Check My $34 LED Setup

[Spalding420]

Hello! I just started an outdoor autoflower grow 5 days ago(Fri April 5th) and all is going well so far. I’m growing in 5 gallon buckets in north Florida. Soil is 50/50 Ocean Forest and Happy Frog with some perlite mixed in. I get a good 5-7 hrs of sunlight a day where my plants stay in the back yard, depending on the weather of course.

There was an idea floating in my mind about some extra grow time at night...so today at work I made a game plan in my head and surprisingly seems to be working out as planned. Yes, I rigged a $34 LED light setup, but it should help them theoretically right? I’m a beginner and not at all sure how high the lights are supposed to be but here is where I’m at right now:

-(4) 75watt “daylight” LEDs
-hanging 26” above the plants

With these bulbs’ brightness and spectrum, and distance they are above the girls, will they be ok for 6hrs or so a night? Should I change the height? Will this help my plants? Any recommendations would be great. Thanks fellow growers

 

[Guy Cavallero]

Strangely, with 7 hours of direct sunlight your plants might do better underneath your light bulbs and they do outside LMAO.
That being said your distance from your lighting will have to be determined by how much your plants start to stretch. Those light bulbs don't exactly have a focused beam so it's being spread in every direction. Because ur plants are autoflowers, they can take 24 hours of light. If I were you, and I was only getting 7 hours of direct sunlight, I would leave them in that sunlight during the day, and then move them inside under your lighting at night. It's only going to take between 20 and 30 days for your autoflowers to start start showing their flowers, at that point hopefully the hot Florida Sun is higher in the sky and you can turn off your bulbs and let mother nature take over.

 

[Spalding420]

Strangely, with 7 hours of direct sunlight your plants might do better underneath your light bulbs and they do outside LMAO.
That being said your distance from your lighting will have to be determined by how much your plants start to stretch. Those light bulbs don't exactly have a focused beam so it's being spread in every direction. Because ur plants are autoflowers, they can take 24 hours of light. If I were you, and I was only getting 7 hours of direct sunlight, I would leave them in that sunlight during the day, and then move them inside under your lighting at night. It's only going to take between 20 and 30 days for your autoflowers to start start showing their flowers, at that point hopefully the hot Florida Sun is higher in the sky and you can turn off your bulbs and let mother nature take over.

Guy, thank you for the reply! I’m limited to a fairly small backyard and I have to actually move the plants once to achieve that 6-7hrs of sun. I can’t put them out front because neighbors(k-9 cop included) drive/walk by...eventhough I did put them out front today for an extra couple hours of evening sun, but they are so small you can’t tell what they are unless you’re standing over them, or a cop I guess .

Anyways, I can definitely see growth each day and I’m really enjoying the process. I do have a question: am I hindering the girls by carrying the 5 gallon buckets around twice a day? Granted I’m careful not to bang then on stuff, they do shake a slight amount when I walk, do you think that is ok or should I refrain? Thanks again!

P.S. I forgot to mention what I’m growing. They are all fem autos: Amnesia Haze, Jack Herer, Northern Lights, and Sour Diesel

 

[Spalding420]

Day 6 in the soil for the girls and more green growth! Gave each plant some water today by soaking a paper towel and wringing it out around the seedling, twice for each girl. I waited until the top of the soil looked almost completely dry before I gave them their first actual watering since transplant. Hopefully my watering will be correct, as that’s what I’m most new to, actually waiting until the soil is dry, because it’s a weed

Any comments?

 

[Spalding420]

Florida Sun is higher in the sky and you can turn off your bulbs and let mother nature take over.

I have the option to get (4) 100w LEDs instead of the 75w bulbs I have now. I have no problem paying the few bucks for them if you think the girls would benefit a little more from 100 more watts of light?

 

[Guy Cavallero]

Youve picked some killer strains to start with!
Yeah, I mean ultimately it's about maxing out the light that your plants can handle. Just make sure they get enough light. If they aren't getting 18 hours a day, of strong intense light, you wont maximize them.
No, I dont think that carrying them around is a big deal, theyll be fine!
So are you allowed to grow medically? I know medical is approved in Florida. If so, get your license and set your mind at ease. If not, dont be irresponsible and get caught moving them out front.

 

[Spalding420]

dont be irresponsible and get caught moving them out front.

100% right man, I definitely shouldn’t have moved them out front! I will not be doing that again. I was just trying to be greedy with the last remaining hours of sunlight.

Question for you Guy, I accidentally dropped a cord on this girl a couple days ago and it kinda bent the stem a little...I thought it was going to be an issue but she kept growing her leaves, but the stem is now at a fairly severe angle...what am I looking at here some weird growth for the rest of her life or will it straighten out with age? Should I do anything? Thank you sir for any advice

 

[Grassmaster]

You have to have a Lux, Candle or PAR meter to be sure how far to have them from your plants. I just measured my kitchen lights that are replacements for 75 indoor flood lights. They are 13 watts at 750 Lumens. To get 300 PAR (what you need for young cannabis) they have to be about 1 foot away from your plants.

Your lights are a little different than mine though.

I would spread them out and have one above each plant.

 

[Spalding420]

You have to have a Lux, Candle or PAR meter to be sure how far to have them from your plants. I just measured my kitchen lights that are replacements for 75 indoor flood lights. They are 13 watts at 750 Lumens. To get 300 PAR (what you need for young cannabis) they have to be about 1 foot away from your plants.

Your lights are a little different than mine though.

I would spread them out and have one above each plant.

Thanks Grassmaster! I made an adjustment today and now the lights are 10-12” above the girls, I’ll monitor them tonight and tomorrow. They will be getting 8-10hrs tonight or the LEDs after about 5-6hrs of sun today before the storms rolled in.

Question: if the lights are too close at 10-12”, will I be able to tell after the first night or will they not show light burn until a couple days? Thanks again for the advice!

 

[Grassmaster]

If the leaves are wilted down you have too much light or heat. Better somewhat low light, than too much light.

 

[Spalding420]

If the leaves are wilted down you have too much light or heat. Better somewhat low light, than too much light.

Thanks Grassmaster! Let me know what you think of this updated setup....

I made a change to the light setup today. I got (4) 120w LED floodlight bulbs in daylight. These definitely direct light straight down unlike the standard bulbs I had, so I’ve rigged up the cords and some wire to get the lights directly over each plant. The area I have to work with isn’t ideal but I can certainly make do Each light is roughly a foot over each girl’s small canopy. I will monitor every couple hours tonight and see if I notice any burning.

They got some real nice sun today and I’m about to update my journal with some pics.

 

[Grassmaster]

Looks great. Your only using 62 watts. And 5k seems to be about what you need for vegging. Probably doesn't have the penetration of COB's. But for now it is good.

 

[Spalding420]

Looks great. Your only using 62 watts. And 5k seems to be about what you need for vegging. Probably doesn't have the penetration of COB's. But for now it is good.

Understood. For autos, am I gonna need to change the bulb/light spectrum for flowering stage? Thank you sir

 

[Grassmaster]

Young plants tend to do better with more of a blue-white light. Flowering plants like the light of late summer yellow- red. Like 3000K.

You might be able to just add more lights as you go. No telling what will happen. As the plants get bigger they will take up way more space and require more surface area of light. And they will require 800 PAR instead of 300 PAR.

I have 2 plants with over 1000 PAR at the top of each plant. 800 is probably good enough.

The flood lights you're using now drop off quickly as the distance from the light is increased. One foot 300 PAR. AT 2 feet I measure a PAR of 9.

 

[Buds Buddy]

OK, let's be serious here. Nobody wants to burst someone's bubble; but I'm sure we all know that he'll be lucky to yield 2 - 3 oz. from all 4 plants total with that lighting. I hate to see those great strains go to waste. His lighting is good enough to start seedlings and that's about it. He'd be much better off buying a 4' (8-Bulb) T-5 & using his current lighting as side lights. I see T-5's on Craigslist all the time for $60 - $80. That's about the minimum amount of lighting he can get by with & possibly get 1 - 2 oz. per plant. I had some OK grows with cheap 600 watt LED's I bought on Ebay for $59. I was getting about 2 oz. per plant with them & some side lighting. Lights are probably the most important thing in growing. The 2nd thing being that you have to get as much root growth as possible. I believe it's about growing the roots; not the plant. You grow the roots & the roots grow the plant. It must be true .... look at Hydro yields compared to soil grow. I wish I had the talent to do hydro. But 1 screw up & you can lose it all unless you can identify your problem immediately & remedy it. For that reason & decided to go Auto-Pots with Air Domes.
Anyways, I started out just like he is. Actually even worse. I used a foil lined box about the size of a washing machine & kitchen track lighting with 4 - 100 watt CFL's & Miracle Grow Potting Soil. I can look back & laugh now 7 grows later. Went from that to 3 tents & about $3000 in lighting in the past 1.5 years. This shit's addicting !!! It's the challenge of trying to grow 1 - lb. per plant that makes me do it ... LOL. If I ever get there I'll be sure to let everyone know how I did it.

 

[Spalding420]

OK, let's be serious here. Nobody wants to burst someone's bubble; but I'm sure we all know that he'll be lucky to yield 2 - 3 oz. from all 4 plants total with that lighting. I hate to see those great strains go to waste. His lighting is good enough to start seedlings and that's about it. He'd be much better off buying a 4' (8-Bulb) T-5 & using his current lighting as side lights. I see T-5's on Craigslist all the time for $60 - $80. That's about the minimum amount of lighting he can get by with & possibly get 1 - 2 oz. per plant. I had some OK grows with cheap 600 watt LED's I bought on Ebay for $59. I was getting about 2 oz. per plant with them & some side lighting. Lights are probably the most important thing in growing. The 2nd thing being that you have to get as much root growth as possible. I believe it's about growing the roots; not the plant. You grow the roots & the roots grow the plant. It must be true .... look at Hydro yields compared to soil grow. I wish I had the talent to do hydro. But 1 screw up & you can lose it all unless you can identify your problem immediately & remedy it. For that reason & decided to go Auto-Pots with Air Domes.
Anyways, I started out just like he is. Actually even worse. I used a foil lined box about the size of a washing machine & kitchen track lighting with 4 - 100 watt CFL's & Miracle Grow Potting Soil. I can look back & laugh now 7 grows later. Went from that to 3 tents & about $3000 in lighting in the past 1.5 years. This shit's addicting !!! It's the challenge of trying to grow 1 - lb. per plant that makes me do it ... LOL. If I ever get there I'll be sure to let everyone know how I did it.

No bubble burst here, I will be happy as a clam even if i get 1 joint per plant, I am in this for the love of the plant and to gain some knowledge I’m also getting about 7-8hrs of sunlight a day Buds Buddy so these LEDs aren’t the only lighting I’m getting. They are outside from 8am until I get home around 5 and in that time, as long as it’s sunny, they get a good 7-8hrs it direct sun. Hopefully I end up with more than you think, but regardless I will be happy! Thanks for your input man, I can’t wait to complete th grow

 

[Buds Buddy]

Yeah, I'm not sure how going from outdoor sun to much dimmer indoor lighting will effect your plants. Hopefully they don't get confused & think it's summer when they're outside & think it's fall when brought indoors. I have no idea if that's even a possibility but it crossed my mind. If it is possible it could stress your plants & maybe Hermie on you. I'm sure someone will comment & let us know.

 

[Buds Buddy]

I bet you can't wait to complete the grow. I'd be anxious too with those strains. You picked all good shit !!!

 

[Grassmaster]

Yeah, I'm not sure how going from outdoor sun to much dimmer indoor lighting will effect your plants. Hopefully they don't get confused & think it's summer when they're outside & think it's fall when brought indoors. I have no idea if that's even a possibility but it crossed my mind. If it is possible it could stress your plants & maybe Hermie on you. I'm sure someone will comment & let us know.

He needs a decent light. That's about the most important thing when you're growing. In cold climate get a 315 CMH. In hot climate use a COB system or Quantum boards. And get a meter so you know exactly how high to turn it up and the distance from the plants.

 

[Happy Hemper]

Youve picked some killer strains to start with!
Yeah, I mean ultimately it's about maxing out the light that your plants can handle. Just make sure they get enough light. If they aren't getting 18 hours a day, of strong intense light, you wont maximize them.
No, I dont think that carrying them around is a big deal, theyll be fine!
So are you allowed to grow medically? I know medical is approved in Florida. If so, get your license and set your mind at ease. If not, dont be irresponsible and get caught moving them out front.

Florida does not allow us to grow our own and a recent court ruling recently tossed out a previous judges opinion that we could. It’s unlikely that Floridians will have that right anytime soon. Those that can afford jumping through flaming hoops and 7 month renewals will be able to actually buy flower now much to the chagrin of our benevolent overlords.