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LED Grow Lights - Make Your Own or Buy Them Cheap!

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LED Grow Lights are Dropping in Price!

They used to be several hundred dollars, but now they're dropping to the low $100 range. First, why Red and Blue? NASA studies have shown evidence that specific frequencies of light are responsible for growth in plants. NASA was maximizing the growth while minimizing their electrical use. In fact, many commercial growers are using this fact to save $ on their businesses. We'll go over the specific frequencies, where you can buy ready-made, how to make your own, and then, I'll let you in on a secret that I found with my own experiments with LED grow lights that could save you hundreds! --Photo Credit Patrick Hoesly at Flickr.com

The Color Ranges

LED grow lights come in specific colors - Red at 650-700nm (nanometers) and Blue (at 400-450nm) (see http://www.helpfulgardener.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=5781 for some useful information on this). The plants use most of these light ranges, and not much of the rest of it. NASA has a great page regarding this, including some audio transcripts at (http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2001/ast09apr_1/)

What Red and Blue are Supposed to Do

Red light is supposed to increase bud formation (see micropropagation, while blue adds to the leaves and other growth.

Make your own from scratch or from kits

LED Light kit from HomeGrownLightsThere are kits available that give you everything you need, just hold the proper end of the soldering iron and create your own homegrownlights.com. There's also a lengthly DIY you can learn a lot from at dabblings.net (my site). Another lens to look at would be led-light-parts

You can buy ready-made LED grow lights for under $67!

They've been hovering for the last couple of years in the $200 range, but manufacturers are now competing heavily! There are several varieties, but my favorite is the red+blue mix for the ready-mades. Now for around $50, you can get a decent sized LED light for your hydroponic or green thumb endeavours! Our favorite so far is the Sunshine Systems LEDGP14 GlowPanel LED Grow Light.
A little more pricey than the cheapest out there, but they have the best performance for red/blue combinations. Read more 225 LED Quad Band Red, Blue, Orange and White Full Spectrum Hydroponic Plant Grow Light, 2501QUAD
The least expensive is the Hydroponic Lamp 225 LED Grow light Panel Red Blue 110 V, 2501MX. At $37 it seems like a good deal, but as of this date, there are no reviews.
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LED Duel

Okay - there's an upstart company out there (I mean that in a nice way...) that is selling LED bulbs with a lifetime warranty. They aren't grow lights, but from what I've seen, white light works fine. Anyway - G7 sells a 9W (65W equivalent) bulb with a lifetime warranty (meaning the life of the bulb or the life of the company?) for $19.63.The contender is the 12.5W Philips 409904 which puts out 60W equivalent and is currently selling for $18.35.

Which Would You Buy?

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I'd buy the G7 - it's got more light, less power consumption and a lifetime warranty!

I'd buy the Philips - I trust the name, and it's UL listed.

John says:

What good's a lifetime warranty when the company goes out of business in a couple years?

 

What would YOU like to know about LED grow lights?

Do you have any questions about LED grow lights? write your question here, we'll be glad to respond!

does coloring white led to red or blue makes a good grow lights? Good question! Coloring the LED's after the fact would not be as advantageous as buying the color you prefer that generates that color, since you would be filtering out all of the other colors. If you have a white LED it is using those precious watts to generate the colors, only to be blocking them from use. I was given a 900w hanging lite for my tomato seeds but can't find directions on
how to. Hmmm. You may be able to find an instruction book online at Amazon.com - is it an LED grow light or is it a bulb type? Bulb types generate a LOT of heat, so you could cook your tomatoes before they even grow. Write back if you could with a make and model, and I'll see what I can find. Had to climb up on a stool to see the top. It doesn't exactly give a brand other than CE. It's a 90 W LED that hangs from the cling. I'll look on Amazon. My heirloom tomato seeds just sit there after getting about 1"high. As long as it's not too warm you may have to put the lights pretty close to the plants. When I set my DIY light up first it was too far away, the plants became real "leggy" (look toward the bottom of http://dabblings.net/diy-projects/led-grow-light-diy/ ). Mine were only 3-5 watts each, so they needed to be pretty close. If you find they're getting too leggy, put the lights closer. I also worked with some "T8" replacement bulbs (replaces fluorescent lights), they had to be close too - but they were once again only 36 Watts maximum. Sorry about rambling, if I find anything useful, I'll post it here. That could be due to the temperature as well. I found putting the light about 1-2" away with my lights (both my DIY and my Fluorescent tube replacement bulbs) seemed to help them out quite a bit. Specially this year, costs for led lamps have decreased greatly for many new led chips factories grows! And LED becomes more acceptable for people. Currently people can get a 3watt led spotlight by 1.3$ in Zhongshan, China, which is high-bright also with warranty. Really a surprise!

www.floodlightspot-ledbulb.com
led strip, floodlight, spot, led bulbs Currenltly China made grow lamps are pratical in price and also quality

www.floodlightspot-ledbulb.com
led strip, floodlight, spot, led bulbs Very nicely well written and well informed hub. Great job.
Led Light Bulb Manufacturers & Led Light Bulb Suppliers on the
http://cpbay.com/Indoor-LED-Lighting/LED-Bulbs-Indoor--catalog-tid-10080902.html
Voting you up.
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Summary

Tomato plants after about three weeks with red white and blue LED lights made following the directions on dabblings.netOkay, so here's the "secret" - white LED bulbs appear to work just as well as the red/blue variety. Technically speaking, they are putting out a lot of "unneeded light frequencies", but with my limited tests with three tomato plants, they all grew about the same, for a lot less electricity! I've also grown a Christmas cactus under a cheap $10 LED "flood light" with no problems, especially since it was convenient (screw in lightbulb), and it's only 4 watts! If you scroll toward the bottom of dabblings.net page 25, you'll see my experiences first hand. The upside of using white LEDs is that the plants don't look like they're from 2001 a space odyssey, unless you like that sort of thing, then I say go for it. You'll find a slight electricity savings with the specific color LED bulbs, but unless you're lighting a greenhouse, you won't notice much of a difference. If you're planning on starting a hydroponic garden, you owe it to yourself to check out Hydroponics for Beginners. Takes all the guess work out of starting your own hydroponic garden! tweet For some great gardening tips and tricks, look to gardenhacker.com

LED Sources

Super bright, warm white light for a lot less than incandescents!

Ready to make your own? Get that soldering iron ready, and find some great deals on LED's here on eBay!
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Resistors on eBay

Be sure to pick up some resistors too - you wand Light Emitting Diodes, not Smelly Electric Froides!

Your needs may vary. Be sure to do the math to find out exactly what you need before you buy!
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by

aperkins

computer tech, avid gardener, dabbler in LED grow lights,and a scrimshander (http://scrimshaw.com)for over 25 years. more »

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