This unpaid video review is for home gardeners. People growing clones, seedlings, microgreens,
lettuce and culinary herbs. Or even houseplant enthusiasts. We'll look at Spider Farmer's SF300
and 600 LED grow lights. How do these compare to conventional shop lights? T12 and T8 fluorescents.
LED shop lights. What about high output T5s?
Here's an overview of today's discussion and review.
We're looking at a specific form factor. LED bulbs are great for a single small plant. Quantum-styled
LED boards are good for larger projects. But you need enough space for the light to spread.
Then we have linear light sources which are often placed closer. Perfect for vertical
racks or shelves. Fluorescent lights work. But LEDs can yield more light with less power.
Years ago, I tried some LED T5 replacements. More efficient. Great results. But a little pricey.
Then this LED bar light. Excellent growth. Waterproof. But insanely expensive.
When I saw Spider Farmer's SF300 and 600 linear LEDs, I thought: "Could this be a
better solution?" Spider Farmer sent me one of each for testing and review purposes.
The SF300 is for shorter 2 foot shelves. While the SF600 covers 4 feet.
These aren't high end systems. They're very simple, stripped down lights. No dimmer. No
daisy chaining. Lightweight. A thin metal reflector hood. The bend creates structure,
but it could warp easily if handled improperly (perhaps when shipped).
The power supply attaches externally, with a simple barrel connector attaching to the
board. Although the reflector hood offers some protection against overhead spills,
this unit is not waterproof. The 2 strips of diodes are spaced closely
together. Unlike generic shop lights, the custom spectrum includes red and even far-red diodes.
I made sure to see Integrating Sphere test reports before reviewing. I noticed
this poor power factor. Far too low for modern LEDs which should be point 9.
When you divide watts by volts, ideally this should give you the amps. But instead of point 27,
we see point 48 amps. That extra current puts higher demands on the power grid. It's true,
most home users won't see a price difference on their electric bill. But for a commercial
operation, you'll be charged for it. So these lights are for home use only. And even at that,
I'd only buy a few at most. Moving on, these reports did back
up Spider Farmer's efficiency claims. So that's good. A PPE of nearly 2.3 micromoles per joule
shows potential. That's more than twice as efficient as T5 fluorescents!
So on paper these LEDs look ok. But how's the light distribution?
Spider Farmer only shows these single-point, center readings. Pointless. These are long
rectangular light sources. What's the light doing as you move away from the center??? Just
a few inches makes a big difference. So, my spot readings were taken on a 3 inch by 6 inch grid.
And the whole point is to place these close to your plants,
right? So I measured at 6, 9 and 12 inches. Here are my PPFD maps for the SF300.
We can compare these to some 2 bulb 4 foot fluorescent shop lights.
I measured a T8 and also a T12. The T12 was brighter so we'll use those readings.
At 12 inches, the SF300 was comparable to a T12 placed within 3 inches of the plants.
At 9 inches it outperformed, while using half the power. The SF300 covers a seedling
flat more evenly at the edges. How's it look against a 2 foot system?
Spider Farmer compares it to a 4 bulb high output T5 fluorescent. At 3 inches mine
has good coverage. For the SF300, at 6 inches you get a bright spot in the center, but photons drop
at the edges. So I wouldn't go any closer. For a few individual plants, the SF300 is a
great alternative to the power hungry T5. But if you want even, consistent coverage over an
entire tray, the 4 bulb T5 is the winner. Of course it uses 3 times as much power.
Let's now move on to the SF600. Here are my PPFD maps. Compared to the SF300,
see how you get a more even spread of light along the center? The intensity is higher too. Twelve
inches is a solid hanging height for the 600. For lettuce, seedlings or microgreens you can cover
42 by 18 inches pretty well. The most uniform coverage is 36 by 12 inches.
At 9 inches the SF600 enters seedling and culinary herb territory. Standard microgreen
trays would get uneven light. You’d probably be rotating those flats from time to time.
The less consistent coverage would make it tricky for a tray of lettuce.
Plants in the center could easily get tip burn. Finally the closest height of 6 inches. Excellent
for 1 or 2 rows of seedlings or herbs. The plants would be dense and vigorous. Growth would be fast.
You could even reduce the light cycle duration for solid growth using a little less electricity.
Compared to 4 foot T12s, the SF600 draws more power. So the fluorescents don't have
a chance. The 600 is in a completely different performance category.
What about LED shop lights? These are a nice upgrade over T12 fluorescents. Less
power and a little more light. But a twin bulb setup is no match for the SF600.
Once again we have high output T5 fluorescents. This 4 foot, system draws 210 watts. And it’s
the brightest by far. But the SF600 is somewhat comparable, while only using 31% of the power!
Actually, at 6 inches, the center readings are higher. But the light drops off towards the ends.
So for more even coverage on seed and plant trays, the T5 wins. While the SF600 is great
for one or two rows of plants. It would save power and make less heat.
I see lots of potential with these LEDs. But are they a good value? If you're used to
dual-bulb fluorescent shop lights, the SF300 is a significant upgrade. You'll get faster growth
using less power. It covers a 1020 tray nicely. And for 2 or 3 larger seedlings,
it’s a great option. Easy to drop behind a bright window to boost light levels even more.
Placed alongside Spider Farmer's other models, you see how much light you get per dollar spent.
At $73, the SF300 is a poor value. If you have the flexibility to fit the larger SF600, you'll
get more bang for the buck. But if you're tight on space, the SF300 is a better value than a T5.
It's costs less than some models. Even compared to a cheaper $59 T5, the SF300 may be worth it.
You could could recoup your extra $20 in the first 3 months, just through electrical
savings. Technically the SF300 won't output as much light as a 4 bulb system, but depending
on your usage, it could at least compete. The SF600 has more potential. It beats out
the SF1000 with more photons generated per dollar spent. Compared to the 300, you get a larger area
of even coverage. You can't even compare 2 bulb shop lights, which have dramatically less light.
The SF600 isn't as bright as a 4 bulb 4 foot T5. But it's not far behind.
And it uses much, much less power. So in tight spaces, it's worth it. On window
sills or shelves the SF600 is lightweight and easy to install. But for large open tables or benches,
I'd look for a different form factor. There are plenty of LEDs offering more photons per dollar.
They're dimmable, with better power factors. The SF300 and SF600 are not commercial grade
lights. And even in the home, they have their limitations. But if you've been addicted to older,
power hungry fluorescents, Spider Farmer's LEDs are worth consideration. They need a little extra
height for mounting. And there's no dimmer. So be sure you account for this. I do recommend
these LEDs in the situations mentioned. So look at your setup and count the cost. Hopefully this info
helped out. If you're interested, you can support my channel by clicking through the links in the
description. I'd like to thank Spider Farmer for sending these at no cost for testing purposes.
But even more so, I want to thank all of my viewers and supporters of my channel.
I hope you guys have a great growing season and I'd like to wish you all Happy Gardening!