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here: Issue
#242 - Sunday, December 4, 2016
Dear Fellow Grower,
In today's
issue... - Have you ever heard of LEC grow lights? What about Induction and Plasma grow lights? Learn the difference between each type, and discover which one works the best for growing cannabis!
- Following
the same theme of doing a face-off, learn the differences between Smart Pots vs Air Pots vs Regular Pots!
- This week's trophy pic features a handful of premium home-grown bud!
Nebula Haze & Sirius
Fourside (founders of GrowWeedEasy.com) "All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them."
~Galileo Galilei
LEC vs Induction vs Plasma Grow Lights: What's the Difference?
by Nebula Haze |
"I'm confused about all the different types of grow lights. What's the difference between an LEC grow light and an Induction grow light? What about Plasma or CMH grow lights? They all look sort of similar to each other...
and how are they different from LEDs?"
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It's crazy how fast things change! Back in the early 2000s, there were basically three types of grow lights available that worked for growing cannabis indoors. There were Fluorescent lights, Metal
Halide lights and High Pressure Sodium (HPS) lights.
Then a few years later LED grow lights started gaining a lot of traction in the cannabis grow light market.
And now it seems like new types of grow lights are popping up on the market every day! You may have come
across names like CMH, LEC, Induction and Plasma grow lights, and possibly more.
It can get confusing with all the new terms being thrown around! So today I will explain exactly what each term means, and to expect from each type of grow light when it
comes to growing marijuana.
Cannabis needs lots of light to produce good yields, but which type of grow light works best? Today we'll cover them all!
New(er) Types of Cannabis Grow Lights Ceramic Metal
Halide (CMH) This is an improved version of a Metal Halide grow light. The main difference is it uses a ceramic arc tube like an HPS grow light, which makes it more electrically efficient. This is why some CMH bulbs
look like HPS bulbs until you get close!
Ceramic Metal Halide lights get good results in the cannabis flowering stage, much better than a standard Metal Halide does.
And unlike HPS lights (which look very yellow), CMH lights produce a natural-looking spectrum of light that resembles light from the sun on a clear day!
This makes it easier to spot problems on your plants, and it's also just nice to be able to see and take pictures of your plants in full color!
In addition, Ceramic Metal Halides produce UV-B light like the sun, which may possibly increase THC and trichome production! However, Ceramic Metal Halide bulbs need a direct path to the plants for the best results. Reflectors and hoods without glass are preferred (more on that in a second) because glass blocks UV-B light from getting to your plants.Light Emitting Ceramic (LEC) Despite the somewhat confusing name, this type of grow light has nothing to do with LEDs!
"LEC" is a brand name (trademark) for a specific model of Ceramic Metal Halide grow light by the company Sun System. LEC stands for "Light Emitting Ceramic" and is a marketing term, not a new type of technology.
That's why the term "LEC" is often used interchangeably with "CMH" in online grow light listings.
However, the form factor of the 315 LEC model by Sun System (which uses 315W) seems to be particularly effective at growing cannabis. Part of this may be because it was designed to stay cool even without glass, so plants are able to get full access to all the UV-B
rays!
In initial testing, the 315 LEC grow light seems to yield around 4-9 ounces per harvest on average, but some growers have reportedly yielded much more! Please reply to this email if you want to share your results with LEC grow lights, and possibly get featured on the website!
Increased trichome production under LEC Grow Lights Magnetic Induction Grow Light A Magnetic Induction grow light is basically an improved fluorescent grow light. Instead of using a filament, it uses induction to power the light. This causes the bulbs to last significantly longer than a regular fluorescent light because the filament doesn't burn out over time.
They come in bigger sizes than regular fluorescents, but otherwise get similar
yields considering the amount of electricity used. They definitely can't compete with the more powerful lights!
Although Magnetic Induction grow lights actually work pretty well for growing cannabis, I don't really recommend them because I believe they cost too much (and use too much electricity) for the yields you get. You will get better bang for your buck with many of the other types of grow
lights!
Plasma Induction Grow Light Plasma grow lights also use induction technology, so you know the bulbs will last a long time. However, most Plasma lights on the market today are are obscenely
expensive!
Instead of mimicking fluorescents, this type of induction light uses microwave radiation and excited sulfur plasma to generate light. This produces a greenish white light that looks beautiful to people, but unfortunately doesn't work that great for growing cannabis.
Even worse, Plasma grow
lights cause RFI interference which can alert someone to your grow! For security reasons alone, I highly recommend avoiding Plasma Induction grow lights Basically any other type of grow light is better!
Quick Summary of Today's Article
- Ceramic Metal Halide (CMH) - Improved version of a Metal Halide grow light that uses a ceramic arc tube, which makes it more efficient. CMH grow lights can be used in both the vegetative and flowering stage.
- LEC Grow Light - LEC stands for "Light Emitting Ceramic" and refers to a Ceramic Metal Halide grow light produced by the company Sun System. In other words, "LEC" is a marketing name for a CMH light in a specific fixture, not a new type of grow light
technology.
- Magnetic Induction - Basically a big, glorified fluorescent light. Although they last a long time and work well for growing
cannabis, they aren't much more efficient than regular fluorescent grow lights.
- Plasma Induction - An induction light that produces a greenish light that looks
nice but doesn't get great results with growing cannabis. Even worse, they create RFI interference which is not good for security! Avoid Plasma Induction lights! Basically any other type of grow light is better for growing cannabis indoors.
Smart Pots vs Air Pots vs Regular Pots |
Have you seen fabric pots (also known as "Smart Pots") or swiss-cheese-sided "Air Pots" in a local gardening store or online in cannabis growing pictures? Wondering if smart pots and air pots are good for growing marijuana?
One of the biggest differences between fabric/air pots and
regular plant containers is they provide extra oxygen to the roots from the sides. This is a good thing because it increases vegetative growth rates!
Smart Pots & Air Pots Make Cannabis Grow Faster!
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Who Runs This
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Nebula Haze:
I'll be honest with you, when I first started growing, I struggled. Now, it is my mission to make it easier for new growers to
get started as well as help advanced growers get bigger, better yields with less time and money. We are updating and adding articles every single week and our goal is to eventually build a comprehensive growing resource so anyone and everyone can grow if they want to! If we all share the knowledge there's more buds in the world for everyone :) |
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Learn which seed sources are personally recommended by Nebula Haze |
Sirius Fourside:
Sirius Fourside is a hobbyist grower who has gained the bulk of his experience growing in water as a medium (deep water culture,
bubbleponics).
"Growing cannabis is a relaxing hobby in and of itself, but it also saves you money and keeps you from having to deal with shady characters. Cannabis is much
easier to grow than people give it credit for, and growing in water doesn't increase the difficulty much, if any. But whether you want to grow in water, coco, or a different medium, we'll show you how easy it can be!"
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