LED Grow Light Manufacturers - LED Grow Lights - International Cannagraphic Magazine Forums

cjk · 08-04-2011, 04:15 PM

LED's are starting to be a real option for me and I thought we should have a thread to list reputable LED companies for people to research. My mind is a little boggled trying to figure out which company to buy from but I have narrowed it down to four or five companies. Please feel free to add any manufacturers and/or grow diaries that you have witnessed to be successful lights. My findings are ...

Black Dog LED
Lighthouse Hydroponics Blackstar Series (pull less wattage than advertised)
Hydro Grow LED (new series coming out in Aug-Sep '11)
Grow LED Hydro Spectra Series
Lumigrow
StealthGrow (i think i read there utilizing 50 watt led's in their top model)

Mr. Bongjangles · 08-04-2011, 04:34 PM

Dunno but IMO, HydrogrowLED should be removed from the "reputable" list.

When they had a sponsored forum here, I personally witnessed a couple of incidents that were downright offensive.

Firstly, they posted light meter readings on their led unit, and when multiple people with knowledge of the specific meter posted in detail how they were done incorrectly, the posts were all removed, thread locked and made a sticky.

Secondly, they posted pictures of colas that were supposedly dry on a scale, but, clearly visible in the pictures were fan leaf stems that were not dry at all - indicating that they took the pictures as soon as the buds shrank, but well before they were fully dry.

Now that they are no longer sponsoring the site, I feel the need to bring up these things I noticed in their time here that have entirely turned me off to the possibility of doing business with them.

FreedomGrower · 08-04-2011, 04:47 PM

Not sure any led company is really reputable yet lol but here are some more manufactures;

https://www.prosourceworldwide.com/default.asp
https://www.globaltechled.com/led-grow-light.php
https://www.procyondepot.com/
https://www.ledwholesalers.com/store/index.php?act=viewProd&product Id=612
https://www.ledwholesalers.com/store/...&productId=700

cjk · 08-04-2011, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Bongjangles

Dunno but IMO, HydrogrowLED should be removed from the "reputable" list.

When they had a sponsored forum here, I personally witnessed a couple of incidents that were downright offensive.

Firstly, they posted light meter readings on their led unit, and when multiple people with knowledge of the specific meter posted in detail how they were done incorrectly, the posts were all removed, thread locked and made a sticky.

Secondly, they posted pictures of colas that were supposedly dry on a scale, but, clearly visible in the pictures were fan leaf stems that were not dry at all - indicating that they took the pictures as soon as the buds shrank, but well before they were fully dry.

Now that they are no longer sponsoring the site, I feel the need to bring up these things I noticed in their time here that have entirely turned me off to the possibility of doing business with them.

i agree but the fact is i've seen grow results hovering around 1gpw with her units by regulars on this forum. with all forum BS aside, they're still decent lights. wouldn't you agree? i'm really interested in her 3w x models that are about to come out. i'm hoping someone will pick one up or maybe i will...

FreedomGrower · 08-04-2011, 05:00 PM

Considering I think she just sells Chinese models; and is just a distributor anyways; She argues otherwise but just makes me believe her less ...
https://www.myledlightingguide.com/pdf/HG-205WA.pdf
https://www.growlightexpress.com/led-...ight-1331.html

Mr. Bongjangles · 08-04-2011, 05:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cjk

i agree but the fact is i've seen grow results hovering around 1gpw with her units by regulars on this forum. with all forum BS aside, they're still decent lights. wouldn't you agree? i'm really interested in her 3w x models that are about to come out. i'm hoping someone will pick one up or maybe i will...

Yes, I make no comment on the effectiveness of their units, but I do suspect someone like blaze1up or the others who tested them with decent results would have done just as well with the newest Lumigrow gear.

You used the term "reputable" though, and that speaks to a company's reputation - something that entails more than just how well their product works.

Shafto · 08-04-2011, 05:41 PM

If you going to buy an LED fixture from one of these vendors there are 3 main things you need to find out before you do anything.

1. First off, don't listen to a single bit of the marketing crap about LEDs. They make heat, more heat than an HPS per watt, and they only last a long time if they run cool.

2. Find out what kind of LED is used. If it's not Lumileds, CREE, Osram, Nichia, SSC, or another quality, non chinese knockoff type LED, then the fixture is complete crap.

3. Find out the junction to ambient thermal resistance. If the company can't readily provide you with the junction to ambient thermal resistance of their fixture, then the fixture is most definitely, complete and total crap, and they are either hiding a terrible figure, or they never even did the calculations to build a proper LED array into a fixture in the first place.

cjk · 08-04-2011, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Bongjangles

Yes, I make no comment on the effectiveness of their units, but I do suspect someone like blaze1up or the others who tested them with decent results would have done just as well with the newest Lumigrow gear.

You used the term "reputable" though, and that speaks to a company's reputation - something that entails more than just how well their product works.

reputable as in having a reputation of producing effective lights for growing...

08-05-2011, 12:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shafto

If you going to buy an LED fixture from one of these vendors there are 3 main things you need to find out before you do anything.

1. First off, don't listen to a single bit of the marketing crap about LEDs. They make heat, more heat than an HPS per watt, and they only last a long time if they run cool.

2. Find out what kind of LED is used. If it's not Lumileds, CREE, Osram, Nichia, SSC, or another quality, non chinese knockoff type LED, then the fixture is complete crap.

3. Find out the junction to ambient thermal resistance. If the company can't readily provide you with the junction to ambient thermal resistance of their fixture, then the fixture is most definitely, complete and total crap, and they are either hiding a terrible figure, or they never even did the calculations to build a proper LED array into a fixture in the first place.

1. LEDs do not radiate heat, they conduct heat via heat sinks. All the heat is on the rear end of the light source, which allows you to get them closer to the plants without burning. HPS are intense and must be kept higher above the canopy. For those with restricted heights, LEDs are a good alternate option. While they do generate heat, it is way more easily managed than with an HID.

2. Agree, but some still lie and say they use Cree 3W emitter when we all know for a fact Cree does not make 3W emitters, but their 1W can get a little over 2W output.

3. They use aluminum profiles with a wide fin gap and they aren't very tall fins for. Overall surface area of the sinks seem pretty bad, so they compensate by adding multiple fans to it. It does the job, but costs more power to run. They don't care about your power usage, they only care about making the light at a cheaper cost. Fans are cheaper than Aluminum. The efficiency is kind of lost with these units. Your saved energy is just wasted on running the 6 DC fans non-stop.

Shafto · 08-05-2011, 04:47 AM

The heat is conducted out of the junction, yes, but the belief that there is no heat radiated is also somewhat of a myth. There is also a lot more heat created per watt of input with LEDs than HPS, radiated or not, especially the red LEDs.

The myth I was speaking of, is that there's no heat out the front with LEDs. While there is no actual radiated heat, extra light hitting the plant, especially blue wavelengths that are not used for photosynthesis or reflected, turn into heat on the plant surface. This is the same effect as when a laser using radiometric power turns into heat on a surface.

You can test this out yourself with a high power blue LED. Use something light absorbent like black electrical tape and hold it right over a blue LED. The tape will quickly melt.

When I first started testing and working with high power LEDs many years ago, I used to turn them over and face them downward on my workbench so I wasn't blinded while trying to read at my instruments, but I soon had to come up with another solution because the LEDs started leaving little black burn holes all over my work bench.

P.S. Surface mount soldering with solder paste and a hotplate with proper MCPCBs is much easier than you'd think, way better thermally, and will save you a lot of time. Also, you don't need to further insulate the MCPCB from the heatsink, even if the heatpad on the LED isn't isolated. The MCPCB has an insulation layer already. Gluing directly to an anodized heatsink will have more thermal resistance than soldering to a MCPCB and then gluing the MCPCB to the heatsink. MCPCB is the way to go hands down.

08-04-2011, 04:15 PM	#1
cjk Member Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 525	LED Grow Light Manufacturers LED's are starting to be a real option for me and I thought we should have a thread to list reputable LED companies for people to research. My mind is a little boggled trying to figure out which company to buy from but I have narrowed it down to four or five companies. Please feel free to add any manufacturers and/or grow diaries that you have witnessed to be successful lights. My findings are ... Black Dog LED Lighthouse Hydroponics Blackstar Series (pull less wattage than advertised) Hydro Grow LED (new series coming out in Aug-Sep '11) Grow LED Hydro Spectra Series Lumigrow StealthGrow (i think i read there utilizing 50 watt led's in their top model)
	Quote 1 members found this post helpful.

08-04-2011, 04:34 PM	#2
Mr. Bongjangles Head Brewer Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Koko's Boathouse Posts: 2,171	Dunno but IMO, HydrogrowLED should be removed from the "reputable" list. When they had a sponsored forum here, I personally witnessed a couple of incidents that were downright offensive. Firstly, they posted light meter readings on their led unit, and when multiple people with knowledge of the specific meter posted in detail how they were done incorrectly, the posts were all removed, thread locked and made a sticky. Secondly, they posted pictures of colas that were supposedly dry on a scale, but, clearly visible in the pictures were fan leaf stems that were not dry at all - indicating that they took the pictures as soon as the buds shrank, but well before they were fully dry. Now that they are no longer sponsoring the site, I feel the need to bring up these things I noticed in their time here that have entirely turned me off to the possibility of doing business with them. __________________ Plasma + LED \| Vacuum Purged Wax Stereoscopic 3D Flower Pictures \| Geisha - Finished \| Cell Tray Cloning w/ Perlite Coco/perlite vs. Coco - Finished \| 1-2 Pound Drying Tub \| How-to: wall mount fan in a grow tent F.U.C.K.E.M.
	Quote 4 members found this post helpful.

08-04-2011, 04:47 PM	#3
FreedomGrower Chronic Toker Join Date: May 2011 Location: The c*unt Posts: 629	Not sure any led company is really reputable yet lol but here are some more manufactures; https://www.prosourceworldwide.com/default.asp https://www.globaltechled.com/led-grow-light.php https://www.procyondepot.com/ https://www.ledwholesalers.com/store/index.php?act=viewProd&product Id=612 https://www.ledwholesalers.com/store/...&productId=700 __________________ Cannabis Cures Cancer .ORG ... Greenstone Garden Also known as Slips Garden Pics Old Smoke Reports
	Quote

08-04-2011, 05:00 PM	#5
FreedomGrower Chronic Toker Join Date: May 2011 Location: The c*unt Posts: 629	Considering I think she just sells Chinese models; and is just a distributor anyways; She argues otherwise but just makes me believe her less ... https://www.myledlightingguide.com/pdf/HG-205WA.pdf https://www.growlightexpress.com/led-...ight-1331.html __________________ Cannabis Cures Cancer .ORG ... Greenstone Garden Also known as Slips Garden Pics Old Smoke Reports
	Quote

08-04-2011, 05:41 PM	#7
Shafto Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 501	If you going to buy an LED fixture from one of these vendors there are 3 main things you need to find out before you do anything. 1. First off, don't listen to a single bit of the marketing crap about LEDs. They make heat, more heat than an HPS per watt, and they only last a long time if they run cool. 2. Find out what kind of LED is used. If it's not Lumileds, CREE, Osram, Nichia, SSC, or another quality, non chinese knockoff type LED, then the fixture is complete crap. 3. Find out the junction to ambient thermal resistance. If the company can't readily provide you with the junction to ambient thermal resistance of their fixture, then the fixture is most definitely, complete and total crap, and they are either hiding a terrible figure, or they never even did the calculations to build a proper LED array into a fixture in the first place.
	Quote 2 members found this post helpful.

08-05-2011, 04:47 AM	#10
Shafto Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 501	The heat is conducted out of the junction, yes, but the belief that there is no heat radiated is also somewhat of a myth. There is also a lot more heat created per watt of input with LEDs than HPS, radiated or not, especially the red LEDs. The myth I was speaking of, is that there's no heat out the front with LEDs. While there is no actual radiated heat, extra light hitting the plant, especially blue wavelengths that are not used for photosynthesis or reflected, turn into heat on the plant surface. This is the same effect as when a laser using radiometric power turns into heat on a surface. You can test this out yourself with a high power blue LED. Use something light absorbent like black electrical tape and hold it right over a blue LED. The tape will quickly melt. When I first started testing and working with high power LEDs many years ago, I used to turn them over and face them downward on my workbench so I wasn't blinded while trying to read at my instruments, but I soon had to come up with another solution because the LEDs started leaving little black burn holes all over my work bench. P.S. Surface mount soldering with solder paste and a hotplate with proper MCPCBs is much easier than you'd think, way better thermally, and will save you a lot of time. Also, you don't need to further insulate the MCPCB from the heatsink, even if the heatpad on the LED isn't isolated. The MCPCB has an insulation layer already. Gluing directly to an anodized heatsink will have more thermal resistance than soldering to a MCPCB and then gluing the MCPCB to the heatsink. MCPCB is the way to go hands down.
	Quote 2 members found this post helpful.