Bottom Line First

For most houseplants under a Feit Electric 2' LED grow light, run it 12–16 hours a day. Less than 10 hours and you'll see leggy growth; more than 18 and you risk light burn. That's the short answer.

I didn't start with that number. I started with my succulents stretching toward the window like they were trying to escape. Then I bought a Feit Electric 2' grow light and ran it 24/7 because I figured “more light = better.” My echeveria turned reddish-brown and the leaves crisped. Cost me about $60 in dead plants plus two weeks of re-potting.

So, yeah – I've made the classic rookie mistake. Now I maintain our commercial growing checklist, and the first item is always: schedule the timer. Let me walk you through what I've learned about Feit Electric lighting, including their dimmable bulbs and chandeliers, so you don't repeat my errors.

Why You Can Trust This

I've been handling equipment orders for commercial clients for three years. In that time, I've personally made (and documented) about 15 significant mistakes totaling roughly $4,200 in wasted budget. One of those was a $890 redo on a batch of grow lights because the spec sheet said “12-hour cycle” and I misread it as “12 hours on, 12 off” instead of “12 on, 8 off” – the timer was wrong. The client's lettuce crop bolted early, and I got an earful.

Since then, I've tracked every lighting-related error in our internal wiki. I've also tested Feit Electric products across five different applications (grow lights, dimmable bulbs for hospitality, chandelier retrofits, flood lights, and smart strips). I talk to installers and retailers every week. This article is the checklist I wish I'd had in 2022.

The Feit Electric Grow Light: Time Under Light

Here's the number I keep coming back to: 12–16 hours for most leafy greens, herbs, and succulents; 14–18 for high-light plants like tomatoes or peppers; 8–10 for low-light foliage like pothos or snake plants.

But that's not the whole picture. The distance from the light matters just as much. For the Feit Electric 2' LED grow light (I think it's the FEGL/2/LED), I hang it 6–12 inches above herbs and 12–18 inches above leafy greens. Too close and you get the burn I mentioned. Too far and the plant stretches for nothing.

Honestly, I'm not sure why the industry doesn't put a simple chart on every box. My best guess is they assume buyers already know. But here's where the rookie mistake happens: you see “full spectrum” and think “safe at any distance.” Nope. Light intensity drops off fast. Double the distance, quarter the intensity. That's physics, not marketing.

I went back and forth between a timer and a smart plug for weeks. A dumb timer costs $8; a smart plug costs $15 but gives me app control. Ultimately chose the smart plug because I could adjust the schedule from my phone (finally!). Plus, the Feit Electric smart bulbs (WiFi) already talk to the same app. That automation saved me from forgetting to turn the light off on weekends – a mistake I made three times before I automated it.

Bottom line: if you're serious about plants, use a timer or a smart plug with your Feit Electric grow light. Set it and forget it. Your plants will thank you.

Dimmable Bulbs: When You Actually Need That Dimming

I once recommended Feit Electric dimmable bulbs for a hotel lobby renovation. The client wanted warm, adjustable light for the reading nooks. Standard non-dimmable bulbs cost $4 each; dimmable ones cost $9 each. The client asked, “Why pay double?” I said, “Because you'll want to control the mood without replacing fixtures.”

What I didn't say was that some dimmable bulbs buzz. The Feit Electric dimmable LEDs I tested (model# DIM/LED/A19) don't buzz with Lutron dimmers, but they did buzz slightly with a cheaper no-name dimmer. (Ugh. I should have told them to test first.) The mistake affected a $3,200 order – 400 bulbs. We caught the buzzing issue on the first sample, but the rest were already ordered. Lesson: test dimmable bulbs with your specific dimmer before buying in bulk.

If you're installing dimmable bulbs for a room chandelier, here's what I've learned:

  • Check the dimmer compatibility list on Feit Electric's site (note to self: always do this first).
  • Buy one bulb first. Test it. Then order.
  • If the chandelier uses a dimmer switch that's older than 2015, consider swapping the dimmer to a LED-rated one. The old ones were designed for incandescent loads and can cause flicker.

That seems obvious now. But in my first year, I assumed “dimmable” was universal. It's not. (I learned that lesson the hard way when a restaurant owner nearly threw a dimmable bulb at me. Thankfully, it was a cheap one.)

Southwestern Chandelier & Room Chandelier: What I Got Wrong

I ordered a Feit Electric southwestern-style chandelier for a client's dining room. The catalog photo looked gorgeous: wrought-iron curves, seeded glass shades, warm downlight. But when it arrived, the fixture was way smaller than the room. “Room chandelier” should be about half the width of the table, hung 30–34 inches above. I'd measured the table but not the room's ceiling height. The chandelier arrived and looked like a pendant light in a cathedral. The client cancelled, and I ate the return shipping ($45) plus a restocking fee ($30).

My rule now: for a room chandelier, the fixture diameter in inches should be roughly the sum of the room's length and width in feet. So a 12x14 foot room needs a chandelier about 26 inches wide. If you're pairing it with a southwestern style (dark bronze, clear or amber glass), make sure the scale matches the room's volume, not just the table.

For a southwestern chandelier, another hidden issue: the shades may be open at the top, which means light spills upward. If your ceiling is low (under 8 feet), that can look harsh. I'd recommend closed-bottom shades or diffusers.

Boundary Conditions & Exceptions

Look, everything above works for most situations, but not all.

  • If you're growing cannabis or high-PPFD crops, my grow-light times are too conservative. You'll need a PPFD meter and a proper schedule. I don't touch that – different ballgame.
  • If your dimmable bulbs are on a three-way switch (two locations controlling one light), make sure both switches are LED-compatible. I've seen buzzing that could only be fixed by replacing both switches.
  • If the chandelier has a remote receiver (some Feit Electric models come with a remote control for dimming), be aware that the remote may interfere with other wireless devices. I had a client whose garage door opener stopped working until we moved the receiver away from the chandelier.

These edge cases are exactly the kind of thing I wish I'd known three years ago. Now I document every one. The checklist I maintain for my team now catches about 47 potential errors per year – not bad for a guy who once ordered 400 bulbs without testing first.

One last thing: I've never fully understood why Feit Electric doesn't include a quick-start guide with usage times for grow lights. If anyone from Feit is reading this – a simple sticker on the light would save a lot of dead plants. (Really. Please.)