Going All In With Quantum Boards

2percentmilk

Well-Known Member
Hey y'all, I recently abandoned my old indoor equipment at a friends place in another state and he took over my grow, it was a mix of using a box fan for ventilation and old worn out chinese blurple lights. Since then I've saved up the money and spent a pretty penny getting a new indoor setup going.

I did a little bit of research into LEDs and settled on either a COB system or Quantum Boards for the overall efficiency and penetration. I had a hard time picking out what I wanted because there were so many options, should I go with Optics HLG or should I go with some of the Electric Sky series lights. I went through this for a bit and kept coming back to the quantum boards by HLG.

Once I settled in the tent size I wanted to get at 3'x4'x6' I chose the HLG 320w xl v2 whose 2.5'x5' flowering footprint should fit very nicely with the space I have.


I had a lot of learning to do when it came to ventilation because I knew absolutely nothing about it. I went the AC infinity T6 inline fan and a vivosun carbon filter to go with my vivosun tent. The main things that stuck out to me about this is the easy access controller that comes with it along with an automatic control to adjust temperature and humidity according to preset conditions.

Once everything was delivered I cleared out some space on the back patio and set everything up the way I like it.




I also decided to switch up seedbanks this time and try out Neptune Seedbank. I just got my first order yesterday and am now trying to germinate the following.


3x Mint Mango regular - Umami Seeds
3x Tangerine Borealis regular - "42"


If all goes well I'm hoping to have 5 females each growing in 7 gallon smart pots filled with a 50/50 blend of Coco Loco and Fox Farms Happy frog and fed using Xnutrients with silica and cal mag.

Stay tuned for more!
 
Nice setup @2percentmilk ! I'm in the long process of replacing my blurples at least for flower as well. While I still love the output of my little vipars and mars hydros there's no denying the grow superpower! Looking forward to your progress. Cheers mate, luck to your grow! :yahoo:
 
Nice setup @2percentmilk ! I'm in the long process of replacing my blurples at least for flower as well. While I still love the output of my little vipars and mars hydros there's no denying the grow superpower! Looking forward to your progress. Cheers mate, luck to your grow! :yahoo:
Thanks for the support, happy to have you along for the ride. Yeah you're right the output of the vipar spectra will definitely get the job done and get it done well but it was time for an upgrade. Mars hydro actually has a quantum board light as well at budget prices, I told my buddy to buy one and try it out since he was looking for a new light in his price range.
 
Quick little update but an important one, 4 of the 6 beans have popped, 2 Tangerine Borealis and 2 Mint Mango


I went out to my local hydro store picked up some bags of soil for $10.98 each, some Great White and some Element XX which is a local product I've used in my outdoor grows.


I added a 50/50 blend of Coco Loco and Happy Frog and mixed in the bag of Element XX into a large container filled the solo cups and sprinkled Great White in the holes I made for the seeds.

The seeds are now planted, Mint Mango in the blue cups and Tangerine Borealis in the red cups. Now we'll just have to wait for them to pop the soil. Sorry about the mess, I'm currently still drying my outdoor buds in the room.
 
All looks nice, should work well.
I would suggest getting another of your HLG 320W though.
A little 8" wide light isnt really going to cover a 30" wide space in flower.
Unless you're not going to try to fill it wall to wall.
Wouldnt 640w be really overkill with 12 sq foot of space the ppfd for the light is pretty solid to cover a 2.5'x 5' at 18 inches. Considering the tent is a 3'x4' tent the inch that is getting cut off from the length should more than cover the 6 inches that it doesnt cover of the width since the walls are reflective right?
 
Just dim them down they are more efficient and diodes last longer.

That's what I am doing with mine.
I have two lights that are 26"x24" and full power is 325 watts each, so 650 watts and my space is 2.5 x 5'
I am dimming them down to 250 watts each, still get quite a bit over 1000 PPFD very evenly across the canopy.
Probably around 3 Umols/j efficiency.
And they run cool as cucumber.
 
Just dim them down they are more efficient and diodes last longer.

That's what I am doing with mine.
I have two lights that are 26"x24" and full power is 325 watts each, so 650 watts and my space is 2.5 x 5'
I am dimming them down to 250 watts each, still get quite a bit over 1000 PPFD very evenly across the canopy.
Probably around 3 Umols/j efficiency.
And they run cool as cucumber.
I'm not sure I can afford to buy another one of these lights at the time but I like what you're saying and it makes alot of sense, plus 3 Umols/j sounds very appetizing. If I can muster up the cash I might add another light for better coverage but it most likely wont be until after this grow is finished.
 
For about $200 you could build a strip light that's about 15" x 24" and over 150 watts.
That would be 4 strips , which is what it would look like, 1/2 of one of these

Or actually you can make it like 7" x 48" and use 4' heat sinks.
Just a smaller version of what I have

20191102_142147.jpg
 
For about $200 you could build a strip light that's about 15" x 24" and over 150 watts.
That would be 4 strips , which is what it would look like, 1/2 of one of these

Or actually you can make it like 7" x 48" and use 4' heat sinks.
Just a smaller version of what I have

20191102_142147.jpg
That definitely is a good way to get light coverage for sure if anything I might take a look on alibaba and see If they have any kits for the 260w hlg fixture at a discounted price.
 
1 run 4 x 132s in my 4x3 and it is lots of light. So you have tons of light just the configuration of the boards is not optimal. I guess you could also just reconfigure the spacing of your boards or is it just one long heat sink?
It's 3 QB 288s on one long heat sink so there's not really any way to configure them differently.
I did take a look on HLG's site and I could buy 2 more QB 288s with a heat sink for 169$ and a 240w driver for 67$ which at around 250-270 after tax and shipping really wouldnt be a bad way to go either.
 
If your looking for good quality QB’s, BudgetLED has very efficient and affordable boards... I own a few different HLG’s myself and those budget boards are a very good option if you can’t afford another HLG. Just check em out, you’ll be impressed I’m sure, there a sponsor here.
 
If your looking for good quality QB’s, BudgetLED has very efficient and affordable boards... I own a few different HLG’s myself and those budget boards are a very good option if you can’t afford another HLG. Just check em out, you’ll be impressed I’m sure, there a sponsor here.
I just took a look at BudgetLED and while they're a bit cheaper they're actually pretty comparable in price and I think I would rather spend the extra 60ish dollars and get something I'm more familiar with. Thanks for the suggestion though :) every suggestion is appreciated.
 
I just took a look at BudgetLED and while they're a bit cheaper they're actually pretty comparable in price and I think I would rather spend the extra 60ish dollars and get something I'm more familiar with. Thanks for the suggestion though :) every suggestion is appreciated.
The HLG 550 is $1100... the series 2 480 watt light is $600.... with $60 off coupon.... not sure where you did your math but that’s $500 your saving alone haha not to mention the fact that you can mix spectrums, it has blue, deep red, far red.. all OSSRAM... every diode in the board is lm301b.... it is exactly like the HLG 550 v2 r spec... ppfd, par, unilateral, footprint....
 
The HLG 550 is $1100... the series 2 480 watt light is $600.... with $60 off coupon.... not sure where you did your math but that’s $500 your saving alone haha not to mention the fact that you can mix spectrums, it has blue, deep red, far red.. all OSSRAM... every diode in the board is lm301b.... it is exactly like the HLG 550 v2 r spec... ppfd, par, unilateral, footprint....
I was looking at their 240w model for 309$ and I believe HLG sells the same wattage for 369$
 
I was looking at their 240w model for 309$ and I believe HLG sells the same wattage for 369$
Oh ok I see where your coming from, but ya budgets “250” watt r spec is $300... the HLG 300 watt fixture is $600 so still your saving $300 lol and there boards are every bit of efficient as HLG’s... coming from Somone who owns two 550 v2 r specs, a 260 watt diy kit ( which is what you were prolly referring too) even that kit cost $360 and you have to assemble it yourself... and when you buy those diy kits, they are not ETC or UL certified... and there only warranted for 1 year as compared to budgets 250 watt ore assembled, 3 year warranty... budget is definitely your best bet if your looking for a high powered, highly efficient quantum board... look I’m not trying to twist your leg buddy, I’m just giving you the best options given your circumstances... there are only 3 light brands I will recommend to people. Those are HLG, budgetLED, and Mars Hydro... @BudgetLED this is the owner of the budget LED, and these guys are much more versatile and affordable then HLG... if you want a high powered light from HLG your gonna have to cough up some more dough I’m afraid... we’ll regardjess, I wish you luck in your endeavor and hope you make a smart decision... lighting is one of the most important pieces of equipment in your grow arsenal so make sure it’s something worth spending the loot on... so many of us have gotten burned trying to save a buck or two when it came to our lights when first starting out.... those of us who made this poor decision usually end up purchasing another light before they even finish their first grow. Lol
 
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