You know your indoor plants need extra light to thrive—and LED lighting looks really cool—but what you really need to know is which lights provide the most value for your harvest. It’s true LED lights are among the most expensive grow lights available for hydroponic setups. So let’s take a look at the pros and cons and determine whether LED lights are worth the extra cost upfront.
Energy efficient and longer lifespan
One of the biggest pros you will hear about LED grow lights is that they are energy efficient. And that is absolutely true. Although you pay more upfront, you are likely to save money on electricity over time. LED’s also tend to last longer than HID lights, meaning you won’t have to pay to replace them as often.
Consistent brightness
The diodes on HID bulbs can give out after a few grows and will need to be replaced in order to maintain the same level of brightness being emitted. LED diodes, however, last for an extremely long time and are less likely to need replacement. That means you may also save money on keeping consistently bright lighting. However, other parts of the grow lights may need replacement.
Easy to install
You can’t get an easier to install lighting system than LED grow lights. You simply plug them into a standard outlet and they are ready to use. With large HID light setups, you will need first to install a ballast to plug the lights into.
Run cooler
LED grow lights tend to come with built in cooling fans and heatsinks that help to disperse heat let off by the bulbs. This is an important factor because you don’t want to burn the leaves on your plants. But you may still need to experiment without distance between lighting and plants. Some LED lights emit at such a high intensity that the light itself can burn the plants even if the actual temperature is not that high.
Customizable light spectrum
If you’ve been growing indoors for a while, you’ve likely heard that plants respond best to certain colors of the light spectrum. Most lighting available for indoor hydroponic setups are set in their light spectrum. That’s not necessarily a bad thing since these lighting options still tend to work well.
LED grow lights, however, can be tweaked to set the light spectrum exactly where you want it. Why is this an advantage? Because plants thrive at different light spectrums during different growth stages. With LED, you can adjust the lighting as your plant goes from seedling to ready for harvest.
Not convenient to repair
One of the biggest and most costly drawbacks to LED grow lights is that individual parts often cannot be repaired. That means if one section of your LED panel goes out, your only option may be replacing the entire panel. And that is definitely an expensive solution.
Growers are still arguing about which lighting solutions offer better growth for plants. But the fact that the argument is still going suggests that HID and LED lights get quite similar results. If you purchase quality LED grow lights, you can make back the extra cost over time through savings on energy and lights that would have otherwise needed replacement.
Check out Indoor Cultivator’s LED grow light selection online or in the store.