Ask the experts: Lighting

As you look around your business, you may be wracking your brain trying to find more ways to save some green so you can put some of that money back into your business. As you explore ways to do that, watch the light bulb go on over your head – literally. One area you can reduce your costs is by paying some attention to your lighting fixtures, so Greenhouse Management spoke with James Grouzos, U.S. sales engineer for P.L. Light Systems, about ways to do just that.

Q: How can growers save money when operating their lighting fixtures?

A: More and more, people are getting energy-conscious. There are newer fixtures on the market that will give you better efficiencies, but always look at what you get versus what you save. If your fixture offers to save you energy but give you less light, you’re not really saving money. The best answer is to get a lighting layout, buy a fixture from a reputable company and keep the fixture maintained for optimal performance. You can buy the most efficient fixture, but failing to maintain it can cause you to lose money.

Q. What should growers look for?

A: Look for a fixture using bulbs that give you the highest PAR (photosynthetic active radiation) to your plants efficiently. Request a lighting layout from the manufacturer showing uniformity, light levels and amp draws to determine how efficient the fixtures will be.

Q. What kind of maintenance is involved?

A: If you’re using poor bulbs, cheap reflectors or if you are not maintaining your fixtures, you’re not going to be using the energy efficiently. Smaller reflectors get the light to the plants quicker and allow more natural light to reach the crops. Poor bulbs will offer light that may be bright to the human eye but will not give the PAR light the plants need for good growth.

Bulbs should be changed at 10 to 20 percent loss to assure you’re getting optimal performance. If you lose 20 percent of your output, you have to run the fixture 20 percent longer to get the performance of a new bulb. The same is true about cleaning reflectors. You want the bulb and reflector to provide the maximum output for the energy you’re using. Capacitors in the ballast also need to be checked and replaced every few years. They tend to get weak and give less power to the bulbs.