led lights...what you think?

Discussion in 'Beginner Lounge' started by choker, Aug 26, 2013.

  1. choker

    choker HIDING OUT

    What are your thoughts on the new led lights?
     
  2. friendlyfarmer

    friendlyfarmer Rollin' Coal

    I haven't had any. Until dude's start growing buds comparable to HID lights with LED, and posting threads with pics, I don't bother even looking at the marketing hype floating around on the internet.


    The commercial guys would be using LED if they were gram/watt efficient. I bet there are a few hobby growers out there pulling a few zips out of cabinets with LED lights and without fans and for $15 per month, but that's not what I'm looking to do right now.
     
    choker likes this.
  3. mr_crazy_menace

    mr_crazy_menace Germinating

    I had one of them ufo lights, I thought it was a waste and didnt work. Hps and MH was much better.
     
  4. choker

    choker HIDING OUT

    Cool......Thanks for the replies. Was thinking of teaching a newbie how to do it. He is sold on them. I said there was not a lot of data to risk buying them. I just thought I would ask just incase there was some good feed back. The guy is such an ass. I hope he buys them.
     
  5. Midnight Garden

    Midnight Garden Excommunicated

    :rofl: Newbs never listen.
     
  6. choker

    choker HIDING OUT

    I know right...He says he knows how to graft it.:roffl:
     
  7. EvilSkuzzi

    EvilSkuzzi Sweet Guy

    They're shit.
     
  8. SirStynkalot

    SirStynkalot A Fat Sticky Bud

    ICmag has a forum devoted to them along with other micro style lighting setups. You can compare for yourself but basically when it comes to weight and quality (bud structure wise not resin wise) the order is HPS -> CFL -> LED. That is also the order of heat production, so people pick what they can work with.
     
  9. ducrider

    ducrider growing your mamas weed

    Not to bring up a boy named Sue but wouldn't induction lighting be something to consider for a small cabinet grow? They run pretty cool too don't they?


    Duc
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 28, 2013
  10. EvilSkuzzi

    EvilSkuzzi Sweet Guy

    They cost even more than LEDs!


    Both work for smaller plants, but they cost a fortune!
     
  11. greenthumbwhitethumb

    greenthumbwhitethumb down w the moral majority

    They're complete shitballs. I bought two, as an experiment, and used them on my veggies. Couldn't even get lettuce to grow. Really? Lettuce? Fucking worthless.


    GTWT


    :XXhippylove:
     
  12. ResinRubber

    ResinRubber Civilly disobedient/Mod

    I know I saw that grail around here somewhere.....
     
  13. ducrider

    ducrider growing your mamas weed

  14. ResinRubber

    ResinRubber Civilly disobedient/Mod

    Here's one for the books.


    My sister comes over the other day.


    Sis, "I bought these great LED's for your garden the other day."


    Res, "Huh? Wtf, why would you do that?"


    Sis, "The guy said they are amazing for growing. I paid $100."


    Res, "They're shit. Put them on your basil or sumthin."


    Sis, "But..."


    Res, "they're shit."


    Sis, "But the guy....."


    Res, .......sigh.......... "you wanna argue efficient grow lights with a guy who incurred a felony growing weed?"
     
  15. Lvstickybud

    Lvstickybud Bongmaster

    Haha, I can just picture her face. It must have been priceless.
     
  16. noreastgrow

    noreastgrow Super Dank Headies

    Cali lightworks solar storm led


    So I've had my Cali lightworks solar flare (200w full spectrum) led light for over a year now. I have to say - weight wise your better off with mh/hps ( and it kills me to admit this - I had high hopes for this). It does how ever sip electricity, produce soo much less heat and the buds are good. No doubt about that lol. I think that this would be a great light for vegging ( a 18/6 on led is much cheaper to run, and they love the led in veg). but it doesn't have enough juice for flowering.


    The one problem I found with this light is the throw that the light gives off is poor. A typical hood throws the light at a much wider area then a led. As a result you get a few plants that tend to take over, while the others don't get as much light.


    I do think a 800w Cali light work in a 5x5 tent would be a legit setup ( and I think oneshotgrow -YouTube user is doing a review on this set up. Check him out for full grows with a bunch of led lights). But that setup would run you over 2k and I dunno if its worth it.


    Just my 2c.


    NEG
     
  17. EvilSkuzzi

    EvilSkuzzi Sweet Guy

    2 grand?


    You could buy 20 hps setups for that lol.
     
  18. nuggnester

    nuggnester Pot & Poker Enthusiast

    Yeah...20 low budget shitty ass setups.
     
  19. skunky

    skunky labor smoke'n lumberjack

    My buddies dad I believe paid $1500 for his 800s. But this is where everything gets confusing. LEDs are no where are simple from a consumer standpoint on making a purchase and getting what you need. It's like all these damn flat panel TVs and their marketing bullshit for refresh rates. Anyways for one CLW makes no full spectrum lights, and the advertised wattage is not the real wattage.


    200W solarflare uses under 100W and is full cycle with more of a multispectrum(5 spectrum, including small numbers of full spectrum whites).


    http://www.californialightworks.com/Products_SolarFlare.htm


    Ook so there is a lot to learn about LEDs, for one lumens mean absolutely nothing here and you will have to pay more attention to PAR measurements. Also, that a lot of the ones on the market other than the more expensive units (i.e. the california light works, lumigrow, area 51, and apache tech.) are rebranded Chinese units.


    With those there is a million gimicky BS marketing ploys there as well. For one UV LEDS, IR LEDS, zener diodes. For one there are no feasibly cheap true UV LEDs, those are really just near UV nm spectrum. IR samething, they are really far red. Then you got the zener diodes. Some of the manufacturers claim it prevents the unit from going bad should a single LED go bad, well they don't. Actually all they do is consume a little energy that you will get no benefit from. Then you have the modular units so there will be like a hub with multiple leds. here I'll show you.


    So this is a non modular with zener diodes. You don't particularly want this. The zeners are the little resistor looking things you see on the board near ever LED.


    [​IMG]


    This is a modular unit, no zeners and better grouping of the electronic layouts.


    [​IMG]


    Then you have to look at the spectrum of light being produced. Then the LEDs used, what they are driven to and are their lenses, no lenses, or secondary lenses. Secondary really helps focus light. You don't really want a 3W LED running at 700mA because it will reduce it's life, 5W and 10W at 700mA is no issues with the right bulbs. Most of the chinese stuff claims to use bridgelux and epistar LEDs, bridgelux is ok but supposedly even in the aquarium world people use them and say they are ok but true EPIs are better that the wavelengths aren't as exact with the bridgelux. Though no telling if they are using real epistars or not. Could always ask a company for part numbers od the bulbs to cross reference and see specs and what bin they are. LEDs are not made equal by any means at all and in much more varying degree than what we see with HPS bulbs.


    One other thing to look out for is lights falsly claiming to use CREE LEDs. Only a couple actually do. CLW, area 51, apachetech, and lumigrow. Oh yeah and I forgot the bonsai hero lights, those are cree as well. Nothing fancy but efficient from what I've gathered.


    Epistar and Bridgelux


    [​IMG]


    CREE, all use square chipsets


    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]


    Oh and if you start looking around and come across hydrogrow LED I'd stay clear from what I could tell for one the owner is shady and threatened to outst from growers information because they couldn't come to agreement on a light that went out. That and from everything I can tell they are just basically a custom build from cidly electronics.


    Oh and one more thing about spectrums. So I've been kinda all over the place. I'm tired. LOL


    CLW Solar flare 200W full cycle mode.


    [​IMG][/img]


    Now here is the spectrum of my area 51 full spectrum top bin 3750K Cree XTE XTEAWT-02-0000-00000BFF6.


    [​IMG]
     
  20. CCrete

    CCrete Mr. Poopyfacepeepeehead

    For $2k...I could pull out a yearly average of about $250,000-300k and that's a fact


    Gimmie a LED and id set my drinks on it while it gathers dust.....just my opinion tho


    but for anyone willing to try it out, kudos to you guys
     

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