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Light Output Comparison


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Light Output Comparison Chart

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Grow Light Comparison Chart

Grow

Light

Watts

Growing Area

Heat Output

Recommended Light Height Above Plants

Bulb Life
(hours)

Primary

Secondary

Incandescent

150

0.5' x 0.5'

1' x 1'

Medium

1' to 2'

2,000

CFL

40

1' x 1'

2' x 2'

Very Low

3" to 1.5'

10,000

CFL

125

2' x 2'

3' x 3'

Low

6" to 2'

10,000

CFL

200

2.5' x 2.5'

4' x 4'

Low

6" to 2'

10,000

2' T5 (single)

24

1' x 2'

1.5' x 2.5'

Very Low

3" to 2'

20,000

2' T5 (2 bulbs)

48

1.5' x 2.5'

2' x 3'

Very Low

3" to 2'

20,000

2' T5 (4 bulbs)

96

2' x 3'

3' x 4'

Low{C}

6" to 2'

20,000

4' T5 (single)

54

1' x 4'

1.5' x 5'

Very Low

3" to 2'

20,000

4' T5 (4 bulbs)

216

2.5' x 5'

4' x 6'

Low

6" to 3'

20,000

4' T5 (8 bulbs)

432

4' x 6'

6' x 7'

Low

1' to 3'

20,000

HPS

250

3' x 3'

5' x 5'

Medium

2' to 3'

24,000

HPS

400

5' x 5'

8' x 8'

High

3' to 4'

24,000

HPS

600

6' x 6'

10' x 10'

High

3' to 4'

24,000

HPS

1000

8' x 8'

12' x 12'

Very High

4' to 6'

24,000

MH

250

3' x 3'

5' x 5'

Medium

2' to 3'

10,000

MH

400

5' x 5'

8' x 8'

High

3' to 4'

10,000

MH

1000

8' x 8'

12' x 12'

Very High

4' to 6'

10,000

Growing Area
The growing areas listed above assume the light bulbs are being used in a fixture
with a reflector similar in quality to the ones offered on this web site.

Primary - Use the area in this column if the grow light will be the main or only source of light for the plants. This includes areas where minimal light comes {C}from windows or standard house/office lights.

Secondary - Use the area in this column if the grow light will be used in a greenhouse or other area that receives direct sunlight for part of the day to supplement the light from the sun.

Heat Output
The chart above uses a combination of the light bulb temperature and the dimensions of the bulb(s).

Bulb

Average Bulb Temperature

.

Bulb

Average Bulb Temperature

T5

100 to 120° F

Incandescent

220 to 260° F

CFL

130 to 180° F

MH/HPS

450 to 550° F

How Long Should Grow Lights Run?

This depends on the type of plant. Foliage plants need about 14-16 hours of light per day. Flowering plants need 12-16 hours of light per day. You should give most plants at least 8 hours of total darkness daily. Try to have the lights on at the same time every day. You can get an automatic timer for your lights to make it easier.

The Electrical Cost to Run a Grow Light System

To get the operating cost per hour for a light, take the lights combined wattage, and divide it by 1000 to get the kilowatts used. Then multiply that number by the amount your electric company charges per kilowatt hour. HID lights will use the number of watts it emits per hour, ie; 600w system will use 600 watts per hour (regardless of spectrum).
(light wattage output / 1000) x electricity cost per kilowatt hour = Operating cost per hour
operating cost per hour x hours used per month = Operating cost per month

How the Sunlight Affects Plant Growth
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200 - 280 nm

UVC ultraviolet range which is extremely harmful to plants because it is highly toxic.

280 - 315 nm

Includes harmful UVB ultraviolet light which causes plants colors to fade.

315 - 380 nm

Range of UVA ultraviolet light which is neither harmful nor beneficial to plant growth.

380 - 400 nm

Start of visible light spectrum. Process of chlorophyll absorption begins. UV protected plastics ideally block out any light below this range.

400 - 520 nm

This range includes violet, blue, and green bands. Peak absorption by chlorophyll occurs, and a strong influence on photosynthesis. (promotes vegetative growth)

520 - 610 nm

This range includes the green, yellow, and orange bands and has less absorption by pigments.

610 - 720 nm

This is the red band. Large amount of absorption by chlorophyll occurs, and most significant influence on photosynthesis. (promotes flowering and budding)

720 - 1000 nm

There is little absorption by chlorophyll here. Flowering and germination is influenced. At the high end of the band is infrared, which is heat.

1000+ nm

Totally infrared range. All energy absorbed at this point is converted to heat.

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yes very good thread, nice eplanations.

that brings me to a interesting question. what do your electric companies ask for a kW/h ?

would be interesting to know if different politics affect electric prices and how much.

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Thx for the information. For Beginners its a easy way to find out which lights fit perfectly for which room and setups. I wish i had read such a thread before is spent too much money on buying different light systems to test whats best 4 my setup.

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BAM   http://www.greenspothydroponics.com/fluorescent-lights-for-plant-growth/

 

Based on... http://www.uaf.edu/files/ces/publications-db/catalog/anr/HGA-00432.pdf

 

"Critical experiments show that maximum growth of most plants under cool white fluorescent lights will be equivalent to or better than that obtained under the blue-red phosphors. Work by V. A. Helson, Canada Department of Agriculture, Ottawa; and J. W. Bartok and R. A. Ashley, University of Connecticut, indicate that there is no advantage to the use of blue-red fluorescent tubes except for aesthetic purposes. Some of the names of these special tubes are Grolux, Plant-Gro, Plant Light, Vita Light and Optima. The higher cost of these fluorescent tubes may be justified on experimental or aesthetic grounds but is hardly warranted on the basis of plant growth."

 

LOOK for PAR and PUR studies of t5 HO (High Output), VHO (Very High Output) ballasted fluorescent coming from growershouse.com review Lab in 2015. You may be very surprised at the throughput, affordability and long use life of these high bay lighting systems based on Phillips VHO ballasted (JOP-2595-G) fixtures and relatively new lamp technology.

 

heres a bit on LUX PAR PUR of t5 HO lamps :   http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2009/3/review

 

Please note the PAR comparison between 36" t5 HO fixture, LED, and the 250W double ended MH lamps in paragraphs 2 & 3 under test data and information provided in table 2 . also note the relative values of the fixtures tested and the distance parameters. given the fact that we know t5s can be held closer to the organisms than mH (due to the heat which is noted in the above link). point in case is argued with validity under the "discussions" portion of the following paper.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2010/2/aafeature2

 

 

I have purchased a pair of these 2'X4' 8 t5 tube VHO fixtures - 8 Ampere @110V 760w  and I can tell you they are really really bright and very cool running and put out 7200+ lum per 4' 95w t5 tube (the Uno horticulture Himalaya XHO 110W lamps claim to put out even more) 8300l/ft2

 

Claim: "XTREME HIGH OUTPUT and HIGHER PERFORMANCE have been forged together to give birth to The UNO Horticulture VHO T5 System ! The UNO VHO T5 Fixture produces color and light much closer to that of regular daylight than any competition resulting in tighter inter nodal spacing, thicker stem-walls heartier foliage, and natural increases in extracts. These units emit more lumens per square foot than traditional HID lighting!! But without all the heat"

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