September 15, 2023
If you’ve been reading our site for a while, you know that LED full-spectrum grow lights are special light sources that simulate the sun’s rays. The best full spectrum light for outdoor growers is obviously the sun. But for indoor growers, sunlight is sometimes not an option. We think LED grow lights will help you grow plants faster than any other indoor lighting method. However, determining which LED light is best for your situation can be a little confusing since there are so many lighting options to choose from. Keep reading to find the best LED grow lights.
The amount of wattage required to grow plants varies from plant to plant. For example, plants that require a lot of light, such as tomatoes, will require approximately 40 watts per square foot to grow.
For plants that require low light and small-leafed plants, such as lettuce, only about 20–30 watts per square foot will be needed.
Additionally, the wattage of different LED grow lights will determine the number of plants that can be used under them. For example, with a 450-watt LED light, you can only grow up to nine plants.
The best lighting for indoor growing depends on the growth stage of the plant. During the growing phase, plants require cooler white or blue spectrum lighting, while during the flowering stage they require warmer red or orange spectrum lighting.
In general, full-spectrum LED grow lights are ideal for indoor growing because they offer a range of color temperatures suitable for different stages of plant growth. Optimum color temperatures for indoor growing are between 4000K and 6500K during the growing phase and between 2700K and 3000K during the flowering phase.
ECO Farm SP-600 Samsung Foldable Dimmable Full Spectrum LED Grow Light
Features:
With a high efficiency of 2.8 umol/j and a power consumption of 630W, this ECO Farm LED grow light facilitates efficient growing operations, helping you efficiently optimize plant growth, improve yield quality and reduce operating costs. This full spectrum LED grow light promotes photosynthesis at all stages of growth, especially flowering, from cutting/seeding, nutrition and flowering. Grow lights for indoor plants replicate the spectrum of natural sunlight and output a broad, consistent and pronounced wavelength range from 400 to 700nm that can be grown throughout the plant life cycle. It can help your plants grow healthier and have better harvests. LEDs generate far less heat than HPS and other HID lights, making them ideal for gardening. The aluminum heatsink, along with the wide 6 passive cooling strips, better removes heat to keep you cool and reduces ambient heat in the grow space for longer lamp life.
BESTVA BAT W600 Dimmable LED Grow Light
Features:
The BAT W600 LED is the solution for indoor growing environments where ceiling height and distance from the tree canopy are critical. The BAT W600 is ideal for use in vertical racks, low rooms, benches and even tents. The BESTVA BAT W600 provides an efficient full spectrum and a healthy red-blue ratio to drive photo composition. Light energy between 500–599nm, previously thought to be wasted, penetrates deep into the plant canopy and promotes photomorphogenetic responses. High color rendering “white” light helps quickly identify potential threats to crops and provides superior working conditions and safety for workers.
Grow Light Science PROGROW 640 LED Grow Light
Features:
PROGROW 640 is a full cycle overhead lighting solution for commercial or residential plants cultivation. The 640’s form factor allows for expandability and multiple grow room and grow tent configurations where photosynthesis and yield maximization are the goals. PROGROW 640 provides high PPFD levels with or without CO2 supplementation. Top light output (PPF), spectral distribution and efficacy will deliver amazing results with little impact on your wallet. PROGROW 640 will deliver PPFD levels of over 1,000 umols/m2/s, either individually or in arrays of multiple cells. We recommend that all growers conduct research and trials within their growing space to design the best combination of inputs.
Spectrum King 600W LED LowPro Flower
Features:
The Spectrum King LED grow light is a 660W grow light system with an efficiency equivalent to a 1000W LED. The grow light system is designed for vertical shelving solutions; you mount the lights 3 inches from the plants. Grow lights offer a 4X4 footprint. It offers 141.57 efficacy and a lumen output of 102,000 lumens. LED grow lights feel like plants are getting closer to the sun. The planting system is designed for a 3" tall vertical racking solution. The LED grow light system is the shortest and brightest LED grow light system on the market. The LEDs are rated at 50,000 hours to ensure long life. So don’t worry about spending unnecessarily on grow light fixtures.
LUMATEK ZEUS 600W LED GROW LIGHT
Features:
Lumatek LED grow light balances light quality (spectrum) and light quantity (intensity and duration), enough to provide single-source lighting for the entire growth cycle from vegetative to flowering. The LED array produces uniform light transmission in close proximity to the crop, thereby providing a single source of planting lighting for multi-layer cultivation systems, single benches in low rooms, and planting tents. Zeus is built using high-quality Lumatek drivers and top bin LEDs from Osram and Lumileds to generate a full-spectrum light source suitable for vegetable and flowering cycles.
Jungle — LED G6i 1700 LED Grow Light
Features:
Jungle LED offers a high-performance light solution, delivering a full-cycle spectrum for vegetative growth and bloom stages to cede a more robust yield. The detachable design of Jungle’s power supply (LED driver) provides the flexibility of remote mounting onto most vertical rack systems without adding attachments or modification to your existing space. With the detachable power supply (LED driver), growers have the option to install the power unit away from growing space with its wall-mount-ready capability. The Jungle advanced LED system was designed to be efficient and easy to install right out of the box. With a variety of power cord length options, whether you are looking to mount the LED driver on the side of a rack or on the fixture itself, Jungle grow light comes with simple snap-lock connectors that make reconnecting cables quick and swift.
When selecting a LED grow light there are a number of factors you need to consider for yourself, which include:
Durability is key when selecting your new lighting rig. A good quality lamp will be around for at least a decade.
And with products that last longer, you can invest more into them. Electrical Output and Consumption
Your LED hydroponic grow light will need to be on for around 10–11 hours a day. Depending on your hydroponic unit, you’ll want to ensure that your unit is drawing the least amount of power.
LED lights that get too hot will damage themselves and the plants. You need to be sure that the unit is pumping out the least amount of heat.
And if it does overheat, the heating management system should do its job well.
A major factor will also be the space you’re growing your plants in.
Spaces with little to no ventilation will cause mold to form on the plants.
And if you share a space with the LED lights, you’ll want to consider noise issues.
Your LED hydroponic grow lights need to be simple to operate. Otherwise you won’t utilize all the great features.
Ease of use also extends to installation. An easy to install unit is one that gets to work faster.
For ambitious growers, you will want the option to expand your grow project. Make sure you’re happy with the amount of units you can link up to one another.
There is no doubt that even with artificial light we can grow the plants of our choice and ensure they are properly maintained over the long term.
You can also find effective techniques for this purpose in this discussion. Several of the above factors can help you adjust your grow lights correctly to get the results you want without even causing any harm to your plants.