Led Lighting help! First time

I have been planning this grow for a few weeks now and from what I've read the LED lighting technique seems to be what i am most interested in, LOW HEAT, lower electric bill etc. The only problem i am having is deciding which LED light i will use.

I have been looking at a UFO LED from HTG supply, see link below.

http://www.htgsupply.com/Product-7-Band-135w-UFO-LED.asp#

I guess my question is how effective would this LED be for both veg and flowering within a 32"x17"x50" (L x W x H)

i plan on using a home 6 plant rubbermaid aeroponic system (i think its 30+ gallon tub)

And what suggestions can you lend me for lighting, unfortunately i am not willing to spend more than 300+$ on a lighting system, so if this is not plausible i believe i have no choice but to go back to MH/HPS setup with more cooling.

Thank you!

I don't really know much about that light other than what I just read on the website. Here's my thoughts on it:

I don't think it's really pushing 135w if it only has 45 three watt diodes, that would mean they're running at 100% and that would significantly increase the burnout rate and cause heat and failure issues. My guess is that it's probably running more like 90w? They don't give a coverage area recommendation or maybe I just didn't see it. I would call them up and ask a few questions about it if you like the price.

If you want to shop around for a good led, $300 isn't the best budget to work with, but you can still find some good ones. I believe the blackstar 240 which actually pulls more like 130-150w is just under $300. The pro-grow 180 from hydroponics hut just a bit more at $309 but is also getting the job done, you can find quite a bit of journals on here with both of those lights or their various versions. If you had a couple hundred dollars more to spend, I could make a few more recommendations of the lights I've personally used from advanced.

How much are you aiming to get off the 6 plant rubbermaid? That would help a lot to decide if led is for you at this time or if you should just go hps.

The yield is no really the most important thing as of right now, i am aiming to produce quietly, effectively, in a dresser setup in my apartment bedroom. so ill be sleeping close to the setup, from what I've been reading LED= less heat = less ventilation = a lot less noise!

Again I'm trying to do all this research ahead of time so i can prepare my budget, it seems most of the money will head towards the lighting.

I am completely open to suggestions, like you said mh/hps might possibly still be more beneficial to me. Its the noise I'm mostly worried about.

You may want to look at my journals, in a small space like a dresser the LEDs do produce a significant amount of heat and you will need proper ventilation . I run my 4'' inline fan all day for about 150W of LEDs in both my dresser and my cabinet. it's a bit overkill but you will see you still need good ventilation. I run mine in the day time otherwise it would be too noisy when I sleep( the dresser is in my bedroom). You can forget about a a MH/HPS in a dresser unless you go with the cooltube and the inline fan, and you will have to run the fan full speed all the time. If you want next to no noise the only option is to buy those fans that look like computer fans but are stronger, and buy a good LED, but then you will have smell issues. I don't know of anybody currently running a successful quiet setup in a small cabinet. If you were growing in a closet or something, you wouldnt need to worry as much about the heat from the LEDs. good luck

Thanks endur0, I've decided to avoid the LED for now until i have the funds to do it properly. For the size of the dresser, I'm gonna go ahead with a 150watt HPS setup and run a cooling fan through the reflector. I should have everything setup in a few weeks, thanks for your help mate!

I used to own a 150 hps and found it rather disappointing, you can grow one good auto with that. That is about it. Also HTG is just importing those from China. Find something with a warranty on it and some proven grow journals. I've had HTG leds, not the "new gen" ones, but the old ones and they were weak sauce.

Personally I would never order an LED from any company other than about 4-5. There are a few who really give you a good bang for your buck. The technology is still developing, plasma and other types of induction lighting are really putting the fire under their asses. I wouldn't be surprised if in 2-3 years LED technology is either leaps and bounds ahead or extinct due to induction. They are in a pretty good spot right now for the consumer.

When considering any grow cost can be the defining factor. If you are able to spend a lot up front and can do it all right, you will have a slight advantage over a grow without all the right gear. LEDs are more about start up cost. They repay you more over time by not having to replace bulbs and running a little easier on the electric bill. I'm sure someone has done HPSvLED cost comparisons over time. Some growers even claim they can produce more resinous buds, but thats for another thread.


Here's the few companies I would order LEDs from:

Magnum
Grow LED Hydro (Spectra)
HydroponicsHut (Pro-Grow)
Kessil
StealthGrow

I have no affiliation with any of them, but own a Pro-Grow 180 and Pro-Grow 550. I also own a blackstar 180. The PG lights are MUCH brighter, although my blackstar model is about 2-3 years old now. The new panels are nice and still fairly affordable - that is the blackstar panels from lighthousehydro I mean.

Agree with your company selection, but have to disagree about plasma. I've yet to see a grow that knocked my socks off using just plasma lighting.