Need advice, I want to start growing indoors

[Electrum]

Hi guys,

I am new to these forums but I think it's time I stopped doing this by myself and join a community of like-minded people.
I have almost finished growing my first plant (outdoors) which I found to be a little difficult but it turned out very nice and I am now wanting to grow indoors. Basically I am at the stage of looking for lighting, I was looking into cheap CFL but have since found the Full Spectrum LED type which took my interest. I'm not a hardcore grower (yet)
One that really took my attention (price wise, includes power connection and 1.75m cable)

^click the attatched photo, I couldn't put links due to being a new forum member
I am just doing this as a hobby so will only be starting off with one plant for the time being but my main question is how many of these lights will I need for one plant, two plants, three plants? are these bulbs safe and reliable? What is everyone's experiences? I'm not looking for HUGE yields, just a fair amount!

Thanks for any help




P.S Sorry this post is so messy and I attatched so many photos, still learning

 

[GrowingTheDream]

Dont even waste your time with those leds. Just get a mars300. You will be 100 times more satifisted

 

[Electrum]

Dont even waste your time with those leds. Just get a mars300. You will be 100 times more satifisted

Any cheaper alternatives? I can find the Mars300 for $110 on ebay but was more happy with the $50-$75 range, if it comes down to it then yes I will buy the Mars

 

[SouthCross]

I use galaxyhydro brand. They ran me about $100 a light($80-$99). 300watt. I've never grown with any other LED. I looked up the spectrum. Seemed good to me. Never looked back.

My plants do just fine. No complaints.

 

[Electrum]

I use galaxyhydro brand. They ran me about $100 a light($80-$99). 300watt. I've never grown with any other LED. I looked up the spectrum. Seemed good to me. Never looked back.

My plants do just fine. No complaints.

unfortunately the prices for those in Australia compared to the Mars300 are probably 1.5x more

 

[nickmad94]

Hey man I'm also new so i may not know as much as the experts but those Ufo lights are cheaply produced, run poorly and work for pepper seedlings. If you want something that lasts look at the indoor/led threads here to find some great quality led lights that last and can even be run lower to prolong lifespan and cost less to run. Full spectrum is needless and questionable especially when they won't tell you how they did it.

I just bought some CoB leds from cutter as Im too lazy to look for the next best thing and the lowest possible price.

Then again u could get one of those then leave the plant until it does it's thing. But what a waste that would be. Better yields would occur outside. Where the plants have been living for millions of years.

 

[Electrum]

Hey man I'm also new so i may not know as much as the experts but those Ufo lights are cheaply produced, run poorly and work for pepper seedlings. If you want something that lasts look at the indoor/led threads here to find some great quality led lights that last and can even be run lower to prolong lifespan and cost less to run. Full spectrum is needless and questionable especially when they won't tell you how they did it.

I just bought some CoB leds from cutter as Im too lazy to look for the next best thing and the lowest possible price.

Then again u could get one of those then leave the plant until it does it's thing. But what a waste that would be. Better yields would occur outside. Where the plants have been living for millions of years.

I would love to keep growing outside man, but I don't think I'll be able to get away with it forever and sometimes the freak weather makes me paranoid and I would rather control it myself
I like the look of the Mars300 though and have heard a small amount of feedback about them but not enough to make me trust it. I think I will definitely stay away from that shitty little UFO light though for sure!

Could you explain what the CoB leds are? and I assume cutter is a member on the site?

Thanks for the reply

 

[Owly]

Under $75 there aren't many good options (other than some involved DIY things).

Since you're new to the indoor thing, lets forget about price and talk about what you want out of this grow.

Do you have a space picked out?
If so how big is it?
and most importantly:
How much weed do you want per cycle?

If you just love to grow plants, you can grow a plant under a $3 screw base LED energy saver bulb. It'll yield one nice fat joint if things go well.
If you want a pound or three, that's the worst advice ever.

 

[Electrum]

Under $75 there aren't many good options (other than some involved DIY things).

Since you're new to the indoor thing, lets forget about price and talk about what you want out of this grow.

Do you have a space picked out?
If so how big is it?
and most importantly:
How much weed do you want per cycle?

If you just love to grow plants, you can grow a plant under a $3 screw base LED energy saver bulb. It'll yield one nice fat joint if things go well.
If you want a pound or three, that's the worst advice ever.

Sorry dude, I have purchased a few auto-flowering seeds from BonzaSeeds which should arrive shortly.
I have a space picked out but I'm open to changing, it will be big enough for 1-3 small/medium plants, nothing special, imagine it as a built in robe
I am not looking for tiny yields (one joint with $3 bulb), I am happy to invest into a good light (thinking I may have to go around the $100 mark now)
I am looking for enough weed to sell to friends & have enough to keep for myself to smoke occasionally.
I hope this was more informative

 

[Owly]

So the over simplified rule of thumb back when HPS ruled,70watt=6/8oz, 150watt=2oz, 250watt=4oz, 400watt=0.5lbs, 600=1lb, 1000=1.5lbs.

then you take your pick and divide the wattage by 50 and you have the square footage that light should cover.

I recommend going through this and price out HID setups. They are probably the lowest price per gram way to grow the first cycle.

 

[cindysid]

Don't even bother with the cheap led's if you can accommodate HIDs. I bought the blurples when I first started, and I have several in storage. They're ok for vegging, but I really prefer T5s even for that. I have been growing indoors for less than 2 years and I have changed my setup so many times, and it can be costly. I'm wanting to move up to cobs, but I don't have the skill to build one myself so I will have to wait before changing over from HPS, but I will probably do so within the next year.

What I'm saying is if you are serious about growing, buy the best you can in the first place. It will save money in the long run. Example: I bought cheap no name carbon filters off amazon. They didn't work well at all so I had to replace them with Phresh filters. They cost twice as much, but they work!

 

[Electrum]

Don't even bother with the cheap led's if you can accommodate HIDs. I bought the blurples when I first started, and I have several in storage. They're ok for vegging, but I really prefer T5s even for that. I have been growing indoors for less than 2 years and I have changed my setup so many times, and it can be costly. I'm wanting to move up to cobs, but I don't have the skill to build one myself so I will have to wait before changing over from HPS, but I will probably do so within the next year.

What I'm saying is if you are serious about growing, buy the best you can in the first place. It will save money in the long run. Example: I bought cheap no name carbon filters off amazon. They didn't work well at all so I had to replace them with Phresh filters. They cost twice as much, but they work!

Well as I am not looking to become a Hardcore grower at the moment, just a hobby for now, I have ordered the Mars Hydro 300W (they have awesome customer service, awesome reviews and stock in AU and was fairly cheap $100 and 1 year warranty which is good because I'm sure in a year it will make me my money back and if it breaks between now and then it will be fixed for free) for now this will help me hone my skills and I'm sure ill know what I'm doing by the time I want to move up with my grow setup I still need to look for a carbon filter for a small grow area, any ideas?

 

[cindysid]

Well as I am not looking to become a Hardcore grower at the moment, just a hobby for now, I have ordered the Mars Hydro 300W (they have awesome customer service, awesome reviews and stock in AU and was fairly cheap $100 and 1 year warranty which is good because I'm sure in a year it will make me my money back and if it breaks between now and then it will be fixed for free) for now this will help me hone my skills and I'm sure ill know what I'm doing by the time I want to move up with my grow setup I still need to look for a carbon filter for a small grow area, any ideas?

Buy a 4" Phresh filter. They really work great

 

[nickmad94]

If you want to save energy and running cost then look into t5 fluorescence bulbs for seedlings, i got a massive cfl to keep my girl vegging until about 2.5 feet.

A friend has one 300 watt metal halide in his room above one plant that I've smoked myself and was impressed. Granted he has lots of Windows and a ceiling fan.

Heres the clf I got for like 50 bucks. Was energy saving and had decent spectrum.

 

[nickmad94]

I think there are threads here where members replace their Mars light's with Veros or sumthing, while using the Mars casing. Cheers mate

 

[coreywebster]

Well as I am not looking to become a Hardcore grower at the moment, just a hobby for now, I have ordered the Mars Hydro 300W (they have awesome customer service, awesome reviews and stock in AU and was fairly cheap $100 and 1 year warranty which is good because I'm sure in a year it will make me my money back and if it breaks between now and then it will be fixed for free) for now this will help me hone my skills and I'm sure ill know what I'm doing by the time I want to move up with my grow setup I still need to look for a carbon filter for a small grow area, any ideas?

Your in Australia? You have the best carbon in the world so a good filter should be reasonable price wise. I would of recommended cobs if you could of afforded and if not HPS for the price is a great starter, you've already ordered a mars so I'm too late. It will grow you some plants. If you ever decide to upgrade you have cutter.au to buy cobs from who happen to be in your country and are incredibly competitive price wise. They are a great company and yes they are advertisers on here too which means customer support is pretty good.
Anyway, good luck with your indoor grows.

@cindysid You do have the skill to build your own Cob light, trust me, it may seem daunting but it really is very easy. Take the plunge!!

 

[nickmad94]

Yeah depends on how much you want to pay, if OP was keen on a Ufo then isn't the price per CoB around the same?

You can always ask others for help, besides it's all rather elementary and straightforward.

 

[Jon E. Doe]

I'm no rocket horticulturist, but from watching Growmau5's vids it seems pretty apparent that one could take the same $100 invested in a "300w" blurple, and put together a dual cob light that would perhaps perform better in a 1-2 plant setup in a small space.

[I shoulda read/watched more before I spent a penny]

 

[motoracer110]

IMO use a 400 watt MH/HPS combo kit $90 on eBay. Take the guesswork out of your lighting system and go with what works and is proven. 12 years ago I started with a system like that and the main cola to my white widow plant was thicker than my arm.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/400-watt-400w-Dimmable-HPS-MH-Grow-Light-System-Set-Kit-/121119199404?var=&hash=item1c334450ac:m:mGM_kuOcgGFTirzwRYCiXEg

It's a hell of a gamble to go with the cheapest led system you can find and 3-4 months is a long time to find out if it sucks or is good.

 

[Electrum]

IMO use a 400 watt MH/HPS combo kit $90 on eBay. Take the guesswork out of your lighting system and go with what works and is proven. 12 years ago I started with a system like that and the main cola to my white widow plant was thicker than my arm.
eBay Link

It's a hell of a gamble to go with the cheapest led system you can find and 3-4 months is a long time to find out if it sucks or is good.

Thanks for the reply mate, I've heard these use a hell of a lot of power, am I wrong?
And also you say HPS/MH COMBO, what is the MH? Do I switch in a different globe for different stage of plant growth? I think I will use one of these kits for my next grow