Looking for some LED advice - New to the game!

[Frenchfries]

Hi everyone,

I grow a variety of cacti, succulent, and mesemb plants! I do so outdoors during the summer and fall months and when things get cooler, all the plants have to come indoors. Unfortunately most of these plants NEED consistently high light to grow normally and flower. Unfortunately very few growers in this field have experimented with LED's even though these are more efficient than high output t5's which are often recommended. I am here hoping to learn from all you and find something that will work for my plants!

My goal is to find affordable full spectrum LED's to cover a 36x18 grow space, and if possible ones that arent neon magenta as my growspace is next to a large south window and no tent....
(I know this might be a longshot).

Would having a neon magenta light near a window like that be problematic.... sigh.

I was evaluating the Mars Hydro300 and Mars Hydro600 -
Are there affordable LEDS for growing that are not neon magenta?
If there are links in the forum to great lights or suggestions I would greatly appreciate it!

Thanks!

 

[Dr Fish]

The mars reflector 144 x 5watt would easily cover that area ...

 

[flexy123]

Hello,

with "neon magenta" you mean the pink (red/blue) light that most grow lamps give off?
If so then the reflectors wouldn't work either since (correct me if I am wrong) since they also give off the pink light.

By the way, in terms of intensity, the "pink" magenta light I think as less intrusive/intense as a white light. I am currently having to 2x300W Mars Hydro lights on the balcony - unless you are IN the greenhouse on the balcon, the light is not bothersome. In fact it gives the outside a nice pinkish hue. It doesn't really shine INTO the house, the greenhouse is just to the side of the large balcony sliding door. Besides, grow lamps are usually relatively low on the ground, like 1m above or so.

Alternatively you can look into LEDs with white lights, like COB lights that give off white grow light if you think this is better for your purpose.

 

[Dr Fish]

If you run a colored led during the day it will hardly be noticeable from the outside.. Since price is a consideration, the reflector from mars is a good choice... Cob whites are not cheap... Check the cob leds on the sponsor page... The physical size of the 144x5 reflector, 28" x 10" , is best suited for your 18" x 36" space....

Here's a link for led and cacti... CactiGuide.com ? View topic - San Pedro grow using LED grow lights

 

[flexy123]

If you're so concerned about the light (for whatever reason) you might want to look into a tent. Especially if you want to grow non-autos too. When they flower they need to be entirely dark, 12/12 light/dark schedule....and a tent would be the best to make sure there is absolutely no light in the night cycle.

 

[Dr Fish]

I thought we were talking about cacti, twf would he need a tent for?

 

[Frenchfries]

Hello,

with "neon magenta" you mean the pink (red/blue) light that most grow lamps give off?
If so then the reflectors wouldn't work either since (correct me if I am wrong) since they also give off the pink light.

By the way, in terms of intensity, the "pink" magenta light I think as less intrusive/intense as a white light. I am currently having to 2x300W Mars Hydro lights on the balcony - unless you are IN the greenhouse on the balcon, the light is not bothersome. In fact it gives the outside a nice pinkish hue. It doesn't really shine INTO the house, the greenhouse is just to the side of the large balcony sliding door. Besides, grow lamps are usually relatively low on the ground, like 1m above or so.

Alternatively you can look into LEDs with white lights, like COB lights that give off white grow light if you think this is better for your purpose.

Yeah the magenta color that radiates off is probably the main issue of concern as Im sure the neighbors will probably be like "wtf is going on there"//// and if its going to draw too much attention not sure Im keen on that. The lights will be like half a meter away from the window and it will be an open space so...
Maybe white lights will be better, something that would replicate sunlight as best as possible, do you have any suggestions that might lead me to that direction. Thanks so much!

 

[Frenchfries]

If you run a colored led during the day it will hardly be noticeable from the outside.. Since price is a consideration, the reflector from mars is a good choice... Cob whites are not cheap... Check the cob leds on the sponsor page... The physical size of the 144x5 reflector, 28" x 10" , is best suited for your 18" x 36" space....

Here's a link for led and cacti... CactiGuide.com ? View topic - San Pedro grow using LED grow lights

Yeah I saw that link, thanks for sharing! This grower was growing in an enclosed space and growing just one type of cacti. I grow on growing racks in an open space so they get fresh air (have a fan running periodically to stimulate natural wind), plus I grow a variety of cacti, some are more light hungry and demanding than others. I was hoping to keep the more light hungry ones at the center of the LED and the less light hungry ones on the sides.
Are there links/supplemental info to the PAR measurements of various LED lights and such? This is probably the most important thing Im looking into presently as I dont want to grill my plants. Any kind of damage inflicted on a cacti never goes away, so trying to plan ahead and do my research as in to avoid major mistakes!