Coolest running grow lights

[SmokingWings]

There’s a very clear difference in how hard it works between 50 and 100, and being as stingy as I am, I want this light to last as long as possible, I should stop trying to run at 100.

I would not be surprised if the light running at 100 is actually still below the true 100%. When it is running at 100 it is at the highest level the company finds acceptable since it will not prematurely burn out diodes or any other part of the fixture. That way they can still give a warranty that the customer finds acceptable.

 

[Keffka]

Yes, they both generate 3412 BTU/h.

So will 9 Volcanos, 1428 classic Nintendo Gameboys, or 28 sleeping Border Collies

Are we talking volcano vaporizers or volcanoes that destroy villages? In my mind there’s 9 massive volcanoes next to a stack of gameboys being guarded by sleeping border collies underneath some pretty bright light fixtures

 

[Keffka]

I would not be surprised if the light running at 100 is actually still below the true 100%. When it is running at 100 it is at the highest level the company finds acceptable since it will not prematurely burn out diodes or any other part of the fixture. That way they can still give a warranty that the customer finds acceptable.

I wouldn’t be either.. it runs at 780 true draw. I’m still learning electrical but that number sounds like it was chosen intentionally to run slightly lower than full bore.

 

[PurpleGunRack]

I didn’t even think of this.. I keep trying to get my grow to take 100% of the light so I don’t have to move stuff up and down. There’s a very clear difference in how hard it works between 50 and 100, and being as stingy as I am, I want this light to last as long as possible, I should stop trying to run at 100.

Yes, this will significantly reduce wear on the diodes but increase wear on the driver, not a bad trade though

I would not be surprised if the light running at 100 is actually still below the true 100%. When it is running at 100 it is at the highest level the company finds acceptable since it will not prematurely burn out diodes or any other part of the fixture. That way they can still give a warranty that the customer finds acceptable.

Yes, I think all LED grow light companies use a driver that powers the diodes at 50-80% of their max load.
With LM301b diodes it makes big difference running at 75% rather than 100%, both in terms of efficiency and life span.

Are we talking volcano vaporizers or volcanoes that destroy villages? In my mind there’s 9 massive volcanoes next to a stack of gameboys being guarded by sleeping border collies underneath some pretty bright light fixtures

The vape ones, but I think 9 of those could destroy a small village too

 

[Keffka]

The vape ones, but I think 9 of those could destroy a small village too

That made me laugh enough that just reacting to the message wasn’t enough

 

[bluter]

I didn’t even think of this.. I keep trying to get my grow to take 100% of the light so I don’t have to move stuff up and down. There’s a very clear difference in how hard it works between 50 and 100, and being as stingy as I am, I want this light to last as long as possible, I should stop trying to run at 100.

backing off 10% from full can more than double the lifespan of your rig with little or no noticeable difference in production or potency.

Yes, I think all LED grow light companies use a driver that powers the diodes at 50-80% of their max load.
With LM301b diodes it makes big difference running at 75% rather than 100%, both in terms of efficiency and life span.

there is supposed to be a minimum 100% safety factor built into every emitter and driver. even at full out you should only be running the emitters and drivers at one half their capability.

most emitters run even further under the safety factor. the majority of led rigs only run the emitters at 10 - 25% of their capacity.

 

[Keffka]

backing off 10% from full can more than double the lifespan of your rig with little or no noticeable difference in production or potency.

I can only go in 25% increments on the fixture. I’ve gotta purchase a controller to go in between those. It’s always seemed like a luxury purchase to me though since I can just adjust heights. Maybe I’ll grab one

there is supposed to be a minimum 100% safety factor built into every emitter and driver. even at full out you should only be running the emitters and drivers at one half their capability.

most emitters run even further under the safety factor. the majority of led rigs only run the emitters at 10 - 25% of their capacity.

Is there any way to know what your fixture is running at if you didn’t build it yourself?

 

[bluter]

I can only go in 25% increments on the fixture. I’ve gotta purchase a controller to go in between those. It’s always seemed like a luxury purchase to me though since I can just adjust heights. Maybe I’ll grab one

more than a good chance the builder factored it in. the 100% setting on the dimmer may only be 90% of the driver or less.

if they're a cheesy builder they'll let you run at 100% of the driver in the hope the rig degrades enough to encourage you to upgrade sooner.

Is there any way to know what your fixture is running at if you didn’t build it yourself?

sure. easiest thing to do is get a kill-o-watt meter. plug in your light or anything else and you can see the actual direct wall draw.

all the safety factors are supposed to be inherent. they are built in if the mfgr followed accepted engineering practices. they can't get certifications otherwise.

 

[Keffka]

sure. easiest thing to do is get a kill-o-watt meter. plug in your light or anything else and you can see the actual direct wall draw

some times I miss things that are directly in front of me

 

[PurpleGunRack]

there is supposed to be a minimum 100% safety factor built into every emitter and driver. even at full out you should only be running the emitters and drivers at one half their capability

Supposed to?

Continuously force feeding an LM301b diode with 400mA will kill it.

Mean Well HLG and XLG driver have several protective measures but force feeding them twice the max input will kill them

most emitters run even further under the safety factor. the majority of led rigs only run the emitters at 10 - 25% of their capacity.

Which lights are running that low?

I've never seen anyone commercial or DIY setup run any kind of diode at 25% or less, so I'm quite curious who'd do that, and most of all why?

Seen a few DIY COB rigs maxing at 25% back in the days, but midpower diodes under 50% would have poor penetration and require many diodes. At 25% an LM301b light would run each diode at around 0,1365w, requiring 733 diodes to muster a 100w light.

 

[SmokingWings]

I've never seen anyone commercial or DIY setup run any kind of diode at 25% or less, so I'm quite curious who'd do that, and most of all why?

I have to believe that many of the inexpensive "blurple grow lights" which are sold in big box home improvement store or super-stores with a outdoor or gardening section are running at low percentages.

As to why, running at 100% will burn out the diodes a lot sooner and that means shorter warranty periods. Who wants a 30 day warranty on a $300 light? Lower the juice going into the diodes but maintain levels high enough to grow plants and give a 2 year warranty on the fixture and 1 year or longer on the diodes.

The numbers might not be exact but they are an example how I figure the light companies look at the business & warranty situation they are faced with.

 

[SmokingWings]

sure. easiest thing to do is get a kill-o-watt meter.

Was walking around looking at stuff at a garage sale and on one table was a few electrical things including a Kill-a-watt with packaging for a $1. Gave them my dollar and gave the device a new home.

 

[bluter]

Supposed to?

Continuously force feeding an LM301b diode with 400mA will kill it.

i never promised they'd last.

the safety factor is to ensure they don't trigger a runaway fire event over emitters failing. if an emitter fails, the voltage is carried through to the remaining ones. without the safety factor the extra voltage could then overwhelm the next in the line and so on leading to what's called a runaway fire.

it's a little more common in series wiring than parallel but occurs in both. it's one of the things you are made aware of when building your own rigs.

Mean Well HLG and XLG driver have several protective measures but force feeding them twice the max input will kill them

you don't force feed anything. it's head room not meant to be accessed. that's why it's a safety factor. i can take any mean well driver, open it up, and calibrate it for double the output they are set at factory. it's separate and apart from any dimming capability, whether the driver has dimming or not.

mean well is a good example as most of their drivers don't even need to be opened to re-set. it's a well-known feature of their drivers. to be fair to your point, i don't think they allow you the full range.

other drivers will require more work and are not a simple adjustment. many like moon and pairu drivers have them, but only in the upper ranges and you have to open them up to access anything. it's not a home diy thing.

I've never seen anyone commercial or DIY setup run any kind of diode at 25% or less, so I'm quite curious who'd do that, and most of all why?

the safety factor is an engineering standard. it's not just electrical. the safe operating range in the spec sheet does not include the safety factor, which is over and above.

the unused portion of emitter capacity is where cheesey builders were able to claim a 100w light was equal to the output of a 1000w hid. they add up all the unused emitter capacity and add it to the claim. it's a practice that still occurs today.

note it's emitter capacity they are claiming, not driver output.

Seen a few DIY COB rigs maxing at 25% back in the days, but midpower diodes under 50% would have poor penetration and require many diodes. At 25% an LM301b light would run each diode at around 0,1365w, requiring 733 diodes to muster a 100w light.

funny you bring cob up. we blew a few up on a production rig by over powering them. they only lasted a few seconds. to this day i don't know if i ordered the wrong ones or got sent bad cobs.

they were in a couple blinders. the originals had got wet on an outdoor show and we did not trust them. they actually turned out to be ok, we re-installed them and they work to this day a decade later.