LED Without LEDs -My First T5 Grow

pedro420 said:

Ya I emailed aqua medic and they sent me the spd for all there t5 bulbs
The best 2 are the reef blue and the plant grow but Tue plant grow has a weak spectrum

Here they are
View attachment 2125210View attachment 2125211View attachment 2125212View attachment 2125213

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I have 2 of the plant grows, compare their SPD to the FloraSun and they're almost equal... However the PlantGrows I have both have tiny dots or etches on the inside of the glass where it looks like the phosphor coating didnt adhere... looks like tiny dots of UVc leakage... very very bad. They just dont seem like quality to me, compared to the FloraSuns which are half the price, quality made, and even appear abit heavier in the red/pink end when side by side with a PlantGrow... Having both, I'd recomend the $8 FloraSun

#1 FloraSun (abt $8
#2 CoralLife Colormax (abt $13)
#3 AquaMedic PlantGrow (abt $20)
#4 AquaticLife Roseate (abt $11)
...avg prices from what Ive found

havent used the discontinued ATI ProColor

Removed by poster due to being in a very bad mood when it was writen and calmer heads prevailing today.

Snoochie Boochies

jsamuel24 said:

Just an FYI from those who I have talked to here and care. I am prolly going to kill my grow journal and stop posting on this site in the next few days or so based on the assholeness I have recieved from trying to share an idea I had for folks on super tight budgets like me. All you LED without LED folks, you spoiled me, I got used to the constructive converstation and critisisim from this thread and thought more people were like that. Just found out that most people on here are the exact oposite of the great people I have talked to on this thread.

See ya guys sometime maybe.

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Meh, it's the way of the internet. Anytime you give someone a way to be a dick with no real consequences, you will have dicks.

Day 35 flower. Not feelin the growth in the fixture using 3000k, Fiji, Red sun, Actinic, 454,Flora Sun.

By far the one running away with the growth is the fixture running the 3000ks mixed evenly with the Flora Suns. Which is great for me because it's the cheapest setup

I'm done with any bulb that costs more than $12. No need. Bottom line is you need these bulbs SUPER close to the plant or you will get airy buds. Period. Co2 would definitely help as well but I don't have it in this room.

All things being equal and considering how close your lights must be to your plants, I will probably opt for switching this room into a veg room and filling these fixtures up with 5500 and 6500k bulbs and just using my other 2 rooms for Flowering with HPS.

As much as I like the T5's I just need too damn many fixtures in this room to cover the amount of plants I need to cover. Unless you are flowering plants that are less than 14" tall, you will need to keep it at a max of 2-3 under each 8 bulb. Scrog would be a good idea.

As for commercial production using T5's. Forget it. The light management is a chore.

[video=youtube;59M05qJNoVA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59M05qJNoVA&context=C43e407cADvjVQa1PpcFMG nNR9hWzX24ZtIRBC4q_Mcm_MZlcxMNY=[/video]

Undercover Cop said:

I have 2 of the plant grows, compare their SPD to the FloraSun and they're almost equal... However the PlantGrows I have both have tiny dots or etches on the inside of the glass where it looks like the phosphor coating didnt adhere... looks like tiny dots of UVc leakage... very very bad. They just dont seem like quality to me, compared to the FloraSuns which are half the price, quality made, and even appear abit heavier in the red/pink end when side by side with a PlantGrow... Having both, I'd recomend the $8 FloraSun

#1 FloraSun (abt $8
#2 CoralLife Colormax (abt $13)
#3 AquaMedic PlantGrow (abt $20)
#4 AquaticLife Roseate (abt $11)
...avg prices from what Ive found

havent used the discontinued ATI ProColor

Click to expand...

They raised their price on flora suns $11.69


http://www.aquariumguys.com/zoo-med-flora-sun-max-plant-growth-t5-ho-fluorescent-lamp-46in-54w.html

After shipping its the same price as petco which is $15.39 and free shipping if you spend $49. They are evrywhere. So you can return it in person if need be. Faster free shipping too.

Fuck Aquarium Guys

Jsamuel, you been on the internet long?? You will never be right or liked, or cool on a forum for very long.

That is why I dont bother with any Journals in the first place but I do like the people within the T5 group.
Don't sweat it JS, and stay in soil.

-48

jsamuel24 said:

Just an FYI from those who I have talked to here and care. I am prolly going to kill my grow journal and stop posting on this site in the next few days or so based on the assholeness I have recieved from trying to share an idea I had for folks on super tight budgets like me. All you LED without LED folks, you spoiled me, I got used to the constructive converstation and critisisim from this thread and thought more people were like that. Just found out that most people on here are the exact oposite of the great people I have talked to on this thread.

See ya guys sometime maybe.

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Updated me grow journal with some new pics for y'allz, follow the link in the sig if you wanna see. They're coming along. I'm not sure the increase in red changed much, but they're definitely still growing so we'll see where it goes.

sun blaster SPD? they just emailed me this, what you guys think? believable?

altar you should rephrase your statement like this, "we'll see where this grows."

Just some half-assed play with the vertical axis. I'd bet my bottom dollar. Otherwise, if I'm reading these charts right; one T5HO bulb is somehow putting out more photon energy than the sun. Seems a bit opimistic on their part.

I'm with kp on this

I don't see it possible for a flouro to put out more photons than the sun I mean come on its the sun go look at it for a few minuts then go look at a flouro for a couple minuts and tell me which is brighter


Edit - I accualy do not recommend looking directly at the sun as it can cause several problems to your eyes - but I think everybody gets where I was going with that

it just doesnt make sense every time i look at it im like thats not possible it would have to be an hid to be that intense.

wtf kind of company even bothers emailing me back with this bullshit? trust and believe i will never buy one of their bulbs

I have found that the only true way to get the spd - correct spd - is to go to the store where they are being sold and look at the box the bulb comes in if there isn't one in the box then go to costumer service and tell them you want to see it if they say no then look em in the face and say - well you just lost a costumer I'll go spend my money somewhere else - if that don't change their mind then go spend your money somewhere where they will provide a spd

I doubt if a shop would literally tell the customer they cant see an SPD of a certain lamp, most shops would probably be like WTF are you talking about? I asked for a loupe at two of my local stores and they scratched their heads til I said pocket microscope. Most shops would most likely not have SPDs of lamps unless its an actual aquarium shop and even then it would be hit or miss.

You guys have got to figure that these lamps are relatively new to the scene and companies are only now (last 5-10 years at the most) starting to look at using them for horticultural purposes. Companies like UVL (which is looking into tapping the 660nm spectrum) either have to be contracted by these commercial farmers (doubtful since they would have to revamp their equipment lineup and setup completely) or spend their own money into research and development into new lamps (also doubtful because of cost). Hydroponics produce managers want the cheapest growth where as medicinal enthusiasts like us want the most efficient growth which includes quality and quantity.

Kinda sucks that some places cant/wont release SPDs of certain lamps. Most notably Korallen-Zucht fiji purple and now UVL 660nm prototype, but thats for contractual obligations out of our control.

Funny thing is I found T8 Flora Suns (2x 4ft 2 lamp fixtures for side lighting.. 1x flora sun 1x 6500k in each fixture) way before I even started to look into this forum for T5 growing. I knew I was on the right track!

Costumer huh. do you dress up like a fish when you go there

hyroot said:

Costumer huh. do you dress up like a fish when you go there

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hyroot you so funny

You guys are over thinking it. Some of us are trying to save you fools money and tell ya you only need the cheaper bulbs. Some of us already spent the money and did the trials!

Lol I just realized that I put costumers and not customer sry bout that I have been in a rush all day talking to different companies about bulbs and production trying to figure out what's to come and what not

hyroot - I think it would be hilarious if someone went in a aquarium store dressed as a big fish or take a baby in the store dressed as a fish and put them in one of the display tanks

Lucius Vorenus said:

You guys are over thinking it. Some of us are trying to save you fools money and tell ya you only need the cheaper bulbs. Some of us already spent the money and did the trials!

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Are you saying that flora suns should replace both Red Suns and Fiji Purples? The UVL Super Actinic and UVL 454 are PERFECT for blue light, but it seems that there isnt enough 600-630from the flora sun to meet chlorophyll B's needs. Maybe its because of the spikes in blue and green are minor, it blows the comparison of how much red there actually is out of proportion?

IDK, Im all about reducing cost AND avoid having to wait 2+ months for additional red suns to be manufactured. I have 4 on hand and the 660 but without a SPD its as questionable as the fiji purples. I like to know what I pay for. If I had known that the fiji chart I had found is more than likely a fake, Id have kept looking.

Right now I cant afford ANY more equipment, and I have enough of everything to finish this run and start the next. Im ordering my seeds next month for maximum freshness when I do plant them.

Heres what Im thinking for veg next run.. ZooMed420/FloraSun/454/RedSun/75.25/ZooMed420/FloraSun/454. All of which are ~20 each. Im an amazon prime member for free 2 day shipping, worth every penny of the $80 yearly fee.

108.35 shipped from aquariumspecialty for the 4 uvl lamps (since i already have 4x red suns, im omitting a 19.95 cost for myself) 88.40
70.42 shipped from amazon for the 4 zoo med lamps.
178.77 total if you can manage to get your hands on a red sun.

Price difference is substantial. If you purchase $175+ from aquariumspecialty they ship free. I paid $192 shipped free for my 8 lamps. I just looked again and if I were to buy the same 8 lamps I purchased for flowering would be $200.05.

Price difference is slightly in favor of switching lamps along with a manufacturer given SPD.