LEDs and Generations

[personified]

Hello I have been trying to research more about LEDs and I keep running in to "Next Generation" and "5th Generation" as well as others.

Tried to do a search and found nothing to satisfy what the differences are.

I know there are some knowledgeable people out there who are making LEDs like Weezard and others that are just using them like Str8outtaweed.

Do you know if 630nm is better than say 670nm? Is there a difference?

What is the best for the blue 400 or say 470nm?

What about yellow and orange?

I am confused about lumens I have read that a Flowering plants need 10K of lumens per sqft. Yet the LEDs are not producing much lumens.

How can this be and produce?

How can a 300w LED be equivalent to 100w HPS?

personified Reviewed by personified on 02-25-2010. LEDs and Generations Hello I have been trying to research more about LEDs and I keep running in to "Next Generation" and "5th Generation" as well as others. Tried to do a search and found nothing to satisfy what the differences are. I know there are some knowledgeable people out there who are making LEDs like Weezard and others that are just using them like Str8outtaweed. Do you know if 630nm is better than say 670nm? Is there a difference? What is the best for the blue 400 or say 470nm? Rating: 5

[stra8outtaWeed]

cost does drive how most are made and sold

the cheaper units will only go up to 630nm and use 1w LED's


660nm LED's cost more so I am guessing that is why you see alot of variations!

Dreaded Hermie, Weezard and a few others may be able to explain the wavelengths better as they built successfull units from the ground up:jointsmile:

[coolslayer]

Good info,stra8.

[Weezard]

Alway happy to offer my opinions for your consideration.

Hello I have been trying to research more about LEDs and I keep running in to "Next Generation" and "5th Generation" as well as others.

Tried to do a search and found nothing to satisfy what the differences are.

You have to look under marketing.
Nth generation, 5 blades, "better" eggs, it's all very useful,
If, you have a snake, that squeaks.

I know there are some knowledgeable people out there who are making LEDs like Weezard and others that are just using them like Str8outtaweed.

Thanks for the props.

Do you know if 630nm is better than say 670nm? Is there a difference?

IMHO, yes, big difference in the bud cycle.

What is the best for the blue 400 or say 470nm?

That, ah dunno, tried royal blue, tried standard blue.
no obvious difference, to me.
If anyone here, really knows. Please, no be shy.

What about yellow and orange?

I have done very well without them. Your milage...

I am confused about lumens I have read that a Flowering plants need 10K of lumens per sqft. Yet the LEDs are not producing much lumens.

That's 10k of white light. The scale is weighted for human vision.

How can this be and produce?

Plants, can get by on 2 narrow bands of color.
Throw the rest of the spectrum away and you'll see that , in this case, less, really is more.

How can a 300w LED be equivalent to 100w HPS?

Um, what?!
In my experience it's more like a 1:2 ratio.
LEDs use about half the energy that HPS does for slightly better results.
But. If you do it right, led's can compete with sunlight! .
The key, is mental flexibility
LED farming is different!
I will repeat that;
Led farming is different!
Conventional methods do not do well!
But, once you learn it, it you will excel.
Seriously.
If you try to apply the old methods to led grows, results will be dissapointing.

They need more heat, less water, (much less), less food, better air circulation above and below.
They love CO2, even at lower temps.

Jus' my 2 cents.

Aloha, Y'all

Weezard

[personified]

I read what the Weezard wrote and I then had more questions about the difference in growing techniques. Dang it one question LEDs to another.

Here is what i found on the Internet which reiterates what was said in more detail:

How does the Lumen output of the LEDs lights compare to other grow lights?

Lumens and Lux are measurements of how bright a light source appears to the human eye. Since the human eye is most sensitive to colors plants don't need, and least sensitive to colors plants prefer, Lumens can't be used to accurately compare the plant growing capability of led grow lights.
If a grow light manufacturer rates his grow light output in Lumens they are only telling you how bright it will appear to you and light your room, not how well it will grow your plants. The most accurate unit of measurement for comparing plant lighting is the micro Einstein, which measures how many photons of light strike an area per second.

But, while this is a much better way to estimate a lamp's plant growing ability than Lumens or Lux, it is still very difficult to directly compare two different types of grow lights. All grow lights except the LEDs grow lights emit large amounts of light plants don't use very efficiently, so including that light output in a light's plant growing measurement is misleading.

What type of soil should I use for my plants?

It is always best to use a more porous planting medium when gardening with led grow lights. A loose soil that doesn't compact will allow more oxygen to reach the roots, increasing plant metabolism and growth. A porous medium will also help avoid problems associated with over watering.

How warm should I keep my plant growing area?

The energy efficient line of led grow lights will not heat up your growing area like traditional grow lighting products. In cooler weather you may need to compensate for this by raising the temperature of your growing area to between 70 degrees F to 80 degrees F
if you wish to accelerate the rate of plant growth. If you can, monitor the temperature of your plant's root zone as this can also affect the rate of plant growth.

Should I water my plants differently when using the LEDs?

Absolutely! Plants grown under the LEDs plant lighting systems use much less water than those grown under conventional (i.e. HOT!) grow lights, and so need to be watered less frequently. Be very careful not to over water your plants, and check to see that the soil is drying out before watering them again. The time between watering will vary with plant species. Over watering will slow root development, stunt plant growth, and cause nutrient uptake issues.

How often and how much should I fertilize?

Your plants will need fewer nutrients when grown under led grow lights. Start with a lower amount of nutrient, approximately 400-600 PPM, or around 1/2 of the amount recommended by the manufacturer.

Are there any special considerations for commercial growers?

You will want to monitor your C02 levels. LED grow lights emit a large amount of absorbed light, which may require slight augmentation of CO2 levels (+300-500 PPM).

[stra8outtaWeed]

good info Personified and good input always Weez!:thumbsup:

I'd give you both more rep for it but it says i need to spread more love..haha!:hippy:

All of this confirms what i have done on my own...both good and bad! So it is great info to those who may be looking into trying LED's...to me it is truly the GREEN way to grow! If a person thinks about how much energy is saved and bulbs that don't end up in land fills over the life of a LED grow light which can be upto 10 years or more. Once you are retrained out of HID mode it is actually easier than growing with HID's because the light is more of what your plant wants and it responds accordingly! :jointsmile:

[boaz]

...
Dreaded Hermie, Weezard and a few others may be able to explain the wavelengths better as they built successfull units from the ground up:jointsmile:

great thread! I'm inspired now, I think I am going to have to build an led system now. :rasta: sounds like a fun project. and very green. :greenthumb:

[personified]

great thread! I'm inspired now, I think I am going to have to build an led system now. :rasta: sounds like a fun project. and very green. :greenthumb:

However I keep looking at prices of theses 3 and 5 watt LEDs and am afraid to smoke them during the learning curve. They have 10, 20, 60, 100 watt LEDs imagine how much you could money you could waste with a little static electricity.

At this point I am looking at the cost of buying. It is hard to find 3 and 5 watt LED setups everything seems to be the 1 watt times X.

Not ready to buy yet but would like to find pricing and a supplier I can trust so that if and when I am ready I can act.

[stra8outtaWeed]

However I keep looking at prices of theses 3 and 5 watt LEDs and am afraid to smoke them during the learning curve. They have 10, 20, 60, 100 watt LEDs imagine how much you could money you could waste with a little static electricity.

At this point I am looking at the cost of buying. It is hard to find 3 and 5 watt LED setups everything seems to be the 1 watt times X.

Not ready to buy yet but would like to find pricing and a supplier I can trust so that if and when I am ready I can act.

when you're ready..hit me up...i won't steer you wrong:thumbsup:

[aby5s007]

Hello there

This is a subject matter I have spent the last year researching and as a Uk grower with the eurpoean ban on incadescent bulbs kicking in a few years LED lighting IS the future.

Its safe to say all the imported crap from china is pretty much not safe, Whether its strong enoughto grow good bud is very debtable and you would need a hell of a lot of them.

There is only one of two current UK suppliers of the real deal but if you look around I am sure you can find one close to you. Lok for 660N Red and Blue. Avoid the next generation, extra shit, its just sales pitch.

I have two grow rooms. Each has 2 x 120 watt LEd rectangular lights hanging not too far away from the plants. 3 x 90watt ufo on freestands like spotlamps moving about to where I think the plants need extra light and I also have a few 50watt UFO around for extra comfort.

that is equivalent to about 2000watt sodium/hps and i dont need to go to the effort of ballsts, changing blubs or the simple cost.

So far off one small test grow, 8 blueberry, the grow was slightly longer, but the resin and quality of the plant was noticeable.

We are further experimenting with more lights but what we think is that you cant just get one light and hope to grow great bud. Get a few. the advantage with the leds lights, the good ones that is, is that they are cooling built in and ommit practically zero heat therefore you can nestle them within the plants and put them right where you want them with no fear of leaf burn or bud burn.

hope that helps, it is new technology but the amsterdam growers are waking up and using, especially in the greenhouses and especially in commercial food cultivation. Spend the money, dont buy the imitations or the cheaper ones and you will be fine. Welcome to the future.