Diary PCBuds mini-grow

[PCBuds]

Of course, I didn't read the directions on the soil bag first so I didn't pre-moisten the soil...





I watered it until it ran out the bottom so now to see if I can manage to just leave her alone and stop messing with her. Lol ��

I guess I could just keep her as a mother plant and maybe try to take a couple of clippings and try to grow a couple of clones outdoors next spring.

It would be good practice for me and I don't have to take it too seriously because my outdoor plants will probably get stolen anyway.


I could have my main plant in the closet and rest is just for fun and experimentation.

 

[PCBuds]

@ESTERCHASER...

Do you think my Seed Starting Jiffy-Mix is similar to the mix that was shown in the video?



The thing I liked most about the video is how he said you can't overwater it.
The excess just runs off and the roots still breathe.

I'm pretty sure my Biggest problem is watering.
I just can't seem to get a handle on it.



When I watered my replanted seedling just now, the pot didn't seem to absorb much water and it stayed quite light.


I was thinking of reusing some of my old soil along with Perlite and I do have a bunch of coco coir to perhaps use.


The reason I want to keep my old soil and a bunch of organic material is to keep my soil mites and other beni's happy.

I figure the Beni's are keeping my media free of unwanted invaders but I'm just guessing about that.

I may be better off with completely new grow media using maybe seed starting mix with extra perlite to finally get a grow media that I can't overwater.

A true Hempy grow with only Perlite/Vermiculite seems very sterile to me and open to some sort of invader but I'm guessing about that too.

Maybe just a few handfuls of old soil to transplant the Beni's?

Do you think I could use the Seed Starting Mix for the entire grow and maybe reuse it?

The Seed Starting Mix isn't much money and it's available locally.
Buying grow media online is expensive because of shipping.

 

[PCBuds]

I've got a whole host of options available to consider...





I've also got 35 lbs. of garden lime.
It's the only size they had because it's so cheap ($7).
I only need 13 Tbs. per grow. Lol.


I really like the SIP method because I just have to keep an eye on the float and make sure there's always water on the bottom.

 

[PCBuds]

I've got a whole host of options available to consider...

[URL=https://i.postimg.cc/BQYMRh1K/20200105-173538.jpg]View Image[/url]

[URL=https://i.postimg.cc/8z7tGhhn/20200105-173547.jpg]View Image[/url]

I really like the SIP method because I just have to keep an eye on the float and make sure there's always water on the bottom.

[URL=https://i.postimg.cc/RVVgsrqm/20200105-173602.jpg]View Image[/url]

I'm hoping for an idiot-proof set up because I'm the idiot with the watering can. Lol

 

[PCBuds]

Hate telling people what to do as we all do things differently...

I'm willing to do things differently at least as far as my grow media goes.

That has been the worst part for me.


I'm going to do my lights differently too.
I'm looking forward to that. Lol.

 

[PCBuds]

It's Working !!!

It's Working !!!

I got my first water-cooled LED strip working.







I've still got an air bubble.







The strip was tested at 350 mA with a max of 700 mA.

I cranked it to 2845 mA...


I got over 60 Watts out of an 11" LED strip.
(but I don't know how long it could do that for?)

 

[Mr. Sparkle]

Ahhhh yeah don't do that for your own safety, and just use a regular heat sink if you want to push it current wise cause it way way more efficient than what you did, all your doing is creating a tubed water heatsink thats surface to air contact is less than any finned heatsink or its only 3.14/2 = x1.57 times greater surface area than the strip by itself and you created a concerning safety issue for yourself. Wonder how long its gonna take before natural electrolysis eats away at the one side of the circuit even if ip67 rated and if say using distilled water...


Just no... Normally im not over here on icmag much anymore but @reikoX showed me this post...

 

[PCBuds]

I set up my phone with the light meter app at 9" from the tube.

The strip was tested at 350 mA and puts out 1195 lumens at 175 lm/ Watt.

I got 5,650 lux at 9" and 350 mA.

At the recommended max of 700 mA, I got 11,000 lux.

At my drivers max of 2,845 mA and 24.1 Volts, I got ~30,000 lux.

 

[PCBuds]

Ahhhh yeah don't do that for your own safety, and just use a regular heat sink if you want to push it current wise cause it way way more efficient than what you did, all your doing is creating a tubed water heatsink thats surface to air contact is less than any finned heatsink or its only 3.14/2 = x1.57 times greater surface area than the strip by itself and you created a concerning safety issue for yourself. Wonder how long its gonna take before natural electrolysis eats away at the one side of the circuit even if ip67 rated and if say using distilled water...


Just no... Normally im not over here on icmag much anymore but @reikoX showed me this post...

I didn't mention that I coated everything.

I pulled the connectors off the board then sealed them with Krazy Glue.
Then I soldered wires to the boards' copper terminals and sealed them with silicone.
Then I coated the entire strip with marine epoxy.

Everything is hopefully, completely sealed.


I'm thinking of sticking a needle through the silicone and into the water so I can measure for voltage between the water and the power going in.
If I read 0 V then my board has remained sealed.


If everything goes to complete crap and my water becomes contaminated and electrified, it's no biggie.

It's only 24 V dc max and you can't even feel it except on your tongue.
(it may harm the plant though but who knows??
Maybe it will help?)

 

[PCBuds]

My next step is to pull the hot water off the tubes with hoses and send it to an external radiator.

But I don't think I want to go that far.

It would be "cool" though...

 

[PCBuds]

At the recommended max of 700 mA, I got 11,000 lux.

At my drivers max of 2,845 mA and 24.1 Volts, I got ~30,000 lux.

Looking at the numbers, it doesn't look efficient to crank the amps.

I got less than 3 times the lux with 4 times the current.

But, ... I did it with one strip and tube, not 3 or 4.

My LED strip was ~$4.50. My tube was ~$7.

I need to find cheaper tubes...

 

[PCBuds]

I'm giving my light a bit of bench test.

It's set at 700 mA and I'm going to run it for a few hours and check on the temperature.





It's drawing ~20 Watts from the wall including the power wasted by the power supply.

It may not have any real practical purpose but it is kinda neat.

I'm liking it, and if you could circulate the water through a radiator to remove the heat, you could probably run the strips way past their recommended max current rating.

 

[indagroove]

Looking at the numbers, it doesn't look efficient to crank the amps.

I got less than 3 times the lux with 4 times the current.

But, ... I did it with one strip and tube, not 3 or 4.

My LED strip was ~$4.50. My tube was ~$7.

I need to find cheaper tubes...

Yeah it usually isn't most efficient to max out LEDs. I know these are different LEDs but take a look at the Flux Characteristics of a QB 288 at different current levels:

 

[PCBuds]

Yeah, that makes sense.

I'm sure my strips have similar characteristics.

The advantage of maxing out a strip is that you can get way more total lumens out of it.


Your example has 5.15 times more total lumens with the maximum listed current.

It would be more cost-effective with energy consumption to have 5 strips at maximum lm/W but it would cost 5 times as much to buy all those strips.

And a maxed out strip would get hot and need a passive heat sink or even a fan.




My light has been on at the Max. recommended current now (700 mA) for 2 1/2 hours and the surface of the tube is reading 43° C and just feels warm to touch. It's rated 85° C Max.

There are a few small bubbles on the inner surface of the tube but I don't think it's electrolysis.

I don't see any fizzing or bubbles on the strip itself.

 

[PCBuds]

I checked my light again and it appears to be a failure.




I poked a needle through the silicone and into the water and I was reading 12.7 V between the needle and the positive wire going in and 6.3 V between the needle and the negative wire.

So I've got electrolysis going on.
That can be dangerous. The oxygen and hydrogen can recombine explosively.

I guess the strip wasn't 100% sealed.


Oh well...

I'm going to dismantle it before I kill the strip or blow up the hydrogen.

 

[PCBuds]

The 24 strips going into my closet are going to be running at the test current or even less.

I'm not going to use heat sinks so I have to turn them down anyway.

They are each rated 1195 lumens at the 350 mA test current.

I've also got 5 ten Watt SILs overhead so I should have plenty of light for my small space.

 

[indagroove]

I'm giving my light a bit of bench test.

It's set at 700 mA and I'm going to run it for a few hours and check on the temperature.

[URL=https://i.postimg.cc/BQWxRSD9/20200109-135142.jpg]View Image[/url]



It's drawing ~20 Watts from the wall including the power wasted by the power supply.

It may not have any real practical purpose but it is kinda neat.

I'm liking it, and if you could circulate the water through a radiator to remove the heat, you could probably run the strips way past their recommended max current rating.

How do you set current with that power supply, just by lowering the voltage?

 

[PCBuds]

How do you set current with that power supply, just by lowering the voltage?

I have to use an ammeter in series then take note of the voltage at any given amperage.

The current really jumps up fast.
Half a volt more pretty much doubles the current.

A constant current power supply with a digital readout would be a lot better for LEDs.

The voltage doesn't matter much. It's the current that counts.

The voltage can be higher or lower depending on the temperature but the current stays the same.

 

[q3corn]

Damn, water-cooled lights sounded like such a cool idea! Good job not blowing up your house, though

 

[PCBuds]

Damn, water-cooled lights sounded like such a cool idea! Good job not blowing up your house, though

It could still work, the strip and its wires just need to be completely sealed. Maybe liquid urethane??
But I think I'm done with the experiment for now.

I did kind of a half asses job coating it with epoxy.
It didn't completely coat the strip. I should have sprayed it down with contact cleaner first.

The silicone didn't bond to the vinyl coating on the wires either, and I had a bit of a leak.