Hydroponic Lighting 101: Definitions of Grow Lights Explained

Hydroponics is the technique of growing plants without the use of soil. The roots of the plants are directly soaked up in water rich in nutrients. Since, no soil is required, hydroponics can be easily grown in areas with limited space and even indoors. If you are looking to grow hydroponic plants indoors or in places with limited supply of sunlight, you will need to install hydroponic grow lights for the plants.

Here are some of the factors that will help you determine the type of lighting that you will need.

• The area that you will need to light in your hydroponic garden is one of the factors in determining what bulbs and of what wattage needs to be used.
• The amount of light and for how much time the plants will require is another important factor to decide the type of lighting that you need to use.
• The amount of money you want to spend on the lighting will also influence your lighting system decision.
• Different plants will have different needs of sunlight. So, the kind of hydroponic plant you want to grow will also be a determining factor of the lighting system to use in your garden.

Types of Hydroponic Lighting Systems & Grow Lights

There are a number of different Hydroponics lighting systems available in the market today and each of them has their own pros and cons. Choosing the right lighting system for your indoor hydroponics plants is important for its growth.

HPS Grow Lights

HPS lights systems, which are the common household lights used in most homes today, were used as a source of light energy. However, with time, they were found to be inefficient and the spectrum of light it produces is not ideal for growing plants. The benefit of using HPS lights is that they are easily available, easy to install and costs much less than other lighting systems. However, they output more heat and use more energy that will shoot up your electricity bills.

Fluorescent Grow Lights

Fluorescent light systems are a good hydroponic lighting system and provide red and blue light is a major requirement for the growth of the plants. They are more efficient and energy saving than incandescent lights. However, they are not suitable for large plants as they do not penetrate enough for them to grow. If you still want to use fluorescent light system for large plants, use the lights above and also on the sides of the plant. A popular type of fluorescent lights is t5 grow lights that is used by many plant growers.

High Intensity Discharge Lights or HID Grow Lights

HID lights are the ideal choice for most hydroponic plant growers. HID lights uses two types of bulbs, namely High Pressure Sodium (HPS) and Metal Halide (MH) bulbs. They are used by growers because they offer high light output and are more efficient than incandescent lamps. Since HID lights produces large amount of heat, proper ventilation and reflector height from the plant should be considered when using them.

Light Emitting Diodes Lights or LED Grow Lights

LED’s are the newest technology that is being widely used by hydroponics plant growers. They use less electricity as compared to other light systems and thus is growing in popularity. They also lasts longer, most of them running for more than 50,000 hours making them more convenient. They also produces a specific light spectrum that the plants needs. However, the initial cost of putting up a LED light system is huge and may take up to a year or more to pay off the initial installation cost.   

Since there are a number of factors that you need to take into consideration when choosing a lighting system, it is important to do your research and make an informed decision. For different particular cases, the grow light system must be selected correctly to ensure the best outcome. You can find all kinds of grow lights from hydroponic grow light retailers and on amazon.