Stevehman's 780W LED - DIY 4 in PVC Recirc - Caramlicious Grow

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

A quick photo update. Took some pics with my little point and shoot digital. MY DLSR doesn't have a macro lens yet, so I can't get really good close up with it. The downside is the small point and shoot doesn't have as big a flash so they're much more pink.

A few big colas in the making, several are 12 inches from bottom bud to the top, just waiting for them to fill the rest of the way in, 3-4 more weeks. I'll kick them into overdrive the last 2 weeks and am in no rush to harvest , so I'll be waiting for them to be fully stacked before the chop.

 

[JaxDesign]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Steve, man. Those beauties have me giddy like a little girl. They look great! I ended up picking up some carmelicious seeds and your thread has me excited to say the least. I have a very small area to work with and will be working with maybe four plants max. They seemed to really like your irrigation set up.

When you do end up giving them the chop, could you post a couple photos of the end root systems of a plant, and one with your irrigation set up if possible for reference purposes? Thanks! Keep up the awesome job!

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Jax,
I'll definitely take some pics of the roots post-chop. Part of my own experiment in not doing weekly nute changes.

How large a space do you have? My last grow was 3 in a 2x4 and they filled out the entire space and I had to LST them. These are clones from those girls and I did not let them veg (straight cloner to 12/12). If you let Carmelicious veg for a few weeks she is a bushy beast.

So far these are doing very well. SO either I am the weed-whisperer or Carmelicious is very forgiving for beginners (I think it is the latter).

I chopped the last grow at day 63 in bloom, I am going to let these go at least 70 days, or more. I want to see if they'll fatten up that last week. Looking for over a lb from this grow.

Good luck on your grow (if you're in the SoCal area I have some clones that are in need of a home, my buddy is getting 6, that leaves me with 14)

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Very nice indeed! I haven't ever gone straight to 12/12 without veg so you certainly grabbed my attention with your results so far.

I like the term weed-whisperer.

I think the key is having healthy clones with strong roots. I don't know if you would consider the 2 weeks in the cloner as "veg" time, but that's all they got.

I may have to trademark and copyright the term "weed-whisperer"

 

[Maer]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

I have an advanced 180 and have a GLH 180, new style on the way. I may divide my space and do a head to head. Also what is the total height of you plants? You said 12 form bottom bud to top is there anything below that? I have been vegging too long (8 weeks) waiting for another light and mine are 12-14 inches high, i wonder how high they are going to get in flower!

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Maer,
My plants are between 18 and 24 inches tall. I put them in as 6 inch clones straight to 12/12. So they stretched about 3xs their height at the switch.

The 12 inches from bottom to top bud was just the colas. There's 8-10 inches of plant below that.

Looking forward to seeing how the two 180s compare. Let me know if you journal it.

 

[Maer]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

What are the lights about 6" from the tops of the plants? Can you do a full box shot with all the girls and lable where the lights are, the advanced is in the middle?

 

[JaxDesign]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Good luck on your grow (if you're in the SoCal area I have some clones that are in need of a home, my buddy is getting 6, that leaves me with 14)

Definitely, thanks! I wish I were in SoCal, I visit from time to time put my job keeps me on the move. I'm currently out of the South East, where big tobacco is King. Needless to say, state laws are unforgiving and descretion is the key. I'll be setting up in an extra bathroom. It was either that or a walk-in closet. I decided on the bathroom, it's fairly large, with about 2x8 feet in floorspace, already wired with individual power outlets and breakers AND the big kicker was the ventilation. It has 6" ducting through the attic to outside, with a fan installed on the wall near the door. I plan to continue the ducting to the center of the room and add a charcoal filter and probably another fan. I'm still little ways from starting, but having those seeds in hand is like having cash in the pocket, it's time to get started.

Again, I always appreciate the info. the Weed-whisperer's provides!

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

What are the lights about 6" from the tops of the plants? Can you do a full box shot with all the girls and lable where the lights are, the advanced is in the middle?

Maer,
I'll have some pics of the space up in a few with my day 30 update. It is hard to get a full view of the front of the cabinet due to space constraints.

dem mylars wit the led makes it look cool

Avalon,
It is only going to look spacier once I reline the cabinet with the diamond foil that is coming in today. I'll be redoing the entire box after the chop. Planning everything in advance to make it go smooth.

Definitely, thanks! I wish I were in SoCal, I visit from time to time put my job keeps me on the move. I'm currently out of the South East, where big tobacco is King. Needless to say, state laws are unforgiving and descretion is the key. I'll be setting up in an extra bathroom. It was either that or a walk-in closet. I decided on the bathroom, it's fairly large, with about 2x8 feet in floorspace, already wired with individual power outlets and breakers AND the big kicker was the ventilation. It has 6" ducting through the attic to outside, with a fan installed on the wall near the door. I plan to continue the ducting to the center of the room and add a charcoal filter and probably another fan. I'm still little ways from starting, but having those seeds in hand is like having cash in the pocket, it's time to get started.

Again, I always appreciate the info. the Weed-whisperer's provides!

It's nice to have everything in place. I had to wire a 30amp breaker and run romex through the attic. I actually have two attics, one with the a/c and all of the holiday storage and this little one that I'm using for the grow. Would love to have more headroom, but until I get a larger place I am making do (3 bdr, 3 ba, 2 car garage house and no spare room).

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Day 30 in 12/12:

Res temp 68
pH 5.35
ppm 1205
ec 2409
temp 79
RH 52%

Everything is going along as planned. We've had a bit or rain lately, dropped the temp outside a few degrees but hasn't really affected the grow space.

The new top-up res is working like a champ. I was having to fill up the 5 gallon bucket every other day, the 11 gallons in this gives me a 5 day cushion. I am seriously considering buying an R/O system to feed the top-up res and then plumbing the area to keep everything at a constant level (it would sure beat hauling 5 gallon bottles into the attic). Just need to figure out how to plumb it all (feed-line, drain etc...). Need to have it done before it gets too hot though.

Here are some bud pics (from random locations):

Maer, These pics are for you. I can't really get a good up-shot of the lights or a full on front shot. You can get an idea of the size here. The cab is 6 feet long, I have 3 sliding doors in the front that are 26 inches wide so there is a 2 inch overlap.

The 2 sliders on the left open, one GLH light on left, Advanced in middle:

Right side slider open:

A shot of the center area with the Advanced (part of my upgrade for Grow 4.0 will be raising the roof a bit to get these 18 inches above the plants to prevent burn/bleaching):

Closer shot of the Advanced:

And a nice "up-skirt" shot of one of the girls under the Advanced:

Advanced recommends 18 inches from the light, these are at about 8", so getting an extra 10 inches will help spread the light out better. Hope that gives you a better idea of the setup. Grow 4.0 will be better I am sure (although I have no complaints on this one).

Cheers,
Steve

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Felt like Christmas this afternoon. UPS guy dropped off a new mother tent, CO2 setup, 4' 4 lamp HOt5 (for mom tent), new res chiller, diamond foil and a few other odds and ends. Prepping for Grow 4.0. I won't be able to get to anything until Monday though, so I will have to wait to get it all in place. I'll post updates Monday. Everyone have a great weekend.

Cheers,
Steve

 

[BlazinUSA]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

man i sure dont know where ive been this whole grow but im here for the big sha-Bang anyhow.

I have been doing some research on the whole led scene and must say your grow is rather inspiring. However what really busts my bubble is the huge price variations on the damn things.

For instance if you take a look at the glowpanel 45 by sunshine systems i believe, we r talking a matter of 150 bucks, on the other hand like your light from advanced is 400+.

Any thoughts on all this, there is not as much information to be shed about the glowpanel like how many bands and such, it just says blended full spectrum for optimal growth.

People are growing peppers and tomatoes and everything else underneath of them why the hell are they so cheap compared to everything else? At the price it may be worth it 2 just have a couple more of these babies in your room rather than buying 1 at 400+.

Any thoughts would be appreciated, looking to invest soon.

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

man i sure dont know where ive been this whole grow but im here for the big sha-Bang anyhow.

I have been doing some research on the whole led scene and must say your grow is rather inspiring. However what really busts my bubble is the huge price variations on the damn things.

For instance if you take a look at the glowpanel 45 by sunshine systems i believe, we r talking a matter of 150 bucks, on the other hand like your light from advanced is 400+.

Any thoughts on all this, there is not as much information to be shed about the glowpanel like how many bands and such, it just says blended full spectrum for optimal growth.

People are growing peppers and tomatoes and everything else underneath of them why the hell are they so cheap compared to everything else? At the price it may be worth it 2 just have a couple more of these babies in your room rather than buying 1 at 400+.

Any thoughts would be appreciated, looking to invest soon.

Blazin,
Thanks for stopping by.

I'm not too sure about the quality of the glowpanel. I've seen tons of LEDs on ebay for sale and they all seem to have similar cases etc... and are way cheaper. I thing the difference is going to be in the quality of the power supply, divers and LEDs. I have also seen where most of the cheaper ones are tri-band or quad-band. Advanced and GLH are using 11 or more bands and higher quality LEDs, and they are 3 watt vs. 1 watt. If you bought enough of the glowpanel 45s to equal the same output and PAR as either of the two higher priced models, you might find you're close to the same outlay of money. This is what I found about the glowpanel 45:

The GlowPanel 45 uses the latest in LED technology to provide your plants with the perfect blend of light suitable for all stages of growth. From seed to flower to fruit. More than four times the output of the original GlowPanel®, the GlowPanel 45® uses only 28 Watts of power and surpasses the output of a 250 Watt HPS. It easily provides five square feet of coverage for your garden. The GlowPanel 45 is a plug and play grow light - it works right out of the box. There is no need for any additional ballasts or reflectors and the GlowPanel 45 comes complete with its own hanging kit.

You would need 10 of them to equal the GLH 300 watt unit (based on the 28 watts of power, and they claim it surpasses a 250 watt HPS--never believe such claims unless backed up by a comparison grow).

I would definitely consider using one of the glowpanels as a supplemental light source but would have reservations having it be my only source of light (don't know if the spectrum is full enough for a higher yield, though they are supposed to veg and bloom). Just my 2 cents.

 

[HempRocket]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

You would need 10 of them to equal the GLH 300 watt unit (based on the 28 watts of power).

I'm just wondering if you checked the actual draw on the GLH 300?

 

[cryodude]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

This is awesome. Steve, i'd love to pick your brain on a few things!! Looking forward to the pics/post next week.

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

I'm just wondering if you checked the actual draw on the GLH 300?

Hemp,
If I recall, Mike at GLH rates his lights from their power draw. I will run out to Fry's today and pick up a Kill-a-watt meter to get an accurate read on them (all three lights). I am curious myself and would like to know the total usage for my grow. I should be able to post those numbers tomorrow.

I'll be updating pictures and number in a few hours once I have had my morning coffee etc...

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Day 33 in 12/12:

Res temp 74
pH 5.27
ppm 1091
ec 2182
temp 80
RH 48%

I installed the new res chiller after taking these measurements. It dropped the temps from 74 to 67 in less than 20 minutes, that thing rocks. It also has about 2 gallons of nute solution in at once it is filled up. So, I recalculated my total res capacity:
Res volume (25x18x8.5=3825 cu inches in res): 16.5 gallons
chiller: 2 gallons
17 feet of 4 inch pipe filled to 90%: (11 gallons total volume) 10 Gallons
Total capacity of the system is recalculated to 28.5 gallons.

After adding water to bring system to its level I added the following:
30ml micro
60ml bloom
60ml sweet
20ml Cal/mag plus
20ml Silica Blast
30ml Hyrdoplex
30ml Hygrozyme

I let the res circulated for 30 minutes prior to taking new readings to ensure that everything had a chance to mix; although with two 290 gph pumps going (1 for chiller, 1 for recirc) things get thoroughly mixed very quick.

Here are the adjusted numbers:

Res temp 67
pH 5.24
ppm 1257
ec 2574

Here are some updated pictures of the girls. I received a few lighters with my order last week so I can use the obligatory lighter for comparison shot. It's funny that I don't have a lighter. I'm a non-smoker and use a vape so no need for a cig lighter. The good folks at the online hydro store (not a sponsor, so no free ad for them) sent me three with my order.

Quite a sea of nugs. I am putting the CO2 in there today on a DNE cycle timer. I will have it set to only run during light hours and will start off slow . I need to buy a CO2 test kit (forgot to buy one when ordering). I have to do a bit of research on the proper PPMs and recommended cycle (3 min on, 60 off?).

Cheers,
Steve

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

I'm just wondering if you checked the actual draw on the GLH 300?

Hemp,
As promised! I picked up a watt/amp meter at the local home improvement store (closer than Fry's, but not a great selection). The meter gives load in watts or amps. Here are the three lights.

Advanced 180w LED in the center:

GLH 300w on the right side:

GLH 300w on the left side:

You can see they all draw more than the their output rating.

So based on that, you would definitely need several of the 28watt panels to come close to total output.

Hope that helps Blazin make a buying decision

 

[HempRocket]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Hmm, thank you very much for the info. Most of the LED panels that I've come across rate their product higher than actual power draw.

 

[SteveHman]

Re: Stevehman's 780W LED, DIY 4 in PVC Recirc, Caramlicious Grow

Hmm, thank you very much for the info. Most of the LED panels that I've come across rate their product higher than actual power draw.

Hemp,
I think after you account for the power supply and cooling fans, these units are right about at their advertised output. The GlowPanel is called a 45, but only draws 28watts, so not sure what the 45 is. The LEDs must be .5 watt units?