " Quantum fixtures have been obsolete for more than a year
My comparatively "new " Quantum fixtures have been obsolete for more than a year
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- #36
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
The entire photonics industry evolves at light speed, no pun intended. Every year I go to a bunch of photonics trade shows and I’m blown away how tiny and powerful devices are getting.
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- #37
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
Nebula Haze completed her 300 HLG QB vs 4000k Hortilux Bulb (Vertical Alignment) and results are below:
Note: shes admits that no defoliating was done and therefore the LEC lower buds were mostly thrown into trim and that reduced the weight, which also in turn makes smaller buds and lower THC.
As expected LEC has more terps and more flavors due to the broader spectrum
Note: shes admits that no defoliating was done and therefore the LEC lower buds were mostly thrown into trim and that reduced the weight, which also in turn makes smaller buds and lower THC.
As expected LEC has more terps and more flavors due to the broader spectrum
- Thread starter
- #38
The Physicist
Well-Known Member
Should be noted the PAR measured was 800 center to 450 edge for HLG and 540 center to 250 edge for the LEC. This explains the difference in weight.
