LEDs for summer

Hey all,
I'm thinking of giving some led lights a shot this summer for when it gets too hot for HID.. Mainly for a fun project to work on this summer .

I've been looking around for a while on and off, and know that there is a pretty big learning curve.. and it looks like generally there is no consensus on one brand or type to use.

some info
-Have 2 4x4 tents, 1 veg and 1 flower.. only looking to do 1-2 plants each tent ( 1 veg 1 flower, or 2 veg 2 flower).
-willing to spend a few hundred per light, more or less
-currently interested in the blackstars and the 90w ufos, but open to any really.

Can anyone recommend some decent lights to start with (doesn't need to be the best) that don't generate much heat and will be good for summer and general growing?

thx

A 90w UFO would be enough for 1 to 2 plants to veg under. As far as flowering I would probably go with at least 180w but would prefer a 240w all red 630nm LED and supplement it with the 90w UFO. I have vegged under LED but have yet to completely flower under one due to the extended time vs HPS. I don't know enough about LEDs to talk about components but I have 2 x 240w veg/flower LEDs and one draws 130w and 2 other 169w, so I would go with a company that offers a descent return policy and is not located overseas. Good Luck

Depends on your budget mostly.

For two plants, 125-200watts of actual draw should be enough. Area51 should have a new one out soon. California Light works has the SolarFlare 200 full spectrum. Black Dog Micro or 240. That should cover two, but it won't "fill" the 4x4, but flower like 2.5x2.5ft.

edit: there's a ton of UFO's around, you get what you pay for. Blackstars aren't exactly high quality, and have polarized reviews.

The more you search the more you will see the subtle differences between the $150 led and the $1200 ones. If its just to experiment I have done it cheap and its honestly a waste of my time. Seeing that you have a sweet set up of veg and bloom rooms you don't want to spend your summer working for popcorn nuggets.... Get as close to 400w or more and make it count.

thx for the responses
I only plan on vegging for about a month, and topping/lst for even canopy. The plants will be relativity small.

Can you guys give any specifics on some possible decent lights I could get?

I know the fero lights are awesome, but I'm unable to find a price tag on them in the US. But im assuming they are top of the line and around $1,000.

If i go the ufo route.. is there any brand that just beats the rest?
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=led+ufo&rh=i:aps,k:led+ufo

thx again

got some more info:

So area that needs coverage will be up to/about 2.5x2.5 sq ft in both flowering and veg tents.

Currently i have:
200w MH for veg
300w HPS for 12/12

What is my best option between:
RhinoGrow 400
CLW SolarFlare 100/200
1-2 Blackstar 135w UFO LEDs
Random Ebay 200-300w LED Panel

any direction/suggestions appreciated.. thanks!

I've seen good results with Advanced LED lights. A guy who is a breeder on another forum grows very successfully with them. They use bridgelux LEDs I believe. They are not cheap, but not nearly the $$$ of the high end units.

I have Area 51, California Lightworks, HTG etc and my advice would be to spend the bucks on a nice flowering LED(I went with CLW and Area 51) and then you could use even a cheapo LED for vegging. Good luck!

I second djwimbo with the black dog recommendation. The 240 watt unit has the right footprint for you, according to their website. Look in my sig if you're interested, I grow with their largest units but they claim the same spectrum in all of their lights.

thanks for the rec, they look very nice.. I will be checking out your journal
3 year warranty, then limited lifetime warranty
and best part they are based in my state, CO

so maybe a cheaper UFO(like blackstar) for the veg, and a better unit like the Black Dog 240 for flower? Sounds good to me

thx again

Ya I was actually going to pull the trigger on the BlackDog before I started talking to the folks over at Area51. BlackDog make a solid lamp for sure.

multipass said:

thanks for the rec, they look very nice.. I will be checking out your journal
3 year warranty, then limited lifetime warranty
and best part they are based in my state, CO

so maybe a cheaper UFO(like blackstar) for the veg, and a better unit like the Black Dog 240 for flower? Sounds good to me

thx again

Click to expand...

I'd call BD and see what deal they would give you on a Micro/240 combo. If I still lived in CO, I'd be a lot more likely to buy their stuff. It just doesn't suit my needs, for now.

The Micro is ~$100-125 more than the BS240, and I know where my $ would go. 3W vs 5W as well.
That combo is ~375W, or about what your 300HPS is pulling right now by itself. ~40% drop in watts from your current setup.

If you're trying to save a couple dollars I think you could probably get away with a 3W veg light. You might also possibly look into a specific "veg" light that's heavy on the blue. If you did want to spend a couple more dollars and get the 5watters you might want to check out the SolarFlare. They pull a little more at the plug then the BDMicro and you can get it heavy on the blues with their "Vegmaster" or whatever they call it. I found my SolarFlare on sale for like $360/free shippin so if you just keep looking, have an open mind, and take a few minutes to write a couple emails, you will come out on top.

djwimbo said:

Depends on your budget mostly.

For two plants, 125-200watts of actual draw should be enough. Area51 should have a new one out soon. California Light works has the SolarFlare 200 full spectrum. Black Dog Micro or 240. That should cover two, but it won't "fill" the 4x4, but flower like 2.5x2.5ft.

edit: there's a ton of UFO's around, you get what you pay for. Blackstars aren't exactly high quality, and have polarized reviews.

Click to expand...

don't go ufo.