High Intensity Discharge Horticultural Lighting
HID lights consist of three components - the ballast, the lamp (bulb) and the reflector.
The ballast is simply a transformer that converts normal mains electicity into a form that can drive the high wattage lamp.
The reflector is a housing for the lamp, which improves efficiency by directing as much as possible of the light down to the plants. Even a bent sheet of metal will help, but a purpose designed horticultural reflector will help you get the most from your HID lights
The lamp provides the actual light. Horticultural lamps are usually rated at 250W, 400W, 600W or 1000W. Most horticultural lamps are High Pressure Sodium (HPS) or Metal Halide (MH)
Metal Halide lamps provide blue-white spectrum light, which is most beneficial to plants in their vegetative growing stage.
High Pressure Sodium lamps provide orange-yellow spectrum light, which is most beneficial to plants in their flowering/fruiting stage.
For the best results, it is ideal to use Metal Halide for most of your plants' life, and switch to HPS for flowering.
 | Compact BallastHigh Intensity Discharge Lighting Ballast |
 | Lightwave Digital BallastHorticultural HID Lighting Ballast |
 | Philips HID LampsPremium HID Lamps from one of the most respected names in the business. |
 | SuperNova ReflectorPremium HID Reflector |