Yes, you read that right. Like households, offices, and many other commercial buildings, LEDs are also the way to go for indoor cultivation. With similar advantages, you can take these benefits when you grow plants away from the sun.

While off-the-shelf LED bulbs from your local hardware store will work with your plants, you gain an edge when using LED fixtures that are specifically tuned for plants. So, what makes LED grow lights the way to go for indoor growing?

LED Grow Lights are Economical

The same way households shifted to LED bulbs, LED grow lights are economical to use. They use less power, which results in more savings in electrical consumption. The performance of LED grow lights also beat the traditional grow light. While they use less energy, there is no compromise in the brightness; you get the same light intensity and better light quality.

On top of that, LED grow lights last longer than the traditional HID grow lights. You can expect at least 50,000 hours of use with LED, while HIDs often go up to 18,000 hours. Sure, the upfront cost of LED Grow Lights may cost more than HID or other non-LED grow lights. But the lifespan you get beats the cost of replacement of non-LED grow lights.

LED Grow Lights Emit Less Heat

LED grow lights give you an edge with a significantly lower heat emission since you don’t have to worry about added cooling fans. Most of the time, LED grow lights use passive cooling designs to keep electricity consumption down. And even with LED grow lights that use active cooling, they are still not as hot compared to HIDs.

With lower heat emission, that also means being able to mount LED grow lights lower than usual. You can go as low as 12 inches, perfect for indoor growers who don’t have enough space to spare. You also don’t have to worry about any burning or discoloration brought about by having your grow lights too close.

LED Grow Lights Use Less Space

Speaking of space, LED grow lights have the advantage of using less space, unlike other non-LED grow light fixtures. LED grow lights are built slimmer yet can provide a wide footprint coverage. You don’t have to worry about bulky ballasts. Neither are cooling fans a problem, as many of the LED grow lights are passively cooled. Since there’s a reduction in the hardware you need to operate LED grow lights, they are ideal for tight grow tents.

LED Grow Lights Are Easier To Install

Part of the innovations in improving indoor cultivation also includes the installation. With LED grow lights, all you need to do is hang the fixture at the ideal height and power it up. Drivers are built into the fixture, which, again, removes the need for ballasts associated with non-LED grow lights, such as HPS lamps.

The less hardware you need to set up to get your grow light running means, the fewer things to fail during operation. You do not want something to malfunction, especially during the critical stages of growth. Breakdowns are reduced with LED grow lights, but troubleshooting becomes easier should your fixture fail you.

LED Grow Lights Have Better Spectrum Coverage

LED grow lights beat non-LED grow lights and non-plant LEDs when it comes to spectrum coverage. While there are LED grow lights in the market that are tuned to particular growth phases, most of the LEDs meant for indoor cultivation are full spectrum. Meaning, you can use these fixtures throughout the growth cycle without having to switch lights between phases. When combined with timers and dimmers, you can easily recreate sunrise and sunset without worrying about not having the ideal light exposure, unlike when growing outdoors.

LED Grow Lights Improve the Quality of Your Harvest

LED grow lights help you get better crops with light intensities at par with natural sunlight. This holds, mainly for cultivators growing fruits indoors. As LED grow lights are often full spectrum, you can easily tune the lights to help you get the results you want. With the help of a variable controller, you can improve the flavor of your crops for better-tasting harvests.

On top of that, adding a variable controller also helps you speed up fruit development. Plants often adapt to spectrum changes, which in turn trigger them to develop fruits faster. When done correctly, you can expect multiple harvests.

Conclusion

There’s no turning back with LED grow lights. With the advancements in technology, LED grow lights are now the standard in indoor cultivation. With the thought-out designs of these fixtures, LED grow lights managed to remove many of the critical issues in indoor growing while making things even easier, even for beginners.