New to LED lights

GreatWhiteNorthGrows

GreatWhiteNorthGrows

Well-Known Member
If I could do it over again I'd have gone with HPS, LED tech sucks at a $ to performance comparison. But that sounds good, don't give your seedlings too intense light, keep it 25% and if you notice stretching I'd either move the light closer or turn it up a bit. Don't want to shock your babies!
 
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DaFreak

Well-Known Member
You definitely don't want it closer than you would hang a HPS. I was using a 400 watt COB and keeping it not even close and it really hurt my plants, and I didn't even recognize what was going on, didn't look like the light burn I was used to seeing with HPS, the whole plant just looked like it was starving. So keep them minimal 18 or more inches away and adjust as needed. With LEDs it not the heat that you're worried about, it's just way too much light if you keep it close.
 
GreatWhiteNorthGrows

GreatWhiteNorthGrows

Well-Known Member
DaFreak said:
You definitely don't want it closer than you would hang a HPS. I was using a 400 watt COB and keeping it not even close and it really hurt my plants, and I didn't even recognize what was going on, didn't look like the light burn I was used to seeing with HPS, the whole plant just looked like it was starving. So keep them minimal 18 or more inches away and adjust as needed. With LEDs it not the heat that you're worried about, it's just way too much light if you keep it close.
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Yeah, I have dealt with the same, it's not just heat that can harm a plant but also light intensity, too much light can shock the plants and I believe it also causes more rapid nutrient uptake which can cause burns and lockout.
 
green_machine_two9er

green_machine_two9er

Well-Known Member
GreatWhiteNorthGrows said:
If I could do it over again I'd have gone with HPS, LED tech sucks at a $ to performance comparison. But that sounds good, don't give your seedlings too intense light, keep it 25% and if you notice stretching I'd either move the light closer or turn it up a bit. Don't want to shock your babies!
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Maybe you got some junk lights??? The leds I run watt for watt are 2x the yield of hps all day.
 
GreatWhiteNorthGrows

GreatWhiteNorthGrows

Well-Known Member
green_machine_two9er said:
Maybe you got some junk lights??? The leds I run watt for watt are 2x the yield of hps all day.
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You get what you pay for, as far as budget lights go, you would be better with an HPS than a cheap amazon blurple of similar value. LED tech is new and therefore expensive, I should have clarified further, my apologies! The high end LED lights are super nice and definitely produce and use less energy.
 
Moflow

Moflow

Well-Known Member
@harrychilds
This might be of use to you
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It's a pity that 'led companies' that sell lights with dimming capabilities do not offer par maps at 25% 50% and 75% power at different heights too. Lazy feckers.
It's not difficult, it would only take 10 minutes.
 
MustGro

MustGro

Well-Known Member
harrychilds said:
Hi guys, I am new to LED lights, I'm a old school HPS user. I'm just wondering how far away should I hang my Lumatek 465w Pro from my seedlings in a 4x4 area. Should I keep it as high as possible on 25% and lower it slightly everyday? Cheers guys :bigjoint:
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I hang mine as high as I can and turn them down a bit. I run 288 diode boards at 120 watts max. I’m at 100 watts a board now, plants are around 2 feet tall and 3 feet plus away from the light. I’ll flip in a few days and Scrog them around 2 feet under the lights at full bore; but I’m still dialing it in.
Up high and on 25% sounds like a good start.
I wouldn’t lower it every day personally.
 
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