Custom LED Grow Log

[Swami]

FIY: Many of you have read some of my commissioned articles on this website NOT under the Swami moniker.


Here is my fourth generation LED design:



She uses 5 each 45 watt emitters driven at 28 watts for a total actual power draw of 141 watts sans CFLs. Four are 2700K and one is a 5000K. She is putting out almost 16,000 lumens which bests most metal halides and even some lower wattage HPS. Cooling is totally passive hence the over-sized heat-sinks. Each emitter has a separate driver which increases initial costs, but circumvents other possible problems and gives greater control. Total failure is impossible due to a single component failure.


Here is P.A.M. (Photon Assault Machine) fired up over my current grow:



Note the natural color. The room is messy due to two completely different strains and the focus on building my new lamp. For this log, I will be doing a start-to-finish diary.

More details in my next post.

[Smokesalot]

L.E.D. vs High Sodium

Great thread!!! I have wondered about a move to L.E.D. this sure look's like the "stuff". I currently use a 4' x 4' tray with a 1000watt High Sodium w/hood reflector. Runs on a track though light unit really only moves about a foot or so each direction allowing me to keep light at 1' to 18" above plants. I got here using, (1) Maximum efficiency should be obtained by maxing the average light intensity (measured in PAR watts per square foot times the number of square foot plant matter in tray.

Heat being the problem to get light any closer to plant matter with a burn. Question? Will this type of L.E.D. system support a small 4' by 4' tray or is your described unit to large?

[Swami]

One thing you will find out about me over time is that I am not about conjecture unless specifically stated as I have found way too much 'noise' and disinformation on Cannabis message boards. I am an engineer first and a grower second. Now onto your questions.


The unit itself is about 16" X 18" X 2" deep. As to the grow coverage, I would need to do light readings to give any kind of accurate assessment and I do not currently have that kind of equipment. My guess would be that you would need a nine emitter version of my lamp with a slighly wider spacing on the emitters to cover your area without supplementation.

While many LED manufactureres are choosing narrow angle LEDs or wider angles with focusing lenses, I have eschewed both concepts and have opted for wide angle LEDs (115 degrees). Lenses absorb photons (5-8%) and rows of narrow angles emitters put out spots of light which can easily burn or bleach plants and give generally uneven lighting.

The open air design allow to rise so that it stays quite cool under the lamp; and while it is optimal to have the lamp about 6-8" over the tops of the plants, they are not hurt if they grow right up to the the epoxy surface of the emitter.

[Swami]

Here are the eight candidates at day three from breaking ground. They were started in peat pucks using tap water. Now they are in lava rock in two cups each with holes in the top cup for drainage. The strain is an unknown mix - probably mostly Northern Lights, but there are other influences. I am misting twice daily with a weak hydroponic grow solution.

[Swami]

*sigh* A brand new LED driver just died. It is warranteed, but is still a pain in the ass to troubleshoot, remove, ship and wait for a replacement, then reinstall and retest; etc.

*double-sigh* My el cheapo non-warranteed PPM meter died.

Such is life.

[Swami]

The seedlings are not being grown under my new lamp yet. I am using the infamous Swami bucket lamps as an impromptu 'veg room'. These are basically an inverted 5 gallon bucket with either white paint or Reflectix inside and using passive cooling (no fan). I have successfully used up to a 23 watt CFL in the past to veg as long as four weeks in one! I have since switched to LEDs as they run much cooler.

One bucket has four each 9 watt E27 white LEDs drawing 13.4 watts.



This one uses a CREE COB array from my last lamp design and is pulling 20 watts. Note that the heat sink and driver are on the outside adding almost no heat to the inside of the bucket. It is ugly inside as this bucket has been through many configurations and could use a fresh coat of paint. I prefer the Reflectix.

[Swami]

Folks, I know this does not appear to be an exciting grow log with giant rooms full of huge swaying buds, but know that every single one of you is using products I took part in developing while an engineer in Silicon Valley. So what?

This home built LED is cutting edge and products similar to this will be game-changers. I have already started on a new design that will be likely be finished late summer/early fall with an output 30% greater than this one and will once and for all end the HPS vs. LED debate; not as to cost, but as to ability for an LED of equal wattage to outperform an HPS. This is not an idle claim.

However, I know stoners love photos, so here are the babies five days hence:





Again this is nothing new or exciting, but I would like to see anyone grow a plant as large and healthy as these will be with just 13.4w of electricity on the first group. Normally I will see someone hanging four 23 watt CFLs or 92 watts to achieve similar results and be all proud.

[Schmokin]

Excellent post. I will be following this with interest. Thanks Swami.

[Swami]

I have one major problem. My flower 'room' is full and is taking way too long to finish. The new crop is growing by leaps and bounds and I want to keep them small when I start to flower. What to do? What to do?

My new veg 'room' is a cardboard box. Pretty weak, but such are my limitations. Here they are not quite two weeks old:



They are under one 20 watt CREE warm white (predecessor to my new lamp's components), 20 watts of 455nm blue LED (no name) and 23 watts of cool CFL.

Note the health of the babies. I can never understand how people have so much trouble at this stage with burnt tips and over/under-watered seedlings. Give them the basics without trying to 'push' them and get out of the way. Always better to underdo than to overdo. Slightly slower growth trumps damaged plants every time.

[Swami]

Note that my lamp uses components so new that the MOLEX LED holders, which are part of the plug 'n play equation, won't be available for another few months. If I ever do go to production, these holders would add cost to the unit over soldered leads, but here is the cool part:

You could simply loosen two screws and replace the COB array with a different Kelvin rating array to better suit the stage of growth. No soldering, no thermal adhesive.



This array is maybe 1.25" * 1.25" * 0.15".

And, of course, if the array burned out, there would be no need to send the whole unit back and wait several weeks and incur shipping costs, just order a replacement array.

[Fever360]

At the moment I am studying electrical engineer and this ofcourse has caught my interest. depende on you yield and quality, I might build one myself.. keep us posted and only good things can come.

[Swami]

I have no grow logs to demonstrate, but my previous lamp was averaging about 0.85 GPW in less than optimal conditions. The output of this lamp is about 40% greater so a proportional yield should be noted.

My problem, as I stated is, that I will have to harvest my current crop way too early or back off the amount of vegging light to slow the new plantlets growth down.

[Swami]

At the moment I am studying electrical engineer and this ofcourse has caught my interest. depende on you yield and quality, I might build one myself.. keep us posted and only good things can come.

Actually, with today's technologies, this lamp was more about mechanical layout and design and component selection than any real electrical engineering.

[micl]

do u no of eny one useing fluorecent lights,,,,,,,,please tell

[Swami]

Here are the healthy babies at about 4" tall and almost overgrowing their incubator.



No stretching, no wilting, no nute burn. All is as it should be.