LED Mythbusting, KILL A WATT proof
- Thread starter GP73LPC
- Start date
Server error 404: Document not found
Tried portions of above and still didnt find it.
Need some guidance here.
I'm thinking about having some 400w LED units made for me.
Basically they would look nearly identical to the Advanced LED units.
Stock out of the box they come with 180x3W 660nm Red & 20x3W 455 Blue.
However, I can customize.
UV 370-380nm & IR 730-740 cost $3 extra per led.
All other spectra are no extra charge.
Following is whats available:
Option of Spectra:
IR850/940nm
IR730-740m
red650-660nm
red620-630nm
orange 610-615nm
yellow 585-595nm
green 510-530nm
blue 460-470nm
blue450-460nm
blue 440-450nm
Voilet 420-430nm
Voilet400-410nm
UV 370-380nm
White 2700-20000K
So, if I wanted these for Bloom only, what would be a good mix for spectra? Using 200x 3w Epistar & Bridgelux (actually I know those are the red/blue brands of 660/455, not sure on the other spectra brands).
Unfortunately I lost the conversation I had but the actual draw seemed good. I kinda want to say it was about 1.9-2w per led avg, but not positive.
beam is 90 degree angle.
Any help in this would be awesome as I just dont quite understand this part and I tend to think those advertising 15 spectrums are probably f.o.s. and are just getting a lot of cheaper led to make up space, claiming how great all these spectrums are.
Thanks in advance for any guidance.
I'm thinking about having some 400w LED units made for me.
Basically they would look nearly identical to the Advanced LED units.
Stock out of the box they come with 180x3W 660nm Red & 20x3W 455 Blue.
However, I can customize.
UV 370-380nm & IR 730-740 cost $3 extra per led.
All other spectra are no extra charge.
Following is whats available:
Option of Spectra:
IR850/940nm
IR730-740m
red650-660nm
red620-630nm
orange 610-615nm
yellow 585-595nm
green 510-530nm
blue 460-470nm
blue450-460nm
blue 440-450nm
Voilet 420-430nm
Voilet400-410nm
UV 370-380nm
White 2700-20000K
So, if I wanted these for Bloom only, what would be a good mix for spectra? Using 200x 3w Epistar & Bridgelux (actually I know those are the red/blue brands of 660/455, not sure on the other spectra brands).
Unfortunately I lost the conversation I had but the actual draw seemed good. I kinda want to say it was about 1.9-2w per led avg, but not positive.
beam is 90 degree angle.
Any help in this would be awesome as I just dont quite understand this part and I tend to think those advertising 15 spectrums are probably f.o.s. and are just getting a lot of cheaper led to make up space, claiming how great all these spectrums are.
Thanks in advance for any guidance.
siddhartha
Member
Hey Bassy,
you should check the cost on a Black Dog 360 before you make your own. I was considering making my own and then found them. I priced out what it would cost to make my own and it worked out to be more expensive. also 90 degree lenses are pretty narrow. you will have a really small foot print with it 12 inches over your canopy.
Sidd
you should check the cost on a Black Dog 360 before you make your own. I was considering making my own and then found them. I priced out what it would cost to make my own and it worked out to be more expensive. also 90 degree lenses are pretty narrow. you will have a really small foot print with it 12 inches over your canopy.
Sidd
Phychotron
Member
advanced has two types, the 'extreme flower' which looks like almost all the other fixtures, then there is the diamond series that has a focusing lens on all the led's, and it has a different case style and better fans. I've seen other lights (generic) with that style case, but without the focusing lens. just because it comes in the same case doesn't mean it's going to be the same inside either.
how much do you plan on spending per light? I'm assuming your getting someone in china to build one or more fixtures. I paid 950 with free shipping for the 400w diamond series with 200x3w chips, 11 spectrum. not sure the exact ratio, but there are a few green in there as well.
What type of warranty are you getting? are you sure you need to build your own? unless you need a shit ton of lights, you might just want to get a pre made one.
how much do you plan on spending per light? I'm assuming your getting someone in china to build one or more fixtures. I paid 950 with free shipping for the 400w diamond series with 200x3w chips, 11 spectrum. not sure the exact ratio, but there are a few green in there as well.
What type of warranty are you getting? are you sure you need to build your own? unless you need a shit ton of lights, you might just want to get a pre made one.
I'm not making myself. I'm ordering from one of the actual manufacturers in China.
I can order it as noted above or customize with any selection/ratio of spectra I choose. IR/UV cost $3 extra (or maybe it was $2) per led.
I will not buy Black Dog. Caught them in too much BS already.
I can almost buy 2x 400w units with shipping for the price of one BD or Advanced DS.
Good, finned aluminum heat sinks, four fans.
3 yr warranty. 1-yr replacement, 2-yr prorated.
I truthfully believe (and I could be wrong), we are being fed a line of BS when these retailers sell their brands (or should I say "stickered") making all these great claims with 11-15 spectrum. I do know for fact that it costs less to make when using a lower % of red/ Thus more profit margin for the retailer. But I am not sure what kind of ratios and spectrum I really need for a more optimal flower, possibly use to veg also but have that covered with T5HO and another LED or even lots of cfls if needed.
So I don't really know. Do I want 3 spectra? 5? /shrug. And which ones? What ratio of each?
I will buy two for sure. But if I end up doing this with a few people, we will save lots on frt. 1 unit shipping is $103, 2 units is $136. Obviously huge difference.
I can order it as noted above or customize with any selection/ratio of spectra I choose. IR/UV cost $3 extra (or maybe it was $2) per led.
I will not buy Black Dog. Caught them in too much BS already.
I can almost buy 2x 400w units with shipping for the price of one BD or Advanced DS.
Good, finned aluminum heat sinks, four fans.
3 yr warranty. 1-yr replacement, 2-yr prorated.
I truthfully believe (and I could be wrong), we are being fed a line of BS when these retailers sell their brands (or should I say "stickered") making all these great claims with 11-15 spectrum. I do know for fact that it costs less to make when using a lower % of red/ Thus more profit margin for the retailer. But I am not sure what kind of ratios and spectrum I really need for a more optimal flower, possibly use to veg also but have that covered with T5HO and another LED or even lots of cfls if needed.
So I don't really know. Do I want 3 spectra? 5? /shrug. And which ones? What ratio of each?
I will buy two for sure. But if I end up doing this with a few people, we will save lots on frt. 1 unit shipping is $103, 2 units is $136. Obviously huge difference.
What is your actual draw per kill-a-watt meter?
I just highlighted this link, then right clicked selected "Open in New Tab"- took me right to it
that worked for me too. Odd.
siddhartha
Member
I dont have a kill-a-watt at home but my local shop has one and it was 710 watts
I call bullshit. Why?
Because on their own website they state the BD360 is 345 true watts.
Now one of the main points of this thread is to find the sellers that are stating truth and those that are not. Or at least to inform the consumer what the real draw is from these companies. Many of which claim x but we find y, and y always seems to be less.
So why dont you go spend $17, get yourself a kill-a-watt meter, test that bd360, and post a screenshot of your results here. You might learn something for yourself, and you'll certainly be helping others.
siddhartha
Member
Hey Bassy,
I miss understood you. I have two units. I veg under the BD360 and flower under the Platinum XL. The shop is letting me borrow there kill-a-watt. I will check it out and put up some pictures.
Sidd
I miss understood you. I have two units. I veg under the BD360 and flower under the Platinum XL. The shop is letting me borrow there kill-a-watt. I will check it out and put up some pictures.
Sidd
siddhartha
Member
Bassy,
Here are pics from the BD360. I will get tonight or tomorrow night of my Platnium
Here are pics from the BD360. I will get tonight or tomorrow night of my Platnium
Well done sidd! Thanks for doing that! As you can see, this Black Dog unit ALSO does not meet the advertised wattage. They state: 345 true watts (not “LED watts”)
for the BD360. Hopefully your result also gets placed in the pdf.
I'm really interested in the results on that platinum.
for the BD360. Hopefully your result also gets placed in the pdf.
I'm really interested in the results on that platinum.
Phychotron
Member
that fixture looks too dense for my liking, too much heat concentrated in a tiny area.
When you look inside the BD360 does it have a finned heat sink or a flat sheet like the black stars do?
Just got my 2 replacement blackstar 240's after my 500 had a row of lights go out(not the power supply). I paid the extra 25 bucks to get 2 fixtures rather than one in order to both spread the light out and to reduce the led density for heat dissipation.
Blackstar 240UV #3
Blackstar 240UV #4
both were from ~125-133, just depended on when the camera took the photo.
Oh, and the customer service was kinda messed up. When my brother had a problem with one of his lights from advanced they sent him the power supply before he even tested it (which it didn't need, it was just a loose connection like they suggested) and when he had a fan out on another fixture they sent him the new fixture right away, before they received the broken one.
Gotham however wouldn't sent the lights out until they received ... ... and tested it. I can understand they've probably been ripped off before, but for a three time customer i would expect a little bit more respect. So I had to send it the cheapest way (before i found out they wouldn't send it even with a tracking number). Then I had to email them a day after my light was delivered to them asking what the status was, and the guy was like "oh, give me until tomorrow to work on it." I did and was expecting some sort of update as to the tracking number or something, but a day after that I emailed them again asking if there was a tracking number or problem, and he just gave me a number, but didn't say who it was with. Luckily i recognized the ups tracking number, but still shoddy service. All in all it was about 3 weeks without the lights, all during an important phase in flowering.
When you look inside the BD360 does it have a finned heat sink or a flat sheet like the black stars do?
Just got my 2 replacement blackstar 240's after my 500 had a row of lights go out(not the power supply). I paid the extra 25 bucks to get 2 fixtures rather than one in order to both spread the light out and to reduce the led density for heat dissipation.
Blackstar 240UV #3
Blackstar 240UV #4
both were from ~125-133, just depended on when the camera took the photo.
Oh, and the customer service was kinda messed up. When my brother had a problem with one of his lights from advanced they sent him the power supply before he even tested it (which it didn't need, it was just a loose connection like they suggested) and when he had a fan out on another fixture they sent him the new fixture right away, before they received the broken one.
Gotham however wouldn't sent the lights out until they received ... ... and tested it. I can understand they've probably been ripped off before, but for a three time customer i would expect a little bit more respect. So I had to send it the cheapest way (before i found out they wouldn't send it even with a tracking number). Then I had to email them a day after my light was delivered to them asking what the status was, and the guy was like "oh, give me until tomorrow to work on it." I did and was expecting some sort of update as to the tracking number or something, but a day after that I emailed them again asking if there was a tracking number or problem, and he just gave me a number, but didn't say who it was with. Luckily i recognized the ups tracking number, but still shoddy service. All in all it was about 3 weeks without the lights, all during an important phase in flowering.
siddhartha
Member
Here are the Kill-a-watt pics from the Platinum XL I promised
I had to move it to my veg room to take a picture of the kill-a-watt. My grows are a little messy I know, but i keep them clean if that makes any sense.
I had to move it to my veg room to take a picture of the kill-a-watt. My grows are a little messy I know, but i keep them clean if that makes any sense.
siddhartha
Member
Phychotron,
they have a finned heat sink like you would see on an RC cars esc, with 8 fans pulling air over them.
Sidd
they have a finned heat sink like you would see on an RC cars esc, with 8 fans pulling air over them.
Sidd
siddhartha
Member
Here is are a few pictures of my girls vegging under the 360. Plant cam is setup in flower room and i will start my journal Monday!
