Recreational Cannabis States Turn to LED Grow Lights to Optimize Yields

As commercial cannabis cultivation has exploded throughout the United States, it has encountered several challenges along the way, including a huge spike in electricity use in states that have legalized recreational marijuana. According to a 2016 article by the National Conference of State Legislatures, the summer after Oregon legalized recreational marijuana, Pacific Power in Portland experienced seven blackouts traced to cannabis production facilities.

Forty-five percent of Denver’s electrical “load growth” is for electricity to power cannabis facilities, and as of February 2018, nearly 4% of Denver’s electricity was devoted entirely to commercial cannabis facilities. Much of this power use can be attributed to the use of High-Pressure Sodium grow lights common to the commercial cannabis industry.

In order to reduce both their costs and carbon footprint, commercial cannabis producers have been switching to LED grow lights, like those manufactured by Kind LED.

LED grow lights produce more yield per watt than traditional HPS fixtures while promoting a significant increase to overall quality through their targeted spectrum. Some LED grow lights, such as California based Kind LED Grow Lights, also include IR and UV wavelengths that have been shown to increase the production of oils and terpenes by up to 80%, and produce closer internodal spacing and denser fruits and flowers than other grow lights. They’re able to provide this remarkable increase in quality while using 50% less energy than HPS fixtures.

Also, because LED grow lights produce less heat, they do not need to be air-cooled like HPS lights, eliminating the need for additional fans, which makes them run quieter. Lower light temperatures lead to a much more easily maintained grow environment. Some LED grow lights, such as Kind LED, have an adjustable spectrum light, with individual diodes that can be set to a specific color and in a specific proportion, so that they are able to emit the exact spectrum that a developing plant needs to thrive, with little to no waste.

Many US Commercial cannabis facilities have been switching over to LED Grow Lights in order to produce a better smelling, better tasting, more potent product that sets them apart from the competition. Home growers looking to produce the best possible buds for themselves also benefit from grow lights that produce less heat and consume far less energy as the HPS counterparts.
Powered by nearly 200 K5 XL1000 KIND LED Grow Lights, The Herbal Garden in Pueblo, CO has revolutionized its facility, which is now running quieter, cooler and more efficiently. “We now run 100 percent Kind LEDs, so we are contributing to the solution, not the problem,” said Dave Ashby, The Herbal Garden’s Master Grower. “We are already seeing the benefits of using Kind LEDs. If you want to save yourself money, get a few Kind LEDs, they will offset your costs tremendously and give you amazing results.”