Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Help! I'm new to aquaponics and have set up the same IBC model that's BYAP show how to build on their YouTube video. I was originally going to set it up on the balcony of the new apartment I'm moving into but apparently it's too much weight in the one spot so my next plan is garage. I've done little research on different grow lights and so far LED seems to be most beneficial and cost effective long term (is this true or just marketing hype?) if it is true I was wondering what size WATT light would I need and if the light needs to be the same length and width as the tank or not?

Beneath is a link to the page I've been looking through - would love to hear feedback and stories of experience


http://www.lampsplus.com/products/grow-lights/


Shane

havent got a lot of experience, but yes LEDs are the way to go.
about 300-500w would probably do for an ibc growbed once things have grown and theres a bit fof shading.

How many 300-500watt panels would I need?

Do your research on LEDs before buying!!! While a quality LED, suitable for your type of grow, can be competitive with other lighting types, there are lots and lots that are total crap but sound great on their websites. The poorly informed (that is, less than expert) buyer is likely to be frustrated down the road and end up buying an HID because the LED never performed. Seen it a dozen times.

For starters, they don't have much ability to penetrate which means that they can be great for crops with uniform height like lettuces and seedlings. Mixed-height grows or plants that are tall like tomatoes an LED isn't as suitable for without paying top dollar. That said, the advantage of less heat is definitely one you may appreciate. While many will say they save electricity, be sure they're making a true comparison... using good 3 to 5 watt diodes in a fixture it'll usually pull around the same wattage as an HID for comparable coverage (not square feet or square feet per watt, which is meaningless, but lux output and intensity).

They're super trendy, and as the technology continues to improve will certainly be the lighting of the future. I use them in my home wherever I can, but grow lighting is a whole other ballpark.

Caveat Emptor.

Hey BenBrewcat,

I've been looking at the UFO 90WATT LED GROWLIGHTS on eBay, can you please share with me your thoughts and also let me know what criteria to go by in choosing a quality grow light, how many watts I'll need, and anything else you can share. To give you an idea as to what I'll be using them for will be Kale, Spinach, Broccoli and maybe a couple of other vegetables maybe that will end up growing the same height.

Incase you are unable to reach me through here my direct email is shaneguy.c@gmail.com


*Also to give you a fair idea my grow bed is the same of a IBC container so 1.2 metres by 1.2 metres

I have a work day ahead... do wish I could spend it playing though . Do some googling on "LED grow light reviews" and especially "LED vs. HID" and similar. I may have bookmarked sine of the references last time I looked in to them a year back our so. But they're evolving as I said so check recent summaries.

The UFOs unfortunately we're heavily marketed to illegal cannabis growers here in the US and are a little like the Kardashians: famous for being famous but a little vapid on the content . They're adequate for seedlings but I would choose more carefully for heavy vegetative production. Haven't used them myself, just reporting what the conventional wisdom is here.

A couple years back the main points were to be sure that each LED was at LEAST three watts, ideally rather more, and not the Chinese shoddy models. Divide the wattage of the fixture by the # of LEDs for the watt per bulb, which is a rough way to infer intensity (which in turn supports more robust growth given equal fixture distance as well as penetration).

Sent from my newfangled doodad using TapaTalk.

Ben's giving you good advice. It's also been awhile since I looked into LED lighting but I went HID based on what I learned about LED. 10 years from now that may be all we use but at this point good LEDs are crazy expensive (thousands) and it's hard to sort through what is good and what is bad. From what I have researched, power consumption is about the same as HID when you're comparing apples to apples. The low heat aspect would be nice but for 9 months out of the year I'm welcoming the heat of the HID lights.

I'm using Sun Systems HID lights and change between MH and HSP bulbs depending on what I'm growing. I like the fact that you can have the lights fairly high above the plants (compared to T5 flourescents) since things always grow at different heights and you can get to the plants easier. I can buy used reflector and ballast sets for $75 - $150 and new bulbs cost around $100 depending on what it is. Bulbs need to be changed about once per year.

If I had more to spend at this point, I would buy induction lighting. They run cool, and the lamps are effective for their entire lives. A new set-up for an IBC bed would be about $1,200.