How Far Should LED Grow Lights Be from Plants

The effectiveness of grow lights depends on how you use them. You might get the best grow lights in the market and end up with withered or dried-up plants. To prevent your plants from dying, you must ensure that you use your grow lights correctly. If you are new to grow lights, you might be conflicted over what works best for your plants. Here is how far you should put your LED grow lights from your plants for optimum growth.

Factors that determine how far you should place your grow lights

One of the things you will realize is there is no one-size-fits-all regarding the distance of the grow lights. As such, you cannot pick a particular figure and use that to place all your lights away from your plants. Some of them will thrive, while others will die. You need to figure out some things that will determine how far you can place your grow lights. Here are some factors determining how far you should place your grow lights from your plants.

Figure out the wattage

Before you get started on the math, you must figure out the wattage of your grow lights. Different lights have different wattages and can be set to produce different watts. As such, there is no one size fits for all grow lights. Once you have figured out how many watts your lights are, you can determine how far your lights should be from the plants.

As a rule of thumb, you will need about 20 to 40 watts of lights per square foot of plants. Using this math, if your light is about 200 watts, place it about 12 to 20 inches from your plant. That way, your plant will not be overly exposed. Higher LED wattages of about 1000 can be placed up to 40 inches from your plant. Ensure you ask about the wattage before getting the lights.

The age of the plant

The other thing that will determine how much of the light they will be exposed to is the age of your plants or seedling. Younger seedlings and plants need very little sunlight, so placing them under the growth light means increasing the distance. The distance between the lights and your plants will keep changing as your plant gets older. If you plan on having indoor plants, talk to a professional to advise you on this.

The kind of plants you get

Another thing that will determine the distance between your plants and the light is the kind of plants you plan on growing. Different plants require different light intensities. Getting plants that need similar light intensities is easier because you do not have to worry about one plant getting too much sun and the other barely getting enough. When you are shopping for your plants, ensure you keep this in mind.

Beam width

Another thing you need to look at is the kind of beam you get for your lights. You can choose to have a concentrated beam of light or one that throws lights in all directions. Concentrated beams often give off higher wattage, but over a smaller area, they are perfect if you have fewer plants that need very intense light.

On the other end, the indirect beam can be placed closer to the plants since the light is not too intense. Indirect beam lights are preferred because they can be used with more plants and do not scorch them.

Using your grow lights goes a long way to help determine whether your plants thrive. For this reason, you must ensure that you use the lights correctly. The tips above will show you how far you should place your lights. Where in doubt, talk to the manufacturers or suppliers of the grow lights.

They have years of experience and will advise you on what works best. You can also take the time to read about the particular grow lights you want to buy and the kind of wattage they have. The bulb wattage is a great way to determine the correct placement of your grow lights. Using grow lights the right way ensures your plants grow healthy and strong.