Grow lights, heaters etc, on a budget

Discussion in 'Propagation This Month' started by clueless1, Oct 5, 2012.

  1. JWK

    JWK Gardener Staff Member

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2008
    Messages:
    33,056
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Surrey
    Ratings:
    +51,736
  2. Loofah

    Loofah Admin Staff Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2008
    Messages:
    14,622
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Guildford
    Ratings:
    +25,637
    Might put that in the calendar, ta :)
     
  3. clueless1

    clueless1 member... yep, that's what I am:)

    Joined:
    Jan 8, 2008
    Messages:
    17,778
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Here
    Ratings:
    +19,598
    @fat controller, I was impressed with your project even before I realised you built it, took photos, and posted on here about it all while blindfolded:loll:

    Before I got too carried away with mine, when I just had two trays on the go, I left the light on permanently and the seedlings seemed to appreciate it.
     
    • Like Like x 2
    • Fat Controller

      Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

      Joined:
      May 5, 2012
      Messages:
      28,551
      Gender:
      Male
      Occupation:
      Public Transport
      Location:
      At me 'puter, GCHQ Ashford Office, Middlesex
      Ratings:
      +53,707
      Thanks @clueless1 :)

      The sickly spider plant (leaves almost white) really enjoyed a couple of days in there - now the outer edges of the leaves have darkened nicely.

      Tomorrow is begonia sowing day - not sure if I should do the dichondra too, or if its too early

      Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk
       
      • Like Like x 1
      • Scrungee

        Scrungee Well known for it

        Joined:
        Dec 5, 2010
        Messages:
        16,524
        Location:
        Central England on heavy clay soil
        Ratings:
        +28,998
      • clueless1

        clueless1 member... yep, that's what I am:)

        Joined:
        Jan 8, 2008
        Messages:
        17,778
        Gender:
        Male
        Location:
        Here
        Ratings:
        +19,598
      • minki

        minki Novice Gardener

        Joined:
        Dec 9, 2013
        Messages:
        263
        Gender:
        Female
        Occupation:
        Research Scientist
        Location:
        Watford
        Ratings:
        +367
        And i think its 10 or more.. but irs as if the seller just doesnt wanna sell :D

        Sent from my HTC Desire S using Tapatalk 2
         
      • Fat Controller

        Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

        Joined:
        May 5, 2012
        Messages:
        28,551
        Gender:
        Male
        Occupation:
        Public Transport
        Location:
        At me 'puter, GCHQ Ashford Office, Middlesex
        Ratings:
        +53,707
        Better off getting them from Amazon - mine arrived in only a couple of days, and were less than £20 each including P&P
         
      • Fat Controller

        Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

        Joined:
        May 5, 2012
        Messages:
        28,551
        Gender:
        Male
        Occupation:
        Public Transport
        Location:
        At me 'puter, GCHQ Ashford Office, Middlesex
        Ratings:
        +53,707
        Well, the grow cupboard has been moved to its new home as a bird cage stand, and the first 'proper' residents have been installed:

        2014-02-01 18.25.55.jpg
        Turned out to be a wee bit of a faff - a normal size seed tray would fit in, but there was only room for one and quite a bit of unused space all around it; so, I decided to experiment with the 12-cell seed trays that I bought last year - I discovered if I cut the rim off all way around the top, that I could fit three side by side and two deep on the shelf.

        Then came the problem of a lid to retain humidity - long story short, I cannibalised three clear plastic seed tray/propagator lids and sellotaped them together to form one big one that butts up right to the back of the cupboard, I then used three lolly sticks shoved through the plastic, with a ring of sellotape wound round the stick at the desired height to stop the lid sliding down too far, and put them along the back edge to stop if flopping down in the middle (you can just see them at the back). Fingers crossed that this will do the trick.

        So far, the heater is attaining just over 27º (although it is really warm in our living room for some reason tonight)

        EDIT - whether the begonias in these trays will come to anything or not remains to be seen as it was really a case of tapping the dusty wee seeds off a bit of A4 paper. How a plant can form from such a tiny wee speck is just incredible!
         
        • Like Like x 5
        • Informative Informative x 1
        • JWK

          JWK Gardener Staff Member

          Joined:
          Jun 3, 2008
          Messages:
          33,056
          Gender:
          Male
          Location:
          Surrey
          Ratings:
          +51,736
          for tiny seed like begonias I put some dry silver sand in the packet, give it a good shake then it's easier to sprinkle out and get a reasonable idea of coverage. I agree it's amazing how such plants come from tiny grains.
           
          • Like Like x 1
          • longk

            longk Total Gardener

            Joined:
            Nov 24, 2011
            Messages:
            11,401
            Location:
            Oxfordshire
            Ratings:
            +23,150
            In my en suite there is a cupboard which is built into the eaves of the house. Totally useless in all honesty and then I got thinking. As the central heating pipes run through there it is warm, so a customer gave me an energy saving T5 fluorescent light which I've mounted in there. I was happy with it last year and saw a negligible rise in my bill. Kept within about 15cm of the light the seedlings grew normally without burn. One thing that I noticed is that tall plants placed next to the light with the top above get nicely bushy low down.
             
            • Like Like x 1
            • Informative Informative x 1
            • Fat Controller

              Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

              Joined:
              May 5, 2012
              Messages:
              28,551
              Gender:
              Male
              Occupation:
              Public Transport
              Location:
              At me 'puter, GCHQ Ashford Office, Middlesex
              Ratings:
              +53,707
              I've just mentioned to Mrs C how the spider plant has continued to get greener even though its been out of the cupboard for four or five days - its almost as though the lights have given it a real kick start

              Just hope my begonias come good

              Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk
               
              • Like Like x 1
              • Informative Informative x 1
              • minki

                minki Novice Gardener

                Joined:
                Dec 9, 2013
                Messages:
                263
                Gender:
                Female
                Occupation:
                Research Scientist
                Location:
                Watford
                Ratings:
                +367
                I bought one LED growlight from ebay and the light didnt work:thud:. The supplier sent me a new one which didnt work either:wallbanging:. So, he gave me a refund:phew:. Now, I am stuck with two non-functional lights :sad::sad:

                P.S. is there any way I can fix these lights as they are junk right now. I opened one of them the circuit looked alright (as if i know what I was looking for :doh:) as in, all the wires were soldered, nothing came loose.
                 
              • Fat Controller

                Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

                Joined:
                May 5, 2012
                Messages:
                28,551
                Gender:
                Male
                Occupation:
                Public Transport
                Location:
                At me 'puter, GCHQ Ashford Office, Middlesex
                Ratings:
                +53,707
                @minki - These the ones I got from Amazon. Delivery was swift and no problems with mine :dbgrtmb:

                The trouble with LED's is that they are directional, so if only one out of the 225 LED's is wired in reverse, the whole circuit won't work, and worse still they would all 'look' as though they are wired properly.

                Send them back (don't let on that you have opened one up though), and get them from Amazon. :dbgrtmb:
                 
                • Agree Agree x 1
                • minki

                  minki Novice Gardener

                  Joined:
                  Dec 9, 2013
                  Messages:
                  263
                  Gender:
                  Female
                  Occupation:
                  Research Scientist
                  Location:
                  Watford
                  Ratings:
                  +367
                  thanks FC, just ordered one. the supplie3r from ebay just refunded , didnt ask me to send them back... I dont want to pay for return post if he doesnt want them back. so they will get eventually thrown away, as I dunno anything about circuits and frankly its all gibberish to me.
                  thanks again you are a star!
                   
                Loading...

                Share This Page

                1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
                  By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
                  Dismiss Notice