DIY with Quantum Boards

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kdt15

Active Member
need driver suggestions:

Referring to guide here: http://ledgardener.com/samsung-lm561c-build-finishing-touches/

for my personal build, i am looking at ~80 of the samsung f-series lm561c 1.12A/46V strips.
constant current in series is what i read to be best.
I was recommended by digi key to go with the hlg-480-c1400a ones since their max voltage allows me to stack 7 in series on one driver, although a little higher in current/heat due to 1.4a vs 1.12a

any thoughts on this, or other recommendations for drivers? i guess this calculaation was built just based on (max voltage of driver) / (voltage of driver)
 
Humple

Humple

Well-Known Member
kdt15 said:
glad this forum is here, at other places/blogs/sites theres a lot of 5000k thrown around. any comments on 5000k?
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Personally, I'd consider 5000k only for a dedicated seedling/clone space. For me, any space in which I veg could also be purposed for flowering. When even 3000k can veg like these things can, there's just no sense in tying up a space with a veg-only light. This is just my personal preference, of course.
 
420Barista

420Barista

Well-Known Member
kdt15 said:
glad this forum is here, at other places/blogs/sites theres a lot of 5000k thrown around. any comments on 5000k?
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I have 2 288QB's in 5000k I use for a veg light for mommas, seedlings, and clones. 5000k is the equivelent to the mh HID bulb spectrum.
2700k, 3000k, and 3500k are best for flower time.

the bottom line is this how many tents or rooms are you getting lights for? if your only getting one tent then a 3000k is good for the whole grow. if your gonna have a veg only tent and a few flower tents for a perpetual setup then id say 5000k for the veg tent.

or yeah like humple said right above this
 
K

kdt15

Active Member
420Barista said:
I have 2 288QB's in 5000k I use for a veg light for mommas, seedlings, and clones. 5000k is the equivelent to the mh HID bulb spectrum.
2700k, 3000k, and 3500k are best for flower time.

the bottom line is this how many tents or rooms are you getting lights for? if your only getting one tent then a 3000k is good for the whole grow. if your gonna have a veg only tent and a few flower tents for a perpetual setup then id say 5000k for the veg tent.

or yeah like humple said right above this
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Mothers use veg and not grow nights? Interesting, why is that?

I'm going to have two rooms after testing a few grows. If I do use 5000 for veg, would it be better to get 3000 or 3500 now?
 
420Barista

420Barista

Well-Known Member
kdt15 said:
Mothers use veg and not grow nights? Interesting, why is that?

I'm going to have two rooms after testing a few grows. If I do use 5000 for veg, would it be better to get 3000 or 3500 now?
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mothers are for getting clones off of. they never go to bloom till you say they are done as mommies. so while they are mothers they are vegging
 
619kt619

619kt619

Well-Known Member
MedMonkey said:
As soon as I get this done I'll be ready to go. I want to be totally sure I'm wiring them correctly because I can't afford to ruin one of these boards or drivers. If all goes well I'm going to order 4 more boards (if they're in stock) and add 2 to this frame for the 4x4, and put 2 in a smaller tent.
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there are two positive and two negative connectors on one board. you can use them in a configuration most appropriate for your build, and no it does not matter which one you use. You can't damage the driver or the board from an improper wiring in series, If the circuit is not complete the boards will NOT turn on and your driver knows not to send everything it has got. You could potentially damage drivers from wiring the (VO + and -) together, but I am pretty sure the driver has a fail safe for that too.
 
619kt619

619kt619

Well-Known Member
kdt15 said:
Ok good to know. What do non led folk do? They're lights are more full spectrum right?
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Yeah if you like IR and other non-photosynthetic spectrums. Not saying they are all bad. But I personally like not having those from my light source and supplementing targeted spectrums that are known to have beneficial effects
 
K

kdt15

Active Member
Budzbuddha said:
4000k is kind of a tester .... 3000k is my main spec to run ... I have 2 other rigs at 3500k , no issues ( or complaints ) .... There are some side by side grows that illustrate some differences ( ledgardener did tests ) to see if there is any real difference. They are a LITTLE different ( strain growth ) but most builders here like the 3000k spec as preferred.....

3000k / 3500k / 4000k are all good choices for growing. The 4000k best represents the color spec of sun at 12:00 high noon .... 3500k has a bit of blue , 3000k a bit of red.

I only added as I can start seedlings with that panel dropped down above a tray .
That single light would carry new seedlings into veg then I could fire up other 288 rig with 3000k for veg/flowering - so it's function then would be supplemental. I have one more 288 3000k rig that I have not built yet because I was interested in 4000k panel to test.

Temps are remarkably controlled ... Proper air movement is really all I use. Temps vary from 68° to 83°ish depending on power used and environment. Tents tap out around 86° and I only use oscillating fans . Some Power hungry guys are throwing panels / cobs / strips and LEDs in custom rigs , so those types will be different. Regular QBs under average load are warm to touch ... Not like a hot plate ..... Lol .

One COULD add a clip fan angled from tent support to blow across panels if desired.

View attachment 4086200 View attachment 4086201
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where did you get the mounting backet for the lights? also can you point to a guide for making these? im guessing these are cobs given by the 2 cylindrical heat sinks, suggesting its hot (i presume qb/strips dont need heat sinks)
 
Budzbuddha

Budzbuddha

Well-Known Member
kdt15 said:
where did you get the mounting backet for the lights? also can you point to a guide for making these? im guessing these are cobs given by the 2 cylindrical heat sinks, suggesting its hot (i presume qb/strips dont need heat sinks)
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The PIN heatsinks are COBS ( citizen ) 3500k .... They are actually pretty tolerable ( because I don't max them ) ... So they play well with QBs by balancing dimming .

The " Mounting bracket " was fabbed from angle aluminum that originally was going to be a COB only rig , but made a simple " H shaped frame " with bolts ... I measured the
QBs as a 4 panel - I built this BEFORE HLG sold the the larger slates ... DOH ! *facepalm

QBs are ridiculously easy to mock up into various configurations... It's size is comparable to a sheet of paper so you can layout ( by size ) what a rig can look like. With these you can build simple or complex ... With COBS or without ... With F strips or without.

Or even adding LEDs ( Royal Blue / Deep reds ) etc.

This how I mocked up rig .... It changed as time went on but kept it similar to this.

image.jpeg

The drivers were removed after build due to overall weight , so mid frame just holds dimmer panel at end of build. But you can go any way you want . There are some clever builders on this forum and I suggest looking at non QB builds for even more ideas.
There are some impressive LED STRIP BUILDS that are replacing T5 and other similar light grows.

Good luck.
 
Budzbuddha

Budzbuddha

Well-Known Member
Weekend DIY .....

Decided to build a portable QB that can be used as a seedling light , supplemental ,
directional or whatever. I mounted a QB 304 on an old camera tripod that can pivot, angle , direct light as needed ........

Now , my rigs do fine as is , but can't stop tinkering ....
It's not anything complicated , hillbilly simple actually , and turned out pretty good.

It can lock into many different angles - but I like the vertical function as I can crank a lower handle to adjust height ( trays or cups ). Originally I was going to hang from the ceiling as all the others , but changed my mind. I was going to use a 120 panel as this 304 is overkill for some early seeds ... So instead of the A STYLE driver I have I will swap that with a more controllable B STYLE ( with dimming ) ...... So no worries.

image.jpeg image.jpeg image.jpeg image.jpeg

Anyways ... Thanks @robincnn and @Stephenj37826 for keeping DIY alive ...

*Back to my beer ...
 
Humple

Humple

Well-Known Member
Budzbuddha said:
Weekend DIY .....

Decided to build a portable QB that can be used as a seedling light , supplemental ,
directional or whatever. I mounted a QB 304 on an old camera tripod that can pivot, angle , direct light as needed ........

Now , my rigs do fine as is , but can't stop tinkering ....
It's not anything complicated , hillbilly simple actually , and turned out pretty good.

It can lock into many different angles - but I like the vertical function as I can crank a lower handle to adjust height ( trays or cups ). Originally I was going to hang from the ceiling as all the others , but changed my mind. I was going to use a 120 panel as this 304 is overkill for some early seeds ... So instead of the A STYLE driver I have I will swap that with a more controllable B STYLE ( with dimming ) ...... So no worries.

View attachment 4087758 View attachment 4087760 View attachment 4087762 View attachment 4087763

Anyways ... Thanks @robincnn and @Stephenj37826 for keeping DIY alive ...

*Back to my beer ...
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That is just too fucking cool. Nice idea, man.
 
G

greenbookworm

Member
Hello everyone, I just purchased the 260W QB kit. Would like any input on assembling. Should I build a frame? Does it need lenses? I'm a noob and would really appreciate any advice.
 
420Barista

420Barista

Well-Known Member
greenbookworm said:
Hello everyone, I just purchased the 260W QB kit. Would like any input on assembling. Should I build a frame? Does it need lenses? I'm a noob and would really appreciate any advice.
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for assembly look at this video on youtube by Led Gardener

you got the 2 board kit so no frame is necesary. the heatsink has holes in the fins for hanging

lenses? many on here feel QB's dont need no lenses. but you can if you must.
 
M

Madmungo

Well-Known Member
lukio said:
all good thanks, dude. winding down for a month or two off life after this crop. which tents did you go for?
I went for HomeBox ambient tents I’d definitely recommend them, they’re beige too which is nicer than oppressive dark colours.
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pop22

pop22

Well-Known Member
I believe absolute max is 80C ( 176F ). However, LED Gardener took a board to 600 WATTS! And didn't fry it.....!!!!! Now I wouldn't recommend trying to run one that way.. but it sure shows that they'll stand up well to running at the recommended limit. Not that most of us do that anyway, these boards put out a lot of light even at low power.

These plants are under 2 qb120 running at 40 watts each. They need no heatsinks below 60 watts

Blue Dragon breeders pic1 -2-10-2018.jpg




stawawager said:
Anybody know what the maximum operating temperature is for qb288 heat sink?


I'm using a non-contact digital laser.View attachment 4087849
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