Mars Hydro Light: Increase Your Harvest, Decrease Your Costs

As cannabis legalization continues to spread across the United States, many fans of the plant are discovering one of the best benefits of reform: legal home cultivation. Although not all states that have legalized marijuana for medical or even recreational use allow personal cultivation, cannabis consumers in those that have are able to grow amazingly beautiful and potent buds at home, skipping the dispensary and high taxes while not sacrificing quality.

But a successful home grow takes planning and care. For healthy plants, you must supply an environment with the light and fresh air they need to grow and flower. A sunny patch of ground outdoors is the most natural choice, but not practical for many gardeners. For them, indoor cultivation is the best option, but also one that presents its own unique challenges. Fortunately, many of these issues can be solved with a Mars Hydro LED grow light and grow tent. Many different options are available, including the Mars Hydro FC-6500 (650-watt) LED grow light paired with their 5’x5’ grow tent.

FC-6500 LED Grow Light

The Mars Hydro FC-6500 is the company’s flagship LED grow light, packing more than 3,100 individual Samsung and Osram light-emitting diodes into the approximately 45”x44”x4” fixture. Unlike cheaper “blurple” LEDs, the FC-6500 produces full-spectrum white light that is closer to natural sunlight and great for both vegetative growth and flowering, improving bud quality and increasing yields by up to 50%. Average photosynthetic photon density (PPFD) is 30% higher, generating a maximum yield of up to 2.5 grams per watt.

To perfectly dial in the correct amount of light for your plants, the FC-6500 includes a dimmer control that can deliver from 10% to 100% of maximum power. The no-fan design silently disperses heat via the sturdy aluminum frame which also serves as a heatsink and provides efficient heat dissipation. The LED driver can be attached directly to the fixture, or remotely outside of the grow space to reduce the amount of heat produced inside the garden. The frame can be angled up to 180 degrees, allowing for simple installation in a variety of custom configurations, made even easier by the total fixture weight of only about 28 pounds. One light is perfect for home gardens, or for larger operations multiple units can be daisy-chained.

The FC-6500 is recommended for commercial growing and vertical farming, with optimal results for a 4×4 foot-wide shelf, the even distribution of strong light helps plants grow at a consistent height, all producing dense buds, while maximizing grow space for higher yields. However, it can also be used in personal grows with a 5×5 grow shed. 

Other products available are the FC-3000 and the FC-4800.

Mars Hydro Grow Tent

For most cannabis plants to flower successfully, they need an uninterrupted dark period of about twelve hours each day. Unless you’re able to devote an entire room to your garden, providing this required period of darkness reliably can be a challenge best handled by a grow tent, such as the Mars Hydro 5’x5’’ option. The grow tent is constructed of durable, double-stitched 1680D canvas to provide your plants with a tear-proof environment free from extraneous light entering the garden. A reflective diamond mylar lining on the inside of the tent helps you get the most out of your grow light by bouncing light back toward the plants.

The grow tent has a large front door and two small side doors that allow for easy access to all of the plants in the garden. All doors are secured with heavy-duty zippers designed to prevent light leaks. A micro-mesh window with light-proof canvas cover makes checking on your growing plants a snap, and two 8-inch and two 10-inch vents allow you to customize your ventilation and odor-control system, while two smaller light-proof ports are built in to accommodate electrical cords. The tent is supported by a sturdy metal frame that assembles easily without tools and is rated to carry 270 pounds, more than enough to handle your light and other equipment.

The Mars Hydro  5’x5’ grow tent is the perfect match for the FC-6500 LED grow light, pairing nicely with the fixture’s light footprint. Together, they can provide the perfect environment for your cannabis garden. Just add water, plants, and some nutrients, and you’re ready to go!