Anyone tried one of those Aerogarden LED automatic growers?

NeverDie

NeverDie

Senior Member
We've used the regular (florescent) Aerogarden. Once you get it going, it's pretty good for herbs and such, if you like to use them often.
 
The LED version is brand new.  Don't know anything about it.
 
I suppose a grow box might be quieter and could be tucked away in more places. A *fully* automated system would be interesting.... Still, for something quick and easy to setup and get going, the aerogarden appears to make reasonable tradeoffs....

I can't help but wonder whether supplementing it with a ton more light from more angles would yield even better/faster growth. I say that because the directions say the built-in light should be kept just a couple inches above the plants throughout their growth cycle. With led's you wouldn't risk cooking the plants. It would be a simple mod to automate....

I once built an automated system for growing wheatgrass without realizing it was "aeroponic".
 
Most white LEDs do not have full spectrum light and may not grow plants well.  I know plants require certain wavelength and some bulbs did not contain them. but I am not sure which colours those are.
 
The CRI is just becoming a big factor in LED lighting as some colours cannot be seem under them.  I see no advertised colour CRI or claims for plant compatibility. It would be worth checking into the technical details before spending that many $$.
 
Red and blue are the only colors  utilized by photosynthesis (IIRC, in something like a 4:1 ratio).  For that reason, CRI isn't a relevant metric because, for example, green could be missing entirely and plants wouldn't miss it.  I agree it would be interesting to know what the name for the proper figure of merit actually is though. 
 
I have observed in the past fluorescent Grow lamps claiming to be proper spectrum bulbs and seen reports that it makes a big difference from regular fluorescents. I am not sure what the difference is. I have seen demos where people hold purple sheets of paper under fluorescents and you cannot see the colour, only black, until you get next to a daylight window. It is hard to believe until you see it first hand.
 
Now with LEDs coming to the forefront there is a big squabble about missing colours in the spectrum. It seems that the blue LED has a very narrow bandwidth and the spectrum between the broader spectrum red/yellow LED end has a huge gap of missing spectrum.
 
Perhaps a hydroponics supply store would have information on this. I know the grow ops change bulbs depending on whether they want growth or THC production for different stages of the crop.
 
Perhaps plants like the high intensity narrow band  blue better?  Just some thoughts.
 
Something I didn't know until fairly recently is that high intensity blue LED's have become bright enough that they can cause you serious eye damage before you feel any pain.  The reason is that humans see blue less well than the other colors at the same power level, and so your pupil doesn't dilate either enough or quickly enough.  So, perhaps a consumer device like this throws in extra spectrum as a safety precaution, even if it's wasted on the plants.  Or perhaps it's to prevent the plants from looking too freakish because of unfamiliar illumination.  Regarding power efficiency, it's cheaper to make just red and blue LED light than it is to make white LED light.
 
Here is a bulb from CREE that claims a CRI of 93. From what I can understand they adapted some fluorescent technology by coating the inside of the bulb with a phosphor coating that converts part of the LED spectrum to fill in the spectrum  "holes".
 
Of course this costs in efficiency, as the same equiv. output takes more power than a regular white LED in the same 2700K colour.
 
Code: 
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Cree-TW-Series-60W-Equivalent-Soft-White-2700K-A19-Dimmable-LED-Light-Bulb-6-Pack-BA19-08027OMN-12DE26-1U100/204609903?MERCH=REC-_-SearchPLPHorizontal1_rr-_-NA-_-204609903-_-N
 
I have an insulated utility closet with a couple 80 gallon water heaters in it.  Because of that it stays reasonably warm, even in winter.  It occurs to me that it has a lot more useable space than the limited amount offered by an aerogarden.  I'm just thinking out loud, but I may be better off simply replacing the two T8 bulbs in the utility closet with grow bulbs or LED's and do the growing there. 
 
I have been told that cotton and some tropical flowers grow very well in Alaska due to the long extended sunlight available there in the summer despite the cooler climate. I know light is a major factor for growing within some temperature limits of course.
 
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