Can LED Lights Be Selected As Grow Lights?

You want to give your indoor plants a boost, but it seems silly to buy expensive plant lights if regular LEDs work just as well. However, do regular LED lights work to grow plants?

Regular LED lights can’t be used as grow lights, even though they may emit some of the wavelengths necessary for plants. Regular LED lights don’t emit enough of the light that plants require. Plant growth primarily requires red & blue light, which LED grow lights are designed to maximize.

What Is a LED Light?

An LED, or Light Emitting Diode, is a very small metal piece that conducts electricity well. When electrical currents are run through the diodes, photons are released. Those photons are the visible light that our eyes see.

LEDs are MUCH more efficient than incandescent light bulbs. In fact, LEDs use 75–80% less energy AND last 25 times longer than traditional incandescent light bulbs.

Incandescent light bulbs produce light by heating a metal filament with electricity. As the filament gets hot, it emits light, which is much less efficient, using more energy and having a shorter lifespan.

What Is a LED Grow Light?

Grow lights are LED lights that are designed to emit specific wavelengths of light that mimic the spectrum of the sun.

By combining different colors of lights, plants are provided with an imitation of natural light that allows them to grow.

The main colors of lights used for plant growth are blue and red.

Green light is mostly reflected–that’s why plants look green to us. However, green light does play a role in photosynthesis & regulating plant architecture.

You’ll often find grow lights that can rotate between different colors depending on what phase of growth the plant is in. Manufacturers can combine all three colors to make white light.

Here are 3 best LED grow lights recommended for your indoor planting.

ECO Farm ECOZ 1000W Samsung 301H Chips LED Grow Light With Separately UV+IR Control

Features:

This ECO Farm grow light has the characteristics of ultra-high output. It uses Samsung and Osram LEDs to produce full-spectrum light, which is very suitable for growing flowering plants. Its light output of 2.9 μmol/j matches or exceeds traditional 1000W DE HPS Grow Lights. Its low profile allows it to be used in vertical growth configurations to obtain 30% higher output than traditional lamps. And equipped with Chanel dimmer, VEG switch, Bloom switch, UV switch independent control, freely adjust the lamps according to different growth stages. There is an optional knob and touch screen controller for group control (up to 100 lights) and timing and dimming functions. Plug and play design, assembly and maintenance are very simple.

Power Draw (W)：1000W MAX
LEDs：Samsung LM301H (5000K+3000K)
Osram ssl80(660nm+730nm)
Refond (395nm)
Dimmension(CM)：112*112*10.6cm
Detachable (Plug-in Type)：’Clip in’ and ‘Clip out’ making for super easy assembly and maintenance.
Dimmable (Manual/ Controller)：”Manual/Controller
Input Voltage：Autosensing 100–277V

3 Channels：Veg/Bloom/UV Individually control
Efficiency (umol/j)：2.9
PPF：1920
Mounting Height：18” — 24” above canopy
Max. Ambient Temperature：95°F / 35°C
Operating Temp：20°C ~ 40°C (-4°F ~ 104°F)

Iluminar iL9x 1000W LED Grow Light

Features:

The full-spectrum iL9x 1000W is designed for vegetable and flower cycles, which require higher μmol performance and lower canopy gaps. It is very suitable for many environments of business facilities lovers gardeners. Enjoy the flexibility of hard mounting the LED light bar to the central mast or directly remotely mounting the light bar to the rack to adapt to the multi-level growth environment where every inch is important. The iL9x LED plant growth light can now provide a higher efficiency of 2.6 µmol/J, giving you a higher µmol/joule output under the same wattage. The iL9x 1000W LED plant growth light provides more effects when you need it most.

PPF: 2600 micromole/sec
Efficacy: 2.6 µmol/j
Input power: 1000W
Transmitter type: OSRAM SMD LED diode
Input power: Smart Sensing™ 120V to 277V and 347 to 480V
Installation height: 6"-12" to the top of the canopy
Transmitter cooling: passive/extruded housing
Dimming/controllable: 0–10V controllable
Light distribution +/- 5%: 125º
Waterproof rating: IP65, suitable for wet/humid conditions
Power factor:> 90%

MedicGrow Ez-8 1000W LED Grow Light for Indoor Plants

Features:

MedicGrow’s Ez-8 1000W LED plant growth light produces full-spectrum light, which is very suitable for all stages of plant growth. It is specially designed for planting tents and groups used for commercial planting operations to cover 5x5 vegetables and flowers. Each lamp is made of heavy-duty aluminum and has a lifespan of up to 50,000 hours. In addition, its 8 detachable and replaceable rods make it easy to install and transport, and the integrated knob dimmer allows you to easily reduce power output when planting seedlings, or increase power when flowering. The spectrum has a huge impact on the efficiency of plant photosynthesis. MedicGrow created the V1 spectrum, which has balanced wavelengths and covers all growth stages. And each of our indoor plant LED plant growth lights can be used alone or in series in commercial applications.

Efficacy: 2.7 μmol/J 
Fixing device and size: 46.93" long x 46.93" wide
Amplifier: 120–277V AC, 347–480V AC, 50/60Hz
Maximum working temperature: 95°F / 35°C
Installation height: ≥ 6" (15.2cm) above the canopy
Thermal management: passive
Dimming: 0–10V

The Differences between LED lights and LED grow lights

Now that we’ve gone into detailed explanations of both LED lights and LED grow lights, what’s the differences between them?

Illumination purposes: LED lights are solely used for providing illumination in a residential or commercial sphere. LED grow lights encourage plant growth.
Light variety: As we mentioned, you can select from a variety of grow lights that suit your budget and needs. These include HIDs, fluorescents, incandescents, and, of course, LEDs.
Colors available: Here’s what we covered in the intro. Normal LEDs do have a color spectrum, but it may not be as comprehensive as that of grow lights. For instance, LED grow lights need both blue and red light spectrums. The blue allows your plant to experience vegetative growth while the red can promote flowering.

While regular LEDs are great to have at home since they last practically forever and can save you money, don’t get it confused. LED lights are not the same as LED grow lights. If you’re providing a light source for your plant, a grow light will ensure they reach their full potential. That’s not to say you can’t use an LED or another non-grow light source, but grow lights work better.

What are LED Grow Lights For?

LED grow lights are a relatively new horticultural introduction. Are LED lights better than traditional grow lights? That depends upon the crop on which they are used, as well as economic and energy expenditure factors. Just like fluorescent and incandescent bulbs, LED bulbs produce light that is needed by plants. Most plants need light waves of red and blue. The chemicals that control plant growth respond to both colors differently. Phytochromes drive leafy growth and are responsive to red light, while cryptochromes, which control plant light response, are sensitive to blue lights. You can get good growth with just one or the other of the color waves, but utilizing both will result in bigger yields and healthier plants with quicker growth. LED lights can be customized to emit long or short light waves as well as certain levels of color to improve plant performance.

Benefits of Using LED Lights to Grow Plants

Traditional grow lights are extremely hot and require ventilation to remove the heat from the air. Those other grow lights create the heat when converting the energy to light. However, LED lights do not use as much energy to produce the same light output and therefore are much cooler.

If you use LED lights to grow plants, you will not have to purchase equipment for ventilation due to the reduced temperature. The cooler temperatures also mean the plants will not dry out as quickly.

Conclusion

If you are hesitant about the cost of using an LED system, please consider the efficiency of the bulb at 80%. This means that they convert 80% of the energy used into light. Use good LED lights, they consume less watts (electricity) than conventional grow bulbs, and at the same time produce brighter light. Modern LED lights are carefully designed to reduce the amount of heat dissipated by using a heat sink or by transferring heat away from the diode. All of these points to the arguments for the success of LED lights, but if you are a new gardener or simply don’t want to invest a lot of money in your indoor planting system, traditional plant growth lights can work normally. Keep in mind that over time, the replacement and energy costs will generally be slightly higher.