Squiggle Is Testing The Sylstar GL4000a: Multi Strain Grow, In A Brand New Set Up!

[Liqurd4tay0z]

Seedlings Day 6
Day 11 from soaking seeds

Light: Sylstar GL-4000a
Medium: Store bought compost.
Final pot size and type: to be confirmed
Grow space: 1metre X 1metre X 2metre
Strains: 1xSour diesel. 1xStar dawg. 1xBlueberry OG. All photoperiod and 1x White widow Auto
Nutrients: liquid organic feed (if needed)
Water: Mineral, pH'd to 6.5
Temperature: 22
RH: 55

Howdy do folks. Hope you are all as well as can be.
Just a quick pictures update.

The 3 that are remaining are loving life . The blue berry has got over her
head injury and she is sitting upright and the other two are soaking up the rays.
Here's some photos

Blue berry (bad photo, as the cat farted and I was giggling like a child)

Sour diesel

White widow

They are all looking happy enough..

Oh !! New toy came. It's only on hire, but I've wanted one to play with, just to see what this light is doing at different dimmer settings. I will be mucking about with that at the weekend

And as always; I thank you all for popping in. I will see you all in your side.

Cheers

Squiggle

Looking good mate! I can't wait to see them really start to take off and thrive under your new light one thing I usually do with my seedlings is for the first week or so after germination and up to around the 3rd or 4th node of growth, I will start them off under cfl's a mixture of 2700k and 3500k because you can get them fairly close without damaging the seedlings from heat/light stress and it almost always keeps them from stretching. I also have found that my seedlings grow alot quicker with alot more root growth than they would have starting seedlings directly under the led from Day 1. Everytime I have gone and started under an led following the manufacturers recommended height and power they stretch so I just keep it super simple until the roots can get a good foothold and establish themselves a bit. The only drawback is when you do finally get them under the led I find regardless of how far away you have that light it tends to cause some sort of light stress where leaves will start twisting slightly or the serrated edges may fold under on some. I have done some experimenting and what seems to work great for me is when I'm ready to put the seedlings under the led, I will do a few days or so of having them under the led for like 12 hours and then back under the cfls for the remaining 6 hours and after like 3 or 4 days of doing this they can stay under the led permanently during veg. This is just some I do because it works really well for me, especially with the limited space I have for growing but I'm hoping this will all change by the end of the year when where I will be moving into a much bigger place and I can design a proper grow space....keeping my fingers crossed on that one.

Cheers!!

 

[Sticky fingaz]

@Squiggle Oi Oi Saveloy!! How we doin fella? Much better day then
Ah great to see they recovered dude, awesome. Did you order any more seeds in the end, I actually have the same Stardawg seeds from @dopeseeds at home. I was going to do a photo grow originally with one Auto. But because of the long break I got impatient so Auto'd the lot Lol. If you have difficulty getting more & want the stardawg let me know & I can send ( I'll have that fancy meter thingy after you as well )

One

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Looking good mate! I can't wait to see them really start to take off and thrive under your new light one thing I usually do with my seedlings is for the first week or so after germination and up to around the 3rd or 4th node of growth, I will start them off under cfl's a mixture of 2700k and 3500k because you can get them fairly close without damaging the seedlings from heat/light stress and it almost always keeps them from stretching. I also have found that my seedlings grow alot quicker with alot more root growth than they would have starting seedlings directly under the led from Day 1. Everytime I have gone and started under an led following the manufacturers recommended height and power they stretch so I just keep it super simple until the roots can get a good foothold and establish themselves a bit. The only drawback is when you do finally get them under the led I find regardless of how far away you have that light it tends to cause some sort of light stress where leaves will start twisting slightly or the serrated edges may fold under on some. I have done some experimenting and what seems to work great for me is when I'm ready to put the seedlings under the led, I will do a few days or so of having them under the led for like 12 hours and then back under the cfls for the remaining 6 hours and after like 3 or 4 days of doing this they can stay under the led permanently during veg. This is just some I do because it works really well for me, especially with the limited space I have for growing but I'm hoping this will all change by the end of the year when where I will be moving into a much bigger place and I can design a proper grow space....keeping my fingers crossed on that one.

Cheers!!

Great bit of info, thanks for taking the time to write it mate. But I agree with you on the simple part. I've always kept the first few days simple and never had any problems.. but, I've learned a lot from the start of this..
Good luck for the move, imagine what you can do with more grow space..
I really hope it all comes true for you buddy!!

 

[Paul Squiggle]

@Squiggle Oi Oi Saveloy!! How we doin fella? Much better day then
Ah great to see they recovered dude, awesome. Did you order any more seeds in the end, I actually have the same Stardawg seeds from @dopeseeds at home. I was going to do a photo grow originally with one Auto. But because of the long break I got impatient so Auto'd the lot Lol. If you have difficulty getting more & want the stardawg let me know & I can send ( I'll have that fancy meter thingy after you as well )

One

Howdy do mate. I'm much better thanks for asking, I've got used to this light. I'm not frightened of it anymore. How's it growing at your end??
I did order more seeds; too many infact, from the same place as you.
Thanks for that offer amyway. If I kill the next one's, I might take you up on it..
Are you interested in that par meter? I will pm the details over if you are. It comes in a fancy box.. foook knows how to use it, but it looks nice

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Seedlings Day 7
Day 12 from soaking seeds

Light: Sylstar GL-4000a
Medium: Store bought compost.
Final pot size and type: to be confirmed
Grow space: 1metre X 1metre X 2metre
Strains: 1xSour diesel. 1xStar dawg. 1xBlueberry OG. All photoperiod and 1x White widow Auto
Nutrients: liquid organic feed (if needed)
Water: Mineral, pH'd to 6.5
Temperature: 25
RH: 50

Howdy do folks. Hope all's well with you lot.

Just a quick update.
They aren't dead, so that's a bonus.
The blue berry that had concussion, is on a bit of a go slow; but it's understandable, as she got quite a bashing up and her little feet fell out of the pot.. this is her..

The Sour diesel is the next best. There's a few white dots on the leaves, but that's off the spray bottle. Here she is

And the leader of the pack is the White Widow. Very happy little lady..

Here she is also

Overall im pretty pleased. It was a bit of a drama to start with, but I've grown confident with the light and the Lux "O" meter..
The light is putting out 8000 lux, drawing 50 watts at the mo and is as cold as polar bears bum hole. My other light used to get around 20 degrees at 50 watts

I will be doing the Par test thing over the weekend. Just got to make my noughts and crosses board thing (that's tic tac toe, to all you non noughts and crosses people's)
Anyway. I've been trying to up my game on the photography. Instead of point and click, I'm actually taking a bit more time on them. I hope it shows..

Once again; I thank you all for stopping by and taking the time to read my posts. I know how busy you all are on this forum, so I genuinely appreciate all the support..

Thanks again guys.
See you on your side

Squiggz

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Seedlings Day 8
Day 13 from soaking seeds

Light: Sylstar GL-4000a
Medium: Store bought compost.
Final pot size and type: to be confirmed
Grow space: 1metre X 1metre X 2metre
Strains: 1xSour diesel. 1xStar dawg. 1xBlueberry OG. All photoperiod and 1x White widow Auto
Nutrients: liquid organic feed (if needed)
Water: Mineral, pH'd to 6.5
Temperature: 25
RH: 47

Howdy do folks. Hope all's well with you lot.

Just another quick update. Things are still growing in the right direction.

Here's a few photos..
Here's the blue berry OG. She's still on a go slow, but happy

Here is the Sour diesel. Praying a bit..

Here is the star of the group. The White Widow

so I'm pretty pleased so far.

Oh!! Made my chequerboard thingymebobs for the par test.
I got a 1m square off cut of 3 mm pvc sheet from our local plastics place for free. And I've broke or up into 180mm squares, using electrical tape.

Now I just have to figure out this Par "O" metre thing ..

Anyways. As always, I appreciate you all stopping by. So thank you once more.

See you all on your side

Squiggle

 

[Sticky fingaz]

Howdy do mate. I'm much better thanks for asking, I've got used to this light. I'm not frightened of it anymore. How's it growing at your end??
I did order more seeds; too many infact, from the same place as you.
Thanks for that offer amyway. If I kill the next one's, I might take you up on it..
Are you interested in that par meter? I will pm the details over if you are. It comes in a fancy box.. foook knows how to use it, but it looks nice

Yh all good matey…..now lol. Has been a total nightmare with temps this week & realising my humidifier just isn’t beefy enough to cope with the larger area & exhaust fan going. My temp has stabled out but my RH is struggling to get above 50%….when at this stage I should be aiming for 75%.
like you, getting used to the light has been fun. I used a blue light to start & didn’t get a stretch on my last grow. These I’ve had to prick out & re plant twice. I watched an independent review on the light & found out that at 60cm I can have it at 100%. I’ve done this & they’ve finally stopped growing up & started growing out a bit.
The par meter thingy would have been good, but I believe your grow space needs to be clear so you can place the grid on the ground? I’d have to remove pretty much everything to do the test so I’ll probably do that next time now.

 

[Sticky fingaz]

Seedlings Day 7
Day 12 from soaking seeds

Light: Sylstar GL-4000a
Medium: Store bought compost.
Final pot size and type: to be confirmed
Grow space: 1metre X 1metre X 2metre
Strains: 1xSour diesel. 1xStar dawg. 1xBlueberry OG. All photoperiod and 1x White widow Auto
Nutrients: liquid organic feed (if needed)
Water: Mineral, pH'd to 6.5
Temperature: 25
RH: 50

Howdy do folks. Hope all's well with you lot.

Just a quick update.
They aren't dead, so that's a bonus.
The blue berry that had concussion, is on a bit of a go slow; but it's understandable, as she got quite a bashing up and her little feet fell out of the pot.. this is her..

The Sour diesel is the next best. There's a few white dots on the leaves, but that's off the spray bottle. Here she is

And the leader of the pack is the White Widow. Very happy little lady..

Here she is also

Overall im pretty pleased. It was a bit of a drama to start with, but I've grown confident with the light and the Lux "O" meter..
The light is putting out 8000 lux, drawing 50 watts at the mo and is as cold as polar bears bum hole. My other light used to get around 20 degrees at 50 watts

I will be doing the Par test thing over the weekend. Just got to make my noughts and crosses board thing (that's tic tac toe, to all you non noughts and crosses people's)
Anyway. I've been trying to up my game on the photography. Instead of point and click, I'm actually taking a bit more time on them. I hope it shows..

Once again; I thank you all for stopping by and taking the time to read my posts. I know how busy you all are on this forum, so I genuinely appreciate all the support..

Thanks again guys.
See you on your side

Squiggz

GREAT!!! Happy things have turned around around for ya buddy! Looking awesome

 

[Listersmeghead]

Seedlings Day 8
Day 13 from soaking seeds

Light: Sylstar GL-4000a
Medium: Store bought compost.
Final pot size and type: to be confirmed
Grow space: 1metre X 1metre X 2metre
Strains: 1xSour diesel. 1xStar dawg. 1xBlueberry OG. All photoperiod and 1x White widow Auto
Nutrients: liquid organic feed (if needed)
Water: Mineral, pH'd to 6.5
Temperature: 25
RH: 47

Howdy do folks. Hope all's well with you lot.

Just another quick update. Things are still growing in the right direction.

Here's a few photos..
Here's the blue berry OG. She's still on a go slow, but happy

Here is the Sour diesel. Praying a bit..

Here is the star of the group. The White Widow

so I'm pretty pleased so far.

Oh!! Made my chequerboard thingymebobs for the par test.
I got a 1m square off cut of 3 mm pvc sheet from our local plastics place for free. And I've broke or up into 180mm squares, using electrical tape.

Now I just have to figure out this Par "O" metre thing ..

Anyways. As always, I appreciate you all stopping by. So thank you once more.

See you all on your side

Squiggle

That's looking a lot better.
Nice noughts and crosses board, look forward to the results.

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Yh all good matey…..now lol. Has been a total nightmare with temps this week & realising my humidifier just isn’t beefy enough to cope with the larger area & exhaust fan going. My temp has stabled out but my RH is struggling to get above 50%….when at this stage I should be aiming for 75%.
like you, getting used to the light has been fun. I used a blue light to start & didn’t get a stretch on my last grow. These I’ve had to prick out & re plant twice. I watched an independent review on the light & found out that at 60cm I can have it at 100%. I’ve done this & they’ve finally stopped growing up & started growing out a bit.
The par meter thingy would have been good, but I believe your grow space needs to be clear so you can place the grid on the ground? I’d have to remove pretty much everything to do the test so I’ll probably do that next time now.

At least you have overcome your light problems also. Can you not supplement your dehumidifier with a few wet towels, just to get the RH up?
Looking forward to the next update in your journal mate..
Yeah, the par test grid is a pain, my plants will be out of their comfy home for a while. But it will help me understand this light a bit better. As Im Sure there is hot spots in places.
Anyway.. have a happy Sunday mate , no doubt I will catch up with you on your side

 

[Paul Squiggle]

That's looking a lot better.
Nice noughts and crosses board, look forward to the results.

Thanks mate. Me and the missus had a few games of connect 4 on it. It's great fun.. par test might be today, I don't know at the minute.
Mrs squiggles got me painting the stair walls today

 

[Listersmeghead]

Mrs squiggles got me painting the stair walls today

Thats a nice gift , happy fathers day.

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Thats a nice gift , happy fathers day.

Tell me about it hope the kids got you something special mate and not a paint brush like me

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Seedlings Day 9
Day 14 from soaking seeds

Light: Sylstar GL-4000a
Medium: Store bought compost.
Final pot size and type: to be confirmed
Grow space: 1metre X 1metre X 2metre
Strains: 1xSour diesel. 1xStar dawg. 1xBlueberry OG. All photoperiod and 1x White widow Auto
Nutrients: liquid organic feed (if needed)
Water: Mineral, pH'd to 6.5
Temperature: 25
RH: 50

Howdy do folks. Hope you've all had a chillaxing Sunday..

Just a quick photo dump update. I will be doing the par test tomorrow night. I'm still up a ladder painting the walls.
Anyway.. here's the Blue berry

The sour diesel

White widow

It's all growing in the right direction..
As always, thank you for taking the time to look.
Catch you all on your side


Squiggle

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Seedlings Day 12
Day 16 from soaking seeds

Light: Sylstar GL-4000a
Medium: Store bought compost.
Final pot size and type: to be confirmed
Grow space: 1metre X 1metre X 2metre
Strains: 1xSour diesel. 1xStar dawg. 1xBlueberry OG. All photoperiod and 1x White widow Auto
Nutrients: liquid organic feed (if needed)
Water: Mineral, pH'd to 6.5
Temperature: 25
RH: 50

Howdy do guys.. just another quick photo dump.
I didn't get a chance to update yesterday, still bloody decorating. The stairs led to the hallway, then the sitting room..
Anyway..
I had a bit of a disaster today. I was doing the par test thing and when I moved the plants out of the tent, I knocked them over again. The white widow had her roots all hanging out. So she's going to be on a go slow for a few day.. anyway. Here's some photos

The Blue berry

The Sour Diseasel

THE White Widow

Hopefully the WW will bounce back quick after her injury.

Anyway. Thanks for looking guys. It's always a pleasure to see the odd thumbs up..
I will be posting the results of the light test next.

Take care

Squiggz

 

[Paul Squiggle]

THE PAR AND LUX TEST RESULTS

Hi guys, I finally found the time to do the tests.
I did all the tests at 24 inches. I did not see the point in doing them at anything higher than 24inches ; as you start getting into that inverse square law thing.
You just end up turning the light up to a higher power, to get the same amount light hitting your plants; it's the same amount of lux/par, but it costs more in electricity.. I also didnt go any lower than 24inches as I read into how much damage an led can do to the plant cell structure when it's too close, thanks @bluter for pointing that out...

Anyway. I ran the Lux and par test at the same time.
PAR is green
LUX is orange.

You may have to zoom in to see the values. I will type it up properly later on the laptop..
This is at 20% 60 Watts

This is at 40% 85Watts

This is at 60% 120 watts

This is at 80% 320 Watts

This is at 100% 490 Watts

At full power, it is pushing out 1100 par in the centre .
This is in a 1meterx1meter tent at 24 inches..
Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Catch you soon guys, thanks for looking

Squiggle

 

[Listersmeghead]

Evening squiggle.

I knocked them over again.

I'm going to get you sent on a health n safety handling course, either that or let your cat sid move them for you.

Good show on the par test, looked really thorough. Must of taken you awhile.

, it is pushing out 1100 par in the centre .

that sounds about right to me. It's a good light with good components, the board lights just have a hot spot in the middle you have to watch.

 

[Paul Squiggle]

I'm going to get you sent on a health n safety handling course, either that or let your cat sid move them for you.

I need some sort of advice on how not to drop stuff.. the cat he's already tried to munch on them, so he's getting nowhere near them anymore..

The results.
I'm pretty happy, it seemed to take forever. It took about 3 hours.
I really should have done it on a straight head. When you're stoned, you end up getting number dyslexia. It shows the hotspots as you say. Plus it has gave me a par equivalent in LUX. The Lux meter isn't that accurate at higher power. You could take the reading 3 times and each time it would be different by a 1000 roughly
That par "O" meter was bang on everytime.

Is there any info you can gather off this test? Would you say it is ideal for this size space or would it be better used in a bigger tent?

 

[Listersmeghead]

The Lux meter isn't that accurate at higher power.

That's what Shane at migro was showing, a lot of lux meters will drop off in accuracy as you go up in power.
The only lux meter (that he tested) that showed a close match all the way was a uni-t model lux meter. That's the one I scored up, only £16.

That par "O" meter was bang on everytime.

That's what you pay the money for

Is there any info you can gather off this test? Would you say it is ideal for this size space or would it be better used in a bigger tent?

you'd have to run the numbers for an average to find out the micromoles* to see how efficient it is.
If it fits in your tent and you can dim it squiggle, then it's the right size.
It's most probably more useful in a 4×4, but if you manage the hotspot and overall canopy it's great for 3×3. I'd rather have a powerful light and dim it to required level, the unit will last you a lot longer that way.

 

[Paul Squiggle]

AHH! I've seen that Lux meter. I'm going to see if I can bag a cheap one..

Average? Micromoles?? Efficient? Bugger that! It sounds to complicated

Your right again. It's like having a fast car. You can only do 70mph but if you need more power, you know it's there..

Thanks for the input mate. It's really appreciated