Need Some Definitive Knowledge

[Henrytd5]

Good evening everyone.. So i have been struggling with yields on my last x2 grows and I put this down to whole array of possibilities...
Im researching into a dwc or rdwc next time but also considering an led grow light.. I currently have a 1.2 x 1.2 tent using a 600w dual spectrum bulb and adjustable ballast.

how many led's would i need to get the same amount of light and penetration?
if i have been using a 600w bulb can i use 300w led?
and do they use less electricity..? my bill was typically £70 a month and then i started growing and they bumped it up to £140.. (uk grower)

 

[Dan789]

Henry, welcome first off. All LED's aren't created equal, which makes your question difficult.
A typical (continue for explanation) "300" LED will use about 1/3 to 1/2 its rated wattage, that said the spectrums they emit all vary. I've got three different led fixtures for example, a king plus 1200, a lighthouse blackstar 240 uv and a Viparspectra 450.
The 1200 uses 240 watts, the blackstar about 108, and the vipar 96 watts.
These are all of the modestly priced varieties.

There are the more pricy LED's out on the market (over $500) that have "par" values and certified performance, but that comes with hefty prices. Those would be a safer route, but also the most expensive initially.

And also just to make things interesting there's the COB (chip on board) which is where I'm moving to as my bank account allows. Timber grow lights is one of the companies that makes fixtures and has kits of this type, which I'm sure would be able to surpass your 600 performance, without breaking the bank. (Timbergrowlights.com)

 

[Henrytd5]

thankyou for the welcome and your response... Im basically trying to better my grow and reduce costs at the same time. catch 22 really. So do you find that you get better results with led?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/1918376105...=1006679&device=c&campaignid=856331929&crdt=0

^^ this is what i might be looking at now then....

 

[Dan789]

Never grown with anything but led, so no comparison. If you follow the thread on my reply, you'll see my last grow, which I thought was acceptable.

 

[Henrytd5]

fantastic grow... makes mine look pretty poor!
I think i did better on my first time tbh...
i really should start and take some pics and start my own grow thread

 

[Dan789]

Mine was due to a few things, got two tents, veg'd with T5 lights for eight weeks, aerated and aged my water, PH'd all feedings and put up all the fixtures I had to provide the light. Was on the watch for high humidity, as my last grow was plagued with PM. Ran my exhaust and circulation fans 24/7. Because of our wet winter I had to purchase a dehumidifier to keep the RH in spec. Plus had some good luck, which was probably the biggest component.

 

[Henrytd5]

well it really sounds like you know what your doing! had a constant battle with high temps this grow. itds never overly hot here and then we get temps 30+ for a week which i believe made the plants struggle..

i am tempted to ditch the tent and just grow in the concrete building at the bottom of my garden where the tent is now. could easily fit 8 plants in there. but then again i may not be able to retain temps and control humidity as easily.