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Guides
Houseplants and windowsills first. Tents and hydroponic systems sit with Hydroponics Guide.
Basics
- Do I need a grow light for a UK winter?
When a UK houseplant needs a timered LED, and when moving it closer to the window is enough. December day length, north-facing rooms and leggy growth.
- How many hours, and why the lamp needs a night
Photoperiods for UK houseplants, herbs and seedlings, the RHS 16-hour example, and why a grow light should not run all night.
- PPFD, DLI and distance, in plain English
What PPFD and DLI mean for a houseplant shelf, how to read a maker's distance chart, and why an indicative band is not a PAR-meter reading.
Buying
- Grow lights for UK houseplants, a spec-based shortlist
SANSI bulbs, Barrina shelf bars, a clip gooseneck and a compact Spider Farmer panel, with maker specifications only. No test claims.
- Full spectrum or blurple for houseplants
Why a warm or neutral white full-spectrum LED usually beats a purple blurple lamp in a UK living room, and what those words do and do not mean.
- What grow-light listings exaggerate
Equivalent watts, lumens, room-sized coverage and the other claims to ignore when you buy a grow light for a UK houseplant.
Costs
- What a grow light costs to run in the UK
Work out grow-light running cost from watts, hours and the Ofgem electricity cap, with the October to December 2026 rate dated on the page.
Herbs
- Grow lights for kitchen herbs
Basil, parsley and chilli on a UK kitchen counter: photoperiod, warmth, splash, and when a windowsill is still the better lamp.
Propagation
- Propagation lights and heat mats in the UK
Light height, humidity domes and heat mats for cuttings and seed trays on a UK windowsill, including seeds that will later go outside.
Shelves
- Grow lights for shelves and glass cabinets
LED bars for open shelves and IKEA-style glass cabinets in UK homes: length, daisy-chains, heat, cables, and no-drill fixing if you rent.
- Timers, cables and shelf layout
How to time a grow light, route the cable on a shelf, and avoid chaining extension leads in a UK home.
Types
- Bulb, bar, panel or gooseneck
Which grow-light format fits a UK home: an E27 or B22 bulb, a shelf bar, a small panel, or a clip-on gooseneck.
- E27 and B22 grow bulbs for UK lamps
Screw and bayonet fittings, why a grow bulb should not live inside a closed shade, and what to check on a UK plug and voltage.