Best LED Grow Lights Buying Guide - Things to take care of while buying the right light.

2021-10-15

Before buying the suitable LED grow light for your indoor garden, you must consider the following factors to get the ideal one:

1. Spectrum Type: 

As we have mentioned above, different wavelengths of lights are responsible for the various growth stages of the plant. Depending upon the type of harvest you want to cultivate in your indoor garden, you should opt for specific grow light with a suitable wavelength.  

Suppose you have multiple plants at different growth stages. In that case, it is advisable to go for an adjustable LED grow light that can tune to different wavelengths depending upon the plant requirement. So, always check the light spectrum and its wavelength range before buying the one for your plants. You can choose Full Spectrum Growing Lamp Fixture too.

2. Heat Output: 

It is a crucial factor to consider while buying the top LED grow light for your indoor garden. Grow lights are generally mounted close to the plants, and thus, these LEDs mustn’t produce overheat as they can damage the plant’s growth. 

LED with heat sinks or cooling fans are suitable for vertical gardens or indoor plants as they have no adverse effects on plants and can be placed even closer to them. An ideal Grow light must produce low heat to be the last longer, and you don’t have to replace it soon.

Antlux 4ft led grow lights adopt integrated reflector on the back to reduce light loss, and provide excellent heat dissipation.

3. Grow Space Size vs. Light Coverage Area:

Depending upon the grow space size, you decide how many lights of how many watts will be sufficient enough for various plants’ growth. First, you should determine the size of the garden and then consider the area each light needs to illuminate.

Different plants require different voltage for their proper growth. For example, if you want to grow tomatoes, 32 watts of LED light per square foot will be suitable for it. But if you’re going to produce light harvests like Lettuce or anything, 11-18 watt per square foot is sufficient for that.

4. Efficiency:

The efficiency of the Grow Lights is one of the critical aspects you must check. An ideal grow light must be operated at a high level to produce high energy with a low maintenance cost.

So, before choosing to the suggestions of the best LED grow lights, you must consider all these aspects, make your calculation and then choose which one is ideal for you according to your requirements.

5. Real Wattage vs. Theoretical Wattage

Most of the LED lights have two wattages: Real Wattage and Theoretical Wattage displayed on their packaging. Theoretical Wattage is the potential wattage on which an LED light could run when LED chips run at full power. For example, A 1000W LED light can have theoretical wattage of around 600Watt. But LED lights never run on full power as it will shorten their life.

So, LED lights always run at 50-60% of their theoretical wattage, known as their real wattage. It is the amount of light LEDs actually consume to perform. So, a 1000W LED light generally has real wattage of around 300-400 Watt, and you must consider both these wattages before buying a grow light.

6. Cooling System

Large LED lights emit more heat while providing intense light to your plants for their growth, and thus they must be equipped with a proper heat sinking system and cooling fans for heat dissipation. 

In the absence of both these things, the life span of LED light will shorten, and performance will decline. Also, the overheating won’t be good for your plants as well. So always give attention to the cooling system of LED grow light before buying one.

FAQs

1. How long should LED grow lights be on?

The duration of keeping grow lights on vary according to your crop type and its growth stage. But as a general thumb of rule, you should not keep LED lights ON for more than 12-16 hours if your plants are at the flowering stage. The reason behind it is that darkness is also essential for the plant’s growth, and thus, every plant must get the darkness for about eight hours for its proper growth.

2. How much light do plants need?

Different types of plants require different levels of light to grow. For example, shady plants require a low level of light, while veggy and other flowering plants require a high level of light to grow. For high light level plants, 800-1000 uMols is a considerable range for the flowering and vegetation stage. For low-light-level plants, 400-500 uMols will work fine.

3. How safe is LED grow lights to use for indoor grow?

LED grow lights are safe for plants if you are buying certified ones. Always check for the certifications and warranty while buying the Grow light for your indoor space to avoid any damage to your crops or tent space. An ideal LED grow light must be CSA, or UL certified. Also, take care of a few things while using the grow light to avoid any damage:

There must not be any humidity or moisture around your LED light to prevent damage.
Never overload the circuit as it will shorten your light lifespan and decline its performance.
Use eye protection like sunglasses while operating LED lights to avoid harmful UV rays.

4. Which are the best LED Grow lights to consider under $200?

Many great LED grow lights are available online to choose from, depending upon your budget and requirements. Here are some best LED grow lights under $200 you should consider:

5. How much power does a grow light consume?

There is no definite answer to that as it depends on the grow light you are using. If you have a powerful grow light, then it consumes a lot of electricity. The total power consumed by your grow light can be calculated based on the wattage of the light and the number of hours it is on.

6. What is the ideal spot to install grow lights?

You should place your grow lights directly over your plants to mimic natural sunlight. The general rule states that incandescent light bulbs should be about 24 inches over your plants. On the other hand, LED and fluorescent lights have can be placed 6 and 12 inches over plants respectively. That’s because they have a lower heat signature.