Mars Hydro - TS-3000

The TS-3000 is the largest lamp in the TS range: 450 watts under a reflector hood of some 64 by 58 centimetres, with a flowering area of 120 by 120. Passively cooled, so no fan in the fixture.

Work out your height before hanging it

A 120 by 120 tent is usually 200 centimetres tall, and those run out faster than you would expect. From the top down, a carbon filter with a bend takes the first slice, easily 50 to 60 centimetres. Below that hang the ropes, then the lamp itself, and below that the distance to the crop still has to fit.

With this lamp something is added that appears on no specification sheet: the hood needs room above it. The aluminium is the heat sink, working by letting warm air rise past. Pull the fixture tight against the tent roof and that flow is pinched off, leaving the hood hotter than intended. A hand's width of clearance is not a luxury.

Add it up and a 200 centimetre tent leaves roughly 110 to 120 centimetres for pot and plant together. With a 25 centimetre pot that means a crop of 85 centimetres at most, and even then the lamp sits close above. This is exactly why growers using this lamp so often train: topping, bending or a net keeps the crop low and wide, which suits a square area anyway.

Short on height, the usual order is to move the filter outside the tent, shorten the ropes, and only then keep the plant lower. Clearance above the hood is not on that list.

Technical Specifications:

• Model: TS-3000
• Power: 450 W ±5%
• Light output (PPF): 1210 µmol/s
• Efficiency (PPE): 2.7 µmol/J
• Flowering area: 120 x 120 cm
• Light spectrum: 660 to 665 nm, 730 to 740 nm, 3000 to 3200 K, 6000 to 6500 K
• Supply unit: separate box, detachable, with dimming knob
• Dimmable: 0 to 100%
• Cooling: passive, clearance above the hood required
• Dimensions: 64.1 x 57.9 x 6.8 cm
• Weight: 5.85 kg
• Life expectancy: nominally 50,000 hours
• Warranty: 5 year manufacturer warranty

Frequently asked questions

How much room should stay free above the hood?
A hand's width is a good rule of thumb. The hood cools through air rising past it, which cannot happen clamped against the roof.

Will this lamp suit a 150 by 150 tent?
Yes, and in vegetative growth it lights that area too. For flowering, 120 by 120 is the manufacturer's figure.

Can the tent frame take the weight?
A frame this size carries almost 6 kilos comfortably, provided you hang from two points on the top bars themselves.

How much heat does it give off?
Everything that does not leave as light, which is most of 450 watts. Size your extraction accordingly.