New Cat on the block

I am not finding a lot here on LED lighting. The low heat, power consumption, and the use Red light are my reasons for wanting to use this technology... but it doesn't seem like anyone cares to talk about it, or all the vets are staying with a tried and true method. I have done several searches on this forum so far, but either its poorly built or again.. no one is talking about his topic specifically... can anyone point me to a tread here, or a link to another any where else? I have purchased Ask Ed (Rosenthal) and the New School book on Indoor growing, but again nothing at all there about LEDs. I want to make sure I can follow all the best practices but how different is it to use the LED lights? Can I really go right out of the box using soil.... no heat ventelation or any if my space is big and cool enough... ??? HELP WITH LEDs Please!

i've never used LED's but if people can be happy growing with CFL's im sure its the same thing maybe even better.

you need to have a super powerful light and if you think you can get that by using LED's then more power to you

sorry bro leds really are not ideal for growing! now when you say red light are you talking about the light spectrum itself cuz the 2700k spectrum puts off a redish orgish light but you need that to bud your plant you need more of the 6500k spectrum for the veg. process

I read a very technical comparison of LED's vs CFL's on here I think. It was very detailed and technical but the final conclusion is that LED technology is getting better every year - it's just not quite there yet for growing cannabis. Flo's or HID's are still the accepted standards. CFL's are cheaper, energy efficient and relatively cool. They come in different spectrums to fit a grower's needs. HID's get results.

I'll look for the comparison and post the link - if I can find it.

Goodluck
YO

This is great info and kind of consistent with what I am seeing out on the web... accept for advertisements which are pretty convincing. There are lots of YouTube videos an LED growing too.. specifically with cannabis! As for RED LIGHT... yes I meant the spectrum... I have read that it is best for growth in general... I also saw a tip on using compact florescent bulbs. If I used a combination of the LEDs and FLOs would that be sufficient? I am doing this for first time and alone... so all the consultation I can get would be appreciated...

There are some pretty powerful LEDs on HidHut.com and Sunshine Systems http://shop.sunshine-systems.com/product.sc?productId=10

since its your first time wont you just go with the cfl`s they got cfl grow lights on ebay both in the 6500k spectrum for veg. growth and 2700k for flower growth and fairly cheap to! go with what works you know leds are still being tested atleast with cfl`s you will get a crop you know man!

I just did some quick research online and CFL's are what I saw on YouTube being used with LED's. Here is one link... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pN5ZdwKpwRA
Of course here is another great advertisement for the use of LED lighting systems for Hydroponics.. etc... http://www.hydroponic-gardening.ws/grow-light-selection.html - This link talks about all of the traditional lights used for what we are discussing here. Let me know what any of you guys think when u read up on this.

There have been a few grow journals on RIU with people using LEDs, and they get some nice results. However by comparison you could get the same results by using CFL's and saving $400. So it would take a long time for the energy saving benefits of the LED to pay off.

sorry man that first link was led v/s hps not cfl and hps is still better by far that 2nd link was interesting but not convenceing for me but thats me im not speakeing for everybody eles but there saying lumen dont matter but i have to disagree with that! if you go out side on a cloudy day and look at your weed plant its kind of droopy but on a nice sunny bright day there standing tall and gloryous they love the light! they need the different spectrums but the spectrums can be produced brighter for our weed plants!

ZenMeds said:

This is great info and kind of consistent with what I am seeing out on the web... accept for advertisements which are pretty convincing. There are lots of YouTube videos an LED growing too.. specifically with cannabis! As for RED LIGHT... yes I meant the spectrum... I have read that it is best for growth in general... I also saw a tip on using compact florescent bulbs. If I used a combination of the LEDs and FLOs would that be sufficient? I am doing this for first time and alone... so all the consultation I can get would be appreciated...

Click to expand...

I suspect any videos you see backing LED's may be more of some very misleading marketing by the LED makers/sellers. I agree that the ads for LED's are powerful. They make me want to buy one - for about 5 minutes. Then I do some research and I'm back to flo's and HID's.

You already bought the LED didn't you???

You could totally combine LED's and CFL's - be prepared to keep adding cfls though. Very easy to buy and install more - so no problem there.

Go to the CFL subforum and read the sticky guides on CFL's before you buy anything. Even Einstein would get confused by the packaging and various ratings found in the light bulb aisle at home depot.

Goodluck
YO

Thanks a lot for all the useful info. What sold me on going with CFL's or anything else for that matter was the two conversations with gardening store owners that either stopped selling them, and or tested LED's and found that they didn't work at all or made little to no difference when using them along with CFL's etc....
I have seen plenty of post on CFL's and got great info from the gardening center I will likely use. Saving that much cash to start a first time GR will be helpful. I can always experiment after I get a few crops under my belt.

Thanks!