HazednConfused
Well-Known Member
Don't buy that shit either
Why do some LED lights cost $800+ without being 8 times bigger?
- Thread starter grassy007
- Start date
Photon Flinger
Well-Known Member
Don't worry about the negativity - just grow your best, light is only one component. Lots of people have grown well with the chinese generics quality wise and they do produce enough to pay for themselves. A lot of bad experiences from folks on this site here but they general complain about yield and other growing issues.
If you want to spend more money then DiY is the way to go. Those $800 units rip you off by spending extra on expensive heat sinks which aren't needed. Put that $800 towards the light engines for twice as much light power.
Also, you could probably upgrade to 6 Vero 29s and an aluminum sheet to mount them on for around $250. With the 139 you paid, that's under 400 for a light better than those expensive cob offerings.
If you want to spend more money then DiY is the way to go. Those $800 units rip you off by spending extra on expensive heat sinks which aren't needed. Put that $800 towards the light engines for twice as much light power.
Also, you could probably upgrade to 6 Vero 29s and an aluminum sheet to mount them on for around $250. With the 139 you paid, that's under 400 for a light better than those expensive cob offerings.
mauricem00
Well-Known Member
what you do not see in those videos is the tricks these companies use to make their light look good. in his last you tube video before going to work for an led grow light maker grow mau stated that he used deep red and IR flowering initiator and alluded to using supplemental UV light but did not include the power used by these extra lights in his yield calculation.he also claimed he was using a chemical that increased his yield by 30%. the latest generation of grow lights using 5 watt leds are about 30% efficient which is not bad. but you will spend 800-2000 for a good LED grow light using high bin cree and osram diodes. I have done test grows with Chinese grow lights and with bridgelux eb strips but have found nothing that flowers as well as an HPS light.I have not tested CMH bulbs yet. their is strong disagreement between LED growers here and the major LED grow light companies but high bin cree and osram diodes are expensive. many independent growers on you tube are only getting 0,3-0.4 GPW with cheap grow lights like yours. if your on a tight budget a 250-400 watt HPS/MH combination light may be a better choice http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-400W-Watt-MH-HPS-Grow-Light-System-Kit-Wing-19-inch-Reflector-Plant-Growing/282506500516?_trkparms=aid=555018&algo=PL.SIM&ao=2&asc=46088&meid=2abdc43575c94cae88da3ab53fa5dfb4&pid=100005&rk=4&rkt=6&sd=160683199645&_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851What I can't understand are those YouTube videos showing this light growing awesome looking bushy plants. Mine is a 50 day old PE clone, is healthy ( but really growing slowly). I researched a lot before starting out on my first stealth grow (root lock, ph, nutrient problems, overwatering, etc). I think I've avoided these problems. I've tried lowering the light (no leaf burn happened) and raising the light (thinking it was getting too intense light). Not much change days after trying different heights. If you look back at postings, I showed a few pics from day one onward.
I'd really like to put in an $800 LED and see if that makes a difference ( I could even opt to return it via Amazon and pay only shipping. I'm still working on whether it was something I've done wrong.
Here is the obligatory pic of what's happening. I thinned out unnecessary new and old growth. Freaking Bonzai plant, lol.
whitebb2727
Well-Known Member
You can transplant anytime, even flower as long as you are gentle.
VegasWinner
Well-Known Member
They do not have to be large to create a good spread just good lenses drivers and diodes
VegasWinner
Well-Known Member
Don't jump up and buy the first light folks here tell you to buy. Many folks here have an agenda and advertise for others do your homework compare PAR likr raz noted.
frica
Well-Known Member
The problem with rating lights is that people who are new think that just because it grows that it was worth the money.
Any piece of shit will grow a plant.
If you're just growing for yourself and maybe a few friends and you're not smoking like some degenerate addict then a cheap piece of shit will do fine.
It might still cost you in the end but not much.
When you start growing more then those pieces of crap will just increase your energy bill.
Any piece of shit will grow a plant.
If you're just growing for yourself and maybe a few friends and you're not smoking like some degenerate addict then a cheap piece of shit will do fine.
It might still cost you in the end but not much.
When you start growing more then those pieces of crap will just increase your energy bill.
grassy007
Well-Known Member
I'm doing a stealth one plant grow. I need low temps. I tried the HPS route but had to return it before I could reap the benefits. The noise of a good VivoSun 6" intake and another 6" VivoSun exhaust fan was just a bit too much noise (even with speed control) with HPS lighting. I guess this being a quiet discreet stealth grow, I can only expect so much. I wouldn't mind scrapping this $139 BestVA 1000w and going with a more expensive LED panel, but the prices seem to jump from like... $139-$179... directly to $600+.
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HazednConfused
Well-Known Member
You can find all sorts of quality LED lights in the $200-$400 range.
https://www.tastyled.com/category-s/121.htm
http://timbergrowlights.com/200-watt-vero29-v7-linear-framework/
https://horticulturelightinggroup.com/collections/lamps/products/hlg-65
resinousflowers420
Well-Known Member
most led lights are made in china,even the ''quality'' ones.
HazednConfused
Well-Known Member
Yeah, they are, so there's "quality" Chinese and bullshit Chinese. And when most say Chinese leds, they're speaking of full spectrum cobs and 1000w panels that pull 200w.
coreywebster
Well-Known Member
8X more marketing, examples been kind and black dog. Which will grow weed but not as well as some super efficient LEDs.
Those companies invested heavily in old diodes and have to sell them or go bust. Tech which is sold old in terms of LED its crazy.
There are a lot of $1000 LEDs that are only fractionally better than what you bought.
Its a minefield. Never buy an LED from Ebay or amazon. (almost never) Mostly don't trust youtube, folks on there make a living pushing peoples products. They get paid or gifted to do so and will say anything to push a product so they don't have to get a real job. That said there are genuine growers doing genuine things on there, you just have to be aware of the bullshit artists.
coreywebster
Well-Known Member
What size is your grow area? There are a lot of options for small spaces.
Stephenj37826
Well-Known Member
A good start is if a company doesn't disclose what leds they are using that's not a good sign (probably not proud of them cheap crap ect)
Also if they don't talk about efficiency umol/j another sign that they are not very good.
Also if they don't talk about efficiency umol/j another sign that they are not very good.
grassy007
Well-Known Member
Among the other name brand LED lights not costing an arm and a leg, I'm considering trying out the VIPARSPECTRA Reflector-Series 600w ($179) Wow, funny thing is (maybe a good thing) is that it needs 276 watts as opposed to my current $139 BestVA 1000w LED which draws 185w. In other words, my BestVA is rated at 1000w equivalent (400w less then the Viparspectra's 600w) and runs on 90 watts less power. Should I be semi-impressed (spec wise) with the Viparspectra 600w drawing 276 watts at 600w equivelant vs. my BestVA boasting 1000w equivalent but drawing just 185 watts? I just thought I'd ask.
HazednConfused
Well-Known Member
Yeah, a 600w with 276w actual pull is obviously better than a 1000w that pulls 185w. Vipars are considered one of the "better" full spectrum leds and do carry quite good results in perfect conditions. But, don't plan on growing many plants under it.
Some glue under my buddy's 450 vipar 6 weeks flower
Prawn Connery
Well-Known Member
^ This is part of your problem. That's nitrogen clawing, not moisture stress (though N toxity does, in effect, cause moisture stress).
As advised, you can transplant at any time - preferably before flowering (definitely before the first two weeks of stretch, as root growth slows after that) - but I'd wait until your pot is root-bound first. One sign of root binding is the lower leaves start to yellow off in an otherwise healthy plant. It's a lot easier to transplant a root-bound pot, and there's no real need to transplant before that.
As long as your plants are healthy, and even within the realm of diverse genetics, more light always = more yield up to the point of light/heat stress.
StonerCol
Well-Known Member
The other factor in the costing is R&D. If a company sells their product at cost+profit margin then they won't have money to research and improve their product. Like any decent company that makes things, they need to have funds for research or their product will become old very quickly and nobody will buy it.
Randomblame
Well-Known Member
With only 200bucks you could build a 250w DIY light which the Viparspectra neatly fizzled out of the water!
- 5x Citizen CLU048-1212C4 gen.6 in 3.000°k =55$,
- 5x Intel CPU-Coolers with copper core =35$,
- a frame made from alu L-channels and some selftapping screws =20$,
- a Meanwell HLG-240H-C1400B driver + 100k potentiometer=80$,
- misc parts like cheap thermal glue, awg18 wires(black+red)=10$.
Wire all LED's in series, build a frame which covers 75% of your area, mount COBs/coolers to the frame(4 to the 4 corners + 1 in the middle).
Each COB would run around ~ 50w, with much better effiency(maybe twice as much as currently).
Another advantage is that the lamp is fully dimmable so you can save even more energy.
And the Intel fans are also controllable(via PC fan controller), even over pwm if you want, or you use a 5v driver instead of a 12v one.
It can hardly be quieter in your tent without going the passive cooling route!
Lot's of how-to's are available(here, youtube,...), you should be able to complete the build in only one day, also if you have no clue and it is your first DIY project.
But be careful, working with LED's can quickly make you addictive, Lol!
BTW,
I would by no means change from a very bad blurple unit to a mediocre blurple unit if I can get a very good white for the same money + a few hours of work.
- 5x Citizen CLU048-1212C4 gen.6 in 3.000°k =55$,
- 5x Intel CPU-Coolers with copper core =35$,
- a frame made from alu L-channels and some selftapping screws =20$,
- a Meanwell HLG-240H-C1400B driver + 100k potentiometer=80$,
- misc parts like cheap thermal glue, awg18 wires(black+red)=10$.
Wire all LED's in series, build a frame which covers 75% of your area, mount COBs/coolers to the frame(4 to the 4 corners + 1 in the middle).
Each COB would run around ~ 50w, with much better effiency(maybe twice as much as currently).
Another advantage is that the lamp is fully dimmable so you can save even more energy.
And the Intel fans are also controllable(via PC fan controller), even over pwm if you want, or you use a 5v driver instead of a 12v one.
It can hardly be quieter in your tent without going the passive cooling route!
Lot's of how-to's are available(here, youtube,...), you should be able to complete the build in only one day, also if you have no clue and it is your first DIY project.
But be careful, working with LED's can quickly make you addictive, Lol!
BTW,
I would by no means change from a very bad blurple unit to a mediocre blurple unit if I can get a very good white for the same money + a few hours of work.
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