Grow light garden.

[Kristen]

Got it! Thanks for the explanation. I suppose putting the "lumens" on the packet isn't really going to be a figure that Joe Public is going to be able to use to compare new-fangled bulbs with new-tech low-energy ones.

I have a range of plants under my lamp, so a greater need for penetration of the canopy. But as you indicate many of mine have burnt leaf tips where I was tardy in adjusting the light height!

I was thinking of getting a second MH Lamp for the seedlings that are about to start, but (given that it will only be used for seedlings) I might as well try a CFL instead. Only need it for a couple of winter months, so not much issue, either way, with running cost in my case, and I run it overnight on economy-7

[Two_Sheds]

Gosh those CFLs are enormous! Chilli Growing

[Aberdeenplotter]

I recently bought an LED grow lamp from Grow Northern. It is primarily blue LEDS which are great for vegetative growth and that is what I am using it for. The lamp was expensive even after getting a discount because of my membership of the NVS but the idea was to reduce the cost of providing artificial light over the winter months and the savings in that respect should claw back the purchase price in a single season. The lamp has a few fans fitted to help it run cool and I suspect the fans will be drawing a fair bit of power but the end result is that the lamp can be virtually touching the seedlings and still not damage them.

I've asked Grow Northern if it would be possible to produce an led growlamp powered from a 12 volt battery trickle charged from a solar panel similar to the ones marketed by Maplin. It has been confirmed that in theory it can be done (but not be fan cooled) and Grow Northern's engineers are investigating further.

Free light seems like a reasonable objective.

[richardbees]

I germinate and grow on my early tomato and pepper plants using just a 100w bulb in an Anglepoise lamp and have done for years. It serves the purpose until the seedlings are < 2" high by which time it's warm enough to prick them out into 4" pots in the GH (providing heat(paraffin) if frost is forecast

[Kristen]

I've got some seedlings under a single bog-standard fluorescent tube (which I had lying around). They are in a line directly to the side of the bulb with the window on the other side. The bulb is within 1/2" of the seed leaves. They are definitely a bit leggy, so I am not at all sure that a single bog-standard tube is producing enough Lumens (but I've got red spider on the plants under my MH bulb, so I don't want to risk using that for any new-season seedlings this year)

[Potstubsdustbins]

Aberdeenplotter,

Re fan cooling on 12 volts. It is possible to run a fan on as little as 6 volts though I am not sure what the amp draw would be.

My other hobby is building radio controlled model boats and though I have never had need to do it myself I do know that some of the chaps who run their electric motors very fast for racing purposes use fan cooling. They run from anywhere from 6v to plus of 20v and at their level of competition the motor windings would melt without cooling.

I will try to find out more and let you know.

Colin.

[Aberdeenplotter]

Cheers. I don't really think that the fan is essential as led's are supposed to burn cool anyway. Any info you get gratefully received though.

[starloc]

Gosh those CFLs are enormous! Chilli Growing

They are arent they......you should see the dust when you drop one

[Potstubsdustbins]

AP Re fans,

E-mailed a friend his advice is that he use's a 60mm or 80 mm dia fan (dependant on room), running on 12v. Draw is 0.20 amps per hour. Good car battery 60 amp hour therefore fully charged should run fan for 300hrs less lighting use. Available from Maplins £4-99p.

Hope this helps Colin

[Kristen]

Just curious - do you need fans with LED - or even CFL? I assumed they didn't give up much heat?

[Aberdeenplotter]

AP Re fans,

E-mailed a friend his advice is that he use's a 60mm or 80 mm dia fan (dependant on room), running on 12v. Draw is 0.20 amps per hour. Good car battery 60 amp hour therefore fully charged should run fan for 300hrs less lighting use. Available from Maplins £4-99p.

Hope this helps Colin

Cheers matey

[starloc]

Just curious - do you need fans with LED - or even CFL? I assumed they didn't give up much heat?

Theres no real need for a fan to remove heat as leds and cfl have such low heat output , but if completely enclosed in a grow box , a fan can be usefull to circulate air to give the plants co2 and o2 that they need to grow, also a plant grown in a gentle breeze will have a stronger stem and less chance of damping off

just pointing the lamp at a seed trays / plants in a room, but not sealed in a box theres no need for a fan at all

If you wanted to use one, you could use an old pc cooling fan

With the giant cfl bulbs, ive had one lying in contact with the top of a 1.5m by 1m heated propagator and it doesnt soften the clear plastic lid , or add any real heat to the inside of the box other than it doesnt feel freezing cold, no heat to speak off

[Kristen]

...

just pointing the lamp at a seed trays / plants in a room, but not sealed in a box theres no need for a fan at all

Thanks, that was the scenario I was thinking of.