Full-spectrum led grow lights are an artificial light source, generally an electric. Grow lights are used where there is either no naturally occurring light or where supplemental light is required. Examples of this are indoor gardening, plant propagation and food production, including indoor hydroponics and aquatic plants. The good thing is that you can use most of them on an industrial level or in households.
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They Are Space Savers
Other grow light types need a lot of space and often require a lot of equipment to run, but LEDs are perfect for small rooms too. The small grow lamps allow you to move in the grow room because you don’t have to look out for extra equipment and cooling systems that usually take up so much of the available room. The better you can access your plants, the better care you’ll be able to provide them.
Led Grow Lights Don’t Emit Heat So Much
The temperature of the grow room is essential (AND I MEAN IT!). Without the right attention to heat, you will run the risk of losing entire crops. Even with proper care, you often need extensive systems to keep your room cool. LEDs have the advantage of running at a temperature that is only warm to the touch.
Are LED Grow Lights Power Efficient?
Traditional lighting forms can be powerful, but unfortunately, they aren’t very power efficient. That is why LEDs are preferred. They can produce a great deal of light without using vast amounts of energy. This will save you money in the long run!
What About The Lifespan?
When you use LEDs, you will have the chance to grow for years without having to replace the system. Most LEDs work between 50,000 and 100,000 hours. Think about this; many other grow lights tend to last only about 20,000 hours.
Why Should You Use Them?
Now that you understand something about full-spectrum led grow lights, here are the most critical factors you need to consider when you are deciding what kind to buy.
Cost
Nowadays, full-spectrum led grow lights are expensive. Setting up a system that depends on these can be more costly than standard HPS or HIDs. But, you’ll save a lot of money in the long run due to LEDs’ efficiency. As an example, the average lifespan of an HPS bulb is around 10,000 hours. Compare this to a 50,000-hour lifespan of an LED, and you can see the cost savings that accumulate over time. You can use a full spectrum LED for 15 years before you need to consider replacing it, and if you can afford the initial setup cost, you’ll thank yourself in the long run.
Size
Most HID and CFLs are bulky and cumbersome, which isn’t a bad thing but growing in a smaller space might be difficult. Full-spectrum lights are a bit smaller, and they don’t need ballasts or reflectors, which frees up space.
Heat
Light and heat always go hand in hand. The temperature in your grow room is a variable, and grow lights are one of the most significant contributors to rising temps. That’s why room ventilation is so important.
Full-spectrum LEDs don’t have this problem, though. Some growers find a need to heat their rooms during colder months due to the low heat output from LED lighting. That means that if you’re growing in a warmer climate, you won’t have to worry about overheating your grow room.
Requirements For Full Spectrum Grow Lights
LEDs play an essential role in indoor gardening. Since there’s no direct sunlight, your plants will need a different light source to grow. A plant’s life cycle includes a vital process called photosynthesis, which makes it possible to get the required amount of sugars by processing light energy absorbed by the leaf.
A typical LED includes a few bands and colors like yellow and white, but most plants need light as close to natural sunlight as possible. The sunlight is composed of various wavelengths and a range of colors.
Popular LEDs
Most popular LEDs used in growing are purple/pink. Not all light sources contain a full spectrum of colors – some include just some of the colors. But, sunlight contains all spectrum colors, and it feeds plants with either energy to trigger specific metabolic reactions or influence the behavior.
Different color LED chips placed inside the light, give a different kind of response from plants. Some say that, if we want plants to grow tall, increase the amount of far-red, yellow, orange, and green chips inside the luminaire. If we wish our plants to be compact, include more blue or UV colored chips. Two essential colors that should be in an LED lamp are: red and blue. Red and blue LED chips are the cheapest to get, and this is why most manufacturers opt for simple red-blue combinations.
When Using LEDs – Avoid These Mistakes!
Providing Insufficient Lighting
It’s essential to consider the scale of your operation. Think about how many plants you’re growing and how many LEDs you’ll need to get enough light. You should also consider the luminosity of the lights you’re using. Suppose, a 200W LED is said to be sufficient for a yield of about 100 grams. You have to ensure that you have enough lamps but still look for the right balance between providing enough light and not overdoing it.
Setting The Lamps To A Proper Distance
Overheating or insufficient lighting can result from having too many or not enough lights, but it can also be a result of placing them too close or too far from the plants. There is no general rule for the distance, but a recommended one is 12 to 18 inches (about 30 to 46 cm) away from the plants.
Using Second-class Products
Light is one of those vital factors because it “launches” the photosynthesis process in the plant. So, if you’re using regular incandescent lights, there is a chance that your plants won’t grow to be strong and healthy. So, for the best results, it’s recommended to use the full-spectrum – preferably LED ones! They are designed for the purpose and have the feature to deliver light how the plant needs it.
What If You Select The Wrong Spectrum
To grow efficiently, plants will need different types of light for each growth stage. With full-spectrum LEDs, you can achieve this, but don’t select the wrong setting because the plant won’t develop well if you do. Also, take into consideration the conditions of the room you’re growing. For example, plants benefit most from light in the blue spectrum when they’re in the vegetative stage of growth. It means that if you set the brightness to emit it in the red spectrum, the plant’s growth will start to hinder.
Don’t Use The Wrong Lighting Schedule
Please don’t leave the lights on all the time, or forget to turn them on – Both will have adverse effects! It’s easy to mess up the schedule, and even a minor change might harm the plant’s growth.
What If I Forget To Adjust Them?
Some growers forget to adjust the lights’ height, and when the plants grow bigger, they end up with burnt plant leaves. So, remember to rotate the pots occasionally so plants won’t lean towards the light too much.
Protect And Maintain Them
LEDs are an expensive investment, so you have to take proper care of them. Because they bring many benefits to the growing process, a little maintenance and preparation can save you a lot of trouble. A recommended thing to do is set up a power stabilizer and connect it to the lights to equalize the incoming voltage, protecting the chips inside the LEDs.
Overwatering When Switching From HIDs To LEDs
HIDs produce plenty of heat and generate infrared light – This, in return, dries out the plant/soil and results in a need to water the plant more often. But, LEDs don’t produce infrared and don’t emit as much heat, so there is no need for (dare I say?) useless watering.
Not Considering Other Factors
LEDs are a significant boost when growing plants indoors, but they cannot do much by themselves. To produce big and healthy yields, you need to consider many other factors – room temperature, airflow circulation, soil, nutrients, plant genetics, and many other things. Don’t focus on one single part of the growing process. As an alternative, get an understanding of the whole growing chain and how everything is interconnected.
Grow lights are one of the most crucial pieces of equipment that every aspiring grower should own (+USE!) and here below is a couple of high-quality grow lights that suit for many growers.
This Full Spectrum Grow Lamp By YOYOMAX For The Small Grower
This full spectrum grow lamp by yoyogrow is excellent for you if your planning on growing just a couple of plants in your small apartment.
Go check it out on Amazon!
Or This For The Bigger Grower By KingLED…
The 1200W version is the bigger version that is (as you might guess) for the bigger grower.
Check it out on Amazon!
Why Do You Need LED Grow Lights?
Led grow lights are essential for various reasons, and the reality is that LED lights are the most productive grow lights. For starters, LEDs consume 75% less electricity than customary grow lights.
By utilizing less power, you will spend less cash on power bills. Another thing is that the best LED grow lights use particular wavelengths of light that are required by most of your plants. Conventional grow lights “shoot” your plants with light, and as a result, a significant part of the light is wasted.
LEDs use blue and red wavelengths to give your plants everything they need without wasting power on things that aren’t necessary.
Your plants are living beings, like us. You wouldn’t mind someone taking you to a fine restaurant, so do your plants a favor and do it for them too.
What Does A “Full Spectrum” LED Light Mean?
It’s easiest to explain it this way; Sunlight is considered full-spectrum, so full-spectrum lights try to mimic sunlight as well as possible that, in return, give the plants the light needed (the right way) for growth. – Don’t ever buy grow lights other than full spectrum if you want your plants to thrive!
What Color LED Grow Light Is Best?
Make sure that the colors blue and red are in the grow light (There can be green and yellow also).
Are LEDs Better Than HPS?
In short, YES! LEDs might be a bit expensive at first, but they use less electricity, so you won’t ever regret buying LEDs instead of HPS.
Final Words
Full-spectrum led grow lights should be in every grower’s buying list these days. They are power efficient and don’t consume electricity as much as traditional grow lights, so the question is, why wouldn’t you buy them? I know that it might be tempting to buy HPS or some other cheaper light when you notice the price tag, but the cold fact is that LEDs tend to come less expensive in the long run.
I hope you now understand why full-spectrum (preferably LED ones) are the NO.1 grow light solution and if you do, go ahead and share this with a friend of yours who are still confused about this stuff. Also, share your personal experience (if any) about grow lights to the comment section; It would be beneficial to others.
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