Grow Lights For LESS Money |Cheap Alternatives to Expensive Grow Lights|

Grow lights for seed starting or indoor growing have a large footprint in the gardening market. Some of these are priced astronomically! You do not need “grow lights”. Basic lights will work as good, or BETTER as long as you choose the right ones. LED lights are my favorite because they use less energy making them cheaper to run, and they don’t produce heat that will burn plants. No more leggy seedlings!

Video with results from these lights:
Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE! Facebook: www.facebook.com/fastgardeningmichigan Here are some lights that will work that aren’t marketed as “grow lights”: https://amzn.to/3ZWMSiy https://amzn.to/3HiTC2J https://amzn.to/3XRNSTf Here are some lights marketed AS grow lights that won’t break the bank: https://amzn.to/3J6s7uD https://amzn.to/3J61yWh Shelving units: https://amzn.to/3WDYkfW More expensive, but pretty cool!: https://amzn.to/3ZQ29S2 Lights I use: https://www.ruralking.com/4-led-shop-light-6000-lumens-sl-006bmcl-50 Get growing! *This description may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links I will receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Proceeds help fund the Fast Gardening Michigan channel. I will only link to products I would use or have used myself!

32 thoughts on “Grow Lights For LESS Money |Cheap Alternatives to Expensive Grow Lights|”

    1. If you haven’t seen the update video check it out. It’s amazing what some cheap shop lights, rain water, and compost from the chicken run can do. Before I put them out side my tomatoes had multiple fruits. I need to adjust my starting times because they grew so fast.

  1. Everyone who believes and calls on the name of Jesus shall have his sins forgiven, for He is God who took human form and offered Himself as a sacrifice. Watch for the imminent appearance of Satan on earth, where he will pretend to be Jesus. Jesus was eating at Simon’s house (Simon was a leper whom Jesus had healed) a few days before His crucifixion when a woman arrived with a box of priceless ointment and anointed Him with the entire box. The disciples thought the woman was crazy because she could have sold the ointment and given the money to the poor. She had anointed Him for burial, Jesus revealed to them, and He commanded that what she had done be reported so that she would be remembered wherever the gospel was told. Jesus died for the eternal forgiveness of your sins. Beware Satan who will soon appear claiming to be Jesus. Just before Jesus was killed, he was eating and a woman came and anointed him with a box full of expensive ointment, the disciples complained because it was very expensive stuff. Jesus explained to everyone that she had anointed him for his burial.

  2. Thank you so much. You’re an electrician so I trust your experience. I’ve been going out of my mind over this. I live in a small apt., and I wanted to grow a few things. Lettuce and such. But all I could find was spectrums spectrums and more spectrums, and lots and lots of money. lol. You saved me. Thank you.

    1. Probably a bulb for single phase 220v. Noone needs to use 220 for a bulb unless you’re installing loads of lights and trying to save amperage. We use 277 volt lighting when we need to fit lots of lights with limited amperage. LEDs in a standard fixture are the way to go at home. Won’t be long before other types are nonexistent

  3. One thing you didn’t discuss in the video is the PAR (Photosynthetically active radiation) value of the lights. These cheap LED lights generally have a lower PAR value, which is fine for seedlings and possibly beyond; however my understanding is you can expect a drastically lower yield vs an LED light with the proper PAR value. The guy at my local grow shop said you can double your yield in some cases.

    1. In my follow up video I focused on how I believe conditions play a more important role. I had tomatoes less than 7 weeks old with multiple fruits. Chicken compost soil and rain water. My “adult” plants looked amazing but my video was flagged for showing them and I had to remove the clips

  4. White LED’s work just fine. You can get 4 foot lights for about $30. I have several that are 4000K. Walmart has shop lights with clear covers, which would be preferable to frosted. Frosted soaks up half the light emitted by the LED’s. You have to get them at the store. No mail order.

  5. Chiming in from experience – when I started growing in Colorado back in 2010, I bought the cheapest shop ballast and flouro tubes i could find at Ace Hardware. Cold spectrum tubes for veg, specifically. At the time, LED – at least in the market I was exposed to – was INSANELY expensive. NEVER HAD A SINGLE ISSUE WITH COLD FLOURO. get a chain to hang it with and adjust height accordingly. I cut off my “veg” area with mylar that I hung from the ceiling. Whole thing cost me very little compared to what the industry had to offer.

  6. I’d say lumens is not respectively as good as kelvins when it comes to finding a good light.
    Let me explain why in a few words.
    6000 lumens in a 10 cm x 120 cm LED bar is not as powerful as a 6000 lumens LED bulb that makes 10cmx10cm footprint.

    To keep it simple for everyone, that means that the light bulb will effectively produce more light in a smaller footprint.
    This is typically referred to as PPF (Photosynthetic Photon Flux).
    Higher PPF levels are always wanted, you can then adjust the light via dimmer or height to control the amount of PPF each plants need to receive.
    You also want to compare their PAR (Photosynthetic Active Radiation) as this will tell you which light source is more economic, meaning it uses more of it’s energy to produce light, aka more efficient.

    I’m using the Mars Hydro TS1000 and 100W equivalent 6500k 1200lm CFL bulbs in another setup.
    I’ve spent more money on bulbs so far than I have on the TS1000… I should have bought 2 with that money… they last forever unlike the cheap CFL bulbs (I’m using Phillips).

    1. Light is the fastest moving particle. You can have a concentrated light but plants can not absorb faster than light can travel. That excess bounces away and scatters. Many of these new terms for lighting are created by the manufacturers who also do their own “scientific studies”. Nutrition and environment is far more important than light. Cheap shop lights within the parameters I stated are perfect. My follow up video shows results. Rain water and chicken compost produced plants I’d put up against any scientific grow methods

    2. @Fast Gardening Michigan If you read my comment, I’m also supporting the facts that “cheap” lights do the job just as well.

      I don’t think you understood my comment.

      I’m saying a 6000 lumens light bulb is superior to a 6000 lumens light bar that’s 3 foot long. That’s pretty simple to understand.

      The PAR and PPD are not magical numbers… you can actually buy the tools to measure those values…

      I’d like to see you grow a 6 foot tall tomato plant with those lights. The light penetration simply won’t be enough… that’s where refraction comes into play… just like in nature when the sun reflect off the ground and building and radiate heat and scatter more light onto the plants (especially true for plants in shade, not as impactful in full sun during summer but as an impact in winter).

  7. Great video! Do you think 4000k would work for growing veggies? My fluorescent T5HO grow light of 6500K isn’t working (I got a new bulb and it still didnt work) but im considering using my husband has a 4000K fluorescent shop light, I’m just not sure if the Kelvin value is high enough. Thanks for your help!

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