Best lighting for maximum yield in stealth dresser/wardrobe grow

[clp]

Hey guys,
I'm building my next grow and this one needs to be ultra-stealth. I plan to house it in a large dresser or wardrobe with an aquarium on top of it to mask any sound.

I already have a can fan and super sun 2 air cooled hood that I could use a 250/400W HPS in but I think these will be too loud for the grow.

I'm looking into LED/CFLS/PLLS but haven't had much experience with any of them. Keeping heat low but lumens up is important so that I can minimize fan noise but maximize my yield.

Any help or links to existing grows that meet these needs is greatly appreciated.

 

[TheKiefMailman]

Pll-l's have stand off ballast and the wiring headache to go with it. Cfl's have the ballast built in and you have the heat issues (while reduced greatly in comparison to hps/mh it still poses a problem). And leds's, while I believe are the future of lights, are still in the infancy stages of technology and pricey as hell for good ones. It's all a matter of what you willing/comfortable dealing with. ALL of them have been proven time and time again that they can grow. Just boils down to what will work best for you.

 

[clp]

Thanks for the help TKM! How much of a headache are Pll-l's? I've done some electrical in the past so I think I could figure it out. Is the heat that reduced compared to CFLS?

Also any idea on prices for a good LED unit that would produce at least the equivalent of 250W HPS? I have some money to spend but would prefer to not blow the bank.

 

[TheKiefMailman]

I don't have any real electrical experience (hence why pl-l's are a headache for me) so I've never run them. From what I gather pl-l's utilize light better so you don't have to run as many watts to achieve the same results as cfl's which equals less heat. I have researched the hell out of em though. I was planning on running cfl's in the micro cab I'm building but realized for the space I had and the lumens I was looking for heat buildup would been an issue. I found an 140w 6 (or was it 7?) band led from Bysen that runs 240 with shipping that I'm gonna end up using with the area and shape of my cab it's perfect.

 

[TheKiefMailman]

What I'm doing and what you're doing are two totally diffrent animals though. My cab is prolly less then half the size of what your thinking of. I have a footprint of 2.6 ft and a total volume/area of under 4'.

 

[clp]

What I'm doing and what you're doing are two totally diffrent animals though. My cab is prolly less then half the size of what your thinking of. I have a footprint of 2.6 ft and a total volume/area of under 4'.

Ya this is a good point. I should have at least 4 feet vertical and 3 feet wide by 18 inches deep. i'm leaning towards Plls but will have to look into them more.

 

[TheKiefMailman]

Workhorse 8 ballast and 55w pl-l's (they're the most efficient from my research). If pl-l's are the way your leaning check out the pl-l group. Them boys are throwing down.

 

[clp]

Got any good links that you've found from your own research?

 

[TheKiefMailman]

let me look and see if i can find the good ones again

 

[clp]

Thanks a million TKM!

 

[Snow Crash]

If you wind up going LED I recommend the SolarFlare 220 Full Cycle.

These units have 44 5w diodes, total draw is about 165w and is good for a 2x2 area. With the right reflective material on the walls your 1.5x3 should be okay. While I'm not totally sold on LED yet, this is probably the best one on the market that I am aware of when it comes to function vs price.

Another unit to look into is the Kind LED L300. This is a good fit because of your rectangular space. The 90 3w diodes do offer a wider angle and more robust spectrum than the SolarFlares but you'll get far less penetrative power as each LED is only 60% as powerful despite the total draw of the Kind unit being 270w to the SolarFlare's 165w.

 

[clp]

Thanks for the help Snow Crash! Those lights look pretty sweet although the price is really getting up there. Are they really that helpful in heat reduction vs other conventional lighting?

If I was to go Pll's any recommendation on max wattage before it becomes a furnace?

 

[hush]

If you wind up going LED I recommend the SolarFlare 220 Full Cycle.

These units have 44 5w diodes, total draw is about 165w and is good for a 2x2 area. With the right reflective material on the walls your 1.5x3 should be okay. While I'm not totally sold on LED yet, this is probably the best one on the market that I am aware of when it comes to function vs price.

This is actually the exact unit I am looking at to replace the HPS in my 2x2 tent. I use an oversized 400 in there, so really this is the proper LED to replace it with.

 

[clp]

About the pick this up. 36'x21'x64' Should make for a pretty awesome cab.

 

[hush]

Looks nice!

 

[clp]

Thanks! Now to decide on lighting. I do have a Super Sun 2 reflector which I'd like to use if possible. Think I could vent a 250 or MAYBE 400 without it being too loud or should I stick with CFL/Plls? I don't think I'm ready to shell out $400+ for an LED setup quite yet.

 

[hush]

For the amount of cooling that you will need for a 400, you might end up defeating your stealth factor. If stealth is as much a concern as you've stated, you might want to go with a 250 and call it a day.

 

[clp]

Ya I think I'm going to go with a 250 CMH. Lower heat and apparently a better bulb than typical HPS. Next up - ventilation!

P.S. The cab is too nice! Excited to fill it up.

 

[hestah]

I would go with PL-Ls. Wiring diagrams on the ballasts, and you can place the ballasts outside cab or in a separate compartment. A small PC fan might still be good on the base of the PL-Ls.
They have better lumens per watt than T-5s and are smaller. Great value in my opinion, and the wiring shouldn't be a problem if you had some experience.

 

[SweetDee]

the plls are very easy to wire . I went with a workhorse 7 and three 55 watts in 2.6 ft2 and 3.5 cu foot 1970s style mini filer / dresser /night stand thing . "vented" hood trapping heat with 1/16" piece of lexan .delta 40mm fan @ 14.8 cu ft/min .5 in. h2o (15mm) to keep cab at 6 degrees above ambient . still gotta put a bit of carbon in the high area scubbers/ muffler but I'll tune that 1-2 degrees max above what I got even if it needs changing a lot or built with more surface area . . I am not sure if any of this means anything to you but if it does then maybe you will get an idea . I pull the heat direct off the bases . the heat in the cab is basically the radiant heat from the walls in side Never wired much of anything before and never lights . I did shock the shit out of myself with the extra lead made my hand tingle all night and it cauterized itself completely and smelled kinda like burning hair . The el cheap $2 sockets from 1000bulbs also tend to arc because they skipped the QC process or something stupid . to get them to stop simply bend the contacts inside towards the contact pins . also the wire catches may not be able to fully engage so they will need bending to the correct places also if they don't already work . I had 1 out of 3 that worked...lame .wanna save yourself same time I would use the 250 watt vented unless you like building stuff or at least go with the more expensive name brand $5 sockets .