Advice on LEDs - Opinions & Expertise Wanted

[growmau5]

I didn't catch the budget while reading thru this thread $$?
& listen to Icemud, he knows what he is talking about.

I just don't believe in LED's. There's so much fog surrounding the whole system. You can't even find information on light output or lumen output. Since I started growing all you ever hear about is lumens this and lumens that and I believe so many people become chained to the idea of using lumens to grow weed. Making the change to LED is still a long ways away.

and brother, with love & respect: a belief system is something you need in religion or politics. GrowRoom Lighting is science. It is up to us, unbiased users to try the technology, estimate the spectra, calculate the photon density, record the grow and report back to our peers with data. I agree, there are so many charlatans and scamsters looking to make that quick $$$ spewing out pseudo science to sell crappy leds. And its kinda racialist, because that gave leds a negative stereotype from the word go. BUT LEDS ARE HERE!!! to stay, and prices are already dropping as competition has gotten fierce over the last 6-8months, esp in the DIY scene.

for a pre-built, my money is on Timber or Tasty.

#lumensDONTgrowplants.

 

[growmau5]

Now, on the topic of the black diamond, perfect sun series... Obviously, we all appreciate their sponsorship and support of this & other forums. And, i commend Neil on his entrepreneurial spirit & drive to educate us on his lights. However, I wish I had more information on the diodes and drive currents that his products use. And I wish he would invest in a nice PAR meter like a LiCor or at least an Apogee SQ500.
because calculating PAR readings from LUX readings is incredibly inaccurate when measuring multi-band lights. There are different conversion factors for each spectra:

 

[kushnoj27]

I use a KIND Led 600w light in a 2x4 tent setup. You can see my grow journal "Death Bubba - Flood and Drain 2x4 setup"

I just harvested again yesterday, have had 4 grows with these lights and consistently yield 8-11 ounces for that space.


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[Icemud]

Im thinking of switching from HPs to LED lighting and would love some advice on which LEDs i should purchase AND HOW MANY for my 48x24x60 grow tent

Here is the general questions I ask any grower when giving a suggestion for lighting:


What is your budget for your new lights? (what would you like to spend, and what is the max)? obviously most important, as I don't want to recommend a light that is out of budget.

What size grow area? (already given in your 1st question)...

How many plants will be in this grow area? (this tells me do you need 1 high wattage light, or multiple lower wattage panels, as well as the type of coverage you need whether its full tent or isolated to just 1 plant).

How do you plan on growing your plants? (tall and bushy, or a sea of green, or a scrog or...?)(this tells me how much penetration you need, and what type of lighting projection is ideal)

Is this a veg area, bloom area, or used for both? (this question is only somewhat relivant, but does matter for those looking to illumniate grow areas only used for 1 type of growing, and also matters in terms of light cycle used and PPFD needed to meet plants DLI.)

Will you be using the current lighting you have and adding LED to it or replacing it? (this tells me do you need a entire lighting solution or just to add to what you have)

Why are you changing to LED? (a lot of growers look into LED for the wrong reasons and this tends to lead to disappointments. Many time growers hear "led's run cool" and think that by adding 5000w of LED their room won't need AC.... or growers might think... I can cut electricity by half or more which most cases isn't true... etc...)

Are you comfortable or able to build your own electronics or do you prefer a prebuilt solution?

By answering these questions, the options of Lighting solutions can be narrowed down to just a few choices that meet your individual needs.

By asking your original question, without the extra info is like asking "which car with 4 seats is best to drive" which as you can imagine, leads to all kinds of answers.

 

[williamreive]

You can very easily find all the information on LED's going from spectrums of light to wattage to lumens as well , my friend it is possible you just haven't been provided the info on the LED's you have observed I currently run a full spectrum grow LED which has pink bands, white , red and purple bands of light which all support different factors of growth my switch from HPS to LED has never been more worth it, it even cost less to run if this doesn't convince I suggest you dig deeeper and test one out your self.


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[Icemud]

I didn't catch the budget while reading thru this thread $$?
& listen to Icemud, he knows what he is talking about.

Whats up Growmau! Glad to see ya as a newer member here I really appreciate the luv! thanks!

 

[williamreive]

Sure the light may cost more but it is worth it in the long run you spend more running and HPS then you do and LED


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[Planter420]

LED is def the way to go and the perfect sun series is very good we have seen countless members with them now (us included) and if you watch some of the videos he has taken the time to make you will have a lot more information. Neil's LEDs are consistently pulling over 1 gpw granted a lot of skill is involved in the 420 member grows we have seen with the perfect suns but the results speak for themselves. Doubtful if hid lights will ever be obsolete because they are proven effective but LEDs are proven both effective and efficient!


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[williamreive]

LED is def the way to go and the perfect sun series is very good we have seen countless members with them now (us included) and if you watch some of the videos he has taken the time to make you will have a lot more information. Neil's LEDs are consistently pulling over 1 gpw granted a lot of skill is involved in the 420 member grows we have seen with the perfect suns but the results speak for themselves. Doubtful if hid lights will ever be obsolete because they are proven effective but LEDs are proven both effective and efficient!


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Exactly what I was saying LED is always worth the switch !!!!!


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[sleepless]

I'm not saying that LED's are worthless but they're not for new growers who have 0 experience with cultivating. Also, LED's are extremely expensive compared to a standard 400 w MH/HPS system. Would you really pay $300-$400 dollars on an LED or $120 for a 400W system that comes with both a Metal Halide and HPS bulb.

IT only takes math to see that LED's still have a long way to go!

Me too.

I pulled a great haul from first grow.

I pull under 400 at wall with fans and have no summer cooling requirements.

My electrical bill barely moved.

Over years of operation huge savings.

Also I can upgrade one light add a light what ever I want.

And the savings pay for it.

The only increase was in nutes and intake of water by the plants.

Which equals more growth.

Crop King White Cookies - Drip Irrigation - DIY Citi Cobs - SCROG

 

[ricks]

Hi,
I was trying to find out some info on stage lighting for my plants. I have several stage lights all led that I'm not using any more cuz band broke up. I was searching on 420 but couldn't find any info. I was going to trey and post a question about it however I am unable to post on the site. I did join it yesterday. Anyway thanks for any advice you can give.
ricks