March 24, 2022
Greenhouses have a “bright” perk over enclosed grow spaces: the sun! No matter how sophisticated light technology gets, it will never fully replicate the power of natural sunlight. Indeed, with such an obvious advantage, it may seem strange to add LED grow lights to a greenhouse space.
While you could grow greenhouse plants without extra grow lights, many cultivators like to add these units to their setup. Although LED lights will add to total energy expenditure, those costs could be offset with superior plants yields and unparalleled quality.
However, greenhouse cultivators can’t pick an LED willy-nilly and expect great results. Specific LED models are fantastic for greenhouse settings, while other designs are suited for traditional tent cultivation. Before adding grow lights to a greenhouse, you must know what to look for in an LED.
ECO Farm LM301B UV&IR 450W Quantum Board
Features:
This ECO Farm LED Grow Light contains optimized ratios of gardening series Samsung LM301B white, red and infrared LEDs designed to maximize plant yield. The diodes are then algorithmically positioned within the board to provide the most uniform PAR map coverage and deepest light penetration. These properties help to achieve the highest growth rates during the germination, vegetative and flowering stages. It features a proprietary LED driver that adjusts light intensity in 20% increments with an easy-to-use control knob for 0–100% dimming. Full Spectrum LED grow lights are designed for indoor growers to help individual indoor growers and greenhouse growers achieve higher yields and better quality within a budget.
AC Infinity IONBOARD S44 400W Full Spectrum LED Grow Light
Features:
This full spectrum LED grow light is designed with algorithmically positioned Samsung LM301B diodes to maximize plant yield. Features proprietary drivers for dimming, daisy chaining, and interfacing with our smart controllers. Built on a fanless one-piece aluminum plate for heat dissipation and longer diode life. All components are sealed to IP-65 standards for optimum performance even in high temperature and humidity growth environments. Includes a pair of metal rod hangers and rope hangers. This LED grow light is specially designed for grow tents with internal reflective mylar lining for growing a variety of plants, fruits and vegetables.
Bloom Plus BP 4000W Full Spectrum LED Grow Light
Features:
This LED grow light uses the latest high-yield LED technology — 1292 Samsung 2835 diodes. Therefore, the BP4000 LED grow light achieves a high energy efficiency of 2.7 umol/J and improves the light transmittance. LED grow lights consume only 400W of power, operating 50% less than other 800W HID/Blurple/HPS lights, while helping to achieve 50% higher yield harvesting. Full-spectrum LED grow lights provide everything your plants need in light at all stages. Powerful blue light makes plants grow faster, while infrared light is especially useful when it comes to blooming, it can speed up bloom time, increase yields, and fill up space with flowers for amazing harvests. Not only does this reduce the number of shoots, it also increases yields while saving energy and costs.
When it comes to growing plants in an indoor area, ‘grow tents’ or ‘grow rooms’ play an important role in providing your plants with the necessary growth conditions and temperature. Grow tents are easily portable and hence can be placed anywhere you wish. To keep a regular check on the plants growing inside the tent, you will need an efficient LED light. If it’s both cheaper and efficient, it’s an added advantage. People who grow multiple plants can buy additional LED lights to observe the plant growth. Here are a few useful tips you should consider before placing an order on the cheapest LED grow lights.
Brightness & number of lights
Considering the cheapest LED grow lights, the first thing that comes to our mind is the brightness. The main purpose of installing grow lights inside your grow room is for the brightness to observe what’s going on inside the grow room. So, make sure the intensity of the LED lights caters for your plant requirements. It must not be too bright, as it can disturb plant growth by producing enormous heat. It should also not be dim as you will face strains in observing the plant growth. The light intensity should be at the optimum range, according to the grow room area. After brightness, you should also decide the number of lights you are going to purchase. The number of lights will depend on the grow room area and the number of plants. Single light would be sufficient for a small grow tent, while you’ll need two or more LED grow lights for a larger grow room.
Durability & construction
Next comes the durability of the cheapest LED lights. Make sure the lighting units are of good durable quality for a longer lifespan. You don’t want the lights to stop working after a few weeks or months. See if the lights are made of durable materials. Purchasing grow lights from a brand that provides a warranty is highly recommended as you can claim the warranty in case of any technical failures or repairs. Grow lights of good quality will last for many years. The warranty period can vary between 1 to 10 years, depending on the brand. Expensive grow lights come with a longer warranty period and high-quality materials. There are also affordable grow lights in the market with good durability and a decent warranty period. You can go through the website of the light brand for warranty details.
Light coverage area
There are different kinds of cheapest LED grow lights in the market. The coverage area of the grow lights depends on the grow room size or dimensions. The grow area size depends on every person. Some might grow plants in 4’ x 4’ area while some might grow in 8’ x 8’ area. You should buy lights according to your grow room space or size. Some of you might be confused and unaware of what kind of lights you should buy for your grow room area. In such scenarios, you can consult a professional for advice or ideas. You can also check the PPF reading and PAR chart of the manufacturer to decide the light intensity and coverage.
Budget & Brand
Decide your budget before purchasing grow lights. As the years pass, new models of LED grow lights evolve every day. Before reviewing a suitable and cheap LED grow light for your grow tent, figure out how much you can invest in them. The features, construction, design, and quality of the grow lights will also vary according to the price. You should also make sure you buy it from a reputed and trustworthy brand. It is suggested you prefer brands that provide customer support and a warranty period. You can claim the warranty if something goes wrong. This will be a good value for money.
Bonus features
Besides all the above-mentioned factors, you can also consider some additional useful features when buying grow lights. This will include energy-saving technology, a cooling system, low noise technology, etc. Some LED bulbs are equipped to lower your energy costs. You can opt for such models to save your energy bills. Your plants won’t grow well if they grow lights produce too much heat, hence you can opt for cheaper LED lights with minimized heat or cooling technology. Some cheaper LED light models also come with low or no noises to not disturb your plants.
Before we end this article, we’d like to emphasise the fact that just because they are cheap doesn’t mean they are of bad quality. Several products are available for cheaper price points after discounts, so make sure that you keep a check on the same too. We have sorted out our favorite products with hopes that it will come in handy for you as well. Always ensure that you check the product that works the best for you and then make the final purchase.
October 20, 2023