Best bang for your Buck$ for new growers wanting to find the best cheap lights lol

[freddyyola]

is there such thing as an best cheap light? i want quality honestly but it dont want the over priced bs trickery.. im looking for basically the best bang for your buck light that if need be ill get one now and uprade to more as i go or future grows..

[WeirdWiredWolf]

I have a Galaxyhydro 300W LED panel from Amazon; still in veg but so far it seems to be doing the trick.

[freddyyola]

sup www im using ffof soil as well and im wondering how long did you wait before feeding your plant since the soil comes with nutes added you should just water feed mostly till some of it has exhausted right? cause i think im having a plant or two with nitrogen deficiency but i dont know how cause it should be nitrogen still in the soil.. if i ever use ffof again ima make sure to add perlite as well right now im using ffof 10 to 1 worm castings and just very low feeding if not just rain water for te first few weeks

[Chefbjy]

If you want cheap you will get sub par lights with leds. Hps/mh set ups aren't that expensive anymore but they are tried and true always producing nice quality nugs.

[Obi-Wan]

Depends on the size of your space but I use leds in one tent and hps in another and I’d say the hps is the best bang for the buck. You can get a decent quality hps setup for $140-$200 depending on the size of your space. I like my cheap Amazon leds and still use them, but I’m glad I upgraded to hps in my other tent!!

[Mr.furley]

Ebay.
Got me a Hydro planet hood, 400w ballast, 1 Mh, 1 hps, used one time, ship to the door for 80 bucks (good enough to get it done). Later Added a Phantom 600w used for 40$ and a second used hood from the local grow shop for 25$, 1 NEW Horticulture 600 watt hps bulb 65$
(bulbs is were you space no expense) and have myself a veg tent and a flower tent lights setup for around 2 bills.
good luck.

[freddyyola]

yeah thanks man i found some good deals on craigslist i think ima be able to get a deal on 3 of these slighty used.. https://www.amazon.com/iPower-Digita...70_&dpSrc=srch hes asking 350 for all but im thinking 225 will do the trick! ill get a few new bulbs most likely maybe wont need new bulbs til i get ready to flower..

[DankwingDuck]

If you spend the money on a good led now you will save on electricity later . So the question is . Pay now or pay later ?

[IslandColas]

With really high quality LEDs I find you don’t save THAT much energy. They still draw high watts which is what you’re billed on. You may be able to cut 400w off your usage but that’s only an average of around 28$ a month in energy costs. Unless you’re planning on being a pro running perpetual harvests and always running those lights just stick to HPS To get started cheap. They won’t pay for themselves any time soon

[oldjarhead100]

/www.amazon.com/Lightimetunnel-Reflector-Heatproof-Greenhouse-Hydroponic/dp/B01MPY7YC2/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1528538155&sr=8-8&keywords=300w+led+grow+light

$53 for a 300w led I have 6 of them and have had no problems in 8 months

[Weed Pharma]

MarsHydro Reflector96 - grow & bloom switchs- pulls 205w at the wall- low btu's- rectangular coverage.

[D.A.A.S.69]

315cmh, dimmable, that does come in handy on young plants.
Just perfect for a 3x3 tent. The one I got ,doesn't even get, hot. If the room it's in is 70degrees, inside my tent it's like 75-77degrees, And that's when it's turned up to 345watts.
They are good lights for small grows. 3-4 plants in a 3x3 tent,

[freddyyola]

these https://www.amazon.com/iPower-Digita...70_&dpSrc=srch ballasts are dimmable i wonder if i can get an 315 cmh to work with it and do they make higher watt cmh? either way since its dimmable thatll help me keep the heat down on very hot days right?

[freddyyola]

i know im commenting all over the place lol thanks alot sorry for the trouble im new to forums as well..

[Dr.Moggs]

I am usinh mars hydro light. They are really Good and i have Only found positive reviews.
they are making lights in different price range, I am using their Mars Hydro Pro II cree 256.

[baddog]

Depends on your definition of cheap ... but I've had good luck with the Viparspectra reflector series

[kingfish]

I can't afford to buy cheap.

[IslandColas]

Amen brotha

[D.A.A.S.69]

Nothin cheap about a 315cmh, and you can get 630watt cmh. Too.

[freddyyola]

thanks alot guys ima check ebay and used stuff and if i had tio choose pay now or later id pay later of course pretty much a trade off for some my harvest could always start out hps and change it up later i was worried bout the heat really cause add the cost of cooling the hps then its not really cheaper at all

[freddyyola]

i dont want anything cheap really ill save up for a good 1000 watt set up whats the max plants you think i can squeeze under that and still have hefty size

[DankwingDuck]

To answer your question 1.5-2sf per plant is good . You will have to look up ideal coverage area for a 1000w whatever your planning to use and then determine from there .

[freddyyola]

yes i understand the amount of plants dont = amount of end weight cause its up to how much energy those plants can get from the lights / sun is the deciding factor in yield i was tryna ask what is a good amount of plants to grow under a 1000 watt light as in 10 plants would be 10 skinny small plants while one could be 1 huge 1 im trying to find a good middle spot like 3 or 4 good sized plants also im growing from seed and they arent so cheap lol and to grow 10 plants is more trouble than 3 or 4 good ones or maybe start out with 10 and pick the 4 best ones to keep.. also yes ive seen some huge plants... not in person but them mendo dope boys are on youtube im sure you seen em they have some monsters growing!!!

[DankwingDuck]

How much square footag do you have to use . 1 plant per 2sf is good . You should be able to do a 6x6 nicely with a 1000w . So 10-15 plants wouldn’t be unrealistic depending on how you wanna grow them . You could do 1 per sf and do a sea of green . It’s really up to how you wanna grow and train .

[freddyyola]

thanks for the tips and links guys ima check em out, what i mean by best bang for your buck is since the price gets better as the higher wattage goes or the more you are trying to buy is there a certain light i should be aiming towards getting and then just upgrade to more later and yeah 53 bucks for 300w led is cheap but does it really get 300w led yields? and do you know how much they yield? and same thing i was thinking about the viparspectra they have good prices but i was wondering if they were not worth it or too far on the cheap side to be any quality.

[D.A.A.S.69]

Just remember, whatever light you get, some people are going to say it is no good, but don't let that bother you, just keep on growing and don't read all that supposedly scientific sh_t, some people throw out there. Sounding professional like. Sounding professional, ain't never grown a bud, it's the light that grows the bud, And all the lights mentioned here will work fine ,for a plant or two.
Good Luck whatever you decide.
You might want to try BigSmos Cob lights that he makes on Autoflower. Net.
But still, some one will say that they don't work well, when the problem, is more likely their growing, and not the light.
Expect all kinds of answers about lights, the only ones that are any good are the ones that they use , that complain. They will all work. Cfls,work fine too, and are real cheap price.. But whatever kind of light you get, you can count on someone. , that thinks they know everything, will still say that they don't work good. When the problem is their growing, not the light.