Help! Mixing light spectrums - Mars Hydro LEDs plus T5s

Zogrowsgreen

New Member
Hello All i posted this in the lighting forum but decided this was a question that also might get frequently asked, I need help with figuring out my light spectrum for veg/bloom with my current light setup to make sure i am not doing more harm than good by mixing the led spectrum and T5. The plan is to keep the plants short and Run 4 Mars hydro Reflector 96 units (rectangular) around the 4 sides of the 8 Bulb T5 (rectangular) keeping all 5 lights 24" away in Veg and 12" above the canopy in bloom. The Light footprint of the T5 is 4x2 while each of the Mars reflector 96 units has a footprint of 3x2 in bloom. The actual wattage of the T5 = 8 54W bulbs = 432 Watts.
I'm not sure on the actual draw on the Mars lights, The website specifications says "Draw power:120V:207W±5%, 240V: 203W±5%" however on the back of the light when i received it reads "Power consumption: 190W±5%" so i'll go with each Mars Hydro pulls 190W --> 190 x4 = 760 . 432 + 760 = 1192 Watts. At 25 Square Feet thats 47.68 Watts/ sq ft. Recommended Wattage is 40-50 watts/sq ft for optimal results is what i have gathered from research but please correct me if im wrong. see photos below .

IMG_20161027_143712.jpg


This diagram is as close as i could scale the layout according to manufacture specs and the correct dimensions of the light footprints of each fixture , the tent is 5"x5"
the t5 is 4"x2" each mars reflector 96 is measured at 2"x 0.9" ( the reflectors measure 23"x10" in real measurement) the T5 light footprint in diagram covers a 4.1" x 2.1" but i understand anything not directly under the light will suffer. Each Mars in the diagram has a footprint of exactly 3" x 2".


This plant was grown from seed under the T5 , this is the plants life before it was introduced to the mixed spectrum of T5s and LEDs
IMG_20161027_152143.jpg
20161027_190544.jpg
IMG_20161026_023548.jpg
IMG_20161026_023029.jpg
IMG_20161026_022255.jpg
IMG_20161026_022011.jpg


The very last photo above was taken on 10/21. on 10/25 i installed 2 of the lights
IMG_20161026_020159.jpg


and By 10/27 (today) this is how my plant has reacted. The thing i really love about this spectrum is im able to take jaw dropping photos like this.:green_heart: NO FILTER has been added to this photo, just manual on my Nikon DSLR . If you look closely enough you can see on the leaves where the colors are mixing/splitting, really cool in my opinion.
IMG_20161027_120819.jpg


white balanced photo
IMG_20161027_132408.jpg


Let me know if you would change anything to the current setup that could potentially increase my final yield.
 
Zo: I think you answered your own question. Your pictures tell the story. You obviously have done the research and have gone ahead with a method that works for you.

I wouldn't change a thing, unless your plants show some stress. :thumb:
 
Back
Top Bottom