Monday, June 24, 2013

Choosing The Right Grow Light For Your Indoor Hydroponic Garden

Indoor grow lights are mostly used around the globe to provide plants with appropriate light which are blocked away from natural light and the sun. Grow lights can be used in certain topographic area with less or no sun exposure all through the year. Before using specific glow tubes for your grow room, it is vital to know the basic kinds of plant grow lights available and when to use them for particular plants. You also need to know if the bulbs used are environment friendly and efficient to ensure that the selected one should not cost you more on energy consumption. Below mentioned are few common grow beams that are used by most indoor hydroponic gardeners.

Fluorescent Lights: Fluorescent lights are used for amateur gardens, and are extremely limited. They only produce white light and low intensity, thus can’t deliver level of lights required by the plants to grow potentially. They are really useful for seedlings and clones. As they deliver less heat, they can be placed close to the plant but experts recommend a distance of maximum six inches. Fluorescent lights are quite inexpensive but their bulbs need to be replaced frequently, this adds up to extra cost.

HID Grow Lights: HID- high-intensity discharge is one of the brightest indoor grow light. They can be position anywhere in your house, garage or greenhouse to complement the existing light; they can work as only source of light for your indoor plants. These bulbs supply electricity through a ceramic tube or a glass that contains a mixture of gases. The balance of gases determines the light color given off by the lamp. HID lamps are more efficient as compared to fluorescent lamps; a 400-watt beam emits as much as 800-watts of fluorescent tubes. All HID beams can run on normal household current of 120 volt but they still require special fittings with ballasts.  HID lights are divided into two categories such as metal halide and high-pressure sodium grow light.

-Metal Halide lights: This bulb emits light strongest at the blue end. It’s a bare and cool white light that give more compact and leafy growth. This light does not deform your plants color and hence they are an appropriate choice for plant display in a living space. Gold halide bulbs give off more orange/red light than normal metal halides. Halide lights should be replaced once every year.

-HPS lights: HPS grow lights last longer which can be replaced in every 18 months. They emit strong light of red/orange color that promotes flowering. Perhaps, HPS lighting might also produce gangly growth unless used with daylight or metal halide. If your goal is to get lots of bloom, then you can use high-pressure sodium beams. But be careful, as these light cast red/orange color that alter the color of thing they illuminate. This grow light is not suitable for living room, everything looks vaguely jaundiced. You can use 1000 watt hps grow light recommended for gardeners with limited space that promotes high yield and a perfect choice for your indoor garden.

LED grow lights: Light Emitting Diode lights are the latest grow bulbs available in the market today. LEDs are very economic to use, though you need to get used to it. They have specific range which is suitable for different plant growing stage. LED emits different types of spectrum so that you can easily change the range that suits your plant. LED lights have number of benefits as compared to other grow lights. They produce less heat and hence less chance of burning plants, that do not force you to purchase cooling fans. LED lights require big investment but they last for more than ten years and hence save you money in the long run. LED grow lights are more efficient for hydroponic gardens. The grow beams are offered with varied colors use at proper stages of vegetative growth.

To control the frequency of light and convert the dirty light into clean light, Baddass ballast can be highly effective. The Baddass ballast works on intelligence strike and continue to provide clean, consistent light to your plants always. 

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