February 25, 2023
Whether you’re designing for nature or improving the air quality in your lakeside home, grow lights can ensure your indoor gardening success. They also offer convenience, since you don’t have to keep all your plants by the window. So, if you’re ready to improve your gardening skills, check out these top LED grow lights for indoor gardening!
Getting the right amount of LED lights is something you want to do right the first time, or you could end up wasting money and time.
There is one way to determine how many LED grow lights you need — there are two steps. You need to determine the lighting needs of your factory and the dimensions of your factory area. Plant needs are measured in watts per square foot.
Instead of measuring the plant area (your grow tent or elsewhere where you grow plants), measure the footprint or the canopy of the plant.
Example: A 5' by 5' space with a 4' by 4' plant canopy only needs LED lighting for a 4' by 4' area.
To calculate your plant’s wattage needs, you’ll need to do some research on your plant. More isn’t always better. In fact, too many LED lights can burn plants and even bleach them.
It sounds complicated, but once you’ve done it a few times, you’ll get the hang of it. Alternatively, you can search the Internet for specific information about your plant.
Gavita Pro RS 2400e 800W LED Grow Light
Features:
Gavita LED grow lights produce 2400 μmol/s at an impressive 3.0 μmol/J efficiency and provide a broad spectrum of white light and enhanced blue light to help enhance flavor and aroma. This powerful full-spectrum light source is designed for all aspects of plant growth — from the vegetative stage to the end of flowering and when higher light levels are required. Using the Gavita Master EL3 controller, the luminaire can be dimmed by up to 10% without any loss of efficiency. The RS 2400e is built with high quality components including Gavita drivers and custom Gavita branded diodes to deliver the performance and longevity you’ve come to expect from a trusted brand.
Luxx 860w LED Pro XR LED Grow Light
Features:
The Luxx LED grow light is built on the industry-leading Luxx 645 Pro product platform. It features two additional 100W LED strips to increase total light output and maintain PPFD uniformity over a larger area, ensuring consistent growth across tray widths of 5–6 feet. The 860w LED PRO XR allows the fixture to be placed close to the canopy, maximizing PPFD, while the strip array provides light from multiple locations from different angles to penetrate the canopy. These LEDs are designed to be low and wide. Drop them 12" — 18" from the canopy and hang them on the wall while using the onboard dimming to deliver the right amount of PPFD evenly across the canopy. This maximizes light absorption by plant leaves, increasing light efficiency and reducing wasted photons.
While nearly every plant loves light, they don’t all taste the same. Here are some things to consider when buying LED grow lights.
Energy Consumption
Although LEDs are much more efficient than their older counterparts, they still require a constant flow of energy to operate. Leaving them on all the time — especially if you’re running a lot — can really start to add to the ecological impact and your electricity bill.
Older light bulbs used to measure power in watts, but that’s not how LEDs work. The input wattage to an LED indicates how much power it will use, but not necessarily how bright it will be. High-efficiency LEDs can emit a lot of light with a few lights, while other arrays use a greater number of small lights.
Your needs will vary from plant to plant, but don’t buy an LED light array just because of its high power rating. Look for equivalent wattage or other measurements.
Spectrum Coverage
Full-spectrum lights can mean different things, depending on the model. True full-spectrum lights include infrared modules that emit waves that are technically invisible. Different wavelengths of light often serve different parts of the growing process, so you need to match spectral performance to the plants you’re growing. If your plants aren’t picky, most “full spectrum” lights should work just fine. However, it’s worth doing some research on your particular plants to make sure the lights you buy will meet their needs.
Dimmability
Not all grow lights are dimmable. Some only have an on or off setting and nothing else. Other LED grow lights can provide ten or more different levels of light, so you don’t always have to blast them at full power.
Self-timer
Plants don’t need light 24 hours a day, so you’ll need to turn the lights on and off as needed. Some lights have built-in timers that allow you to program them on a custom schedule. This saves you from having to remember to hit a switch, which can have a profound effect on your plants, especially if you’re trying to grow outdoor plants indoors.
Indoor gardening can be a rewarding and fun hobby. It’s easy to be successful when you have the right tools at hand. LED lights designed for houseplants make the process a joy. There are many systems to choose from at different prices, so there’s something for you.
October 20, 2023