NEW LED GROW
- Thread starter bf74
- Start date
Nice thread,thanks man.
So,BF,I recently was contemplating a couple of 90w UFOs to toss in a veg room as supplemental lighting for my HIDs,just for fun-think it's worth it?
Thank you kindlyAnd If I may make a recommendation? Check out the all red and all blue ufo's.My reasoning for this is that with 2 pure red and blue ufo's you can see what a large blast of blue or red will do for your plants at different phases of development.Definitely would be interesting, you'll be amazed at how much you can control the stretch by messin around with these lights.I think the all red/ all blue ufo's can be picked up for about 200US a pop.peace.
Thanks for your work bf74, I think I'll stick with my $150 8 year old HID that has provided me with pounds and pounds. You're about the 5th person I've seen do an LED grow and no one has impressed me. I think there is a purpose for LEDs.........they work great in flashlights LOL.
I hear ya man, these lights sure as hell didnt live up to anyones expectations-but, people are slowly catching on.Heres pics from my hps tent.
Attachments
Apollonia
Member
Just subscribing to this thread.
Thought I may post some LED grown plant pics of my own (first time grower, so take that for what it's worth)
These were all vegged under a Procyon 100. I'm using 1/2 strength nutes and they seem to be doing well, but I have nothing to compare it to.
First the babies, 5 weeks old:
My two oldest (and largest/bushiest) girls, both 3 months:
Any and all feedback is welcome and appreciated.
Thought I may post some LED grown plant pics of my own (first time grower, so take that for what it's worth)
These were all vegged under a Procyon 100. I'm using 1/2 strength nutes and they seem to be doing well, but I have nothing to compare it to.
First the babies, 5 weeks old:
My two oldest (and largest/bushiest) girls, both 3 months:
Any and all feedback is welcome and appreciated.
Last edited:
Apollonia
Member
No pics bro...Until Leds can provide penetrating power I don't think they will be a viable option. I have seen 5 watt leds and they are powerful but nowhere near efficient enough or cheap enough to be truly useful for our purposes.
Yeah, I certainly wouldn't try to talk anyone out of using more proven methods in favor of LEDs. I'd say go for it only after very careful consideration and a LOT of research. In my opinion, they cannot effectively flower MJ in a way that most (and I mean like 99.99%) growers could afford - you need too many of them and good ones are very expensive upfront. I will say, they are decent for veg, you just don't need as much intensity as you do flower so it works out pretty well - like you said, my one worry is the penetration issue. I don't think they will penetrate (Procyon 100s, at least) more than 3 ft into the canopy.
And I think I finally got the pics up
Yeah, I certainly wouldn't try to talk anyone out of using more proven methods in favor of LEDs. I'd say go for it only after very careful consideration and a LOT of research. In my opinion, they cannot effectively flower MJ in a way that most (and I mean like 99.99%) growers could afford - you need too many of them and good ones are very expensive upfront. I will say, they are decent for veg, you just don't need as much intensity as you do flower so it works out pretty well - like you said, my one worry is the penetration issue. I don't think they will penetrate (Procyon 100s, at least) more than 3 ft into the canopy.
And I think I finally got the pics up
Good work
Yea I mean it is good that the technology is advancing but it just isn't there yet. It would be nice to find something to replace the hps which is so inefficient in terms of PAR but I guess we will just have to wait and see what comes of it.
Apollonia
Member
Good work
Thank you! Yeah I think we're all keeping our eyes open for a light source that improves on the HIDs - whether it's the heat signature, high energy use, efficiency - the list goes on. LEDs - maybe in 5 - 10 years there with be a breakthrough that will get us there affordably.
Another technology to look at is plasma sulfer lamps, they're pretty cool if a little scary at times (to me) a tiny handful of people are already using them and they're being sold in the UK at horticultural shops but there so "new" (they've been around for at least 15 years, but only recently have been considered for use in growing plants) So far, they're not widely accessible to consumers. Their spectrum mimics that of the sun VERY closely and they are extremely intense - far more than HIDs, all that with the low heat they produce, and their high efficiency is really, really intruiging. Plus they last forever. So those are two technologies I'm keeping my eye on.
what really bugs me is how the manufacture says "equivalent to a 400 watt HID" yeah right
Apollonia
Member
I know, that's just deceptive. Equivalent how, exactly? Frankly, it's claims like that right there that have soured a lot of people on LEDs - and rightfully so. It's an expensive light, all of them are - and to pay that kind of cash and then have the product fail in what the manufacturer said it would do, well it's straight up fraud. I've even seen instances of sales reps flat out lying to people about their light's capabilities on public forums. I'm not surprised so many people get immediately annnoyed at the mere mention of LEDs anymore. I mean, they work for me and yes, I'm happy with what they do, but I knew the limitations before purchase - after some research, I knew that this was a veg only light, for me. There's too much misleading "sales copy" out there, and that's just going to lead to dissatisfied people.
Aw shoot.Thank you Apollonia.I see you've been hard at work, everything looks great!
