Tall Plants under Light Set Up

[Happypaphy7]

and the shelf...

I think this is the same thing as I found last month online by Walmart.
As ugly as it is, there just was not a whole lot to choose from at all.
Any place where they have nicer looking ones?

The size is 4' x 2' and stands about I forgot. 72"?? with four available layers. and this is what I want, size wise at least.

I think I'm going to start with two of these and then maybe set one more up later on.

How do I know when the efficiency of the light bulbs start to fall since paphs grow slow and any side effect of less light won't really show up immediately?
This is another big fear and worry I have about the light set up.

 

[Justin]

I think you are on the wrong track trying to adapt home-lighting to orchid growing. This has been figured out already all you need to do is just go to a hydroponic store or look up one online and get something designed for plant growing. plantlightinghydroponics.com is a great source.

a 150 watt HPS/MH fixture, or T-8 or LED fixture would be perfect. Just do yourself a favor and get something that is already designed for plant application. then all you need is some cheap metal wire shelving and a $10 timer. takes about 30 seconds to hang it, plug it in, then it is nothing but happy growing.

 

[Happypaphy7]

Thank you very much.
I now saw this.

I don't think there's Lowe's store here in Manhattan, but I will go back to HD again and see if they have something similar.

The track light head, the socket, do you know if any of the standard sized bulbs like the ones I just posted above will fit??

Plus, where does that end of the socket go?

I'm apparently clueless. I've never done anything like this in the house ever. so please excuse my ignorance.

Those huge rectangular outdoor floodlights will probably need to be wired. I don't have a lot of information about them. I do know someone who will be using them as supplemental lighting in her greenhouse this winter. My best guess is that she will install at least two of them at 50 watts each. I don't know whether she will install cool white, warm white or a blend of the two. They are super bright floodlights and might not be practical for indoor use unless you plan on growing medical marijuana. :rollhappy:

Regarding the placement of several PAR38 bulbs...first of all, I don't grow Paphs, so I don't know their light requirements. I mainly grow Neofinetia falcata and Phalaenopsis. Neos require fairly high light. Phals take less. For a 4' x 2' shelf, if growing Neos -- and Neos are short, I would probably try using 4 or 5 of those 5000K 40° beam angle 18 watt bulbs (they are not 40 watt as you stated) at a distance of about 21 inches above the tops of my Neo plants. I'd probably grow my Phals at a distance of 24 inches under the same set of bulbs. Any less than 2 feet might be too close for the Phals, depending on the variety.

I'm sorry I can't be any more precise than that. You kind of have to experiment and watch your plants closely until you get to know the light bulbs better. Four of those bulbs will put out a total of 4400 lumens, but most of those lumens will be focused down onto your growing area. LEDs like this waste/scatter a lot less light than what T5 tubes waste even with reflectors. If you need more light, add another bulb or decrease the distance between your plants and the lights. If you need less light, remove a bulb, or keep the number of light bulbs the same and simply increase the distance between your plants and the lights a few more inches. It's all about trial and hopefully not too much error. Watch your plants closely for signs of bleaching or stretching and adjust accordingly.

Personally I much prefer the LEDs over T5s. I've had superb results with great healthy growth, great leaf color, and great blooming. Currently I am growing and blooming a couple of small Phals (both are schilleriana hybrids) with each plant having its own led light bulb, a 25° beam angle 17 watt 4100K TCP LED PAR38. I'm getting great results with the distance between the face of the lamps and the tops of the leaves being right at 29 inches. I can put that much distance between the lamps and the plant tops because of the narrow 25° beam angle of the light bulbs I am using. You will need to keep those 18 watt 5000K 40° beam angle bulbs a little bit closer to your plants than this because of the wider beam angle.

Other bulbs to consider are these pink/blue LED bulbs made specifically for plants. I can't really give any advice on how to use them since I haven't ever actually used any of them, but I'm quite sure they'd effectively grow plants:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LJVLSLY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=371UVBJLQCN9N&coliid=IGOHEKAM0811K&psc=1

For this next link, check out the 12 watt, the 20 watt and the 35 watt versions. The 12 watt version is similar to the one shown above. The 35 watt version looks amazingly powerful and would probably need to be mounted three feet (or maybe more) above the tops of your plants. It's a spotlight so the circle of light it gives will be intense but won't be very big around. The 20 watter might be a more practical alternative to those big floodlights I mentioned at the top of this post since this one is already wired and comes with a plug. I'd avoid the 5 watt, the 10 watt and the 45 watt versions.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RFFV4XK/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=371UVBJLQCN9N&coliid=IQ1LG3DPH237O&psc=1

This next one is a warm color (golden-ish) self-ballasted 23 watt HID bulb, but it emits some blue rays in there as well. It could be useful, but it will put out much more heat than an LED:

http://www.amazon.com/GE-76226-ConstantColor-Self-Ballasted-CMHI23P38WFL/dp/B004283UEO/ref=pd_sim_sbs_60_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=126Y2D1M3SN1G2AJPTDW

Here's another LED made specifically for plants, but it's white and not pink and blue. It's a bit pricey for what it is. I don't know what the beam angle is nor how well it really works. If going for a bulb made specifically for plants, I'd probably choose from the others shown above.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00I38DZS0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=371UVBJLQCN9N&coliid=I356VHOD1CPMR9

Finally, here are the sockets I use:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_197724-47842-17308-000___?productId=1229537&pl=1&Ntt=track+lighting+head#BVRRWidgetID

Here are the tracks:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_169664-47842-14905-001_1z0vgceZ1z101l4__?productId=1217985&pl=1

http://www.lowes.com/pd_232833-47842-175004-002_1z0vgceZ1z101l4__?productId=1235927&pl=1

Here's the adapter which plugs into one end of the track and provides you with a cord and a power plug:

http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay?partNumber=232976-47842-105026-002&langId=-1&storeId=10151&productId=1207739&catalogId=10051&cmRelshp=req&rel=nofollow&cId=PDIO1

 

[Happypaphy7]

I think you are on the wrong track trying to adapt home-lighting to orchid growing. This has been figured out already all you need to do is just go to a hydroponic store or look up one online and get something designed for plant growing. plantlightinghydroponics.com is a great source.

a 150 watt HPS/MH fixture, or T-8 or LED fixture would be perfect. Just do yourself a favor and get something that is already designed for plant application. then all you need is some cheap metal wire shelving and a $10 timer. takes about 30 seconds to hang it, plug it in, then it is nothing but happy growing.

Thanks, I just had a quick look at LED section.
Mostly creepy blue & red stuff, again, and clear light ones are super expensive with no details as to how big the product is so I know how much area it can cover.
Have you bought things from this place?

 

[Happypaphy7]

OMG, Justin, Thank you so much and I feel so relieved now!
It sounds like it comes with basically everything needed to function without my having to run around buying this part and that part.

https://www.plantlightinghydroponics.com/solar-flare-t5-fluorescent-fixtures-120v.html

I think I'm going to buy this product.
I will have to contact them and ask about the width to make sure the one with 4 tubes fits on 4'x 2' shelf. and the recommended distance between the lamps and the plants.

I see that the warranty on the lamps (bulbs I guess) is one year, so that tells me the lamps are good (or should I say best in efficiency for plant growing) for one year?

 

[Justin]

i highly recommend that site. they are great.

yep that fixture is basically plug and play. easy peasy.

with a 4-bulb T-5 setup you would want to have about 2' above the tops of the plants.

also the shelving unit you posted is probably much heavier than you need. suggest just a 4' wire shelving where you can adjust the shelf height like:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-48-i...ommercial-Shelving-Unit-6T60184872C/100655787

finally all you need is some plastic trays and an egg-crate diffuser to set on top of them for the plants. like this but you need 4' x 2'.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia...r-Replacement-Diffuser-L2GT-PLTS-R5/100579509

then a timer and you are good to go.

 

[Happypaphy7]

Yeah, I saw that model and it is a better looking one.
I just wanted more depth. 18 in vs. 24 in.

2 ft distance between the lights and the plants seem very good.
Good to know, thanks! I guess I don't have to worry about tall spikes on certain plants then.

By the way, where does the timer connect to??

OMG, this saves me so much headache!

Thank you for everyone else for your help, though! I'm sure I will need it for taller plants.

 

[Justin]

just get a $10 or $15 3-prong appliance timer from home depot. the timer plugs into the wall, and the cord from the light plugs into the timer.

you would probably start with lights on for 12 or 14 hours and after a few weeks determine if that is too much light (yellowing leaves) or not enough light (darker green leaves). Adjust light period or height of shelf accordingly.

Replace the bulbs annually.

 

[Happypaphy7]

Thank you very much!

 

[RNCollins]

Neil,

Just to give you some ideas, I got my light cart from Gardeners Supply (picture below from the website).
Each shelf has 3 T5HO bulbs. That is bright enough for me because i also have natural light.

Maybe for your tall plants you could get a jump start T5HO grow light. Charley's Greenhouse has one that has 2 bulbs, but i don't know if that is enough light for you.


image by cponsolle, on Flickr

 

[Justin]

that's a nice looking lightstand!

i also wanted to mention you might try our own Ray Barkalow:

http://www.firstrays.com/cart/Plant-Lights

 

[Happypaphy7]

Thanks for the picture, Carol.
That is a bit small for me, though.
If I'm going to put up a light stand, I will use a large one to make most out of the space like the ugly one I posted above. lol

Neil,

Just to give you some ideas, I got my light cart from Gardeners Supply (picture below from the website).
Each shelf has 3 T5HO bulbs. That is bright enough for me because i also have natural light.

Maybe for your tall plants you could get a jump start T5HO grow light. Charley's Greenhouse has one that has 2 bulbs, but i don't know if that is enough light for you.


image by cponsolle, on Flickr

 

[Happypaphy7]

Thanks, I'll have a look.

that's a nice looking lightstand!

i also wanted to mention you might try our own Ray Barkalow:

http://www.firstrays.com/cart/Plant-Lights

 

[cnycharles]

that's a nice looking cart. if you had a big enough cart, and could use two different tracks, you might be able to put plants under the first part and if a spike grew too close you could adjust the plant so that the spike grew up towards the second one which could be higher than the first. if you were creative in how you adjusted how high each pot sat on the bench you could move things around so that spikes could be past the first bulbs, though you may have to shade it temporarily to get it past the first bulbs and to the second. ... they would definitely want to keep bending in towards the first closer light source unless you did so