Optic PhatSlim 1 XL Bloom Dimmable LED Grow Light VS Rapid LED Single 100W LED Grow Light

 Growing bud isn’t always cheap.

This is especially true if you’re growing indoors.

You have to buy a lot of equipment, from seeds and nutrients to lighting and ventilation. Advanced equipment like temperature controllers and CO2 regulators will set you back even further. No matter how you look at it, the cost starts adding up quickly.

Although you can make your money back in just a few months if you grow enough herb, not everyone has the cash, or the will to do so. And you shouldn’t worry, because there are always ways to cut the cost if you’re careful with what equipment you buy.

Today, I’m going to talk about what you should look for in a grow light if you’re on a tight budget followed by my selection of best cheap grow lights.

Are LED Grow Lights Better Than HPS?

You might speak to some growers who have a preference for HPS (high pressure sodium) lights. Since I prefer LED lights for growing plants, I thought it would be helpful to share some of the reasons why.

Less Heat Output
LED lamps produce 90 percent less heat than HPS lights. The decreased heat will contribute to healthier plants. In the summer or in warmer climates, this also means savings on air conditioning or other cooling costs.

Energy And Cost Saving
The bestLED grow lights also consume less energy than HPS lights. Most users who switch see a noticeable difference in their electric bills.

Some people argue that you need to use more LED lights in order to match the output of HPS lights. Even so, the energy savings means that LED lights, even if you use more of them, still save you money.

LED lights last longer and often have warranties, which means additional savings. HPS lights usually need to be replaced every year. They also don’t come with built-in fans, so you’d need to purchase an exhaust system.

Easier Installation
LED lamps are easier to install and can simply be hooked to a wall, without heavy duty equipment.

Yield Quality
When using LED lights, growers report higher quality buds, with better taste and brighter colors. HPS lights seem to grow bigger yields, but not at the same level of quality.

If you’re transitioning from HPS to LED, both types of lamps can be used in a single grow room — HPS lights are mostly used during the flowering stage.

Optic PhatSlim 1 XL Bloom Dimmable LED Grow Light With UV/IR

Features:

Optic LED grow light uses the latest high-end Samsung gardening LED technology to provide users with an unparalleled planting experience. Commercial-grade fanless Meanwell 104-watt dimmable driver not only provides you with reliability and efficiency, but also can fully control your light intensity, with a dimmable range of 10–100%. The Overbuilt Optic XL anodized black pin-fin heat sink ensures the lowest operating temperature for low BTU output, maximum light generation and longer life. It uses a high-quality and reliable Meanwell 104-watt dimmable driver to provide light with low BTU output, maximum output and long life. Passive radiators ensure that no fans generate heat, thereby increasing efficiency while reducing noise levels.

Rapid LED Single 100W LED Grow Light

Features:

The Rapid LED grow light is a no nonsense grow light that has been designed to work best in small grow spaces, corner spaces, or as a supplemental lighting solution. Delivering up to 100 watts out of the box, it can provide the lighting requirements of grow areas of up to 3 square feet and its Samsung LM301B LEDs ensure you get long LED life. You can add the optional dimmer control to adjust the intensity of light according to your plant’s needs. The grow light is great for supplemental lighting, corner spaces, or small grow spaces

Why To Choose LED Grow Lights

Manipulating the Color Spectrum
As we’ve discussed elsewhere on the site plants can benefit from different colors in the spectrum at different times in their growth cycle. Specifically, blue grow lights are ideal during the plants initial growth cycle and red lights help when it’s time for the plants to begin flowering or budding.

Traditionally in plants growth operations growers have relied on two different types of lights for different stages of the growth cycle. They’ve used metal halide bulbs during the initial vegetative growth stage and high-pressure sodium bulbs for the budding stage. The whole process can be quite tedious and expensive maintaining two different lighting systems.
By switching to LED grow lights you can have both blue and red spectrum lights in one light fixture potentially saving a lot of money while still giving the plant the different types of light it needs at each stage of its growth cycle. These type of fixtures usually give you the option to switch different bulbs on or off at different times in your plants growth cycle.

Energy Efficient
LED grow lights are also much more economical than traditional lights for growing plants. In most cases LED lights can produce the same wattage as traditional bulbs that advertise twice the energy output of the LED grow lights. That means you get the same effect on your plants, but your energy bills are a lot lower. When plants grow operations operated on the illegal end of the spectrum that was often how law-enforcement caught them by noticing the strong draw on their electricity grid as the growth of plants indoors required a lot of lighting. That wouldn’t have been a problem if they’d had LED grow lights.

Avoiding Overwhelming Heat
It is the type of plant that produces a lot of heat during the growth process and when you combine that with the heat coming off traditional bulbs such as metal halide’s or high-pressure sodium bulbs the end result is an extremely warm atmosphere that’s potentially dangerous as well. LED grow lights produce very little heat and are actually cool to the touch. That means a lot less heat inside your plants grow operation and a lot less risk of potential hazards such as those from fire.

Longer-Lasting
Another area where LED grow lights outperform their competitors is in the area of longevity. Typically LED grow lights will keep operating for years at a time. If you compare them directly to other popular lighting systems it’s not much of a battle. These traditional lights will typically last no more than 20,000 hours, but LED grow lights will last for somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000 hours. That’s a significant difference and one that more than makes up for the difference in cost.

Save on Some H2O
It is a crop that loves water and when you combine that fact with the tendency of traditional lighting systems which heat up the room to drain the atmosphere of liquids it’s not necessarily a match made in heaven. As we’ve indicated, LED grow lights give off a lot less heat and do not significantly affect the moisture in the atmosphere or in the ground of your grow operation. That means almost all of the moisture you add to the system goes to your plants and you can save a lot of money by reducing your H2O bills.

Lower Those Infrastructure Costs
One more area where LED grow lights can save the plants growth operation considerable money is in infrastructure costs. Traditional lighting systems such as metal halides and high-pressure sodium systems rely on costly ballast systems distributed throughout the grow op which are expensive to put in place and maintain. LED grow lights by comparison are much lighter and don’t require the same type of infrastructure. It’s just one more way that someone growing plants or any other crop for that matter can save money.

The Future of Plant Growth
There are quite simply many different ways that LED grow lights can save the plants grow up money over time. They reduce your infrastructure costs, lower your energy bills, reduce your water bill, and are generally safer to operate. Many growers actually believe that the LED lights increase their crop yields due to their efficient nature. Whether this is true or not may still be up for debate, but there’s no doubting that they hold many advantages for the plants grow op.

Conclusion

Whether you are doing a micro grow with some CFLs, something a little more substantial with LEDs or CMH or a more professional setup with an HID system, you can now give your indoor plants the light they need with relative ease. Give them the right amount of time under those lights and at the right height, you will be counting the days to your harvest with glee. Even if you are feeling guilty about your carbon footprint, there are very efficient lighting systems that won’t be too hard on the environment or your wallet, provided your grow space is not too big and overloaded with lights and equipment. Of course nothing beats the sun for its performance and price, but with the right knowledge and smart decisions, you can grow quality plants year round indoors and sleep peacefully at night. Time to make your move.