Grow Ljghts For Greenhouse

[brenda_88keys]

Hello All!
I have a new greenhouse that my husband has almost completed. The greenhouse is 8' X 12'. I have done just loads of investigating what kind of lighting would be best for growing starters through mature plants consisting of vegetables, herbs, and flowers, while being economical to run. The information out there is majorly confusing to say the least!! We would appreciate
any suggestions that you might have! Thank you!

 

[oneeye]

When using lighting in a closed area one should consider the amount of heat, amount of light, and light spectrum that is suited for plants. All that being said, I use HID lights when I want to add heat to the grow area like in Winter. HID stands for HIgh Intensity Discharge lamps and are basically the same as street lights. The watts sizes are 250, 400, 600, and 1000 and come in two different lights, High Pressure Sodium and Metal halide. These are what the pros use in their greenhouses to extend the photoperiod. The size of your greenhouse would call for two 400 or 600 watt lights to light up and heat your greenhouse.

The other lighting type light which are somewhat new, are LED which stands for Light Emitting Diode lights. They run much cooler and can't be used as a source of heating but make up for it by producing a lot of lumens. They are expensive to buy but use much less electricity in the long run. I have a two 2000 watt LED lights and they work well, but I prefer HID for plant production.

The last lighting that most people underestimate are fluorescent lights which come in many different watts and size fixtures. The sizes are T5, T8, T12 the T stands for tubular and comes in 2ft. 4ft, and 8ft fixtures. I use fluorescent lighting in my all year growing room for my mother plants, cuttings, and succulents. I run the lights 14 hrs a day on a timer and the plants love it. Plus I love it too. You can use them in a greenhouse but they are not good sources for heating in the Winter but will heat up a small room like mine 7x7. I run my temps in my grow room at, with the lights on 81 degrees max. I hope that helps.

 

[Sheal]

Welcome Brenda.

 

[oneeye]

Never mind

 

[PolycabIndia]

Hello, you can use Incandescent bulbs For greenhouse these bulbs are have been the industry standard for low-intensity lighting and are very effective due to the ratio of red and far-red light emitted.