LED grow testing the Pro-Grow 260.

[silent leprechaun]

Hey guys.
Just to let ye all know, this isn't spam. I took the plunge with and LED light. Its my third grow in my entire life but I wanted to see if LED could do it. I did an indoor and an outdoor when I lived away foreign. The ourdoor turned out great, the indoor was under a 600w high-pressure sodium and turned out crap. I am running 4 x 20w CFLs too just for heating purposes. Those LED sure run cool.

I made a blog of my grow last night. I was keeping track of the grow with photos and I was keeping a diary. So I uploaded the pics and copy and pasted the word file. If you want to take a look at it then here is the link: ledlogger

I would appreciate any feedback. I tried to make the log on this site but the pictures always came in enormous. You would have to scroll left and right, up and down just to view one of them. My pics are done on my phone and are only 1.6 -2mb in size. How small do they have to be ?

Anyway, let me know what you think. I hope to get a good grow. I heard LED are very good for veg but not so good in bloom. We will see. The veg stage is amazing so far. Ill be blooming soon so we will see. :thumbsup:

silent leprechaun Reviewed by silent leprechaun on 10-29-2011. LED grow testing the Pro-Grow 260. Hey guys. Just to let ye all know, this isn't spam. I took the plunge with and LED light. Its my third grow in my entire life but I wanted to see if LED could do it. I did an indoor and an outdoor when I lived away foreign. The ourdoor turned out great, the indoor was under a 600w high-pressure sodium and turned out crap. I am running 4 x 20w CFLs too just for heating purposes. Those LED sure run cool. I made a blog of my grow last night. I was keeping track of the grow with photos and I Rating: 5

[silent leprechaun]

Hmm, OK, I think I am able to attach pictures now so I'll load up my frow log.

LED Grow Update no.1, September 30th, 2011

Hey everyone and welcome to my first LED indoor grow. I grew indoors a few years ago (2006) under a 600w high-pressure sodium but I didn’t achieve good results. I didn’t do my homework for that grow. I decided to begin a new grow on the 25th of September 2011. I put BBxNL (Feminised x3) and 8 x seeds I got from a friend (he said they were AK47, non-feminised) between 2 pieces of kitchen roll. On day 3 the BBxNLs had shown good tap root and the AK47s were not far behind. I potted them all except one which didn’t germinate. It was one of my friends seeds so its not a big problem.

On the 28th of September I placed them in the compressed pots with simple potting soil designed for delicate plants. After the second day they were all opening up and beginning to stretch. The Pro-Grow 260 was set on blue spectrum at 16 – 18 inches above the plants. I am using no other light source at the moment but I will have to incorporate some CFLs soon to keep the temperature up. Humidity is at only 23% and the temperature is at 18 – 20 degrees Celsius. Im using a DR120 from Secret Jardin at the moment. I will be changing it soon for the new Twin Room DR90T as the DR120 is too big for my room. I’ll be back soon to show you an update.

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[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.2, October 1st, 2011

After 6 days the plants have come on strong except one, which is having root trouble. I took it out of the pot and applied some rooting hormone to see if that might give it a kick-start. I’m not too worried about losing just one plant out of 10 considering it was one of the seeds I got from a friend.

Today I mixed the soil mix; 50L of potting soil, 15L of compost, 15L of moss peat, 15L of perlite and 15L of worm castings. I re-filled the compressed pots (as the soil sunk about an inch or so) to the top with the new soil to promote more root growth higher on the stems. This also may make re-potting less of a shock. I also added 2.5ml of concentrated seaweed fertiliser in 2 litres of water to feed the seedlings in the compressed pots. I decided to make a rich soil mix as the problem I foresee with using the Pro-Grow 260 is the plants will need far less watering as there is so little heat in the grow room.

Everything I will be using in this grow will be 100% organic. To fertilise I’m using bat guano, seaweed fertiliser and a seaweed and tomato soil conditioner. I will be making a worm casting tea from time to time also. I hope this will be enough to sustain the plants throughout growth from vegetative stage to bloom. None of these products will require a flush at the end to get rid of salts.

The Pro-Grow 260 impresses me thus far. It uses 180 watts when both spectrum are on. At the moment it is using about half of this. The Pro-Grow is only using the vegetative spectrum but it’s nice to be able to switch between both spectrum. The Pro-Grow offers 3 setting; blue spectrum, red spectrum or both spectrum on together. But the Pro-Grow is not as simple as red or blue. It has a 14-Band LED Grow System featuring UV + IR and gives off over 14,800 lumen with its 3-Watt Cree HO Chip-set. More info can be found at the Hydroponics Hut website. The plants are looking healthy, green, and are growing quickly. I have a fan to strengthen the stems and it comes on around 8 times a day. At night it comes on for just 6 minutes per cycle and during the day for a half hour per cycle. Altogether maybe 3 hours per day. I think this is enough for now. I lowered the light to 11 inches now to stop the stretch, as the stems are 3 inches tall by now. The second sets of serrated leaves are just beginning to show. The temp is 18 degrees and the humidity is 30%. I put a pot of water in the grow room to increase the humidity.

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[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.3, October 4th, 2011

Had some trouble today. Realised that I left the fan on 24 hours continuously. Grr, one of the BBxNL has drooped, as the front pots got quite dry. The rest are doing fine.

I felt that the grow room was a bit cold so I added 4 x 20w warm white CFLs (2700k) to give the temperature a little boost. I tried to find blue spectrum bulbs (6100k) but was unable. I wired for 6 batons out of the junction box in the photo. Two of the tails are not in use so I put a connector block on the ends of each of them and taped them up for now. I will find a use for them later.

Please be very careful when handling electricity. I do not condone unqualified individuals to do their own DIY electrics. However, if you do decide to DIY be sure you terminate all connections correctly and tightly. This will minimise the chances of fire.

I’ll keep an eye on the plants and I’ll leave the fan off until tomorrow.

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[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.4, October 7th, 2011

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Some pics of the set up so far. The plants are doing fine. As you can see by my thermostat, 21 degrees Celsius is about 70 degrees Fahrenheit. I decided to put that in just in case I get any American readers. Another rule of thumb is 12 inches is equal to 30 centimetres. I might use both imperial and metric systems in this blog.

In the photos you will see the 4x20w CFLs hanging over the edges of the Pro-Grow 260. The temperature has increased thanks to them. And Iâ??m sure the plants are enjoying them even though they are so small. The Pr0-Grow 260 is very bright and it is difficult to look at the LEDs even from the side.

I must tell everyone that I do not work for the company who produce the Pro-Grow series and I am in no way affiliated with the company. I just did some homework before buying and spoke to other LED growers out there. One who was a great help is this person: Pro Grow 260 LED Grow Light Review | Growing Medical Marijuana He/she gave me lots of advice and told me what works for them. Iâ??d like to thank them for all their help.

I trawled eBay for an LED grow light and read all the reviews I could find. After a huge amount of research I finally decided on the Hydroponics Hut, Pro-Grow 260 series (2011). They offered a huge warranty and I also read on forums that they uphold this too. Also, they offer free postage to Europe and gave me a discount to boot. They are very friendly and answered every question I had promptly.

[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.5, October 10th, 2011

It seems that one of the 10 plants has not developed properly. I must remind you that a lot of the seeds I was given by my friend were AK47 and a mix of I don’t know what. We will have to see if they are all AK47. Nine of the ten seedlings are doing great under the Pro-Grow 260 and only 80 watts of CFL lights. I switched the Pro-Grow to duel spectrum and I believe it draws 180 watts. Altogether I am growing 9 plants at around 250 watts. Most of it LED! It might be a stretch in my mind but I have heard good things about this Pro-Grow 260.

I saw roots protruding from the compressed paper pots today. I know roots don’t like light so I felt it was time to re-pot. I decided to take out the 2.5 gallon buckets and drill the ends for drainage. I put stones at the end of the buckets and also put stones under the buckets to keep them up off the water trays. This will give freer drainage for the plants. If the water trays begin to fill after watering I will use a 100ml syringe with an 80cm nozzle to suck up the excess. I realise the plants are very young to be going into the 2.5 gallon buckets but I think the soil is nice and airy and will remain that way. I stuck 2 soil ph testers in 2 different buckets to keep an eye on it. I used some peat so I think I should check the ph. I’m sure I read somewhere that if you plant a seedling in slightly acidic soil it can promote males.

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[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.6, October 17th, 2011

This will be a picture update. The plants are doing very well. They have started to show very fast growth after settling into their new 2.5 gallon buckets.

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[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.7, October 20th, 2011

(N.B. PICTURES WERE TAKEN ON 24TH OF OCTOBER 2011)

It’s been 10 days since I re-potted the 9 plants into the 2.5 gallon buckets. One was looking very weak so I placed it in the centre directly under the Pro-Grow 260 LED. It has made a fine recovery. The leaves were folding upward so I may have over watered. Vegetative growth has exploded in the past week. I already see 9-fingered leaves! It is truly outstanding and very shocking. I even burned one of the plants as it grew to meet one of the 20w CFL bulbs. It’s only a small burn on one of the leaves.

I had to increase the airflow through the extractor to pull the air through the carbon filter. The plants are already starting to stink a bit and I still have them in 18/6. My flatmate got a stench walking in through the front door. I have to be very careful with scent as I live in a block of flats. I might buy some ONA gel soon enough to help combat that issue but so far the carbon filter is working fine. I have heard a mixed review on ONA gel. Does anyone have any experience using ONA ? Would be great if you could let me know. Thanks

The plants are coming up on 6-8 inches tall now so bloom will be coming in the next 2 weeks or so. As I said, growth is explosive right now. I bought a digital light meter off eBay, which arrived today. The Pro-Grow 260 is giving off 700 x 100 Lux ! But that is at only 3 inches from the Pro-Grow 260. Further down, about 14 – 18 inches, it still gives 200 x 100 = 20,000 Lux (LED!). There is a difference between Lux and Lumen. A good explanation is found on this site:
www.brillianz.co.uk/data/documents/Lumen.pdf

OK, to be fair, I do have 4 x 20w CFL bulbs running simply for heating purposes but I’m still not complaining (why not heat with light!). I am running on 80w CFL + 180w on the Pro-Grow 260. I don’t think a 250w CFL could give me this sort of result! Not a chance! I had to RAISE the Pro-Grow today as the plants were getting too close and I wanted some more coverage. But to be honest, the plants on the edges are doing fantastic. I don’t even need a light rail as I thought I would. I haven’t had to move any plants around to give them more light, only the weak one I placed directly under the LED.

Temperature is 21 degrees Celsius and the humidity is 51%. But since I increased the fan speed and duration the temperature and humidity will certainly go down. My outside room temperature is about 15 – 18 degrees now as it’s late October in Western Europe I can’t wait to see how this light performs during bloom. I must also say that many factors do influence the outcome such as; soil, fertilisers, heat, humidity, ventilation, watering schedules, pot sizes, etc. The only problem I foresee is the amount or nutrients I give the plants. The soil is very good and many soil types have been added, including 15KG of worm castings.

I have done my best to describe, in detail, what I have done and will be doing. If you have any advise/feedback, during or after, my grow I would appreciate it. By the way, I grew 1 small outdoor (in pot) and one small indoor grow before (which was a disaster). This is my third grow in my entire life so I will make mistakes. My indoor grow was shockingly bad but the outdoor gave high yields. I have done my best to study what people explain on-line and I have utilised that information as best I can. The only thing I changed was the light source and the nutrients I will be feeding my plants. It’s all about experimentation and getting it right, even if you deviate from the norm. I would like to thank everyone for sharing his or her knowledge and experience with me.

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[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.8, October 23th, 2011

Took a few pictures tonight for you all. They are truly exploding at this stage. I re-raised the light again today to promote more stretch. It’s at least 20” to 25” from the tops of the plants and still giving them more light than they need. As you can see by the plants they are becoming very bushy and the nodes have about an inch spacing in most of the plants, but tighter in others. I want to keep the nodes at least 1” apart. They are looking lush and very green. I see no health problems in them other than the one I accidently burned with a CFL. I put the entire blame on the Pro-grow 260 as it made the plants grow too quickly!

I would like to take some cuttings off the strongest plants before bloom. But before I can do this I have to buy a cutting tent and a light. I’m going to buy a DR90T from Secret Jardin. Its a dual tent with separate veg bloom areas. 90cm x 90cm x 210cm. I don’t want them to grow too quickly in the cutting tent so I’ll get a florescent light. I’m sure I’ll be able to pick out the 3 x BBxNL feminised soon, but to be honest all the plants are looking equally strong. The only weak plant was placed in the centre under the Pro-Grow 260 three days ago and I can already see a dramatic improvement.

They all appear to be indicia strains. I don’t know if my friend gave me all AK-47s but so far it seems so. Perhaps the bloom will tell a story. I expect to bloom within 2 weeks by the looks of things. The plants are all about 10” tall by now. By the way, I thought you might be interested to know that I haven’t had to water the plants since I place them in the 2.5-gallon buckets on the 10th of October, 12 days ago! As the watering schedules will be so far apart, something I foresaw, I will be giving the plants a lot of 100% organic nutrients within the next few days. I will be making a cocktail of both the seaweed fertiliser and soil conditioner. Bat guano and worm castings will also be added to make it a highly potent fertiliser.

Using only 100% organic fertiliser I will have no problem with burning or salts. I wanted to make this a 100% organic, LED grow. I must remind everyone that the 4 x 20w CFLs are in the grow tent purely for heating purposes. The temp is currently 21-22 degrees Celsius and the humidity is at 33%. I’ll make another update in about a week. I’m sure it will be dramatic!

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[silent leprechaun]

LED Grow update no.9, October 25th, 2011

After plenty of thought and research I decided to super crop the plants so as to keep them low. They are growing ‘too quickly’ under the Pro-Grow ! Ever heard that complaint before ? This will help with keeping the plants low and let the Pro-Grow penetrate nicely. Although, in defence of the Pro-Grow 260, I have heard that it has amazing penetration through the canopy.

I looked up many websites that proclaimed to understand cropping, I don’t ! I found a lot of conflicting ideas but I went with the one which caused ‘the least’ stress (I know it’s highly stressful). You can find a link to super cropping on the main page under ‘Links’. Another reason that I am doing this is to stunt the growth while I wait for my Secret Jardin DR90T grow tent. I want to take maybe 6 cuttings from each of the top 3 strongest, female plants before I bloom them out fully. The best plants genetics will be kept. I will begin SOG (sea of green) growing as soon as I get the next generation of cuttings and after I bloom the current plants. I’ll give each cutting approximately 1sq foot each in the new grow. This means that I will take about 18 cuttings and keep only the best 9 and destroy the rest, horrible thing to do I know. I wish I could keep them all The new tent, the DR90T, is 90cm x 90cm x 210cm so I will fit 9 plants in the bloom room. I have a feeling the Pro-Grow 260 will be a beast in SOG growing.

So what I did was I took the 4th or 5th node and began to squeeze it gently between my thumb and forefinger until I heard a crack. I then moved my fingers 90 degrees and did it again. I then bent the tops over while being careful not to completely break the stem. The nodes were young and didn’t put up much of a fight. I bent the tops toward the Pro-Grow 260 in an effort to keep the 9-plant footprint as tight and short as possible. The area of the plant where I super cropped will now become the imaginary line to where all new tops will be trained to meet. The idea is to make a line over the canopy and keep everything short.

There is a great link out there on how to super crop and here it is: step by step how to super crop

This is my first time super cropping so I might just make a mess of things. But we are here to experiment and see how best to do things. I have heard a mixed review on super cropping so I would like to put my evidence on the table, good or bad. I will give the nodes 1 week to repair and then I will see how the under canopy has caught up. The plant now believes that the top has been destroyed so it will give more energy to the lower branches. In the end I will have multiple bud heads. The idea is to make a greater amount of bud areas all the same height. This removes popcorn budding on the lower branches. I also fed the plants today; 25ml of seaweed and 50 ml of seaweed conditioner in 3 gallons of water. The 9 buckets took all 3 gallons of water with a little run off to be sure they were well watered. I also added a heaped spoon of bat guano to the topsoil before watering. This is pretty much all I will be using for this grow. It is 100% organic and will give no trouble with salt and there will be no need to flush each plant. See you guys in a week or so to see how the super cropping nodes have healed.

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