Advice on LEDs

[Fizzy_rascal]

Hello everyone!

This is my first post, so hopefully I'm doing everything correctly.

I've decided to take the plunge and start growing my own plants for personal use.

I've just finished reading Jorge Cervantes' "Marijuana Horticulture" and found it very helpful, but it came out several years ago and doesn't have a section on LEDs.

I'd like to grow 4 plants in a grow tent, and believe a 1m x 1m tent would be right for this. I'd like to invest in a LED light to save on energy, but am unsure what would be the best light for four plans in this space.

I was hoping someone might be able to help with this and suggest a decent LED light setup for me.

Many thanks in advance for reading this far!

 

[cardgenius]

With LED it’s all about how much money you want to spend as theres something for every budget.

On the high end: Horticulture Lighting Group, Growers Choice, Gavita, Timber LED, ChilLED, RapidLED and The Green Sunshine Company.

Middle of the road: Spider Farmer, Mars Hydro, Maxisun, Viparspectra. Mejiu or Kingbright on Alibaba.com

Low end: anything that uses the old “blurple” LED tech.

I highly suggest staying away from the ”blurple” LEDs. They are old, outdated and a waste of money with all the new LED tech out there. There’s a ton of stuff out there though and it can be overwhelming when you first dive in so be sure to ask if you have any questions about a particular unit before you buy it.

You‘ll want to match the lights to the size tent you buy so keep that in mind. Bigger tent, bigger light. A good number to shoot for is 35w/square foot for flowering and 15w/square foot for vegetative growth. A fixture that has a dimmer switch should be a top feature to look for.

Spectrum is also something to consider but thats another deep dive into a rabbit hole so proceed at your own risk! lol

 

[Fizzy_rascal]

Thank you so much for replying @cardgenius ! I really appreciate it.

I'll definitely take a look at the brand's you recommended.

I have Dyscalculia (trouble with numbers) so working out the wattage needed for my grow is going to be a challenge - but I'll give it a good go!

I think I can probably put between £250 - £300 towards an LED light, so hopefully I can get something decent to start out with.

Thanks again!

 

[WeedHopper]

Welcome aboard Fizzy. The Passion is a great place to learn with many very knowledgeable growers. Glad to see you here.

 

[Oldbay]

Welcome and I agree with cardgenius - I use an HLG 550 (480 watts) and I am very happy with it in a 4x4 tent. For a meter by meter (3x3) It would probably be a better fit for a 300l. A little above you budget, so I would look at Mars, Spider and Kingsbright

 

[Fizzy_rascal]

Thank you so much @Oldbay !

I'm learning so much from you guys.

 

[WeedHopper]

Told ya the Passion is a great place with great growers.

 

[Drifting13]

Welcome to MP, Fizzy_rascal! Where in the UK are you? I was stationed @ RAF Lakenheath back in the 1970's.
I can't help with LED's as I'm still using HPS bulbs...

 

[2broke2smoke]

I would love to have 6 of them HLG 650R's, just don't have 6k atm or they would already be hanging

2b2s

 

[2broke2smoke]

For a small 3x3 tent this might be a good option: Horticulture Lighting Group 260 Watt QB V2 R-Spec Quantum Board DIY Kit

 

[yooper420]

Very happy with my Timber LED's. I use 4 / 200 watt full spectrum LED's with 3 / 100 watt red spectrum only LED's to supplement flowering. Have not used the 3 red LED's yet. The others have did a great job by themselves.

 

[ROSTERMAN]

I used HLG panels and built my own
Horticulture Lighting Group 4X QB132 Quantum Boards (3500K)
Not sure if they even sell these still, tech moves so fast.

 

[yooper420]

My 4 / 200 watt LED's I built from kits.