Question LED COBs CXB 3590 for seedlings - How much light is needed?

[Lansky]

I really tried hard to find some posts about lights and seedling but it seems that all information are from 2013 and before. I could not find any that pertained to COB lights. I am starting my grow with 8 COBs CXB 3590 3500K. I plan on running them from Veg to Bloom. But I would like to also use them for seedling using the dimmer. I have 2 drivers allowing me to pull about 500W on a 2x6 tent. So I think I am well positioned for a nice yield. As for the quality, I would not want to screw up the first hours of life of my seeds, so I throw my question out there, how can I go about it? How many watts can I use on my seeds once they germinate? what distance should I set my light away from the seeds and for how long? Thanks for any help and apologies if this question has already been answered somewhere, I really tried

 

[Spitz]

Almost an impossible question to answer as distance is such a huge factor. You could place the light at the top of your space and crank it up full. You could keep it 8" above and probably get by with 25% for a few weeks. I have a couple Timber 3590 (3k) fixtures still in the box while my week old seedlings are under 46W of cfl. I've started seeds under a 600W draw LED fixture at full power by placing them in the corner of the tent. Haven't tried under the cobs yet. I get it, absolutely no help and I didn't say anything you don't know. Sorry for that. I could tell you to start light, watch for stretch, lower, ..., .... ,.... I guess what I meant to say was "Trust your gut and don't over do it". Let us know how those seedlings treat you and what you went with. Good luck!

 

[Rider509]

Spitz is right, you know. There's no definitive answer. If you listen, the plants will tell you what they need.

 

[Lansky]

I hear you, too many factors can impact the growth of seeds including strain. I guess since I am looking for some success story from CXB growers. It's a shame to have such a versatile grow light and still have to resort to secondary lights such as cfl or t5 for seedlings. Thanks for chiming in Splitz.Let us know how your timber kit works for you.