Grow lights are essential components of an indoor gardening system as they help in creating an artificial source of light that resemble natural sunlight which is needed for plants growth. Over the years, indoor gardeners have found themselves in a dilemma when it comes to selecting the right grow lights. Today, the debate of LED Vs HPS continues in many forums and gardeners are comparing these two popular grow lights to determine which one is more efficient and cost-effective.
HPS grow lights dominated the market for many years as the most favorite grow lights. However, this situation have changed thanks to the introduction of LED grow lights.
LED grow lights were first introduced into the market at a higher price compared to HPS. This was attributed to their sophisticated technology and energy efficiency.
However, the price of LED grow lights has dropped over the years thus, making them more affordable.
LED Vs HPS Grow Lights Comparison Table
| LED Grow Lights | HPS Grow Lights | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | View on Amazon | View on Amazon |
| Light Type | - Blue & Red Spectrum for both Flowering & Vegetative stage | - Red-Orange Spectrum for Flowering stage |
| Heat Output | - Low light Intensity | - High light intensity |
| Energy Efficiency | - Energy Efficient & Cheap to operate | - Not energy efficient & Costly to operate |
| Lifespan | - More than 50,000 Hrs | - Less than 50,000 Hrs |
| Light Intensity | - 1-1.5 grams yield per watt | - 0.5 grams yield/W |
| Flexibility | -Versatile | - Less Versatile |
Are you planning to get into indoor gardening and you are torn between going for LED Vs HPS grow lights?
The aim of this article is to compare both LED and HPS grow lights and help you make a better buying decision.
We shall conduct a LED Vs HPS grow lights comparison with regards to;
1. Light type- (LED Vs HPS)
Different LED indoor grow lights are designed to produce specific wavelengths that are used by plants at various growth stage.
They produce blue and red spectrum that are used for both flowering and vegetative stages of plant growth.
HPS lights produce red-orange spectrum which is useful during the flowering stage.
- LOWER OPERATION COST & DIMMER FUNCTION: VIPARSPECTRA P2000 LED grow light has adopted the Samsung LM281B+ LED Technology to provide high PAR output, high energy efficiency and long lifespan while improving light penetration. An added dimmer knob is featured to manipulate the brightness level of the entire light, allowing flexibility to obtain perfect growth performance for each growing phase.
- FULL SPECTRUM LIGHT For INDOOR PLANTS: Consists of 660nm of red light, IR, 3000K and 5000K of the white light spectrum, provides plants in all stages from veg to flower with everything they need in the natural sunlight. Achieve greater yield while saving you on energy costs!
- SLEEP-FRIENDLY GROW LIGHT: Silent fanless design. No fans zero noise. Built-in large areas of solid aluminum heat sinks, essential for heat dissipation while ensuring long lifespan of the light.
- COVERAGE AREA: Comparable to traditional 400W HPS/MH while consuming only 200W! Perfect for 4’x3’ vegetative coverage at 24” and 4’x2’ flowering coverage at 20”. Remember to properly adjust the height and brightness accordingly to your plants desired level for optimal growth.
- WORRY-FREE WARRANTY: Plug and Play. No installation required. Product quality and friendly customer service are always our top priority. We offer worry-free 36-month local warranty and professional guidance to help you and your plants grow better.
Last update on 2022-09-01 at 04:09 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
2. Heat- (LED Vs HPS)
HPS grow lights are known to generate a lot of heat.
If your grow system is not fitted with proper ventilation equipment, this excessive heat will interfere with the normal optimal growth conditions needed for your plants to thrive.
The situation can even be worse if your indoor garden is located in an area with high temperatures.
LED grow lights produces moderate amount of heat.
They run on cooler temperatures making them safe for use even closer to your plants as they grow in different stages.
3. Energy efficiency
LED grow lights are energy efficient and they function on minimal electricity yet delivering high results.
When using LED lights, you will save on the amount of electricity that you use to power your indoor gardening system.
HPS grow lights on the other hand consumes a lot of electricity to generate light compared to LED grow lights thus, making them less energy efficient and costly to operate.
4. Lifespan- (LED Vs HPS)
These two grow lights comes with different lifespan which dictates how often you will replace them. A typical HPS grow light system is estimated to have an average lifespan of up to 10,000 hours.
Although this is more than a growing season, you are likely to keep replacing the HPS grow lights more often compared to LED grow light system. LED light systems have a longer lifespan and they can last for more than 50,000 hours.
This makes them more popular since they are efficient and reliable.
Related; Benefits of using Full Spectrum LED Grow Lights
5. Light intensity-(LED Vs HPS)
The amount of light intensity that LED lights produces can equally compete that of HPS. When tested together, LED grow lights produces 1-1.5 grams yield per watt compared to 0.5 grams yield per watt when using HPS.
This is despite the fact that LED don’t produce much powerful lighting as HPS.
HPS on the other hand diminish in light intensity over a period of time thus, requiring regular replacement something that increases the operating cost of your indoor garden system.
6. Flexibility
Because HPS lights generates a lot of heat, they are positioned on specific areas to ensure that they don’t get too close to plant foliage.
This makes them less versatile since they need to be handled with great care to avoid any damage to the plants.
LED grow lights are much flexible and they can be positioned on closer range to the plants and vegetables since they don’t produce much heat.
Having compared the two types of grow lights, we can confidently say that LED grow lights are superior compared to HPS lights.
If you have not yet made your decision, go for LED lights are they are more efficient, reliable and easy to use.
