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The Corroboree
irabionist

Lights for propagation

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Unsure if this is the right forum, but I was looking for lights for a small propagation shelf that I have and was wondering whether this would be a good light to start of a variety of ethnos?

All I'll be doing is starting seeds and keeping them until they're old enough to live outside/greenhouse.

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yep a good start, if you want to pimp your fluoro battens have a look at Grolux tubes

http://www.sla.net.au/products/grolux-t5t8

hyrdo shops and pet shops usually have them about. Need to take your time with some species when doing the transition from artificial to natural.

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Last time I checked T5's were the ducks nuts for such things and they have come down a lot in price, they are good for germination/propagation through to much more.

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I am not sure there is much of an effective difference between 'plant light' fluorescent, and everyday fluorescent...

Just make sure to mark the bulbs when you install, and replace after two months use.

They are great for many plants.

But you still might find yourself wanting the intensity of HPS of Metal Halide grow lights after a while...

Depending on the plant you are working with....

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The T5's are all about the output/lumens. They pump it out compared to other types and there is a big difference.


Also you want to be using something in the cooler spectrum with more blue light so you want 'cool white' batons for germination/propagation and then add in a 'warm white' for veg.

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Just make sure to mark the bulbs when you install, and replace after two months use.

Do they really need to be replaced this often? Since they last for years it seems a bit wasteful (and I've used a single tube for germinating for far, far longer than a couple of months without noticing problems). Does a useful part of the spectrum get cut after very little use or something?

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T5s are superior to T8s in power usage/output. I'm still havent gone over to the T5s , missed out on some battens from a demolition recently and dark on myself for being slack.

cool white/warm whites work well enough, but a balanced spectrum targeting what you need for growth is better bang for buck . You'll notice it in subtle areas like node length and better photoperiodism if playing with it. That said when poking my head into a mass banked TC grow room these were "standard tubes" in alternating baton groups (not mixed in the batton).

You dont use metal halide if you want to use HPS :wink: they tell me, and thats all to do with the spectrum being produced and the response you are after. Spectrum is different from outright lumens.

2 months change time ?, if your serious buy a cheap as luxmeter off evilbay, handy tool....

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In my experience...

Fluorescents, are good for starting cuttings, and for plants with lower light requirements

Metal Halide, is good for vegetative growth, nice, close together nodes....bluer light spectrum

HPS, is good for flowering stage, and a bit more elongated plants, ......redder light spectrum....

The light spectrum useful to plants, is said to decrease after two months on fluorescent lights.

Serious growers, also change their HPS and MH lights every three months.

Which might be a bit excessive, but I suppose those people are demanding peak performance.....

Edited by shonman

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"Lighting costs are very high:

Fluorescent tubes, High Intensity Discarge Lamps can be bought at a fair price BUT they are inefficient, consume a lot of electricity and most light bulbs/tubes dont come in the right light spectrum therefor up to 60% of emitted light is wasted. They contain mercury and HID lamps generate a lot of excess heat; They also require expensive reflectors and ballasts for optimal use. It is important that you use these lamps only for herbs and leaf vegetables if you want to grow tomatoes or other crops that require a lot of light you must build a LED Array with blue and red leds (with 10% yellow/green light).

LUMENS ARE USELESS FOR PLANTS LIGHTING REQUIREMENTS, you need to use PAR WATTS / square meter or microeinsteins. Plants require mostly blue and red photons for photosynthesis, you only need 10% of yellow-green light, most commercial lights are in the yellow green spectrum. There is a lot of bulls*it in horticulture marketing especially regarding grow lights sold at hydroponic shops, most of these lamps are industrial lamps with just a different label."

Microeinsteins....hahaha.....bet you never measured those!

http://colonyofcommodus.wordpress.com/2012/10/23/hydroponics/

Edited by shonman
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Haven't heard any mention of LED's yet...aren't they supposed to be okay? At least from an efficiency standpoint anyway I think that would be my choice. Been thinking of wiring one up to the lid of a DIY propagation chamber but not sure how to do so without zapping myself or starting a house fire.

Edited by gtarman

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All of the anecdotal evidence that I saw when I was looking into LED arrays, say 3 years ago, showed them to be a bit of a waste of time and money compared to CFLs or HID?

Are you saying this has now changed and they are an effective method of lighting from veg through to ripening?
Or only used in Veg or as additional side lighting??

Im sure a lot of people are very interested as electricity prices have literally doubled in the last 5 years in QLD. (I hate this state)

Edited by AndyAmine.

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Hey mods seeing as there are lots of threads about lights and propagation can we make one a sticky?

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Hey mods seeing as there are lots of threads about lights and propagation can we make one a sticky?

do you have a particular thread in mind?

good idea for a sticky.

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I'll take a look I remember a really good one ill see if I can find it :)

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There are some good ones around(LED's), which work fine for veg, but imo just dont have the óomph' to finish like MH or HPS. Put them on par with trying to finish with CFL's

Electricity prices suck Andy....thus why im off to western Victoria :)

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Mate, I tell you what I am getting close to pulling stumps for another state by the week.

I'd love to move back down to Melbourne one day, there is nothing else like it.
Hey Vic members, whats it like down there for drug testing these days?

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Hahah...not for me, too cold and too many hipsters. Food is great down there though.

Not really sure RE: LED's - I just heard they were around and assumed that if they can manage the same brightness in a similar spectrum that they'd do okay...but I have heard that they don't put out any heat really, which seems to me like it must be missing some part of the spectrum that the hotter light sources get...but maybe not, I don't really know how it all works.

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Uhh, man, I really do miss the days of good food, 95% of the Gold Coast is stuck in some kind of culinary blackhole.

I'd put up with the hoards of hipsters any day for a plate of Eggs Ben and a Latte at the Atomica Bar...

Its truly amazes me that the restaurants here are able to stay afloat with the slop they serve and my suburb would have to be at the top of the list.


There are so many expensive places that have had a fortune spent on them to fit a high end image yet even they are hit and miss,

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ok you can use the normal fluros just use one warm and one blue ( there about 5 bucks each for a Philips)

I gave up on grolux tubes ten years ago there more designed for fish tanks frog's etc and you get a lot more

lumens from the normal ones . just use two different spectrums you will do fine and they are cheap to replace

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Be wary of using low power fluros too long though or your seedlings can stretch and grow slowly.
Not much guts to an 18w baton, if using them I'd suggest moving to a T5 a 130w CFL after a week or so.

Edited by AndyAmine.
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hey there. i have the light thats in your picture there Sabry. Im using it for cacti and a few other seeds but is working a treat!

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rumor has it that philips is bringing out a t5 system to run on old fluro's systems

plus still fluro's are better than LED lights they produce more useable lumens

Also one can make a pretty sweet room using cfl's

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Got the light set-up and it's working really nicely!

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Edited by Sabry
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