What Size Grow Light Do I Need? (The Simplest Way To Figure It Out)
It might be difficult to figure out what size grow light you need for your plants. A variety of elements come into play, like the sort of lighting you prefer, the plant(s) you are growing, the size of your grow space, and so on and so forth. In this essay, I break down the problem and attempt to make it as straightforward as possible. Before you begin, you must determine the light requirements of your plant(s), the sort of lighting you intend to employ, and the size of your grow space. 1. Requirements in terms of lighting When it comes to the light need, all you really need to know is whether it has a high or a low requirement for light.
Herbs and lettuce, for example, are examples of plants with minimal light requirements since they do not blossom.
The Kind of Lighting To be on the safe side, use fluorescent lights if you just have one (or maybe two) plants and LED or CMH lights otherwise if you are unclear which sort of illumination you will require.
3.
Alternatively, you can measure the plant (s).
It is time to get started once you have obtained those three pieces of information.
In order to determine what size of light you require and how many lights you require, if you require more than one, follow the instructions.
How To Determine The Size (And Number) Of Grow Light(s) You Need
I’ll start with high pressure sodium and metal halide lighting, then go on to compact fluorescent, then LED, and lastly fluorescent.
What Size HPS And MH Lights Do I Need?
After covering HPS and MH lighting, I’ll move on to CMH, LED, and ultimately fluorescent lighting.
By Coverage Area
It is simple to determine which light(s) will best cover your grow space if you know the size of your grow space (for example, the size of your grow tent). According to the most commonly used MH and HPS bulbs, the following approximate maximum coverage areas may be achieved with these wattages:
- 150 watts: 2 x 2 feet (or 4 square feet)
- 250 watts: 2.5 x 2.5 feet (or 6.25 square feet)
- 400 watts: 3 x 3 feet (or 95 square feet)
- 600 watts: 4 x 4 feet (or 16 square feet)
- 1000 watts: 5 x 5 feet (or 25 square feet)
- 1500 watts: 5 x 5 feet (or 25 square feet)
- 2000 watts: 5 x 5 feet (or 25 square feet)
You should be able to determine which size light is appropriate for you and how many lights you require based on this information. If all else is equal, 600 watt lights are the most efficient (meaning they produce more light per watt of power consumed) and 1000 watt bulbs are the second most efficient, so you should always check to see if they would work in your space first. Consider the following scenario: you have an area that measures 10 by 20 feet, or 200 square feet. That is completely divisible by 4 (the 150 watt bulb) or 25 (the total number of watts) (the 1000 watt bulb).
The eight 1000 watt bulb option is far superior.
Although the area is not exactly divisible, 200 divided by 16 gets you 12.5, which means you would only need to utilize 12 or 13 fixtures to make them all fit in the space.
One thing to keep in mind is that this is based on the maximum coverage regions available for each bulb power.
If you want to provide your plants enough of light in order to increase yields, the following approach makes it crystal apparent and provides greater outcomes than the previous one.
By Wattage
The alternative method for determining your MH and/or HPS lighting requirements is to look at the wattage requirements. Cannabis, for example, requires between 30 and 70 watts per square foot of canopy to thrive, making it an ideal plant for growing indoors. I would recommend a minimum of 50 watts per square foot of floor space. If money is not a problem and heat is not a concern, increase the power to 65 watts per square foot. Let’s have a look at the previous example once again. The one with a 200-square-foot floor space, to be precise.
In such case, ten 1000-watt lights (10,000 / 1000 = 10) or seventeen 600-watt bulbs (10,000 / 600 = 16.67, which we round up to 17) would be required.
By working backwards, we can see that the preceding technique would provide coverage of 40 watts per square foot (eight bulbs each at 1000 watts = 80,000 total watts divided by 200 sq ft area = 40 watts per square foot).
You may check my reviews of the best bargain HID kits if you’re not sure which brand is the best choice.
What Size CMH Grow Light Do I Need?
Because there are just two typical wattages available: 315 watts and 630 watts, ceramic metal halide is much simpler to figure out than incandescent (which is a fixture with two 315 watt bulbs in it). One way to think about them is to examine the 315w bulb, which is comparable to 600w of MH or HPS light, and the 630w twin bulb fixtures, which are equivalent to 1000 watts of MH or HPS light. This implies that a 315 watt light will cover up to 44% of the area, while a 630 watt fixture will cover up to 55% of the area.
Check out my reviews of the best-value ceramic metal halide lighting kits if you aren’t sure which type of light you want.
How Many Watts Per Square Foot For LED Grow Lights?
In order to decide what size LED light(s) they require, most people use the wattage per square foot method, however this is not the only one. In addition, it is not the most exact method, but it is an excellent balance between accuracy and simplicity. Simply put, selecting how strong an LED grow lamp to purchase and how many of them you require is the most difficult task of all when it comes to growing plants under artificial light. This is owing to the wide range of lights available, as well as the fact that most manufacturers flat out lie about the specifications of their products.
That doesn’t rule out the possibility of figuring it out. In this case, there are three options to examine. I’ll list them in descending order of difficulty, starting with the easiest (and least accurate) and progressing to the most challenging (but also the most accurate).
Using The Coverage Area Provided By The Manufacturer
When purchasing lights, most manufacturers disclose the coverage area of their lights, which you may use to determine which light will be able to adequately cover your grow space. Isn’t it nice and straightforward? If only everything were that simple. Unfortunately, many manufacturers (mostly Chinese, but also a significant number of American companies) overstate the area that their lights will successfully cover. The coverage area for a low-light-requirement plant (and not one with a high requirement, such as marijuana) or the coverage area for vegging, which is always bigger than the coverage area for blooming, are examples of what they could tell you to do.
Unfortunately, I do not have a decent answer for this problem at the moment.
If you’re looking for information about lights that I haven’t examined, you’ll have to go online.
Using The Wattage
If you want to grow a plant that requires a lot of light, you should aim for 30 to 40 watts per square foot of canopy area. Once again, there is a major issue to contend with. The majority of LED manufacturers provide both an actual wattage and a theoretical wattage (what the light would consume if the chips were all driven at full power, which they never are). Important! It is preferable to use real wattage for this calculation. This need a little investigation in order to determine the real wattage of a light bulb.
- Many Chinese manufacturers do not even employ theoretical watts in their products.
- Roleadro’s 2000 watt light, for example, only consumes 230 watts in reality (Roleadro is one of the absolute worst offenders when it comes to blatantly making up numbers).
- They frequently bury it in the bottom of the page, but it is virtually always visible at the top.
- Consider the following illustration.
- 6000 watts total would be required to light that area with LED grow lights if we were to aim for the lowest possible wattage per square foot of 30 watts per square foot of light.
- This light has an actual wattage of 615w, so if we used ten of them, we would have a total of 6150 watts.
- Consider the following scenario: you have a 3×3 grow tent.
- At 30 watts per square foot, you’d need a total of 270 watts to cover the area.
- As a result, to illuminate this area, you would require an LED grow light with an actual wattage of 270 to 360.
- As a result, the efficiency of the light is not taken into consideration with this method.
- However, the actual output will vary greatly from one manufacturer to the next, and wattage is used as a good approximation for the amount of light a fixture will provide.
Phlizon lights are simply more energy efficient than traditional lights. As a result, we arrive at the most accurate method: relying on the original output.
Using The Output
While this approach is the most accurate, it is also the most difficult to utilize since many manufacturers do not publish a great deal (if any) of useful information on the output of their lighting fixtures. This is especially true when it comes to Chinese-made products. Even if they do offer output information, they frequently just take a reading dead center underneath the light, which is where the output is at its most powerful, rather than everywhere else. They do not provide readings for the remainder of the coverage area, which is frequently due to the fact that the light is quite feeble around the outside of the region.
- I’m sure you’re curious in how output is assessed and what level of output is considered satisfactory.
- It is measured in units of micromoles per square meter per second and informs you how much light is present in the wavelengths that plants employ for photosynthesis.
- Plants should receive between 300 and 600 umol/m2/s during the vegetative stage and between 600 and 1000 umol/m2/s during the bloom stage in order to get best results.
- You want to acquire at least 100 umol/m2/s, but preferably more.
- A PPFD footprint will be provided by reputable manufacturers (also referred to as a PAR footprint or a PAR chart).
- Most of the better lights will not have sky-high readings in the centre (and hence much lesser readings around the perimeter), but will instead have decent readings all across the place (even if the manufacturer just supplies the number for the middle).
What Size Fluorescent Grow Light Do I Need?
Fluorescent lights are only useful for a couple of plants at a time. They become inefficient if they are used for any longer than that. This article explains how to calculate the number of fluorescent bulbs you will require. Instead of reading that, just know that you’ll need between 60 and 100 real watts per square foot of growing space to have a good yield.
What’s the Best HID Grow Light Wattage for my Grow?
Finding the best high-intensity discharge (HID) grow lights for your plants is one of the most critical aspects of managing a grow room of any size. You will not receive any of the natural light that your plants would receive from the sun if you were growing them outside if you are growing them in an indoor grow tent or grow room, unless you are growing them in a grow tent or grow room. Instead, the plants in your grow room rely on the light that comes from the grow lamps that you have provided for them in order to thrive.
There’s more to grow lights than just wattage, though, and selecting the ideal wattage for your grow room includes taking a few other aspects into account as well as the wattage. The following is a table of contents:
- 400w High Pressure Sodium Grow Lights – Ideal for 2×4 and 3×3 Grow Areas
- Best HPS Grow Light for Beginners
- Best HPS Grow Light for Small Growing Spaces
- Best HPS Grow Light for Large Growing Spaces
- It is best for concentrated light intensity
- It is best for a broad spread of light.
- The most powerful HPS grow light
- The best HPS grow light for maximum coverage
- Where can I find the highest wattage HID grow light for my grow room?
All of the information you require to choose the appropriate wattage HID grow light for your grow room is provided in the next section. We’ll give you all of the information you need to know about the things you should be on the watch for, and we’ll even give you some recommendations for grow lights.
Grow Light Lumens
If you want to figure out what wattage HID grow lamp would work best in your grow room, you must first figure out how many lumens your plants will require in order to thrive. Lumens are the units of measurement for the quantity of light emitted by a certain light source per second, such as an agricultural light. Lumens, in particular, are units of measurement for the amount of light that can be seen by the human eye. Basically, the more the number of lumens emitted by a plant light, the brighter the light is.
- Are Lumens Necessary for Plant Growth?
- This is due to the fact that light is essential for the growth of plants.
- On the other side, if your plants receive an excessive amount of light, they may become overwhelmed, resulting in issues such as dead leaves, nutritional shortages, and light burn.
- Your plants are reliant on your grow lights to provide them with the appropriate quantity of lumens for them to flourish.
- Overall, blooming plants require more lumens than plants in the vegetative stage, however every plant is different.
- Plants in the vegetative phase will require around 2000 to 3000 lumens per square foot of light during this period. Flowering plants require a certain number of lumens to thrive. When plants are in the blooming stage, they require the maximum light, which can range from 5000 to 10000 lumens. Keep in Mind That Every Plant Is Individual: Some blooming houseplants will be able to flourish with less light than others, depending on their species. African violets, for example, will require between 500 and 1200 lumens per square foot of light to thrive. Meanwhile, some orchids will require as low as 1000 to 1500 lumens of light to flourish. The lighting requirements for succulents will be a minimum of 2000 lumens.
As you can see, the amount of light required by plants varies. That being stated, choosing the ideal wattage for your grow room begins with selecting a lamp that emits the appropriate number of lumens for your plants’ needs. More information on lumens may be found in our article to The Top 5 Grow Lights with the Highest Lumen Output.
Grow Light Wattage
You now understand that knowing how many lumens your plants require is the most crucial component of understanding how much power to provide them, and it’s time to learn what that implies in terms of watts. While lumens are used to measure the quantity of light emitted by a bulb, watts is used to measure the amount of energy that a grow light can provide in order to generate that light. When it comes to choosing grow lights for their new grow room, many first-time growers place the greatest emphasis on wattage.
When it comes to lumen output and grow light intensity, wattage is an important factor to consider. However, the quantity of lumens a HID grow light produces is what you should actually consider.
What Wattage Is Best for Growing?
As a rule of thumb, the higher the wattage, the higher the lumens, which equates to more light output. Some grow bulbs, on the other hand, have the ability to produce vast volumes of light while using minimal energy. Therefore, you should not base your expectations for the quantity of light you expect to receive from a specific HID grow lamp just on the wattage of the light source. Lumens are the most important thing to pay attention to when determining how much light a grow bulb will supply for your plants in the first place.
- Choosing the best wattage grow light is important because it will assist you in obtaining the lumens required for your plants to thrive
- 400w, 600W, and 1000W grow light bulbs each emit a certain quantity of lumens required for your plants to survive. Consequently, the optimal wattage (400w, 600w, or 1000w) for your plants is the wattage that provides your plants with the lumens they require
- And
Once you’ve determined how many lumens you’ll require, you may search for plant lights that meet your requirements.
Grow Light Footprint
Lumens and wattage are both important factors in determining the footprint of a grow light. The footprint of your grow light is the whole area that the light illuminates. The greater the intensity of a HID grow light, the greater the strength of the footprint. What Is the Importance of a Grow Light’s Footprint? The footprint of a grow light varies in size and intensity depending on how high the light is elevated above the plants in your grow room. Raising a grow lamp to reduce the intensity of its footprint can be critical to the health of your plants, as they can suffer from light burn if they are placed too close to a powerful light source for too long.
Therefore, it is critical to understand the strength of your light, the quantity of lumens your plants require, and the height at which you should position your grow lights to ensure that the plants are not overexposed.
This will assist you in maintaining a comfortable quantity of lumens for your plants, ensuring that they are neither overloaded or fried.
Grow Light Reflector Shape
Another crucial consideration is the form of the reflector on the HID grow lamp you’re considering purchasing for your growing space. This will have an impact on the distribution and focus of your plant’s light, as well as the quantity and intensity of the plant’s environmental footprint.
What Does a Grow Light Reflector Do?
It is a shield made of reflective material (often aluminum) that is used to reflect and guide light down onto your plants to aid in their growth. There are many different kinds of grow light reflectors available. The most popular forms of reflectors are air-cooled hoods, non-air-cooled hoods, and adjustable wing-style reflectors, which are all variations on the same theme.
- Hooded reflectors are designed to guide light through a hooded form. The air-cooled versions have apertures that allow you to connect a ventilation system to the reflector in order to maintain temperatures as low as possible during operation. The use of air-cooled hoods is a wonderful alternative to explore because your plant lights and other grow room equipment may heat up the space very rapidly if not properly ventilated. Wing type reflectors are designed with two movable wings that may be placed in various positions to assist guide the light from your grow lamps wherever you need it in the growing environment. Wing reflectors are also effective in reducing the amount of heat that is emitted.
In the end, the reflector that your selected high-intensity discharge grow lamp is equipped with will have an impact on the intensity of the light that your plants get. Therefore, you should keep this in mind and conduct research in order to identify the grow light reflector that will work best for your particular case.
Best Grow Lights for Your Grow Room
Having taken everything into consideration, you should have a fair notion of the wattage of high-intensity discharge (HID) grow light your plants will require.
Even if you don’t need any assistance, here are some recommendations for the finest grow lights based on the size of your growing space.
400w HPS Grow Lights — Perfect for 2×4 and 3×3 Grow Areas
400w grow lights are the best choice for growers that operate with mid-sized (2x4ft or 3x3ft grow tents or grow rooms) or large grow tents. This is due to the fact that they provide a comfortable 55,000 lumens, which is the sweet spot for growing one to two plants. For those seeking for a 400w HID grow light, we recommend selecting one of the options listed above: 1. Growing using the Yield Lab 400w HPS+MH Wing Reflector Grow Light Kit—the best HPS grow light for beginners. The Yield Laboratory Because of its straightforward design, the 400W HPS+MH Wing Reflector Grow Light Kit is ideal for newcomers to the hobby of growing.
In order to guarantee that your plants receive adequate light coverage, the extra big 20x20in wing reflector will come in helpful.
The dimmable ballast allows you to lower the intensity of your grow light by up to 50%, ensuring that you do not overload your plants.
Specs for High-Intensity Discharge Grow Lights
- Output in lumens: 55,000 lumens (400w HPS grow bulb)
- 36,000 lumens (400w MH grow bulb). Temperatures of light: 2100k (for an HPS bulb) and 5500k (for an MH bulb). 1 to 2 plants are required for coverage. Wing is a reflector.
|Click here to get this HID grow light 400w HPS+MH Cool Tube Reflector Digital Grow Light Kit—Best HPS grow light for Small Growing Spaces at our low price of $149.95. Using the Yield Lab 400W HPS+MH Cool Tube Reflector Grow Light Kit, you can cover small growing spaces with a large quantity of lumens, allowing plants to thrive even in a small place with little light. This HID grow light comes with an HPS grow bulb, an MH grow bulb, a 25-inch air-cooled reflector tube, and a dimmable ballast, among other things.
This HID grow lamp kit, when used in conjunction with the dimmable ballast, provides total control over the light’s lumen intensity.
- Lumen output: 55,000 lumens (HPS bulb)
- 36,000 lumens (MH bulb)
- Color temperature: 2100k (HPS bulb)
- 5500k (MH bulb)
- Lumen output: 55,000 lumens (HPS bulb)
- Lumen output: 36,000 lumens (MH bulb)
- 1 to 2 plants are required for coverage. Cool tube is used as a reflector.
We are offering this HID grow light for $169.95. To purchase, please click here.
600w HPS Grow Lights — Great for 4×4 Areas
Growing in 4x4ft grow tents and grow rooms with 600w grow lights is a breeze with these lights! They provide 90,000 lumens, making them perfect for promoting the growth of at least 2 to 3 blooming plants. If you’re growing in a 4x4ft space, here are two 600w HID grow lamp solutions you might want to examine. Growing with a Yield Lab 600w HPS+MH Air Cool Hood Reflector Digital Grow Light Kit— The Best for Focused Light Intensity YIeld Lab 600W HPS+MH Air Cool Hood Reflector Grow Light Kit is the HID grow light to use if your plants require a high level of light intensity.
Because of the air-cooled hood reflector that comes with this HID, you will be able to direct even more intense light from the grow bulb down onto your plants than the light that comes out of the grow bulb itself.
The dimmable ballast, of course, allows you to customize the brightness and heat levels to meet your specific needs. So if you want a stronger light that is a little less bright, you may make the necessary adjustments. Specs for High-Intensity Discharge Grow Lights
- Intensity of light produced: 90,000 lumens (600w HPS grow bulb)
- 61,000 lumens (600w MH grow bulb)
- Temperatures of light: 2100k (for an HPS bulb) and 5500k (for an MH bulb). Coverage: 2 to 3 plants per square meter
- Hood with air conditioning as a reflector
|Click Here to Purchase This HID Grow Light Yield Lab 600w HPS+MH Air Cool Tube Digital Dimming Grow Light Kit— The Best for a Broad Spread of Light Perhaps you don’t require as much concentrated light in your grow chamber. Those searching for a more even distribution of light intensity can find it in the Yield Lab 600W HPS+MH Air Cool Tube Reflector Digital Grow Light Kit, which will do the trick. With this grow lamp kit, you receive everything you need straight out of the box, including an HPS bulb, an MH bulb, an air-cooled tube reflector, and a ballast.
That way, you may cover a bit more ground without sacrificing too many lumens, and your plants will receive the amount of light they require to thrive in good condition.
Additionally, it includes massive heat sinks and a larger surface area to provide even more efficient cooling.
Specs for High-Intensity Discharge Grow Lights
- Lumen output: 90,000 lumens (HPS bulb)
- 61,000 lumens (MH bulb)
- 50,000 lumens (halogen bulb). Temperatures of light: 2100k (for an HPS bulb) and 5500k (for an MH bulb). Coverage: 2 to 3 plants per square meter
- Reflector: a tube that is cooled by air.
We are offering this HID grow light for $199.95. To purchase, please click here.
1000w HPS Grow Lights — Best for 5×5 Growing Areas
If you’re working with a bigger number of plants in a larger grow space, a higher wattage will be more appropriate. 1000w high pressure sodium grow lights are the ideal choice for 5x5ft grow tents and grow rooms since they provide 130,000 lumens of light, which is more than enough for most applications. This is sufficient to maintain 3 to 5 blooming plants per light source. The following are several 1000w HID grow lamp alternatives to consider for your grow room. Growing using the Yield Lab 1000w HPS+MH Cool Hood Reflector Grow Light Kit—the most powerful HPS grow light available Those searching for the highest intensity from a HID grow light will appreciate the Yield Lab 1000W HPS+MH Cool Hood Reflector Grow Light Kit, which provides you with precisely that.
The reflector and grow lamp included in this set will give a tight 5×5 footprint that is as powerful as it gets for growing marijuana.
Of course, if you ever need to decrease the light, this HID is equipped with a dimmable ballast to keep things under control and prevent your plants from becoming overexposed to the light and being burned.
- A 1000w HPS grow bulb produces 130,000 lumens, whereas a 1000w MH grow bulb produces 110,000 lumens. Temperatures of light: 2100k (for an HPS bulb) and 5500k (for an MH bulb). 3 to 4 plants are required for coverage. Cool hood with a reflector
For $239.95, you can get this HID grow light Yield Lab 1000w HPS+MH Cool Tube Hood Reflector Digital Grow Light Kit—the best HPS grow light for more coverage. High-intensity discharge (HID) grow lights are excellent because of their adaptability, particularly at higher wattages. Growing with the Yield Lab 1000w HPS+MH Cool Tube Hood Reflector Grow Light Kit is easy since it produces powerful light while also dispersing it to provide greater coverage. The HPS bulb, the MH bulb, the cool tube hood reflector, and the dimmable ballast are all included in this 1000w HID grow lamp set.
The most significant difference is that new cool tube hood reflector improves your growing space by approximately 6 inches in comparison to the previous model.
That implies you may potentially grow an additional plant in your grow area to increase your output even further! Specs for High-Intensity Discharge Grow Lights
- Lumen output: 130,000 lumens (HPS bulb)
- 110,000 lumens (MH bulb)
- Color temperature: 2100k (HPS bulb)
- 5500k (MH bulb)
- Lumen output: 130,000 lumens (HPS bulb)
- Lumen output: 110,000 lumens (MH bulb)
- 3 to 5 plants are required for coverage. Cool tube hood as a reflector
Our Price: $219.95|Click Here to Purchase This High-Intensity Discharge Grow Light
What’s the Best Wattage HID Grow Light for My Grow Room?
Ultimately, determining the ideal wattage HID grow light for your grow room comes down to taking into consideration all of the other parameters that influence the amount of light your plants get. When deciding on the finest grow light for your plants and your growth objectives, you’ll want to consider everything from the grow lamp’s footprint to its reflector and, most importantly, its lumen output, among other factors. Due to the fact that these aspects are vitally critical to the growth of your plants, it is critical that you select a HID grow light that will provide the best results possible in your grow tent or grow room setting.
How Many LED Watts Are Required Per Square Foot of Grow Space?
*This article was last updated in May 2018. Are you a newcomer to the world of LED cultivation? If this is the case, the charts below will assist you in determining how much energy (measured in watts) your plants require to blossom. Disclaimer: Wattage is a legacy of the days of high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps (MH and HPS). The coverage area of a fixture or the utility of an LED grow light should not be determined by the wattage of the fixture or the LED grow light. Using wattage as a simple technique of estimating the optimal fixture size for your grow should be limited to the most basic of situations.
PPFD (and spectrum) are essential components of a good grow when used in conjunction with the appropriate spectrum for your plant type and development phase.
The term “wattage” in this article refers to the amount of electricity that is pulled from the wall, not to the amount of electricity that is drawn from the LEDs, which is normally the product of the maximum LED wattage multiplied by the number of LEDs specified by the manufacturer.
The LED grow light, on the other hand, may only consume 500 watts when connected to the wall.
Grow variables
It is critical to note that the amount of actual watts that you will use for your grow will vary based on the following factors:
- Plants that require a lot of light, such as tomatoes, peppers, and other vegetables
- Plants that require little light, such as herbs and leafy greens (such as basil lettuce)
- There is a significant difference in the quantity of light required by seedlings, vegetative, and blooming plants.
Watts per square foot
For blooming, the typical LED grow lamp consumes around 32 watts to cover 1 square foot. This is in stark contrast to a conventional HID lamp, which consumes 40 watts per square foot (assuming a 5′ x 5′ space or a coverage area of 25 square feet). The use of a HID in a 4′ x 4′ area will increase the power coverage to 62.5 watts per square foot (psf). (The energy savings that growers may expect from employing LED grow lights instead of high-intensity discharge lights is around 38 percent.) This energy savings figure solely includes the savings that farmers realize as a result of utilizing LED lighting fixtures.
For example, depending on the size of the setup and the temperature of the surrounding environment, less ventilation and air conditioning may be employed, or it may be altogether avoided.
More energy-efficient LED grow lights will consume fewer watts to produce the same amount of light that a less energy-efficient LED grow light would provide.
As a result, as previously said, wattage is not the most accurate tool for determining how strong of a grow light you require for a specific coverage area under consideration.
LED Wattage Chart Explanation
The wattages indicated below are based on the assumption that you are blooming your plants. If you’re growing vegetables, you might want to consider reducing your wattage by 50% because vegging plants only require roughly half the amount of light that flowering plants do. As is always the case, following the manufacturer’s advice is the best course of action.
Using the charts
The following columns will be included in each of the charts:
- Plants to be cultivated in a certain area The area covered by a certain number of plants in terms of square footage
- The recommended LED wattage is based on the quantity of plants being grown in the given space.
Wattage charts
For blooming, assume a wattage of around 32 watts per square foot (real LED wattage). Smaller yields may be associated with lower wattage, whereas bigger yields may be associated with higher wattage.
Quick Guide (watts per coverage area)
| of Plants | Square Feet | Wattage from Wall |
| 1 | 1 | 30 to 40 watts |
| 2 | 2 | 60 to 80 watts |
| 4 | 4 | 120 to 140 watts |
| 6 | 6 | 180 to 200 watts |
| 8 | 8 | 240 to 300 watts |
| 10 | 10 | 300 to 340 watts |
Recommended wattage assuming 2.0 sq ft/plant
| of Plants | Square Feet | Wattage from Wall |
| 1 | 2 | 60 to 80 watts |
| 2 | 4 | 120 to 140 watts |
| 4 | 8 | 240 to 300 watts |
| 6 | 12 | 360 to 400 watts |
| 8 | 16 | 500 to 650 watts |
| 10 | 20 | 600 to 800 watts |
Recommended assuming 4.0 sq ft/plant
| of Plants | Square Feet | Wattage from Wall |
| 1 | 4 | 120 to 140 watts |
| 2 | 8 | 240 to 300 watts |
| 4 | 16 | 500 to 650 watts |
| 6 | 24 | 700 to 860 watts |
| 8 | 32 | 900 to 1100 watts |
| 10 | 40 | 1100 to 1400 watts |
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Related:What is the difference between PAR, PPF, DLI, and Efficacy? It is important to understand the light factors that affect your indoor plants. See what else you should think about before choosing an LED grow light in this article. Please keep in mind that the growing of some plants may or may not be permitted in your individual region or nation, depending on the laws in place. LED Grow Lights Depot does not advocate or condone any unlawful conduct, and we urge each person / user to become familiar with the applicable laws in their own region or nation before engaging in it.
Choose the Right LED Grow Light Based on Your Grow Tent Size ?
Referred to:What is the difference between PAR, PPF, DLI, and effectiveness? It is important to understand light factors for indoor plants. See what else you should think about before choosing an LED grow light in the related article. Observations:Please keep in mind that the growth of some plants in your particular region or nation may or may not be permitted. No unlawful conduct is encouraged or condoned by LED Grow Lights Depot, and we urge each person / user to become familiar with the applicable laws in their own region or nation.
Step 1: Establish Whether Your Grow Tent is for Veg, Flowering, or Full Cycle Growing
Do you have a vision for how you want your grow operation to be set up? Do you intend to move plants between a specialized veg tent and a blooming tent during the growing season? Alternatively, do you want to keep your crop in the same enclosure during its whole harvest cycle? This is an essential question for a few of reasons. First and foremost, the response informs you of the sort of LED light you require. If your plants will be growing in this tent for the rest of their life, you may wish to invest in a variable spectrumLED that lets you to modify the light spectrum between each phase of growth and development.
Second, plants in the vegetative phase require approximately half the amount of light intensity that they require during the blooming phase.
Step 2: Decide How Many Plants You Plan to Grow In Grow Tent
It is not only about the size of the tent that you should consider when selecting the appropriate lighting for your grow tent. It’s also about the size of the canopy and how well it occupies the available area. Plan on providing at least one square foot of space for each plant if you aren’t sure how many you will be cultivating. Allow adequate room for your crops to spread out and become wide and bushy. When the plant begins to blossom, you will be in a great position to harvest large quantities of fruit.
Every LED grow light should include easy-to-find specifications on its product page, just like any other electronic device. Examine the light’s coverage area to see how well it will satisfy your requirements.
Step 3: Estimate How Much Wattage You Need for Your Square Footage
We’ve included this step since it’s one of many considerations to examine, but it’s not a hard-and-fast rule, and it should be treated as such. We’ll start by sharing a common rule of thumb, and then we’ll explain why you should use caution while using it. According to conventional wisdom, you should aim for 32-50 watts per square foot of growing space. If your grow place is a specialized veg tent, you’ll need something closer to 25 watts. Using this example, if you’re dealing with an area of three by three feet, you’d potentially require an LED light with a power demand of somewhere in the range of 225 watts (vegetative) and 450 watts (hi-intensity) (flowering).
- The difficulty is that watts don’t tell you anything about the quality or intensity of light produced by a fixture, only its quantity.
- Top-tier LED lights are incredibly energy-efficient and can generate an equal spread of high-intensity light while using only a little amount of electricity.
- This lamp, on the other hand, has a PPFD rating of 800 and covers a coverage area of 3′ x 3′.
- We’ll go over it in more detail in Step 4.
Step 4: Compare PPFD Levels of LED Grow Lights
You may obtain more in-depth information about PPFD measurements by visiting this page. In the meanwhile, we’ll try to make things as simple as possible. The photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) transmission factor (PPFD) informs you how much photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) really reaches the canopy from a certain hanging distance. Here, we’re talking about the amount of useable light that makes its way from the bulb to the foliage. Follow these steps to grow plants that are healthy and flavorful:
- Seedings and clones require 200-400 PPFD
- Vegetation requires 400-600 PPFD
- Budding and blooming require 600-900 PPFD
- And fruiting requires 900-1000 PPFD.
Understandably, it is necessary to select whether you want to commit your grow tent to a certain stage or to the complete cycle before you begin. When reviewing the characteristics of an LED grow light, be certain that the light can deliver the following benefits:
- The PPFD level required by your plants
- It should have a broad enough covering area to guarantee that the entire canopy receives sufficient quality light.
It is also crucial to note that the PPFD of your lights is dependent on the height at which they are suspended. The quality of the light declines as one moves further away from the bulb. It is possible to measure the quantity of PAR that is available at a certain distance from the fixture using a PPFD measurement. When you look at the PPFD specifications, make a note of the distance at which the measurement was obtained. For example, the 200-watt SolarXtreme 250 has a 500 PPFD at 18″ and weighs only 18 pounds.
When deciding on the best LED grow light for your tent size, remember to take into account more than simply square footage when making your decision.
Don’t be fooled by low-cost lighting options.
To note the fact that having some assistance while erecting a tent for the first time is quite beneficial.
Please let us know if there is anything we at California Lightworks can do to assist you in getting started. Our customer service team in the United States is here to answer your questions and assist you in selecting the best light for your grow tent.
How Many LED Lights Do I Need for My Grow Room? How to Calculate Your LED Lighting Needs
You’re considering about purchasing or already owning an LED grow light, and you want to be sure it’s the right size for your garden space. You’ve arrived to the correct location. The LED Grow Light Store is the No. 1 online retailer of LED grow lights in the United States, and we collaborate with laboratories to independently test LEDs for efficiency as well as marketing accuracy and overall efficacy. Let’s put that information to work for you in your garden, and who knows, you might even be able to teach a few things to your neighbors.
Per square foot of growing space, how many watts of LED grow lighting are required?
However, while wattage can be a decent approximation for LED coverage, it is not especially precise because coverage is impacted by a variety of other parameters, including the efficiency of the LEDs and the angle of their beams.
Here’s our quick-and-dirty way to determining how much LED grow lamp wattage to use in a grow room or grow tent based on the square footage available:
- In the event that you’re thinking about purchasing or already owning an LED grow light, you should make sure it’s the correct size for your garden. Thank you for visiting our website. The LED Grow Light Store is the No. 1 online retailer of LED grow lights in the United States, and we collaborate with laboratories to independently evaluate LEDs for efficiency and marketing accuracy, as well as overall efficacy. Put that information to work for you in your garden, and perhaps you’ll be able to share some of your insights with your friends as you grow more successful. Begin with the most basic means of determining the size of LED grow light you require, and then on to the more complicated—but more accurate—methods. Per square foot of growing space, how many watts of LED grow lights are required? In order to increase an area, the majority of individuals believe that they must use specific wattages. However, while wattage can be a decent approximation for LED coverage, it is not especially exact because coverage is impacted by a variety of other parameters, including the efficiency of the LEDs and the angle at which they shine. To that end, for hobbyists who are growing in a tent or other tiny space, you may safely utilize wattage to get a broad estimate of how much LED grow lamp coverage you will need in a given location. Here’s a fast and dirty approach to determining how much LED grow lamp wattage to use in a grow room or grow tent based on the number of square feet available:
You may adjust the wattage estimates in the table below by a factor of 10 percent either up or down (+/-) and still have an acceptable-sized LED grow light. For example, if we take a look at the 4′ x 4′ row, we can see that it requires 480 watts to blossom. Dropping by 10% would result in a reduction of 432 watts, while growing by 10% would result in an increase of 528 watts. Anything in that range will be effective, but keep in mind that the lower the wattage in your garden, the smaller the yield.
| Grow Room Size | Square Feet | Veg Wattage | Flower Wattage |
| 1’ x 1’ | 1 | 20 watts | 30 watts |
| 2’ x 2’ | 4 | 80 watts | 120 watts |
| 3’ x 3’ | 9 | 180 watts | 270 watts |
| 2’ x 4’ | 8 | 160 watts | 240 watts |
| 4’ x 4’ | 16 | 320 watts | 480 watts |
| 5’ x 5’ | 25 | 500 watts | 750 watts |
| 6’ x 6’ | 36 | 720 watts | 1,080 watts |
| 4’ x 8’ | 32 | 640 watts | 960 watts |
| 8’ x 8’ | 64 | 1,280 watts | 1,920 watts |
| 10’ x 10’ | 100 | 2,000 watts | 3,000 watts |
How many plants can be grown under a single LED grow light? A question that inexperienced growers frequently ask is, “How many plants can I grow under an LED grow light?” This is not the correct question. We’ll offer an example to demonstrate why this is so. Consider the following scenario: you have a 4′ x 4′ grow room with a 480-watt LED grow lamp installed. Depending on your space, you may comfortably cultivate anywhere from one to nine plants. Yes, some individuals want to cultivate just one or two enormous plants per light, which is quite OK.
A typical error made by inexperienced growers is to cram as many clones and vegetative plants as possible into a small grow space.
This has the potential to result in poorer yields.
Plants require adequate room to branch out and grow without colliding with a large number of other plants in the course of their development. The reference chart below provides further information on how many plants you should be able to cultivate in your particular grow space under LED lighting.
| Grow Room Size | Square Feet | Recommendedof Plants in Veg | Recmommendedof Plants in Flower |
| 1’ x 1’ | 1 | Up to 2 | 1 |
| 2’ x 2’ | 4 | Up to 4 | Up to 2 |
| 3’ x 3’ | 9 | Up to 9 | Up to 5 |
| 2’ x 4’ | 8 | Up to 8 | Up to 5 |
| 4’ x 4’ | 16 | Up to 16 | Up to 9 |
| 5’ x 5’ | 25 | Up to 25 | Up to 12 |
| 6’ x 6’ | 36 | Up to 36 | Up to 20 |
| 4’ x 8’ | 32 | Up to 32 | Up to 18 |
| 8’ x 8’ | 64 | Up to 64 | Up to 36 |
| 10’ x 10’ | 100 | Up to 100 | Up to 48 |
See Our LED Testing Results and Comparisons
Everything we sell is being tested by us, and we will be providing you with a complete report on the results. Take a look at some of the information that we have gathered so far.
How Many Grow Lights Do I Need for 8×8 Grow Tent? 2021 Update
Comments posted on April 20, 20210 In our 8×8 ft grow tent, you can accommodate up to 24 medium to big plants or 30 smaller plants. Because of their massive size, these enormous grow tents will need to be put up in a spare room or garage to be effective. In order to completely cover the 8×8 footprint of these tents, about four 600 watt or comparable grow lights will be required. It is simple to put together these grow tents, which are excellent for controlling the growth environment, keeping any mess made during the growing process under control, and keeping your plants free of pests and toxins from the outside.
Of course, increasing the wattage will result in higher yields (within reason), while decreasing the wattage would result in lower yields.
LED diodes are never operated at full power since doing so would significantly reduce their lifespan.
So, for example, if a fixture has two hundred 3-watt diodes, it is technically capable of providing 600 watts of power, but it will only use around 300 to 400 watts in practical operation.
Total power required=grow area in sq ft*30W sq ft (up to 40W/sq foot) total power required As an example, consider an 8*8 area (64sq ft) 64 square feet times 30 watts per square foot equals 1,920 watts 64 square feet * 40 watts per square foot = 2560 watts So, keeping with the previous example, an 8*8 grow tent will require between 1920 and 2560 watts of real LED power to function properly.
The Optimal PPF for Cannabis:
Comments received on April 20, 20210 Within the eight-by-eight-foot grow tent, you can accommodate up to 24 medium to big plants or 30 tiny plants. Because of their massive size, these enormous grow tents will need to be put up in a spare room or garage. In order to completely cover the 8×8 footprint of these tents, about four 600 watt or comparable grow lights will be needed. It is simple to put together these grow tents, which are excellent for controlling the growth environment, keeping any mess made during the growing process under control, and keeping your plants free of pests and toxins from the environment.
- It goes without saying that using more power (within reason) will result in higher yields, while using less power (within reason) will result in lesser yields.
- As a result, LED diodes are never used at their maximum power since doing so would significantly reduce their lifespan.
- Consequently, even when a light has two hundred three-watt LEDs, the total power it can generate is only roughly 300 to 400 watts, despite the fact that the fixture is technically capable of producing 600 watts.
- Grow area in square feet multiplied by 30W/sq ft (up to 40W/sq ft) Equals total power required.
250 Watts per square foot (64 square feet times 40 Watts per square foot) So, keeping with the previous example, an 8*8 grow tent will require between 1920 and 2560 watts of real LED power to operate properly.
ECO Farm ECOF LM301B 600W 8 Bars LED Grow Light
This fixture is extremely efficient when compared to other commercial grow lights, with a PPF output of 1680mol/s and a PAR efficacy of 2.8umol/J. The ECO Farm ECOF LED grow light produces a PPF output of 1680mol/s and a PAR efficacy of 2.8umol/J, making this fixture extremely efficient when compared to other commercial grow lights.
LUMATEK ZEUS 600W LED GROW LIGHT
The more stringent requirements Lumatek Zeus 600W Pro LED is a linear multi-light bar fixture with a high Photon Efficacy (fixture efficiency) of 2.7 mol/J and a PPF of 1620 mol/s. It is a linear multi-light bar fixture with a high Photon Efficacy (fixture efficiency) of 2.7 mol/J. Following technological and fixture performance advancements, high-quality LED horticulture lighting is now a viable alternative for growers looking to get a considerable return on their initial investments. Light quality (spectra) and light quantity (intensity and duration) are balanced in Lumatek full spectrum horticulture LED systems to offer single-source illumination for the whole grow cycle, from the vegetative to the blooming stage.
- The Zeus is constructed with high-quality Lumatek drivers and top-bin LEDs from LUMLED and Osram, resulting in a full-spectrum light source that is perfect for the vegetative and blooming phases of the growing cycle.
- 2.7 mol/s/J is an extremely high efficacy.
- Lumatek LED drivers of superior quality?
- Is it a well-balanced entire spectrum?
- Are there 100W magnet light bars that can be replaced?
- PlugPlay Assembling that is simple to use?
B.Lite Premium 1700e Full Spectrum LED Grow Light Fixture
The B-Lite Premium 1700e Full Spectrum LED grow light is a well-known brand among indoor gardening enthusiasts, both newcomers and seasoned veterans alike. A powerful 660-watt output allows the B-Lite 1700e to blanket your canopy with much-needed light, promoting plant growth and development. The B-Lite 1700e, which uses only the highest-quality Samsung diodes, has an effectiveness of 2.7 umol per joule, resulting in higher crop yields than typical high-intensity discharge lamps. It is not necessary to switch out grow lights throughout the growing process because the B-Lite 1700e covers the whole spectrum.
With the use of an external B-Lite Master Zone Controller, you may achieve advanced dimming capabilities (1W – 660W) Adjustment of Frequency on an Automatic Basis TECHNICAL DETAILS AND SPECIFICATIONS Voltage range: 100V to 277VAC (input voltage).
2.7 mol/J is the effectiveness.
Ra90 is the color rendering index.
The following are the dimensions: 1184 x 1119 x 79mm Dimensions of packaging: 1250 x 690 x 170mm CONTENTS OF THE PACKAGE 660W LED Fixture Power Cable RJ14 Connection Kit Specifications Manual
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