With so many options for outdoor grow lights and arrangement lights, it can be difficult to find the best light for your plants. Read this guide to learn more about the features and benefits of our most popular line of grow lights.

More and more hydroponic gardening enthusiasts are turning to LED grow lights and for good reason. The energy efficiency and lifespan of LED grow lights are better than incandescent lights. Now more than ever, you can choose from a wide variety of grow lights.

LED Grow Lights: Why You Should Use Them

Many growers are skeptical of LED grow lights because they have undergone various upgrades over the years to get where they are now. High Intensity Discharge (HID) lights last much longer than LEDs and have historically been reliable indoor grow lights. However, the advancements the industry has made have proven the value of LED lights in grow rooms. If you’re in doubt, here’s why you should consider horticultural LED grow lights for your next harvest:

Flowers thrive under full-spectrum LED grow lights. Compared to traditional lighting systems like HID and HPS lights, LEDs are the best choice for indoor gardening. Here are some advantages:

Broad Spectrum — LEDs offer greater flexibility and a wider spectrum combination than spectrally limited HPS and HID lamps. They are also capable of enhancing specific wavelengths, such as UV and IR, to suit specific needs in your garden.

Lower Heat Output — LED grow lights run much cooler than other types of grow lights because they don’t burn anything to produce light. Not only does this reduce electricity costs, but it also protects your grow room from overheating.

Increased Efficiency — LED grow lights are more efficient than HPS grow lights; they use 60% less energy for the same amount of light.

Longer Life— For lights that last a long time, use LEDs. Due to their non-chemical structure and low operating temperature, they can last over 50,000 hours.

ECO Farm UI2 690W Samsung 301B Chips LED Grow Light

Features:

This ECO Farm LED grow light is designed with 8 strips for a more even and complete canopy coverage. Equipped with high efficiency Samsung LM301B diode with extremely low thermal resistance. The plant light is flicker-free and dim, with a lifespan of 50,000 hours. The LED grow light consumes 690 watts at 2240 µmol/s and achieves a satisfactory PPE of 2.8 µmol/J covering high yield full cycle growth of 4'x4'. Each full spectrum LED grow light uses custom 2244 Samsung LM301B diodes. The abundance of wavelength types is consistent with the spectral range of plant photosynthesis. It can concentrate specific wavelengths of light to illuminate crops evenly, controlling plant height and plant nutrients. 

Grower’s Choice ROI-E680 LED Grow Light

Features:

The Grower’s Choice grow light produces a PPF output of 1700 umol/s and a PAR efficacy of 2.5 umol/J making this fixture incredibly efficient compared to other commercial fixures. Balanced Spectrum, incorporating Growers Choice famous 3K CMH Full Phase Spectrum for superior growing power with best possible LED diodes available. This fixture provides you with total control over everything. With onboard dimming function, growers cans et the ideal intensity at any stage of plant growth for optimal photosynthesis activation. The Growers Choice ROI E680 provides its users with an average 40% reduction on energy and HVAC costs. This is the ultimate combination of increasing the amount of light energy reaching your plants while also shrinking costs. 

How do you choose the right LED grow light with the right power?

We have explained how LED grow lights work and how they are rated. The next consideration is choosing the right LED grow light with the right power for your grow area. This process depends on three major factors — the growth phase of your plants , the total area of your grow tent, and the type of LED grow lights you employ.

1. Growth phase of your plants.
Each phase in the lifecycle of your plants requires a different amount of light. For instance, the seedling stage does not require high-intensity light to grow optimally, but the vegetative stage does, and the flowering stage thrives best with average light intensity.

2. Size of your grow area.
The wattage-surface area (watt/sq ft) principle of assessing grow lights factors in the amount of light the grow light can produce, and the size of your grow space. Therefore, the area of your grow space will determine the number of watts required and the number of LED units you need for complete and optimal illumination. A small grow space requires less power, while a larger grow area will require more.
The standard rule of thumb for LED grow lights depends on the efficacy (PPE) of the LED lights:

• Low efficacy LED lights, including the generic lights, have a PPE of about 1.0 µmol/J and require 50–60 w/sq ft.
• -Medium efficacy LED lights, including the housing-type lights, have a PPE of about 1.5 µmol/J and require 30–40 w/sq ft.
• -High efficacy LED lights, including those with quality diodes or high-end drivers, have a PPE of about 2.5 µmol/J and require 25–30 w/sq ft.

So, for example, if you have a 4ft x 4ft grow area and plan to use high efficacy lights, you only need lights that provide between 400w (25w x 4ft x 4ft) and 480w (30w x 4ft x 4ft). You can get a single LED grow light or multiple lights. Similarly, if you are using low-efficacy lights, you only need lights that can provide between 800w (50w x 4ft x 4ft) and 960w (60w x 4ft x 4ft). In this case, you can buy a 1000-watt LED grow light.

It is advisable not to exceed a maximum of 50 watts per square foot in your grow area. Exceeding this amount can create an excessive light intensity, leading to stunted growth and poor overall development of your plants.

3. Types of LED grow lights.
Growers can access various LED unit options in the current market. For instance, there is the full cycle LED light, two-channel lights, programmable lights, and more. The chip size also contributes to the wattage per square foot you get from your LED grow lights. However, it is essential to note that the larger the size of the chip in most cases, the higher the amount of heat generated by the lights.

Conclusion

Plants create food from light using the process of photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is the way plants convert light into energy. Plants use this energy to grow leaves, flowers and fruit. For photosynthesis, plants need light, water and carbon dioxide from the air.

While all three elements are essential, light is the most important. Without light, photosynthesis cannot take place and plants cannot grow. That’s why it’s important to make sure your plants get enough light.