# LED panels. Anybody use something like this?



## P.K.Hansen (Sep 5, 2018)

I consider giving these a try instead of the LED bulbs I'm using right now.
Has any of you any experience with this kind of panels? They are either 30W or 45W. 12" x 12" big


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## NYEric (Sep 6, 2018)

Not me but I know other folks here have posted photos of LED units in use. Good luck.


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## StreetVariety (Sep 7, 2018)

I have a 300W led light panel designed for marijuana growing. I've been running half of lights, and my orchids are slightly etiolated. I highly doubt that 30W led light is sufficient unless you put the panel right next to the plants.


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## littlefrog (Sep 7, 2018)

I use exclusively LED and never had any luck with panels. But that was several years ago, perhaps the quality has improved. The light was good while it lasted, they just never lasted very long.


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## NYEric (Sep 7, 2018)

etiolated - "pale or drawn out due to lack of light", how edumacational!


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## TyroneGenade (Sep 8, 2018)

littlefrog said:


> The light was good while it lasted, they just never lasted very long.



It isn't widely publicized, but the LEDs are temperature sensitive. If operated at too high a temperature they will burn out long before the widely reported 10 000 hours (or some such) prediction of lamp lifespan. For what ever LED you buy you need to find out what the optimal operating temperature is and then invest in the cooling hardware to maintain. Otherwise, the major advantage of LEDs that justify their purchase, that is, their long life, is negated. 

The LED tubs for replacing T8 and T12 lamps seem to last long but I'm not very impressed with the color rendering. The color spectrum is a problem. The ratio of blue, to red and red to far red has to be right to prevent stem elongation. The elongation witnessed might not be because the plant's aren't getting enough light, but because they are getting too much or too little of a particular wavelength of light.


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## littlefrog (Sep 9, 2018)

Under growing conditions the LEDs should not get too hot if (and only if) the heat sinks are sized appropriately or if there is proper active cooling (fans). The problem is in the if... too many corners are cut. 

There are other ways to cut corners too. I've seen undersized wiring and poor soldering. Poor components are a big one. I use a lot of COB (chip on board) units, and the cheap ones are always of poor quality, with gaps in the strings or whole strings missing - which you can't see unless you light them up at very low power. 

I have been happy with the ones I have built myself, and if something goes wrong I know how to fix them.  They aren't pretty though.

Rob





TyroneGenade said:


> It isn't widely publicized, but the LEDs are temperature sensitive. If operated at too high a temperature they will burn out long before the widely reported 10 000 hours (or some such) prediction of lamp lifespan. For what ever LED you buy you need to find out what the optimal operating temperature is and then invest in the cooling hardware to maintain. Otherwise, the major advantage of LEDs that justify their purchase, that is, their long life, is negated.
> 
> The LED tubs for replacing T8 and T12 lamps seem to last long but I'm not very impressed with the color rendering. The color spectrum is a problem. The ratio of blue, to red and red to far red has to be right to prevent stem elongation. The elongation witnessed might not be because the plant's aren't getting enough light, but because they are getting too much or too little of a particular wavelength of light.


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## dodidoki (Sep 11, 2018)

I used led panels and lamps too.All are made for plant growing conditions.Theye were not cheap....but all of them went wrong within half a year because of high humidity.


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## coronacars (Sep 11, 2018)

I recently purchased these guys. http://timbergrowlights.com/model-2vl/ They are assembled locally to me in San Diego area, have a 3 year warranty and for 2 COB LEDs will run at 210 watts. That 210 watts I believe is enough for me to do a 4'x8' growing area. I have upgraded the reflectors though. Time will tell, but I know others using these with great success.


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## littlefrog (Sep 12, 2018)

That looks like a pretty reasonable price for the system. Certainly prettier than what I make for myself  Nice to be local, in theory they can fix it for you.


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## coronacars (Sep 12, 2018)

littlefrog said:


> That looks like a pretty reasonable price for the system. Certainly prettier than what I make for myself  Nice to be local, in theory they can fix it for you.



Yes and Warranty it if there are any problems. The 3 year warranty was pretty attractive to me. I have 2 of these units now.


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## valenzino (Sep 12, 2018)

Is needed high quality LED lights i have a good source for PRO lamps used in tomato growing industry...not cheap but very good but must have space...cannot stay too near to plants...
Tryed led pannels...very bad...i find more efficent full spectrum led bars...


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