How to Find the Best LED Grow Light for You in 2023
by Linus Li on Oct 26, 2022
Navigation
- What to Look for When Buying an LED Grow Light
- The Best LED Grow Lights on the Market
- Getting the best of your grow light
- Now that you know what to look for in an LED grow light, let's take a look at our top picks.
- Getting Things Set Up
- Sproutboxx Grow Lights are the Best Choice
The world of LED grow lights has changed rapidly over the past few years. With new technology and products being released constantly, it can be hard to keep up with the latest and greatest. So, how do you find the best LED grow light for your needs in 2023?
By keeping a few key things in mind, that’s how!
In this blog post, we’ll walk you through everything you need to consider when shopping forLED grow lights. From price to performance and everything in between, we’ve got you covered.
What to Look for When Buying an LED Grow Light
When shopping for an LED grow light, it's important to keep in mind the specific needs of your plants, including.
Different plants have different light requirements, so it is important to choose a LED grow light that will provide the right amount and type of light for your particular plants.
- In general, you should look for an LED grow light that emits a full spectrum of light, as this will provide the most complete coverage for your plants. Ideally, you should have a light that allows you to change the spectra (such as UV/IR control) to suit different stages of growth.
- You should also make sure that the light is bright enough to penetrate through the leaves and to the plant's base.
- The spectrum plants needed.
- Finally, you will want to consider the quality of the grow light. While more expensive lights may offer more features or a higher quality of light, they are not necessarily better for you. And lights with cheaper generic diodes and LED drivers will under perform, run hotter and burn out faster. That's thermodynamics and there's no getting around it. It is important togo for quality when choosing an LED grow light or you risk subpar results.
The Best LED Grow Lights on the Market
When it comes to choosing an LED grow light, there are a few more things to consider.
- First, consider the size of your grow space. You'll want to make sure that you choose a light that's powerful enough to cover the entire area.
- Next, think about the type of plants you're growing. Some plants need more light than others, so it's important to choose a light that's specifically designed for your needs.
- You also need to consider the LED chipset. High quality diodes like Samsung LM281B and LM301Hare the gold standard in terms of quality and deliver high Photosynthetic Photon Efficacy (PPE) of 2.84 - 3.1umol/j, which saves money in the longer term - as well as providing other benefits, like reduced heat output. Cheaper, unbranded diodes, like those used in the Mars Hydro TS range offer up to just 2.0umol/j and will decline in output quicker as the hours tick by.
- LED Drivers are often overlooked, but are another important factor. High efficiency Mean Well and Inventronics LED drivers offer the best efficiency, which help reduce power bills, keep temperatures cool and boosts light output. Cheaper options are not as efficient, wasting power and adding heat that will interfere with ideal environmental conditions.
Fortunately for you, SproutBoxx offersincredible options for all price points with onboard controls that allow unparalleled versatility and performanceno other retailer can match.
Getting the best of your grow light
If you're looking to add an LED grow light to your indoor gardening setup, there are a few things to keep in mind to get the absolutely best results withit.
The Daily Light Integral
If you're new to growing, the first thing you should familiarise yourself with is the optimum daily light integer - or DLI, for your plant of choice.You need to make sure that whatever LED light you purchase can meet those power needs and adjust dimming and spectra to suit different growth stages.
Power Demands
The next factor is the wattage of the unit. Again, you'll want to make sure that the unit you choose is appropriate for the size of your growing area. A general rule of thumb is that each square foot of space will need about 30-50 watts of light. But remember, there are huge advantages to having a powerful, efficient light that can be dimmed, rather than a less powerful, inefficient light that has to be run at full power.
Size
Nextis the size of the unit. You'll want to make sure that the unit you choose is appropriate for the size of your growing area. If you put a powerful light in a small space, you will have heat issues that can require serious workarounds in terms of extra fans and humidifiers and dehumidifiers or risk compromising the results of your grow.
Now that you know what to look for in an LED grow light, let's take a look at our top picks.
For grow spaces on a budget, we recommend our YC-XK full spectrum quantum boards.
Samsung LM281B LEDs offer great efficiency of 2.86 µmol/j and the Mean Well XLG LED drivers are up to 93% efficient, so you can deliver superior levels of light to your plants with less energy wasted, saving you money.
The YC series suit 2x2, 4x2 and 4x4 coverage areas - so if you ever need to expand, you can directly daisy-chain up to 50 lights together with a minimum of fuss.
If you're looking for a more powerful option with the highest efficiency,we recommend ourYB-XK full spectrum light bars.
With high efficiency Samsung LM301H specialist horticulture diodes providing very high 3.1 µmol/j efficiencyand a programmable Inventronics LED driver that's up to 96% efficient - along with our customary onboard dimming and spectrum controls.
These are a superior choice for versatility and power efficiency, ideal for commercial enterprises and serious enthusiasts alike.These deliver outstanding PPFD levels and a broad spread of light that is uniformly highfor3x3, 4x4 and5x5 spaces and also support direct daisy-chaining.
Getting Things Set Up
Once you've chosen an LED grow light, it's time to set it up. You'll want to place the unit in a location where it will get plenty of air circulation. In a tent you need to make sure that it's not too close to the plant canopy, or so high up that the light intensity is too low. Unless your LED light has a fan, it will be cooled passively, which means it will radiate the heat away through it's material and out to the air, so having air wafting aroundwith a fan inside your tentwill help it discharge waste heat more effectively - it's also helpful for helping plants to grow strong, as the breeze mimics outdoor conditions.
You'll also want to make sure that the unit is not placed too close to any plants, as this can cause them to burn. Less than 6-inches is a big no-no. At that proximity the light will be intense and poorly directed, leading to damaged colas and subpar results.
The higher you hang your light, the wider and less intense the light will be, so make sure it's delivering light at levels that suit the entire coverage area!
Now that your LED grow light is all set up, it's time to start using it!
Depending on what kind of plants you're growing, you'll need to adjust the amount of time that your plants are exposed to the light.
Common lighting schedules for auto-flowering plant varieties are 16 hours on / 8 hours off, 18/6 or even 20/4. The jury is still out on whether 24/0 is advisable or not. Generally a period of darkness is thought to be important to avoid overly stressing plants.
Photo-period plants can take advantage of a similar lighting schedule while in vegetation, but will need to be changed to around 12/12 to induce flowering. After just a few days of the light schedule change you will notice your plants reactas the different light levels affect the biology of the plant and trigger a flowering response.
Sproutboxx Grow Lights are the Best Choice
If you're looking for the best LED grow lightfor your indoor garden, Sproutboxx grow lights are the best choice,designed to provide the perfect mix of light intensity and spectrum for optimal plant growth, and also some of the most energy-efficient on the market.
In addition to our high-quality grow lights, we also offerkits and support to help you get the most out of your indoor gardening experience. But you should know what lights you should choose for growing plants.
Whether you're abudding beginner or a seasoned pro, Sproutboxx grow lights are the best choice for all your indoor gardening needs.
