anyone utilizing grow lights?

[Stina]

I was just looking at blue LED lights on e-bay, dreaming about setting up some indoor gardens. Wondering if anyone has any experience with this sort of thing. thanks!

[spicyfull]

I've never done it. Why not get a few and try it. Just giving your Thread a Bump.....Hope you find the answer you are l@@king for.

[Stina]

I've never done it. Why not get a few and try it. Just giving your Thread a Bump.....Hope you find the answer you are l@@king for.

They're expensive. Get a few? That would be several hundred bucks! But apparently I can make do with window sunlight for the modest operation I'm aiming for. Wouldn't it be cool to set up a proper grow room though!

[kathy8429]

I've looked at grow lights and your right, for a small operation it would cost more then I can pay. I do have an easy sprout which is a lot cheaper and works really well to grow greens and sprouts

[T-Bird]

I confab on an organic gardening board, consensus is that if you get a shop light with 2 side by side florescent bulbs, and put in one "cool" and one "warm" florescent bulb, that his is good for growing alot of stuff.

Probably won't get peppers to ripen, but good for greens and seedling and such...


Haven't tried this yet myself - just passing on info...

[blessteve]

They're expensive. Get a few? That would be several hundred bucks! But apparently I can make do with window sunlight for the modest operation I'm aiming for. Wouldn't it be cool to set up a proper grow room though!

If you do it the right way it is not expensive.

go to Home depot and get a 40'' long fluorescent light hood for about 30 bucks.

Make sure you get the one for 40 watt bulbs.

Then wal mart has grow lights for $5 each. The hood holds 2 bulbs.
Home depot also has the grow bulbs but they are about ten bucks a piece.

My indoor plants always dyed until I put up more light for them.
First I bought heat pads thinking the soil was cold and they still died.
The grow lights were the fix. I have the lights on a timer for 12 hours.

I wired the lights to a extension cord so I could move them or plug them in any where if needed.

[wendypape]

Just canadian tire/home depot ;-) It's been years, but I finally figured it out. Wheatgrass and barley is growing really really well, no mold, in the basement where it is cool! Lush and green, tried to upload photo but I think it's too big ;=(
wendy

[betty boop]

I am, I bought some last week after alot of searching and alot of reading. I just got the shelves put together today and the T5 lights in. I have had a few 23 watt CFLs on my seedlings and plants all week and I really notice a difference already just with them. I have tomatoes, cucumbers, snowpeas, green onions, dill, mint, and a red pepper plant. Still undecided on which variety of kale or chard I want to buy. Last summer, just in a few pots on my very small balcony, I managed to grow enough tomatoes and peppers and dill and mint that I didn't have to buy any, I am hoping to do the same now through the winter with the lights.
I originally was thinking of getting one of those aerogardens but at $175. to grow only one plant seemed silly, so I ended up spending about the same but I should be be able to grow alot of plants, not just one.

I can't help you with LED lights, from what I read they are expensive and there's not alot consensus yet if they really even work.

Here is a link to a site where I got alot of useful information:
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/lights/

[freelive]

Blessteve, thank you for the great advice. Is there any inexpensive way to make the lights portable. Also, how high they supposed to hang above the plants? Do they take a lot of electricity?