What is the difference between HPS and MH and fluorescent lights?

See “What kind of lighting do I need to grow plants?”

All Three are different Designed Lamps that all produce light vital to the hydroponics process.

High Intensity Discharge (HID) Includes:

HPS = High Pressure Sodium

MH = Metal Halide

Fluorescent Lights = A Gas Discharge Lamp That uses electricity to excite mercury vapour in argon or neon gas.

These lamps can be altered to provide the right spectrum rating for growing or flowering plants with the right Kelvin and lumen/photon ratings.

What kind of lighting do I need to grow plants?

There are two primary types of lighting used to grow plants. High Intensity Discharge (HID) is by far the most common, and includes Metal Halide (MH), which is used primarily for the vegetative stage of growth, and High Pressure Sodium (HPS), which is used during the flowering or fruiting stage. You can find more information on HID lighting further down in this FAQ section.

Another popular type of plant lighting is Fluorescent lighting. Fluorescent lighting is used primarily for starting seedlings and cuttings, but some are strong enough to grow short plants from start to finish. It is important to note that not all fluorescent lighting is the same and only certain types should be used for growing plants. Most (if not all) standard fluorescent tubes are fine for illuminating a garage or office, but usually lack the spectrum and intensity needed to sustain plant growth. It should also be noted that if you are growing houseplants that require very little light to sustain growth, you can probably get away with some of the inferior types of fluorescent lights. But, if you are growing plants that need plenty of natural sunlight in order to thrive (such as vegetables and flowers), you will be extremely unhappy with the results you get from these bulbs.

Aussieponics Sells one type of fluorescent bulb suitable for plant growth:

GrowLush Energy Saver
These bulbs are available in a rating of 100W = 400W Fluoro Light Output. They produce a higher lumen output than regular fluorescents, and are available in 6400K (daylight) for vegetative growth and 2700K (red) to enhance flowering. Unlike regular fluorescents, compact fluorescents do not require a fixture, since the ballast is built in to the base of the bulb. They require a socket (the same type of socket you would use for an HID bulb) and a power cord, and can be used with or without a reflector. Using a reflector, however, will direct more of the light down onto the plants. Another common use for compact fluorescents is to hang them vertically, usually without a reflector, in between large plants to provide supplemental side lighting. Compact Fluorescents can be used for growing houseplants, orchids, or for starting seedlings or cuttings. For plants that do not require full sunlight, or for varieties that tend not to stretch under weaker light, these bulbs can be used for the entire vegetative stage, and in some cases flowering as well. They are great because they can produce little heat getting them right up close to the plants and use about the same energy as your household lights. These lamps also make great side growing lamps for your setup, or will work just as good as a standalone budget setup.

What size (wattage) lighting system do I need? (measured in foot)

There are two things to consider when deciding what size lighting system to use: the actual area in which the plants will be taking up, and how tall you want your plants to grow. 150-175 watt lights including fluorescent lamps are primarily used for seedlings or cuttings, though they can be used for growing plants to maturity if the plants are kept short up to 2' square. 250 watt systems are good for areas up to 2.5' square at the most, as long as the plants don't get taller than about 2'. 400 watt systems cover a primary area of about 3' x 3', or up to 4' x 4' max. 600 watt systems cover a primary area of about 4' x 4', or up to 5' x 5' max. 1000 watt systems cover from 4' x 6' up to 5' x 7'. The taller you plan to grow your plants, the higher the wattage needed. This is because the light intensity diminishes by 50% for every foot you move away from the bulb. So, if your plants reach 4' tall, then the leaves at the bottom of the plant are receiving only around 12% of the light that the top of the plant is getting!

What are the main benefits with buying from Aussieponics?

At the time of this writing, Aussieponics is the only online Shop that offers growers the ability to choose the reflector you want with the ballast you want and the bulb that you want. This enables growers to choose from literally hundreds of different lighting configurations to ensure that you are getting exactly what you want, without paying for something you didn't want (if only someone had offered this when we were first starting out as growers...!).

We are an appoved e-distributer for GrowLush and stock their full range of products as well as sometimes stocking other brand name products.

We carry only name brand lighting systems because of the fact that most, if not all store-made or "no-name" systems lack the proper approvals, meaning that they have not gone through the extensive and extremely expensive testing process necessary to ensure that they are completely safe for you to use at home or in the greenhouse. It's just not worth taking the risk that you might return home one day and be greeted by the fire department because someone sold you an inferior lighting system! (In case you're wondering, GrowLush lighting systems are manufactured for Australia by one of the largest manufacturers/distributors of lighting in Australia.

The main differences between the various brands of lighting systems are found in the reflectors and the ballasts, so rather than talking about the different brands, let's instead talk about the differences in the components that make up these systems.

BALLASTS:

Aussieponics offers a Wide range of Ballasts Brought to you by growlush

GrowLush Ballasts are a High quality, energy saving ballast, built for safety and performance. The overall quality, fit and finish of the product, not to mention the incredibly affordable price is very impressive. Features include: die cast aluminium ballast housing, louvers for cooling, rubber feet, multi volt ballast, 8 foot grounded power cord, 15 foot detachable lamp cord and a white powder coated finish. They are now covered by a Lifetime warranty and are available in the following wattages: MH250, MH400, MH1000, HPS250, HPS400, HPS 600 and HPS 1000.

Growlush Euro Ballasts are high quality ballasts that are made from the design in Europe which run on different amps and power levels. You can read more about Euro Ballasts and Lamp in the shop categories on our website.

REFLECTORS:

The reflector is undoubtedly the single most important factor to consider when choosing a lighting system. The reflector dictates whether the light is concentrated on the plants, or splashed up against the walls. While some bulbs are a little brighter than others, a quality reflector can reflect up to 50% more light straight down onto the plants than a lower quality reflector. Here’s a common mistake that first-time growers make. They see a reflector that is advertised as covering up to an 8’ x 8’ area (with a 1000W bulb installed). Then they see another reflector advertised as covering only a 4’ x 6’ area, and for more money, too! Which would you choose? Well, consider this: Let’s say that a 1000W HPS bulb puts out 140,000 lumens (lumens is a measure of light intensity). Now, let’s say that you have a jar containing 140,000 marbles, each marble representing one lumen. You pour this jar into an area that measures 8’ x 8’. You get a pretty thin layer of marbles. Now, pour this same jar into a 4’ x 6’ area, and you have a much thicker layer of marbles, right? Is it starting to make sense? Stay away from the reflectors that throw the light all over the place, unless you are growing houseplants! The smaller the area covered, the brighter it will be, and the better your plants will grow and yield. Horizontal hoods are the best choice for plants that require a lot of light, such as most vegetables & flowers. Horizontal hoods direct the light straight down on the plants, throwing more intense light over a smaller area. This is by far the most popular choice among growers. Air-cooled hoods have flanges that allow you to hook an exhaust fan to the hood to suck out the hot air generated by the bulb, thus reducing the amount of heat in the grow room.

Aussieponics offers the largest selection of reflectors anywhere, by one of Australias leading manufacturers "GrowLush"

You can find detailed information on all of the reflectors we currently carry in the Reflectors category on our website shop.

How often do I need to replace my bulbs?

Aussieponics recommends that HPS bulbs should be replaced at least every 12 months (8 months or less is ideal). MH bulbs should be replaced every 9 months (6 months or less is ideal) for maximum efficiency. The use of a light meter would be the best and most accurate way in which to measure your bulbs output as well as to help with bulb replacement timing. But its basically up to the grower as to when a replacement should occur.

What is the difference between an MH Regular and Super Bulb and how do I know which one I need to buy?

A Metal Halide Super Bulb has a higher lumen (light) output, and is almost always position oriented. These bulbs have a pin sticking out of the side of the mogul (base) where the bulb screws into the socket. These bulbs require a position oriented socked that is designed to catch the pin so that the bulb is rotated into the correct position, otherwise the bulb will not perform as expected. In addition, these Super MH bulbs must be burned in a horizontal position only. All other bulbs (non-position oriented), including the MH Regular bulb, can be burned in either a horizontal or vertical position (i.e. they are universal) unless otherwise noted in the individual bulb description.

What is a recommend lighting schedule for Vegetation and Flowering?

For Clones/Seedlings and Vegetative Growth Aussieponics recommends using an 18 hours on/6 hours off lighting schedule. In order to induce your plants to flower we recommend subjecting your plants to a 12 hours on/12 hours off lighting schedule.

Is it OK to leave my lights on 24 hours per day?

Aussieponics does not recommend running lights 24 hours under any circumstances. Your plants need a time to “rest” and grow. This is achieved during the dark period. Running your lights for 24 hour cycles may have a detrimental affect on your lighting system and your plants, not allowing them to develop properly. In addition, many plant species do most of their feeding during the night, especially when daytime temperatures are high or humidity levels are low. Once again this is up to the grower.

I am worried about how much a hydroponics setup will cost me to run. How do I determine how much my electric bill will increase by using a lighting system?

First, find out what your electricity provider is charging you per kilowatt hour (KWH). In Melbourne, it’s approximately $0.12/KWH, but this number will vary from city to city. This number represents what a 1000W lighting system will cost you per hour to run. So, if you have a 400W system, the number to use in the following steps would be .04, for a 600W system it would be .06, and so on. Next, multiply this number by the number of hours per day you plan to operate your lighting system. This will give you the cost per day. Finally, multiply this number by 30 to see approximately what it will cost per month.

Refer to the following example:
0.10 (KWH cost for a 1000W lighting system) x 12 (hours per day) x 30 (days per month) = $36.00 per month

I still have an unanswered question, where can I go?

You can contact Aussieponics via email: info@aussieponics.com

Or via our eBay account: http://stores.ebay.com.au/Aussieponics

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