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Hydroponic Fluorescent Lights Bulbs Lamps

Hydroponic System DiagramFluorescent Light
Fluorescent tubes offer a broader color spectrum and are available in a variety of kinds including bright white. cool white. warm white. plant bulbs. daylight and full spectrum. The combination of warm and cool white offer a broad light spectrum.

Fluorescent bulbs are relatively inexpensive, long-lasting and provide even, cool lighting.

The down-side to fluorescent lights is that they are low in intensity and need to be very close to the plants to be effective. Seedlings, cuttings and most house plants will benefit from fluorescent lighting. Listed below are some fluorescent lights to get you started with.

There are several options when it comes to lighting your indoor hydroponics system. One of them is fluorescent lighting. Fluorescent lighting is the least expensive of the lighting system for indoor hydroponics growing. It is also one of the more energy efficient and coolest running systems. Despite these pluses, there are also some significant drawbacks to fluorescent lighting.

The biggest drawback to fluorescent lights is that they do not provide the full spectrum of wavelengths in the optimum bands for photosynthesis. The newer T5 fluorescents are an improvement and are getting closer to covering the full spectrum needed for all phases of plant growth.

For the moment, fluorescent lighting is best suited for ornamental house plants and for starting seedlings, cuttings and clones. Full-spectrum fluorescent lights are also great for leafy produce like lettuce spinach and herbs. They fall short, however, when it comes to fruiting vegetables and flowering plants. Despite the improvements with the T5 bulbs, they are still lacking in the wavelengths most suited to fruiting and flowering, so they are not well suited to activities such as growing tomatoes.

If you are going to limit your growing, say, rafts of lettuce, you might well consider taking advantage of the low cost of fluorescent lighting. If you do choose this option, here are a few guidelines in utilizing them:

  • Since fluorescent lighting does not produce much in the way of heat, lights can be hung very near to     your plants. As a rule of thumb, 4-6 inches above the plants is sufficient.
  • When planning your system, plan on using about 40 watts of fluorescent lighting for each square foot of growing area. With T5 fluorescents, use one 4 foot tube for each two square feet of growing bed.
  • Fluorescent lights are not well suited for larger plants because the light they emit does not penetrate foliage as well as some other types of lighting (Notably, lighting of the High Intensity Discharge varieties), this can be overcome by placing lights to the sides as well as above larger plants.
  • You can split your operation, utilizing fluorescent lighting for vegetative stages of plant growth and moving your plants under an HID lighting system for flowering and fruiting.

Properly used, and with an understanding of its limitations, fluorescent lighting can be a useful tool in indoor hydroponics, they are economical to purchase and cheap to operate. They also produce less heat than other lights and therefore reduce the amount of cooling your growing space will require. They can be a big money  saver, if their spectrum meets your growing needs.

fluorescent

Robertson 1P20135 IEA432T8120N /B OEM-Pak of 10 Fluorescent eBallasts  picture

Robertson 1P20135 IEA432T8120N /B OEM-Pak of 10 Fluorescent eBallasts

$100.00



Hydro Planet T5 Grow Light 4ft 8 Bulbs Fixture  picture

Hydro Planet T5 Grow Light 4ft 8 Bulbs Fixture

$135.00



AgroBrite Fluorowing - Grow Light Kit - Hanging 125W Compact Horticultural Lamp picture

AgroBrite Fluorowing - Grow Light Kit - Hanging 125W Compact Horticultural Lamp

$70.99



25-Pack 4 Foot (45.75

25-Pack 4 Foot (45.75") Pure PAR Veg T5 Fluorescent Grow Light Bulbs - (25) F54T

$400.36



Sun Blaze 41 Supreme T5 High Output Fluorescent Fixture With Aluminum Reflector picture

Sun Blaze 41 Supreme T5 High Output Fluorescent Fixture With Aluminum Reflector

$30.00



Sun Blaze® T5 HO Fluorescent Strip Light Fixture 41 4ft 1 Lamp picture

Sun Blaze® T5 HO Fluorescent Strip Light Fixture 41 4ft 1 Lamp

$29.00



VIVOSUN 2FT 24W / 4FT 54W 6500K T5 Fluorescent Grow Light Bulbs - 5 Pack picture

VIVOSUN 2FT 24W / 4FT 54W 6500K T5 Fluorescent Grow Light Bulbs - 5 Pack

$32.39



VIVOSUN 2FT 4FT 6500K 24W 54W T5 Fluorescent Grow Light Bulbs - Pack of 5 picture

VIVOSUN 2FT 4FT 6500K 24W 54W T5 Fluorescent Grow Light Bulbs - Pack of 5

$42.49



Sun Blaze 24 - 2' 4 Lamp T5 Fluorescent Strip Light  - 120 Volt picture

Sun Blaze 24 - 2' 4 Lamp T5 Fluorescent Strip Light - 120 Volt

$35.00



2 Pack AeroGarden 100629 Fluorescent Grow Bulbs  26W Each  NEW GENUINE picture

2 Pack AeroGarden 100629 Fluorescent Grow Bulbs 26W Each NEW GENUINE

$40.00



Sun Blaze 41 T5 Fluorescent Strip With Bulb **NEW** picture

Sun Blaze 41 T5 Fluorescent Strip With Bulb **NEW**

$18.95



5 Pack VIVOSUN T5 Grow Light Bulbs 22” For 2 Ft 24W 6500K Fluorescent Tubes picture

5 Pack VIVOSUN T5 Grow Light Bulbs 22” For 2 Ft 24W 6500K Fluorescent Tubes

$37.77



LWF54T5HO865 20Case 4 FT 6500K T5 HO Fluorescent Grow Light Bulbs (20, 6500K - B picture

LWF54T5HO865 20Case 4 FT 6500K T5 HO Fluorescent Grow Light Bulbs (20, 6500K - B

$277.51



48

48" SUN BLAZE T5 High Output Fluorescent Grow Light & 8 Extra Bulbs

$80.00



LUMII EnviroGro T5 System - 2ft/60cm - 2 Fluorescent Lamp 48w Grow Light picture

LUMII EnviroGro T5 System - 2ft/60cm - 2 Fluorescent Lamp 48w Grow Light

$99.00



Mineralight UVS-11 Ultra Violet Products Short Wave Gem Mineral Lamp Works picture

Mineralight UVS-11 Ultra Violet Products Short Wave Gem Mineral Lamp Works

$39.00



AeroGarden Deluxe B 100340 Indoor Grow Light Bulb (Pack of 2)  Replacements picture

AeroGarden Deluxe B 100340 Indoor Grow Light Bulb (Pack of 2) Replacements

$16.19



SL0900156 Fluorescent CFL 6400K Self-Ballasted Light Bulb for Indoor Grow Lig... picture

SL0900156 Fluorescent CFL 6400K Self-Ballasted Light Bulb for Indoor Grow Lig...

$22.92



Sun System Sun Blaze 22 T5 High Output 120-Volt Fluorescent Fixture picture

Sun System Sun Blaze 22 T5 High Output 120-Volt Fluorescent Fixture

$70.00



6400K Bulbs, 4-Pack FLT5464 4-Feet 54-Watt T5 Agrobrite Fluorescent Replacement, picture

6400K Bulbs, 4-Pack FLT5464 4-Feet 54-Watt T5 Agrobrite Fluorescent Replacement,

$82.80