On Friday I received my 400W LED Solar Storm. I am currently in the process of starting my third grow. I was so happy to be selected to receive this light at a discount!. Both of my previous grows have been entirely under LED lights. I was using two
UFO 135W LEDs

I will try to describe my current grow room and set up. I use a 1/2 bathroom that is 3' wide x 8' long I specifically use
the sink/cabinet area with is 36" x 36" with a board cover over the sink that I use as a convenient ledge. I grow with a
hydroponics set-up "tweeked' to my personal likes. My resevoir hold 8 gallons of water filled to the brim. I use two large
micro diffusers 4" x 10" with a commercial air pump. I have burned through two water pumps; I don't know why. I use
Stealth Hydro Grow, Bloom and Micro nutrients. and add Canna Bloom during the last weeks of my bloom. I follow directions
specifically on any application that I use. I use a Hanna Grow Check to properly monitor my ph. I like the the convenience of
just placing the thermistor in the water and the Hanna constantly gives me a readout of the ph, temp and ppm. I further use a Foothill filter to control air quality with activated Carbon. My lights are controlled by timers. And, finally I use a small fan to "flutter my leaves". I keep track of all my data using a convenient calendar on the wall; recording ph. temp and ppm.

I have not had any problems with mold, root rot or.... keeping everything quite clean,

I use quality seeds and believe that I get decent end results. But I believe I can do better and that my existing lighting needed
improvement. Using simple calculations I need at least 360 total watts of LEDs.

I initially decided on LEDs for my lighting because of the cost of electricity and the potential of high consumption. I wanted to remain discreet. I have adequate ventilation however cannot structurally add to the existing ventilation in this bathroom.

And, I choose to remain discreet.

I did the work; read all the reference and information and end result I went with California Light Works because it is an American made product and I like their customer service; I like calling a company asking for help and getting to talk to a real live person, and and I like getting prompt e-mail responses.

I am looking forward to this forum and will continue to post after starting my seeds.

Welcome,and good luck on your grow!

Good people here to help where they can.

GR

Welcome to the forums!


SME

Good Morning.

I am having some difficulty in posting photos. Could you help me? Thanks

Pictures need to be under 1 meg and if you use an apple product you might need to install an alternate browser like firefox or chrome.

Sophieseedwell wrote:Good Morning.

I am having some difficulty in posting photos. Could you help me? Thanks

Or open them in Office 2010 and choose edit pictures, you can crop then resize. I use the large web size when resizing.

Hope that helps!

Peace out,

GR

Sophieseedwell wrote:On Friday I received my 400W LED Solar Storm. I am currently in the process of starting my third grow. I was so happy to be selected to receive this light at a discount!. Both of my previous grows have been entirely under LED lights. I was using two
UFO 135W LEDs

I will try to describe my current grow room and set up. I use a 1/2 bathroom that is 3' wide x 8' long I specifically use
the sink/cabinet area with is 36" x 36" with a board cover over the sink that I use as a convenient ledge. I grow with a
hydroponics set-up "tweeked' to my personal likes. My resevoir hold 8 gallons of water filled to the brim. I use two large
micro diffusers 4" x 10" with a commercial air pump. I have burned through two water pumps; I don't know why. I use
Stealth Hydro Grow, Bloom and Micro nutrients. and add Canna Bloom during the last weeks of my bloom. I follow directions
specifically on any application that I use. I use a Hanna Grow Check to properly monitor my ph. I like the the convenience of
just placing the thermistor in the water and the Hanna constantly gives me a readout of the ph, temp and ppm. I further use a Foothill filter to control air quality with activated Carbon. My lights are controlled by timers. And, finally I use a small fan to "flutter my leaves". I keep track of all my data using a convenient calendar on the wall; recording ph. temp and ppm.

I have not had any problems with mold, root rot or.... keeping everything quite clean,

I use quality seeds and believe that I get decent end results. But I believe I can do better and that my existing lighting needed
improvement. Using simple calculations I need at least 360 total watts of LEDs.

I initially decided on LEDs for my lighting because of the cost of electricity and the potential of high consumption. I wanted to remain discreet. I have adequate ventilation however cannot structurally add to the existing ventilation in this bathroom.

And, I choose to remain discreet.

I did the work; read all the reference and information and end result I went with California Light Works because it is an American made product and I like their customer service; I like calling a company asking for help and getting to talk to a real live person, and and I like getting prompt e-mail responses.

I am looking forward to this forum and will continue to post after starting my seeds.

How did you get a discount on the light? Been looking at swtiching over to Leds completely but the decent ones are expensive. My grow space is a 17x6 custom built room so I figure id need probably 3 solar flares

The California Lightworks' Growers Feedback Program (GFP) offers 1 (I think) light at a discount. There is info on their website.

3 SolarFlares will not cover a full 17x6 space. What kind/size/number of lights was your custom grow room designed to use originally? How is it laid out?

SisterMaryElephant wrote:The California Lightworks' Growers Feedback Program (GFP) offers 1 (I think) light at a discount. There is info on their website.

3 SolarFlares will not cover a full 17x6 space. What kind/size/number of lights was your custom grow room designed to use originally? How is it laid out?

It wasn't really designed with a specific number in mind. I was going to run 4 1000w hid lights and 1 240w blackstar led for smaller plants or go with 6 600s. Its a framed, insulated, and sheet rocked room 17x6x7.4 ft tall. I have to run 2 fans for intake and exhaust to keep temps in check and am using co2 to supplement when the intake fan is off. I do have to run ac at times. Im just tired of the large power bill and constant temp issues in the summer. I didn't even use my lights this summer

It really depends on how you want to set up the plants and such, the 4x1000w idea would cover the most area but not all of it, you do need walking paths and room for equipment, etc.

If you want to talk through it, start a new thread in the new led users forum and I'll try to help you figure out options. That way sophie can have her own thread.