LED Buying Guide (a noob start)

So youre a noob looking for your first LED huh? Well ill try to help a little.
Skip to end for suggestions. bold below

First off do you need an LED?
LEDs as of Nov 2011 are expensive. If you have no other qualms and just want to grow the biggest cheapest weed/medicine i would suggest you invest in HPS.

Now if you are very eco savy, have a slight tech fetish (or affinity for those offended), or are growing in small spaces where heat is an issue than maybe you qualify.

LEDs do produce heat please understand. Just much less than HPS/MH/CMH and less than CFLs as well as the heat is directed up and away from our plants.


Okay so you still want an LED even though there could be better cheaper options? Good, good.

LEDs are new, they have very little track records as far as long term lights. They are "suppose" to last 50,000+ hours but we all know how stuff like that works.
-For this reason i HIGHLY suggest you chose a light that provides a warrenty. Preferably 3+ years.
Anyone not providing a no hassle warrenty isnt standing behind there product and that should be suspicious.

-If you are flowering get an LED that uses 3W LEDs otherwise your buds will be airy for sure and you wont get penetration.

Look for grow journals, if theres a new awesome deal an a new LED light no ones every heard of theres probably a reason... its a scam or not very good.
Look for results, they are out there.

Look at actual draw. if a panel has 100 LEDs that are all 3W, it will NOT pull 300w. WILL NOT. Why? Because if it runs at full power (just like a car) it will overheat and fail. So it runs at around half (once again think rpms on a car). Notice this if a company is claiming it pulls 300 actual watts from 100 3w leds beware.

Look if the panel has a UVB bulb. You want this. It means you will have tons of trichromes and more THC.

Sounds like a lot of work? It is, doing good homework at least 10-20 hours of pouring over journals. Which is why ill suggest what i have found in my studies.

GrowLedHydro - Expensive, one of the best and has 5 year warranty ive heard is very good.
ProGrow (at hydroponicshut)- mid range expense, nice quality light (i have this one), 3 year warranty
Blackstar Gothamhydroponis- best watt/$, results prove that a budget (relatively) light can produce results. 1 year warranty Downside-heard a few issues on customer service but could be old news. I would check into it more before you buy.

Magnums 357-Ive done less research but seen a few good journals. Looks promising but i would double check for any negative feedback.
Kessil- Heard they are quality and look professional but i dont like the focused flashlight thing.

Build your own?
Very possible. You can save a little money and can customize exactly what you want (have some vertical ideas i would love to try). But you wont save much money in my opinion i would rather have it all neat and have a warranty.
Google Kanna or look up the DIY LED on the DIY section i posted a link there that where kanna gives amazing detail and tutorial on building one.

Thats my opinion. If others have experience feel free to chime in hopefully this thread can act as status of what brands/LEDs are reputable and a good deal at the current time as it will be changing drastically over the next 5-10 years. So if you feel its out of date write up a detailed update

Thanks for this. I'm not in the market for a LED yet, but I have been very curious about these systems

G'looks blazed, was hoping one of these would pop up as directory for reputable led lights...
I've personally had a great exp with the magnums; switchable spec, very well built and extremely fast delivery...

Nice thread. Rep. STAY HIGH!!

The number of spectrum wavelengths the panels have should also be considered. I would recommend at least 7 with the most ive seen being 15.

Some other lights that weren't mentioned yet that I'd recommend checking out are:

AdvancedLED - I personally use these and love them.
Blackdog - Not many journals using them, but the product specs are top of the line and they are the only lights I've seen with a lifetime warranty.
HydroGrow Penetrators - The company's owner has a tarnished reputation but the lights look to perform very well.

There's some more out there that I haven't done enough research on like growstealth and stealthgrow to be able to speak on. And if anyone has any info in journals using ApacheTech please hook it up with a link as I'm interested to learn more about them.

Hope this helps some!

BlazedMonkey said:

Look if the panel has a UVB bulb. You want this. It means you will have tons of trichromes and more THC.

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Good info here, thank you.

Do you have anymore details behind UVB being a important component to LED ops? what about IR then too?

I made a decision to go to Magnumss last year and have been happy with the results. My advice would be to above all, never go below 3W LEDs, meaning the diodes themselves - they wont penetrate. the 357 hype is a little blown up but I can tell you I ran two in a 3x8 space and cranked out some chunky widows. Very efficient down the line, I imagine. Happy with them. I supplement then with two 105w cfls now (equal to 400wx2) and the space is a light wash of bright white and specific spectrum. Its beaut.

puffenuff said:

The number of spectrum wavelengths the panels have should also be considered. I would recommend at least 7 with the most ive seen being 15.

Some other lights that weren't mentioned yet that I'd recommend checking out are:

AdvancedLED - I personally use these and love them.
Blackdog - Not many journals using them, but the product specs are top of the line and they are the only lights I've seen with a lifetime warranty.
HydroGrow Penetrators - The company's owner has a tarnished reputation but the lights look to perform very well.

There's some more out there that I haven't done enough research on like growstealth and stealthgrow to be able to speak on. And if anyone has any info in journals using ApacheTech please hook it up with a link as I'm interested to learn more about them.

Hope this helps some!

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Those blackdog leds had originally caught my eye as well.
You know where a journal is that's using them? beside the one on youtube

Great info thanks. Quick noob question.

I have a line on this unit for cheap: http://www.htgsupply.com/Product-7-Band-240w-LED-Grow-Light.asp (relatively cheap...used at about half the price HTG was asking for it) and I'd like to try it for a very small stealth grow....4 plants in a 3x3. Does anyone think this would good enough as an all in one light for this kind of grow? Should I supplement with additional light at flower? Would love to not invest in hid heat dispersion for many stealth reasons. The price is right, but for $125 I could get a cheap 400 hps...but then I would have to spend more cash on fans and the stealth factor would be lowered considerably. Thanks for any input....and this thread is awesome.

poppiweed said:

Great info thanks. Quick noob question.

I have a line on this unit for cheap: http://www.htgsupply.com/Product-7-Band-240w-LED-Grow-Light.asp (relatively cheap...used at about half the price HTG was asking for it) and I'd like to try it for a very small stealth grow....4 plants in a 3x3. Does anyone think this would good enough as an all in one light for this kind of grow? Should I supplement with additional light at flower? Would love to not invest in hid heat dispersion for many stealth reasons. The price is right, but for $125 I could get a cheap 400 hps...but then I would have to spend more cash on fans and the stealth factor would be lowered considerably. Thanks for any input....and this thread is awesome.

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watup poppi?
I have no exp with htg's led lights, but i have had good experience with various products from them so I suppose this light will work if they're selling it.
Take into mind that the 240 watt rating is going to be about 120 watts actual draw. It all comes down to the spectrum variety, diode brand (yes brand names do mean somethign in this field) /quality, and overall assembly of the model which all affect the sale price. Try to rememeber this rule of thumb; When it comes to led lighting you get back only what you put into it.
~a 3x3 area wiht 4 plants is pushing it if you plan to use the whole space to grow. Im sure it will suffice for a small stealth grow though. Since you're getting such a good deal on it what do you have to lose; plug her up n get growing...

LEDs are still an emerging technology. Most of the LEDs sold today will become obsolete very quickly. I agree that you will get what you pay for on LED lights, but that being said, I would look for a company that is actively researching spectrum's, lenses, design, etc... I have used LEDs from Haight, Hydro-Grow and then of course the junk you buy on EBay, I have friends that have Blackstars, Advanced, and Kessel. When I received my Hydro-Grow Penetrator Pro (more than I wanted to spend by the way, but Im sure glad I did!) I was immediatel;y impressed with the design and thought put into the light regarding spectrum, light placement, lens and wattage draw. So far Ive had lightning fast Veg and now Im 2 weeks into flowering and all I can say is Wow! My 600W HPS is going on EBay today! I would say the Hydro-Grow is out performing my buddy's multiple Kessels, cant even compare it to the Blackstar, as my plants are more than dbl in size and the Blackstar is still Vegging the same strain in my buddy's room. (Hes not Happy) I would check out Haight, Apache and Hydro-Grow and do some reading.
I will post some pics as soon as I find my Camera, but I would DEFINITELY spend some more time researching, and save up my money for a GOOD LED. Good Luck!

loudpac said:

watup poppi?
I have no exp with htg's led lights, but i have had good experience with various products from them so I suppose this light will work if they're selling it.
Take into mind that the 240 watt rating is going to be about 120 watts actual draw. It all comes down to the spectrum variety, diode brand (yes brand names do mean somethign in this field) /quality, and overall assembly of the model which all affect the sale price. Try to rememeber this rule of thumb; When it comes to led lighting you get back only what you put into it.
~a 3x3 area wiht 4 plants is pushing it if you plan to use the whole space to grow. Im sure it will suffice for a small stealth grow though. Since you're getting such a good deal on it what do you have to lose; plug her up n get growing...

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Thanks. Good advise. For the price that they are selling it seems too good to be true, even though I have had good experiences with their stuff too. But for the price I'm paying (about a dollar a watt if it is pulling 120) I can't beat it and worst case scenario I can supplement with a few cfl's during flower and still keep it pretty cool. I'm only looking to grow maybe two to three ounces per harvest, so it might. Thanks again for your help!

The 357Magnums are awesome just pricey. I believe the science they back it up with. Plants respond well in flower. So as far as 700 dollar 357 watt LED lights go, Magnums are the shite

Great stuff up in here. OMscience yes forgot the Advanced LEDs.

Advanced LEDs- Lots of great journals no personal experience but looks very promising, this was up there with GLH and ProGrow for me.

UVB- Lots of info over in the advanced section. This is why CMH is good too, and why old school growers put MH in there flowering rooms. IR dont know as much about (the effects on weed that is ).


Would love to see more research/comparative grows using the dual/switchable spectrum as well. Its on my progrow and im running just flowering these last two weeks (omg so freaking red) but ive not used it before and have no clue if it can really help or not.

BlazedMonkey said:

Great stuff up in here. OMscience yes forgot the Advanced LEDs.

Would love to see more research/comparative grows using the dual/switchable spectrum as well. Its on my progrow and im running just flowering these last two weeks (omg so freaking red) but ive not used it before and have no clue if it can really help or not.

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.... currently working on that right now...

fossil22 said:

LEDs are still an emerging technology. Most of the LEDs sold today will become obsolete very quickly. I agree that you will get what you pay for on LED lights, but that being said, I would look for a company that is actively researching spectrum's, lenses, design, etc... I have used LEDs from Haight, Hydro-Grow and then of course the junk you buy on EBay, I have friends that have Blackstars, Advanced, and Kessel. When I received my Hydro-Grow Penetrator Pro (more than I wanted to spend by the way, but Im sure glad I did!) I was immediatel;y impressed with the design and thought put into the light regarding spectrum, light placement, lens and wattage draw. So far Ive had lightning fast Veg and now Im 2 weeks into flowering and all I can say is Wow! My 600W HPS is going on EBay today! I would say the Hydro-Grow is out performing my buddy's multiple Kessels, cant even compare it to the Blackstar, as my plants are more than dbl in size and the Blackstar is still Vegging the same strain in my buddy's room. (Hes not Happy) I would check out Haight, Apache and Hydro-Grow and do some reading.
I will post some pics as soon as I find my Camera, but I would DEFINITELY spend some more time researching, and save up my money for a GOOD LED. Good Luck!

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hey cammie if you saved your pee pee in a jar maybe they can still sew it back on ??

GTFO

Whats up everybody!?

I'm a cfl grower with 2 cabinets for veg and flower, though this last yr I got rapped by my power bill. Running over 600W between both and now wan to go to a single cabinet with an LED setup. I wanna just use my veg cabinet on a 3-4 month cycle and would like to greatly affect my bill by switching but my research has shown that lots of LED's need to be 12-36" above the plant. Sadly my cabinet is only 36"Tx36"Wx16"D.

I've been looking at these little 15w red and blue bulbs that go in medium base socket- http://www.advancedledlights.com/pro...row-Light.html

I've only got about $170 to work with, if anyone in the know can help or suggest something better to use with my limited space I'd appreciate it

I have used the 180w EF unit from Advanced and comparing it to the 357 Magnum, they seem to be identicle in spectrum and number of LEDs (119 LEDs x 3 watts=357)but the Advanced is over $200 less and rated near its actual draw not total of LEDs power. I upgraded to the Advanced DS 300w, drawing 265 watts. Im not in flowering yet, but the 180EF filled a 3x3 tent nicely with extremely dense, BIG buds. The resin production was awesome also! I cant wait to see what the 300 DS can do.

Im not claiming its the best out there, but from my use, its very, very good.

imlovinit24/7, sorry your cabinet is so short. A good LED will work, but you will loose some size being that close and will most likely get some tops that appear "bleached" from the trichome cluster being so thick.

finned heat sinks are exceptionally important some companies use them, some don't. This is what helps wick away heat from the diodes. Without a quality finned heatsink your diodes will be subject to failure way earlier than they should naturally fail. Also good work on getting this started monkey!

diode brand is pretty important as well. CREE, Epistar, Bridgelux, Xenlux are four of the major players. So is the strength to which each diode is driven. This in part determines the longevity of the diode and is nice to know when purchasing. For reference most major brands run their 3w chipsets to about 2.1w of actual output. One should also inspect viewing angles. Most reputable companies use a mix of 60 90 and 120 degree angles. Some more inexpensive models chose to only use one angle which can make for a shitty footprint and bad penetration.

Also in case anyone hasn't mentioned it yet a real led light will put out at least 130w of total output, anything else (I'm looking at you 14, and 50w ebay panels) should be considered side lighting at best.