Heating pads for summer blooming Phalaenopsis

[Anca86]

Hello everybody,

Do you use heating pads for summer blooming Phalaenopsis during winter? In winter, I have around 19 degrees Celsius during the day and about 13 14 degrees Celsius during the night.

LE: I grow my Phalaenopsis in a mix of bark and perlite and some in sphagnum moss. I have a mix o speciosa, tetraspis, equestris, deliciosa.

Thanks
Anca

 

[Djthomp28]

I used seedling heat mats last winter over night with my warm growing Phals. The pads clicked on when temperatures dropped below 60F. I felt that it made a significant difference in their health over the winter. My daytime temperatures are higher than yours at about 75F/24C. But my night time winter temps are similar. I am not sure how impactful daytime temperatures at.

What kind of Phals are you growing?

 

[Linus_Cello]

How are you growing your Phals? Supposedly a disadvantage of s/h is the evaporative cooling of the pot and roots, which can be problematic in the winter. So a heat pad would be recommended.

 

[Ray]

How are you growing your Phals? Supposedly a disadvantage of s/h is the evaporative cooling of the pot and roots, which can be problematic in the winter. So a heat pad would be recommended.

It's only a disadvantage if you are using the technique for warm-to-hot growers and your growing conditions include insufficient humidity and too low of a temperature. I never had an issue with hot-growing phals in my PA greenhouse, but my NC windowsills are a different matter. The slippers are all happy...

If you grow in warmer conditions and want to grow cooler-liking plants, it's an advantage.

 

[Sky7Bear]

I use heating pads for all my orchids here on the coast of the PNW. Air temps go down to 60, but I like to keep the roots warm. I suspect it also helps evaporation/transpiration in my semi-hydroponic media.

 

[abax]

This is an interesting post. I grow many Phals. in bark mix, some in sphag. and some
mounted. My temps. dropped to 40F last winter for several hours and my Phals. didn't
miss a beat. As Ray wrote, my humidity is quite high and a lot of air movement.

 

[Anca86]

This is an interesting post. I grow many Phals. in bark mix, some in sphag. and some
mounted. My temps. dropped to 40F last winter for several hours and my Phals. didn't
miss a beat. As Ray wrote, my humidity is quite high and a lot of air movement.

What brand do you use?

 

[abax]

I'm sorry Anca. I don't know exactly what you mean by "brand".

 

[Anca86]

I'm sorry Anca. I don't know exactly what you mean by "brand".

What kind of pads do you use?

 

[abax]

I don't use any pads at all.

 

[Ray]

I have used the relatively inexpensive, low-wattage (13w) ones from Hydrofarm intended for germinating seeds. Amazon has similar ones (MET brand, from “Seedfactor”) for $8.99 for a 10” x 20” one that fits in a standard nursery tray.

 

[JoeWheels]

Here we're using heating mats on top of foam board, and underneath humidity trays for window culture.
In our situation a timer helps keep everything 60 to 65 degrees at night and 80 in the day, humidity 50% in the day and 60+ at night.
So far, no need for a thermostat.

RHS (Roof Heating Systems) in Massachusetts.
They have standard lengths on Amazon, and get custom lengths out same day, no extra charge and free shipping!
Very happy with the product.