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DIY Hybrid LED/PL-L Luminaire

dsa

New member
Hey thanks for the info and the fast reply =) those kits look good, also they are similar to some i found online on a shop based on my country (They sell aquarium related stuff) i haven't ordered yet because of the reflector size, they seem very narrow just like those at AHsupply.com, compared to fixtures i've seen on growshops, for example ->these<- ones look great, one measures 38cm x 58cm and the other measures 47cm x 58cm, they seem though a bit expensive thats why i was thinking about the diy way =P.
 

rives

Inveterate Tinkerer
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ICMag Donor
Veteran
Glad that you enjoyed it, CF. It's been a lot of years since I grew with HPS, but off-hand I think that the biggest differences lie in this fixture being easier to cool, less worry about fire danger, and a higher quality result. I was never that impressed with the spectrum of the HPS for growing, but it obviously works. I am currently in the process of building up a HID-based system, but it will use the 315w Philips CDM lamps (based on ceramic metal halide). They have a pretty sweet spectrum and an efficiency that rivals LEDs. For the type of growing that this fixture was intended for (scrog), I think that it is pretty hard to beat.
 

W89

Active member
Veteran
very professional looking light you made there looks great mate, job well done I say!
 

2000pm

Member
Yes, I'm still using the 2700k lamps. Stretch has been virtually non-existent, but the vegging was done without the LEDs turned on. From what I've seen of the SPD charts, any of the available PL-L spectrums seem to have enough blue that stretching isn't a factor. I've used everything from 2700k to 4100k with similar

Hey rives, did you find this lack of stretch to be consistent across different strains?

Last run I did with only PLLs I did get a decent amount - enough to fill a scrog screen with the flowering stretch anyway, although that chocolope barely stretched as well. This run I am finding my C99s are barely stretching at all. I am not sure if this was the addition of the 660nm LEDs or what but from all I've read I was expecting 2-3x stretch on these girls, and its been 13 days of 12/12 already. I actually kept two of the 6500k lamps in the fixture instead of doing all 4 3000K to reduce the anticipated stretch which hasn't come yet.

(My ecsd influenced diesel fires are stretching without a care however)
 

rives

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ICMag Donor
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Hey rives, did you find this lack of stretch to be consistent across different strains?

Nothing that I've run so far has stretched very much. From what I've seen, the screen needs to be nearly full before flipping - perhaps 80% or so.
 

AlexTrebek

Member
I rarely say things are perfect because there's always room for improvement,
This however is perfect, a masterpiece.

Rives this build is so good it deserved a re-post in 2013, really good efficient work.
 

JohnBell

Member
Rives,

What an awesome job man! Question for you i see the compnets are mounted in an amplifier case how about the reflector? Looking at the pictures i would guess you just bought a sheet of aluminum and built it? Just wanted to make sure. Im in the planning phase and still haven't bought anything yet but it needs to be clean and neat. The reflector is the only thing thats going to be interesting for me. Im going to have a odd growing area thats only 2 foot wide 6 foot long and 3 foot deep. I would like for the reflector to be around 18 inches wide and about 5'6" long.

Anyway thanks again for the great write up.

-JB
 

rives

Inveterate Tinkerer
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ICMag Donor
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Thanks, John.

The reflectors are from AHSupply.com, and are part of their PL-L kits for aquarium usage. They are made from Miro-4, which is a 96% reflective aluminum.
 

rives

Inveterate Tinkerer
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ICMag Donor
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Thanks. Updating the PL-Ls to LEDs is what spurred my interest in the 315w CDM stuff - for far less than the cost of the LEDs and drivers, I wound up buying enough Philips gear to put together multiple lights. The new COBs have struck my interest though, so a remodel may be coming up one of these days.
 

lumberjack.mr

Active member
Maybe someday I will be able to afford such equipment and be able to stop paying the extortion prices of N. Texas ?!! ;-(
Thanks for the breakdown on light performance and optimum lighting for various grow situations. I enjoyed the comparison immensely !
 

Miraculous Meds

Well-known member
holy shit, respect sir. u got some skills. Just wanted to drop in n check ur thread out. thanks for the camera tips. and what is that a dog with a bone in its mouth.
 

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