LED's in a grow tent. Worth a try?

**MJ Crescendo** · 04-15-2010, 12:45 PM

I know this issue has been started many times, but as technology advances I was curious if now in days it's worth a try to purchase a $150 led. I fully understand that LED applications are not for everyone and that an hps light will have a high tendency to yield 1/3 more buds.

Where my interest comes in is that I am investing into a new project soon and was considering some more supplemental lighting. My project would consist of a grow tent + fan/carbon filter setup. I currently have a 150w hps parking light which puts off some heat and is bulky. (I will be taking it apart to seperate the light/ballast and add a reflector to it soon). I usually grow smaller indicas so light penetration is not a huge deal. I also usually grow them in smaller pots so they do not turn out huge.

Now what comes into play is what would my supplemental lighting be. I am far from being in flowering cycle for my next grow, but I know I'll want more lighting. This may come in the form of cfl's, another cheap 150w hps, or these cool innovative led's.

The most trusted place I found them to be at was:

http://htgsupply.com/growlighttypes....categoryID=168

Now I can understand the skepticism to having one of these, but for a 4 fem. indica plant grow in a small tent with an hps, wouldn't I see decent results adding the led's? I feel as if I get a mixed panel + few cfl's + small hps that I may actually get very positive results. This is tons of spectrum mixing and even though none of them are of extremely high output, I feel as if it is a recipe for success. I mean it's all about getting the right spectrum's of light to the plants effectively isn't it? I just stumbled upon led stuff recently and just felt like bringing up my personal situation accordingly. Even NASA uses these in space, so there must be something useful about them.

So all in all, led's might not be for everyone, but would it be useful for me to purchase some led panels to supplement my hps. I'm a small time grower and I like the idea of being able to keep a light close to the plant, low heat issues, etc. I see the benefits, but as a man that does not have a lot of cash to throw around, is it worth it?

Hopefully see'n another led thread won't drive you guys crazy. Feel free to comment.

~Peace~

**GaryOak** · 04-16-2010, 01:55 AM

agreed. i just ordered a 90watt grow led light for my 160cm x 90cm x 50cm tent because running a 600watt cool tube was too hot and too noisy. Going to run this this led and a small in/out fan for ventilation and see how that goes.

**MJ Crescendo** · 04-16-2010, 12:09 PM

The 90 watt sounds like a really good led product. The two biggest concerns with lighting is always the heat, noise, etc. I bet the 90 watt will cut down on all these problems and still grow some buds. I am worried about it's ability to produce dense nug, that is why I see it needing to be supplemented with some hps/cfl power. Good to hear another grower adding a led to their tent.

I think I would personally be looking into a 2'x2'x5' grow tent with an led panel + 150w hps which should yield some decent nugs on 3-4 plants.

If anybody has some pics of their girls under led's feel free to post it!

**MJ Crescendo** · 04-16-2010, 12:31 PM

O yaa...

If I were to invest in some led's anybody have any recommendations? I personally kind of like the High Output 50 Watt LED Panel - TRI-BAND Spectrum from htg, but it seems like a lot of people use the 90 watt UFO Tri-band LED. I can't really tell which is better for a small grow tent, but I thought it would be cool to set up two 50 watt panels in a /\ (v-like shape) about 3'' above a canopy of 2-3 plants. Just speculations.. Anyone else do anything interesting with their led?

**jonnymafia** · 04-16-2010, 12:38 PM

I ordered a 90w UFO from prosourceworldwide, There has been alot of success with the 3 spectrum ones. There on backorder today for there new 5spectrum and you get $74 off.. it should ship tomorrow the site says. Irishboy had a good grow going on with the LED's from PS.

**MJ Crescendo** · 04-17-2010, 03:20 PM

I checked out what they have and you are right the 5-spectrum led looks like a great light for a small grow tent. I bet that would yield amazing results, but I just need to figure out when I could pay for a $275 dollar light. I guess that's not bad considering that it compares to a 400 watt hid and for a few plants that is plenty. So I guess 5 spectrum is leading in technology for led's. I bet in a few years it will be soooo obsolute compared to newer models haha Still seems like a cool way to grow!

**MJ Crescendo** · 04-18-2010, 10:25 PM

As I look around more it's almost smarter for a low income grower as myself to go with a mh/hps 250watt setup for under $180. With one of these setups that have a reflector and all to hang up in the grow tent, it would seem to work a lot better. I always have problems vegging them up as large as I would like b/c I always veg with cfl's and an hps, but I do like the sounds of a conversion ballast with both bulbs. I really do want to be a successful led grower, but I know hid technology works and it's much more in my price range. I haven't made any purchases yet, but it seems like my opinion has changed on led's. They seem to be an interesting experimental choice for a grower that can afford it.

LED's may be the future, but the new tech ones that are worth buying seem to be a little pricey when considering how affordable an hps light is now in days. I just got my seeds in today. A few fem snow whites, fem maui waui, white widow and ice. Looks like a fun variety of good genetics for me to play with. I can't wait till I get my tent/light/ventilation setup. I'm currently growin out my closet and it just doesn't seem to be the effective way to grow..