If you really want to grow plants indoors — you need a good set of LED grow lights. After all, light is one of the most important factors in growing quality healthy plants.
I’ve been using grow lights for years and I’ve noticed that many of the new ones are not up to par. But, some are, and today I’m going to take a closer look at some of the best ones — and with any luck, you’ll find one that’s right for you.
So keep reading and check out some of the best grow lights on the market today!
Plant growth is driven by the available spectrum. The shape of the luminaire (lamp form) has a huge impact on how light is delivered to the canopy. Higher amounts of blue light make plants shorter, darker, and richer in cannabinoids and terpenes.
Red light is a powerful driver of photosynthesis, while green, orange, and yellow light provide plants with only a small fraction of their energy. Some LEDs emit specific wavelengths in an attempt to save power by providing isolated colors. However, this ignores your plant’s ability to absorb a wide spectrum of light.
It’s also important to understand that you can’t take off a HID fixture and place the LED in the same place and expect the same result. LED luminaires can provide a lot of light, but the light intensity drops off quickly when moving away from the luminaire.
This is why many LED luminaires spread light evenly over a large area, rather than concentrating on a small center of light like HIDs do. The best way to do this is to use a fixture with a large surface area and a full spectrum (“narrow band” wavelengths are easier to light burn the leaves) and place it close to the canopy.
ECO Farm ECO Z Lite 1000W LED Grow Light
Features:
This ECO Farm LED grow lights ensure concentrated and even lighting and reduce light waste. This plant light brings a 30% increase in output, consumes a total of 1000W, 2800 LEDs, and replaces the traditional 2000W plant light. Achieve higher yields while saving energy costs! Grow lights are easy to assemble yourself in minutes. You can install as many LED strips as you want. Plug and play, effectively save your installation cost and time. The aluminum backplate enables excellent heat dissipation. Pure aluminum light bars better dissipate heat and stay cool, essential for heat dissipation while ensuring long lamp life. No fan, no noise. The cost-effective grow light is designed for home/commercial growers, long-term use of the fan will make noise, but the LED light panel uses aluminum to cool it instead of using a fan, giving you a fanless and quiet growing experience.
Spectrum King Phoenix 1050W LED Grow Light
Features:
Spectrum King’s Phoenix 1050W LED Grow Light is a grow lighting beast that unleashes 1050 watts of sun-like light in areas up to 6' x 6', unleashing the ultimate output for your grows. Designed to hang high, the Phoenix 1050 recreates the sunniest summer days for plants that never seem to get enough light. SK Cryo-Therm cooling technology enables an ultra-thin profile that allows maximum airflow and minimizes microclimates. Optimized for single or multi-tier planting near the canopy. For growers who need the biggest, brightest LEDs, the Phoenix 1050W is for you.
5 Mistakes to Avoid When Using a Grow Light
No one’s perfect, and if you never used a grow light before, you shouldn’t expect to get it right on the first try. When I used my first grow light, I managed to blow it out in a matter of two days by using the wrong type of extension cord!
However, I learned a lot from making such beginner mistakes, and I’ll share that with you right here so you can avoid making them.
1: Burning (Or Overheating) Your Plants
Light is good for plants, right? So, the more light they deliver, the better?
Well, not exactly. Food is good for you in general, but you shouldn’t keep eating 24/7 even if it’s the healthiest food in the world.
The same thing goes for plants.
2: Insufficient Lighting
On the opposite end of the spectrum is another common mistake — not giving your plants enough light.
This usually happens to beginners right after they burn some of their plants, so they overcompensate and don’t give them enough light. It’s exactly what I did when I was starting out.
Do some research and find out what the optimal amount of lighting for your plants is and try to strive for that at all times.
3: Wrong Light Spectrum
While plants will grow under almost any type of light, there are types of light they prefer, and that will make them grow faster.
For example, plants get the most benefit out of blue spectrum light while they’re in their vegetative state, and if you set your grow lights to emit red light, it’ll hinder their growth.
Always check out which type of light your plant prefers in certain stages and try to cater to its needs.
4: Wrong Light Schedule
Just like us, plants have a biorhythm that’s largely based on the natural day-night cycle and veering away from that can be harmful to them.
Now, this doesn’t mean you need to look at the sun and set your grow lights based on that. However, it does mean that you’ll need to do some research and figure out exactly which light schedule will work best for your plants.
The light schedule will also change based on which stage your plants are in and how large they are, so make sure you keep up to date on that and make adjustments accordingly.
5: Not Making Necessary Adjustments
One of the easiest beginner mistakes you can make is thinking that you can just take a set-it-and-forget-it approach to placing your grow lights.
Plants grow and, over time, you’ll have to make small or major adjustments to the placement of your grow lights, the color spectrum they use and their intensity if you want to get the optimal conditions for your plants.
This can be a tricky business, and it will take some time for you to learn what to do, but be sure that the worst thing you can do is to just do nothing at all after the initial set-up.
Conclusion
LED grow lights have come a long way and if you are buying a new light today, LED is the way to go. They last a long time and provide a good level of light at a very low electrical cost. They are good for you, your plants and the environment.