Wow, finally someone on the forums that has a grasp of the situation with LEDs.

Here's my some of the first of many questions?

1. While HPS is more efficient the LEDS, how much of that disadvantage can LEDS make up by being closer? I have been building arrays that use no lenses, 140 to 160 degree view angle and trying to get them placed about an inch above the top of the plant. I think the closest you can get with HPS is about 6 inch for a 400 watter and 8 inch for a 600 watter. And that is with air cooled hoods and a light mover.
My personal thinking is 100 watts LED is equiv to about 60 HPS at this time.
I have yet to see a documented LED grow of more then .3 gram/watt/month and the grower has so far been unable to repeat that performance.

2. I am undecided on getting better efficiency by running about mid-range on current and allowing better area coverage with more LEDs. Or running them rascals as close to max ma as possible, spending more $$$ on cooling in order to get better penetration. Any thoughts?

3. What is your thinking in light ratios? Mine has been approx 3 to 1 red/blue with a little white light for insurance. However, I really want to experiment with a heavier blue ratio. I am close to the point where I think I can use LEDS in a vegging set-up where it will be able to outperform both CFL and HPS.

4. For some reason, LED in combo with CFL seems to produce the best results. Any thoughts?


I am currently building a test fixture where I can start experimenting with different set-ups. I will post a pic tomorrow of current progress.