growing with LEDs, turning out to be not so economical...

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AnimalHouse

AnimalHouse

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I kinda don't even know where to begin. Blown my fair share of cash on all kinds of lights from the old UFO led to panels, bars and what I use now. Yeah there's some pure garbage out there but there's some that can do some shit I've never got out of a HPS or CMH.
Potency drives every choice I make in what I use. Above all else it's resin and oil production so every step has been upgrading what I'm using now to get better potency.
I love the lights I'm using today...I prefer several small fixtures over one large so they fit my style and they deliver the goods. But if I get wind there's something that can produce a more potent plant, I'll be first in line for it. Right now I think potency advantages of LED have plateaued and gains in efficiency is where things will progress more.
Every room will have it's challenges to make it work. I'll never need a dehuey but I damn sure need an AC. And my LED can put off enough warm BTUs I only need a heater if it's below 50 outside which it rarely is.
I actually went up in watts when I switched to 100% LED though. My old CMH were 315x3 and now I'm running 450x3 in LED but am getting more coverage.
I guess the one constant silver lining to LED is not needing a duct run connected to lights pulling screaming hot air off the bulbs 😋
 
RootsRuler

RootsRuler

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I kinda don't even know where to begin. Blown my fair share of cash on all kinds of lights from the old UFO led to panels, bars and what I use now. Yeah there's some pure garbage out there but there's some that can do some shit I've never got out of a HPS or CMH.
Potency drives every choice I make in what I use. Above all else it's resin and oil production so every step has been upgrading what I'm using now to get better potency.
I love the lights I'm using today...I prefer several small fixtures over one large so they fit my style and they deliver the goods. But if I get wind there's something that can produce a more potent plant, I'll be first in line for it. Right now I think potency advantages of LED have plateaued and gains in efficiency is where things will progress more.
Every room will have it's challenges to make it work. I'll never need a dehuey but I damn sure need an AC. And my LED can put off enough warm BTUs I only need a heater if it's below 50 outside which it rarely is.
I actually went up in watts when I switched to 100% LED though. My old CMH were 315x3 and now I'm running 450x3 in LED but am getting more coverage.
I guess the one constant silver lining to LED is not needing a duct run connected to lights pulling screaming hot air off the bulbs 😋
Man do I hear ya on that! That was a whole subsystem in itself!! I remember running ducting for 1000w raptor hoods with a can max fan pulling air through the lights. The last time I had to do that was when the newer double ended bulb hoods came out. If I was building out a room with good environmental control I would go with those types of fixtures. Nothing wrong with LED's. I just have more experience growing with HID than I do with LED.
 
RootsRuler

RootsRuler

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California Lightworks Solar System 550s with the added UVB package
How do you like their light systems? I used to see their booths at some of the weed conventions in California and Colorado. Got to be pretty good friends with their reps. The sunset/sunrise feature was my idea but none of their engineers will admit it! LOL!

What really attracted me to them was that their lights can be customized to whatever spectrum you want to design. Love that flexibility!!
 
mysticepipedon

mysticepipedon

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Someone gets it!!

that's all I'm saying, In all honesty id say they're MUCH more expensive.

We also need to take into consideration, LEDs have a long way yet to go, so advances in technology should be rather quick, So while our lights may be usable in a couple or few years, you'll find yourself purchasing new ones as there will be more efficient, adjustable and higher output while running cooler, but at a cost!

So when you take it all into consideration, I haven't crunched the actual numbers, but at a glance, Id say you save not a penny getting into LEDs and in fact start putting your hand in your pocket much more, to setup and run.
No, switching to LEDs did not save me any money. I like the results better, though, and I'm essentially a hobbyist looking to grow outstanding weed, and that's where my head is. Everything I say about this is from that point of view.

I have saved on electricity, but in winter it's almost nothing, due to heating needs. I can run more lights on a circuit in non-winter months, which is the main bonus, other than performance.
 
AnimalHouse

AnimalHouse

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447
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How do you like their light systems? I used to see their booths at some of the weed conventions in California and Colorado. Got to be pretty good friends with their reps. The sunset/sunrise feature was my idea but none of their engineers will admit it! LOL!

What really attracted me to them was that their lights can be customized to whatever spectrum you want to design. Love that flexibility!!
I started off using LED to supplement HPS and later CMH. One of my first good LEDs was from CLW but was distributed thru Custom Automated Products, CAP, and was the CAP Xtreme. https://greenbookpages.com/reviews/hydroponics/c-a-p-xtreme-led-grow-light/
That light was built for veg but flashed something special in flower, making my plants spit trichs like they had never done before. And it was the precursor to CLW branching out on their own with the SolarStorm series of LED.
I had a couple SolarStorms but they were so expensive I could never do a full swap plus I was really into CMH and using 10K Kelvin spectrums to finish plants the same way many are using UVB the last few weeks of a grow these days. So that 10K + LED supplements were doing wonderful things for me.
During all this I also got to use lights from Lumigrow, Illumitex, which was the precursor to Fluence and others not worth the mention. And while I was doing that, many growers were locked in on Chinese built panels from Blackstar, GLH, and Mars Hydro. Those lights were hot garbage to me so I stayed locked in on CLW even though they were the most spendy option around. I just bought when I could afford them.
Then they came out with the Solar System and yep that blew my mind.
Dimmable and programmable unlike any other light at the time and a true sprout to harvest all in one light.
I bought my first one and after the first grow I knew I had what I was looking for in a LED light.
A few years later, buying when I could afford to, and actually buying used but like new off Ebay, helped me convert 100% to LED. I had no issue buying a light used for one grow especially knowing other CLW lights had given me over 5 years of service and never died so I have high confidence in these lights lasting many years and getting my moneys worth out of them.
One of my SS, all the UV packages, and a controller came direct from CLW. Nothing but great service every time. And when the SS came out and nobody knew what to do with it, the guy who's name slips my mind but he's in all their videos, helped me one on one via email and phone with ideas about custom spectrums.
So yeah Man I've been rolling with CLW for a long time with no regrets. These 3 SS packages I run now can routinely push out a lb of seriously potent weed, seed to harvest in 120 days or less. It's all personal grow too, nothing here gets sold, so I just run two crops a year and load up.
I invested a lot over time, a little over $2000 in lighting but in 3 years they've given me 6lbs of weed so they've paid for themselves and then some already. The market is moving away from blurple panels to bars and even CLW is on that train now and while I have my eye on it I'm still not ready or willing to move on from these LED that treat me so good
 
Frostie069

Frostie069

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ive added one of the lumatek bar to the tent and decided to get some more numbers quickly.

so at the moment ive had to tie down branches, lights is topped out and one was just about touching it receiving 110,000 lux and not looking great. once again this is in the centre. So I dropped the meter down approx 15cm, went from 110,000 to 65,000. Massive drop in LUX for a little drop in length.

I tested the lumatek to see appropriate distance from canopy to achieve appropriate LUX. Once again I tested the penetration. Figure halved in around 5-10cm lowered.

So if you've got long colas in growth, good chance the tops will be better than the bottoms.

Once again, I know LEDs are great and getting great results however, being new to them I guess they're not as fantastic as I once thought the more I get to know them.

you can go off PFF charts you see and are given but that doesn't include a whole bunch of other variables.

I am going to continue testing and getting some figures. This winter I'll bring out the old witches hat and get the HID lighting going and test the distribution and penetration to compare.

If growers out there with the right equipment would like to chime in with some figures, go for it!
 
RootsRuler

RootsRuler

2,389
263
I started off using LED to supplement HPS and later CMH. One of my first good LEDs was from CLW but was distributed thru Custom Automated Products, CAP, and was the CAP Xtreme. https://greenbookpages.com/reviews/hydroponics/c-a-p-xtreme-led-grow-light/
That light was built for veg but flashed something special in flower, making my plants spit trichs like they had never done before. And it was the precursor to CLW branching out on their own with the SolarStorm series of LED.
I had a couple SolarStorms but they were so expensive I could never do a full swap plus I was really into CMH and using 10K Kelvin spectrums to finish plants the same way many are using UVB the last few weeks of a grow these days. So that 10K + LED supplements were doing wonderful things for me.
During all this I also got to use lights from Lumigrow, Illumitex, which was the precursor to Fluence and others not worth the mention. And while I was doing that, many growers were locked in on Chinese built panels from Blackstar, GLH, and Mars Hydro. Those lights were hot garbage to me so I stayed locked in on CLW even though they were the most spendy option around. I just bought when I could afford them.
Then they came out with the Solar System and yep that blew my mind.
Dimmable and programmable unlike any other light at the time and a true sprout to harvest all in one light.
I bought my first one and after the first grow I knew I had what I was looking for in a LED light.
A few years later, buying when I could afford to, and actually buying used but like new off Ebay, helped me convert 100% to LED. I had no issue buying a light used for one grow especially knowing other CLW lights had given me over 5 years of service and never died so I have high confidence in these lights lasting many years and getting my moneys worth out of them.
One of my SS, all the UV packages, and a controller came direct from CLW. Nothing but great service every time. And when the SS came out and nobody knew what to do with it, the guy who's name slips my mind but he's in all their videos, helped me one on one via email and phone with ideas about custom spectrums.
So yeah Man I've been rolling with CLW for a long time with no regrets. These 3 SS packages I run now can routinely push out a lb of seriously potent weed, seed to harvest in 120 days or less. It's all personal grow too, nothing here gets sold, so I just run two crops a year and load up.
I invested a lot over time, a little over $2000 in lighting but in 3 years they've given me 6lbs of weed so they've paid for themselves and then some already. The market is moving away from blurple panels to bars and even CLW is on that train now and while I have my eye on it I'm still not ready or willing to move on from these LED that treat me so good
Yeah! They're really serious about trying to make the best light possible. I got to talk to a couple of their engineers and they are some very knowledgeable guys. One of the other things that attracted me to them was the build quality. Their lights seemed to be built for agtech rather than just homegrowers which I appreciated. The ability to customize your light spectrum was a big one for me too.
 
Frostie069

Frostie069

189
63
No, switching to LEDs did not save me any money. I like the results better, though, and I'm essentially a hobbyist looking to grow outstanding weed, and that's where my head is. Everything I say about this is from that point of view.

I have saved on electricity, but in winter it's almost nothing, due to heating needs. I can run more lights on a circuit in non-winter months, which is the main bonus, other than performance.
that is most definitely a big bonus!!

your climate sounds like its similar to mine, LEDs provide big advantages in summer due to heat but cold enough in winter to have to adjust the environment.

thanks for sharing....
 
Frostie069

Frostie069

189
63
t
I started off using LED to supplement HPS and later CMH. One of my first good LEDs was from CLW but was distributed thru Custom Automated Products, CAP, and was the CAP Xtreme. https://greenbookpages.com/reviews/hydroponics/c-a-p-xtreme-led-grow-light/
That light was built for veg but flashed something special in flower, making my plants spit trichs like they had never done before. And it was the precursor to CLW branching out on their own with the SolarStorm series of LED.
I had a couple SolarStorms but they were so expensive I could never do a full swap plus I was really into CMH and using 10K Kelvin spectrums to finish plants the same way many are using UVB the last few weeks of a grow these days. So that 10K + LED supplements were doing wonderful things for me.
During all this I also got to use lights from Lumigrow, Illumitex, which was the precursor to Fluence and others not worth the mention. And while I was doing that, many growers were locked in on Chinese built panels from Blackstar, GLH, and Mars Hydro. Those lights were hot garbage to me so I stayed locked in on CLW even though they were the most spendy option around. I just bought when I could afford them.
Then they came out with the Solar System and yep that blew my mind.
Dimmable and programmable unlike any other light at the time and a true sprout to harvest all in one light.
I bought my first one and after the first grow I knew I had what I was looking for in a LED light.
A few years later, buying when I could afford to, and actually buying used but like new off Ebay, helped me convert 100% to LED. I had no issue buying a light used for one grow especially knowing other CLW lights had given me over 5 years of service and never died so I have high confidence in these lights lasting many years and getting my moneys worth out of them.
One of my SS, all the UV packages, and a controller came direct from CLW. Nothing but great service every time. And when the SS came out and nobody knew what to do with it, the guy who's name slips my mind but he's in all their videos, helped me one on one via email and phone with ideas about custom spectrums.
So yeah Man I've been rolling with CLW for a long time with no regrets. These 3 SS packages I run now can routinely push out a lb of seriously potent weed, seed to harvest in 120 days or less. It's all personal grow too, nothing here gets sold, so I just run two crops a year and load up.
I invested a lot over time, a little over $2000 in lighting but in 3 years they've given me 6lbs of weed so they've paid for themselves and then some already. The market is moving away from blurple panels to bars and even CLW is on that train now and while I have my eye on it I'm still not ready or willing to move on from these LED that treat me so good
thanks for all the info, great read.....
I'll have to check the CLW out, but I do like the bar style LEDs, probably give it some time and there will be more choice on the market
 

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