COBs + ChilLED 100w PCB DIY
- Thread starter Odindris
- Start date
skoomd
Well-Known Member
Good choice. And yeah, 4-5 cobs will be plenty for a 2x4 veg tent. I would use 4 cobs and drive them hard for 300-400w and run them high off the plants for better diffusion. My 320w samsung strips are 500PPFD 3 feet away so you could run them 3 feet away and have plenty of light for veg. The added diffusion will mean better canopy penetration and more efficient photosynthesis since the whole plant is getting even light instead of the canopy getting blasted.
But yeah, 3500k will make the plants much more manageable than 6500k, and they'll probably grow a good bit faster too. And you could use them as a flower light if you wanted to later on! The spectrum of an HPS bulb is what a 1750k-2000k COB puts off, so 3500k wont cause any where near the stretching you'd get from an HPS.
skoomd
Well-Known Member
Yeah that would be fine for a veg tent, but if you wanna be safe I would get an HLG-320H-C2100A and use 4 COBs so you have 320 watts to work with. That way you have plenty of headroom and if you wanna flower using it you'll be good. It doesnt cost much more than the 240h-c1400b but you'll get a lot more power. Since it's a veg light, efficiency isn't the most critical thing so driving the cobs at 2100mah will make things more cost effective.
5 cobs might not work off that driver btw, 5 cobs would be just about 180v and that driver you mentioned only can do 179v. So i'd just use 4 cobs to be sure. If the driver cant supply the voltage, it wont turn on the COBs.
Aolelon
Well-Known Member
Sorry I should have explained it better.
I am currently using 3000k for veg and flower, but I think 3500k would be even better. Plus if you're using those ChilLeds for flower they should do the trick perfectly. Even in veg they should work just fine. The flowers would benefit from the 660nm more but it definitely wouldn't harm them in veg.
Aolelon
Well-Known Member
5 cobs would work off that driver. If they are the 3590s @ 1400mA they are only 34v which would be 170v. I'd have to look about the cmx22s
skoomd
Well-Known Member
Ah okay. Was just making sure. For a veg tent though, I'd rather save the money for the cob/heatsink and just use 4 instead of 5. Uniformity/efficiency isnt that important so you'll be saving money and getting nearly the same results.
And I agree, check out the cmx22s. Either those or i would use vero 29s.
a mongo frog
Well-Known Member
How many runs do you have vegging under 4000k cobs? Only reason I'm asking is because there is a vast majority of the grow world vegging under 4200k and growing monsters.
skoomd
Well-Known Member
None personally. I am just judging by how veg is under 3000k and 3500k. Considering how much more blue 4000k has, it will grow very tight plants. My old blurple LEDs had less blue in them and my plants were VERY compact.
A 4200k CMH/MH doesnt have as much blue relative to the other wavelengths as a 4000k COB does. So a 4000k cob will grow more compact plants than a 4200k CMH would. A 3000k COB has about as much blue as a 4200k CMH does.
Kushash
Well-Known Member
And my post is in no way referencing your post. It's just enjoyable to read an LED conversation where a fight hasn't broken out, at least not yet LOL.
skoomd
Well-Known Member
It's been nice now that that slinging-par guy seems to have disappeared. There's no need to have such heated bullshit debates. This hobby doesn't have a lot of solid knowledge that's backed by science, so there's always going to be disagreements over stuff. So it's better if we all butt heads together and share our own experiences and learn from each other than arguing over what is the "best" because what works for one person may not work for the next person.
Aolelon
Well-Known Member
Lmao you know he's here somewhere, lurking under a different alias.
skoomd
Well-Known Member
Oh yeah for sure. I'm just glad he isnt posting anymore. Looks like a mod removed a bunch of his insane bullshit posts too. I wonder if the mods can IP ban him.
Odindris
Member
@Aolelon those clu048-1818 def do look good, and are cheaper than Cree. Might just have to go with those. Good spot.
This 2x4 is just a test DIY, as long as all goes well I should learn a lot, and translate that to a larger area. So really I don’t mind if I buy a couple extra cobs and run them lower. They’re going to be used in a few months anyways. I just want to get a really good grow here for my proof of concept.
Also appreciate everyone being really cool, and offering good advise.
This 2x4 is just a test DIY, as long as all goes well I should learn a lot, and translate that to a larger area. So really I don’t mind if I buy a couple extra cobs and run them lower. They’re going to be used in a few months anyways. I just want to get a really good grow here for my proof of concept.
Also appreciate everyone being really cool, and offering good advise.