The Types Of Greenhouse Lighting.

You have two types of greenhouse lights: one is supplementary and the other one is growing. Lets start with the supplementary lights.

-Supplementary lights are manufactured for the purpose of replacing daylight and to give you enough light to see what you are doing when working in your greenhouse on dark days.

-Growing lights are designed to force the plant to grow out of season. The results when working with these types of lights are that you get a more sophisticated result and you have more control of the quality of light.

You see that the choice of greenhouse lights depends on what you have in mind. Are you going to work in your greenhouse in the winter and just need a light to see where you’re going, or do you want to start growing highly priced exotic plants that need a lot of light? The choices for supplementary lighting are huge. It can be plain incandescent bulbs or maybe lights that are powered by wind or a solar power system or some other sort of lighting. It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to figure this one out.

For a small price you can have a nice set of growing lights. You can have units of 15 watt luminous lamps that you can use on a small group of plants. There is no need for a hobbyist to spent a huge amount of money on greenhouse lighting, you can have a small scale mercury lighting system for around $100, which will help your plants grow really rapidly. There is also an option to get high pressure sodium lamps as they tend to live twice as long.  You should also think about reflectors, timers and other accessories to create your own customized greenhouse lighting system.

You Have To Do Your Research.

When you are going to get yourself a lighting system, you need to take into account some aspects such as how much heat does your greenhouse lighting system produce and what is its electrical efficiency. Also, are you going to use low energy bulbs because they use less energy which means that they produce less heat and are cheaper to use.

if you’re going for growing greenhouse lights you must have a very clear idea about the purpose of these lights, and you also have to make sure that the lights you are going to use in your greenhouse suit the needs of the plants you want to grow in your greenhouse. Let me give you an example. Some lights produce more lights of a certain color, such as some lamps produce more red or blue light. This can have a huge effect on the development of your plants, especially when you are growing exotic plants or flowers. So make sure you know what kind of growing light you are buying. Do your research!

And then you have the lighting control of your greenhouse which is just as important as the lighting itself. You will have to keep a close eye on temperature, humidity and ventilation. Light has a special effect on plants and the plant growth, especially on flowering plants and with this new power you can grow the plants you love, even out of season.

When you do your research on greenhouse heaters you must take into consideration, besides keeping the greenhouse at the right temperature level, what the costs are in purchasing and using the heater, how easy it is to operate and also how easy it is to install the heater in your greenhouse.

I have compiled a list of greenhouse heater facts you should take into consideration before you go out and buy yourself a greenhouse heater.

What Kind Of Greenhouse Heaters Are There?

- Electric heaters. If you have a small greenhouse then a electric heater is more suitable, because they run on electricity and there are no fumes so there is no need for any extra ventilation.

- Gas heaters.These greenhouse heaters are, like the name says, fueled with gas. This can be natural gas or gas that you can get in a tank or bottle. When you use gas heaters make sure that you have extra ventilation, as there will be some fumes because of the combustion. Another thing is that you will need to keep an eye on these heaters and make sure that they are placed in a safe spot.

- Paraffin heaters. This is a very basic way of heating your greenhouse. When you use paraffin heaters you have to take into account the fact that you will be refilling them a lot and there will be a lot of fumes being released into your greenhouse. Like gas heaters, make sure that you have a good ventilation system in place.

We just talked about heater combustion. Now I will go a little bit deeper on this subject.

- Open heater combustion. This type of heater uses the air inside your greenhouse for the combustion of the fuel it uses. As long as the air inside your greenhouse doesn’t get contaminated, this will work fine. Make sure that flammable liquids are not placed near the heater, but if you use common sense you would have figured that one out on your own.

- Separated heater combustion. A lot of gas heaters work on this system. The gas heater will get its air from outside and also the air intake comes from the outside. This is the best solution because if it is all inside then you don’t have  full control of the air inside your greenhouse.

- Sealed heater combustion. This type looks a lot like the separated heater combustion, the only difference here is that the burner has no access to any of the air inside the building. Sealed combustion heaters use the intake for fresh air and the exhaust to get rid of the fumes.

Greenhouse Heater Ventilation.

When you don’t use an electrical heater but use one which uses fossil fuels like gas, diesel, paraffin or whatever, then you’re going to need some good ventilation and I am going to tell you about the options you have when it comes to ventilating your greenhouse.

- Unventilated. This is not the best option as the heated gases are directly released into your greenhouse. Don’t do this for too long because some plants might not adapt to it and die.

- Gravity. The air that is exhausted from this sort of greenhouse heater should be rising through the pipes and released outside. The vents should be placed vertically and the air that is expelled should be replaced with fresh air from outside.

- Power. Power vented heaters are equipped with an air blower that pushes the air through the pipes and outside your greenhouse. You can position these vents horizontally or vertically and the pipes that you use need to be smaller, making it more efficient.

- Direct. This type of ventilation is specially for the sealed combustion heaters. Here you only have one pipe with both the inlet and the exhaust, with one pipe being placed inside the other. The amount of air that this type of venting throws out is the same as it takes in so there is no need for an external air supply.

Mounting the heater can be a tough thing to do, here are some tips and facts about mounting a greenhouse heater.

- Hanging. With this type of mounting you will be placing the heater directly on the ceiling. A big advantage is that you will save a lot of room on the floor. Make sure it is hung high enough so that it doesn’t become an obstruction.

- Wall. These kind of heaters are mounted on the wall and they blow towards the outside of the structure. You won’t be needing floor space but the space in front of the vent needs to remain clear.

- Floor. This type is placed on the floor and is not mounted on anything. It can be a disadvantage because it can take up a lot of space.

As you can see there are a lot of greenhouse heaters to choose from and you should make a careful decision on what kind of heater you are going to buy. You can also seek the advice of a local expert to get even better results.

So to take out the influence of the weather, you can choose to buy a greenhouse. If you have a tight budget then maybe you could buy a used greenhouse. The structure of a greenhouse, no matter if it is old or new, has the same functions. And that is to help you grow your crops in a healthy controlled environment. The first thing you need to do is to measure the area and to write the measurements on a piece of paper for future reference.

Now the next step is to decide what kind of used greenhouse you want to buy. It depends on where you live and what type of weather you have in your area. If you live in a area where there is a lot of wind and rain then the best choice is to buy a metal greenhouse frame, because it wont be blown off the ground when a heavy storm comes. You also have your greenhouse panels that make up the other half of your greenhouse. They also need to be strong to endure storms and they also need to transfer the UV light in a proper manner.

It would be better if you used panels of fiberglass or plastic, as they will save you a lot of money not only when purchasing the panels but also durability wise, because glass tends to shatter in heavy storms. Another thing you have to think about is that how cold the winters are and how hot the summers are. When you buy a used greenhouse you have to make sure that it contains a heater for the winters. If there isn’t one then you might have to buy one yourself.

You can power these heaters with electricity, diesel or gas and the size of the heater depends on the size of your greenhouse. If you live in a area where it is very hot in the summers you should consider a good ventilation system, because you will need to make sure that your crops will get sufficient oxygen and carbon dioxide to grow.

With farming you can’t expect a monthly paycheck. It takes time for the crops to grow and harvest and sell. Buying a used greenhouse might speed up the process since it gives you the option to grow crops the whole year round.

Be advised that even used greenhouses can be expensive to buy. But if you have a long term goal and if you can be patient enough then you will see that you can compete with farmers who have been in the business for years. Don’t forget that a used greenhouse is just a temporary thing. When you start making enough money you can invest in a brand new greenhouse. Just keep your eyes on the prize.