Ensuring the right plant growth with Hydroponic Grow Lights

When it comes to providing lighting to plants growing indoors, it becomes imperative to understand the type of lights available to ensure sustained growth. Here comes the important role of analyzing the limiting factor of plant growth, which in this case is light. It is a commonly acknowledged fact that plants require air, water, and sunlight to grow to their maximum potential. In case of growing indoors, however, the role of sunlight has to be factored out. So the question which naturally follows is this: What lights will be fit for a plant’s growth indoors? Choosing the right light becomes an important task because, in its absence, not even the best of other factors would make up for the loss of one.

Every light bulb produces different color wavelength and certain plants are amenable to certain hues of the bulb. The unit of measurement for a color spectrum of a light bulb is Kelvin (K). For an efficient outcome, it is important that the plants are subjected to high-quality light with appropriate measurement of the color range.

What types of hydroponic grow lights are available for plant growth?

There are a number of lighting systems out there designed for growing plants with differing levels of efficiencies.

1. Fluorescent Lamps: Fluorescent lamps have been considered a great choice in many households. They have been lately preferred over incandescent lamps which are known to pose a burden on energy efficiency. One of the major types of a fluorescent lamp is the Compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL) which possesses a longer life and runs on less power. It is extremely effective for small households and small growers for such lamps do not require complex wiring. Using a lamp reflector along with CFL can adequately direct the light on plants instead of scattering it.

2. HID Lamp: HID stands for High-Intensity Discharge. HID lamps find application in large areas such as warehouses, streets, etc. HID has garnered a special place into indoor plant growth for it is known to work on high light output. It is suggested to hang HID lamps at a reasonable height from plants since they produce high-intensity heat.

3. LED Lamps: One of the offshoots of emerging efficient technology is the use of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs). In the world of indoor botany, the preference for LEDs as a source of light is growing by the day. LEDs are cost-effective, utilize less power and are environment-friendly. Moreover, they provide the correct spectrum range for plants to grow.

What factors should be considered for choosing Hydroponic Grow lights?

A lot of factors are to be put under consideration while purchasing a light for indoor plants. These include the budget of a consumer, area of the enclosure, type of plants and ventilation system.

Normally for first-time growers and small households with lower budgets, it is best to go for fluorescent tubes, especially CFLs. For large areas and budgets, HIDs can be used. Overall speaking LEDs work the best for growing over a long gestation period.