Ive been mulling it over in my mind as i research getting a new light and looking at both sides of arguments for LED's and HPS. Ive grown alot outside but im getting into indoor growing. And i started with about 10 Autoflowers and 2 Blackstar 90w LEDs as well as 2 supplemental florescent lights. Everything went fairly well, a couple of the plants were a bit smaller then the others but i was late on getting everyone into new pots. But the end product was great, if i didnt tell you it was a autoflower, you wouldnt have known. So i know LED's work, but im wondering how much better a HPS light would work. I know there suppose to be the standby but i also know they are incredibly wasteful in energy. I would like to try one though and see how it goes. My question is this how do the watts of a LED compare to the watts used on a HPS? For example would a 90watt LED compare to a 150w hPS? or a 240w LED compared to a 250W HPS? Also i was trying to figure out how much running a 400 watt HPS would cost (12hrs a day for 30 days) and i got about 14-15 dollars a month. Does that sound right to you? How much light in your experience with LED or HPS is needed for a space 4ft x 8ft I appreciate any advise you can offer!
After checking out some comparison grows, the way I see it 240w LED = 250w HID (The 240w LED did a little better than 250w HID) 300w LED = 400w HID 500w LED = 600w HID etc....
Thanks FluffyK, i was thinking its somewhere along those lines. I feel pretty dumb as i answered a few of my own questions by looking at a post here i missed in my search, its titled Lighting Technology Comparison Information. To quote the writer: Also i was thinking about in that article how they mention T5's absolute superiority to T8's and T12's, which disappointed me because ive had for along time 4, 2 bulb T12's. For me they've been fine, ive grown hundreds and hundreds of all species of plant till they are at least 10" tall or long, but if T5s save on energy then thats fine by me. But replacing all my ballasts is insane and T5 fixtures are like $125. I thought all hope was gone till i saw this, thats much more reasonable T12 to T5 adapter How does it work or if it works, i dont know, the fella selling them has got a positive review on them and no negative so take that for what you will. Thought id pass that along for anyone who has T12 fixtures laying around.
That is to hard a question to answer as every LED brand is different where as most HPS/MH bulbs seem to be very similar..there are some differences in brands but for the most part there similar. My 800w LED Panel pulls about 690 with everything on. I would wager its about equal to a 600w HID light perhaps 700watts but not more. Its rated coverage area is a 4x4 to 5x5 at most. To figure out your costs use this calculator. You need to know the price per kilowatt hour. It varies by state and city. Your energy bill should have it or there website. There Federally mandated to show you that price. http://www.citytrf.net/costs_calculator.htm
400W of LED will destroy 400W of HID in any test. hey, i didn't see where the above came from, but it's sooooo wrong! you can't compare led to hid. led's just cannot produce the samme as hid, period! led's don't penetrate the canopy much at all. on the other hand, hid does. led's are great for small yield grows, and economy conscious growers. if you did an identical grow, except for the lights (400 watt led versus 400 watt hid) you'd see a huge difference in all aspects of the grow. you'd get quicker growth, thicker, and most importantly, much higher yielding plants. i don't know where this led will destroy hid stuff came from, but it ain't so!
its not about the HID producing more lumens = more bud. All you guys saying that LED > HID or HID > LED. People dont understand that LED's permit the best lighting spectrum which may not be as strong as HID but its the color spectrum that does wonders I would bet that 2 DS200 leds would out preform a 400w HID. but the 2 DS200 leds would cost you about 3-4 400w units but you pay for what you get right? Thats always been my motto
I'll take that bet too. Got 3 generic panels made with custom arrays of brand name 3w diodes. They draw accordingly 100w, 200w and 545w /~3% variance to heat etc. I am also setting up a medical operation using 1000w hps. Will be growin same strains in both, same nutes, and I will give examples of the proper spectrum vs a deficient spectrum. Guaranteed the 545 will be higher quality than the 1000. Although there are other variables to consider. It all depends on the genes used some hate the lack of visible light making them less thirsty, some love to be deprived of an abundance of non essential wavelengths. I've had best results cloning under led by the way. If anyone has wondered about that. Just make sure to compensate for heat losses as diodes burn much colder than electrodes in a tube. Yields are expected to be higher gpw on led side, as more care will be kept to ensure optimal growth. Not biased, experienced. Edit: if anyone wondering total paid for 845w of led, 750 CAD. So shop around, call factories, don't be afraid of manufacturers they actually have alot to learn for Us to make their products better, and often will give discounts on custom arrays.
But keep in mind, black stars and UFOs are a waste of time and money. Find a manufacturer and get the right lenses and spectrum for your application. Sog and scrog utilize different tech from a tent with a few trees tossed in there like a lazy grower. Looking for a "cure-all" led grow light that will do everything is obviously going to cost you more than you need. Mix and match, think about the process you will be using, train your plants, keep an canopy, watch your ppm most of all. A good trick is to use smaller pots with led then you can pretty much water like normal plants under an hps. But once things take off you won't notice a difference really. I personally smoke for paranoia and panic and anxiety partially caused by arthritis and an auto immune disease. And I have a fear of fire. Hps are not an option for personal for this reason. I need to be able to sleep at night. Keep this in mind if you have a similar situation.