If a person is serious about indoor gardening, LED grow lights are worth checking out for several reasons. Although their initial cost is high in comparison to other types of high intensity lighting such as metal halide (MH) or high pressure sodium (HPS). their long-term costs are less.
These cost savings occur in three areas. The first is the long life of the bulbs (more than 50,000 hours or about seven and a half years at 18 hours a day) making replacement infrequent. The second is the reduced power requirements–80 watts of some LED fixtures can replace 400 watts of HPS lamps. This results in substantial savings in electricity. Another area where electricity can be saved is in eliminating air conditioning or other cooling. LED’s are warm to the touch, not hot.
But full spectrum LED grow lights offer other advantages as well. Because of their low temperature, they can be placed much closer to seedlings and delicate plants. Full light spectrum LED’s can be as close as 6 inches from the plant. Distance is greater (12 to 24 inches is recommended) for the typical red and blue configurations, not because of heat but in order to keep the optimum balance between the two colors. A unique feature of LED’s is the ability to select for the two colors most needed for photosynthesis and healthy growth. Blue LED’s increase vegetative growth for plants like lettuce, while red diodes increase fruiting capacity for plants like tomatoes. Other types of bulbs have a substantial amount of green light, which plants can’t use, and which therefore goes to waste.
In addition, LED’s require no ballast, run quietly and are simple to install–just plug them in and they’re ready to go. Finally, when it comes time to dispose of a bulb, there is no worry about hazardous environmental impact as there is with fluorescent bulbs which contain mercury. In summary, their features can outweigh the high price.
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