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Post by canuk1w1 on Feb 4, 2014 17:06:21 GMT -5
You can get a $20 LED spot lamp that screws into a standard fitting. Any idea on whether they might be appropriate for plants? My gut feel is no, you'd need to go to a higher price point. What is their output? You'd need a fairly high output unless they have peaks in the blue/red wavelengths (like purpose grow lights). Since they are low heat, you could offset this by placing them closer. Just guessing though, still have not been able to justify experimentation given their cost and anecdotal data. Compare them to a CFL screw-in. If they are comparable then worth a try.
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Post by Kase on Feb 4, 2014 19:46:31 GMT -5
I don't mean to be a thread hijacker, but I am rather fond of the PAR38 e26 socket LED lamps... My plants are thriving under 120w in a 110gal tall aquarium
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Post by hal on Feb 4, 2014 21:30:03 GMT -5
That's what I was thinking of Kase, but if I do the math it doesn't seem a lot more attractive than T5HO, yet.
$30/bulb x 8 + $35 for wire, rod, sockets = $275 and it uses 120W.
Which is about double the price for 2 x 4' T5HO with bulbs, which uses 108W.
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Post by hal on Feb 4, 2014 21:42:03 GMT -5
I found this chart which gives a good idea of the relative efficiencies of fluorescent lights. What it tells me is T5HO will give you the maximum lighting in the minimum depth over your shelves, but it's not a lot more efficient than T8. Double T8s at $25 including bulbs seem to be the most economical, too.
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Post by Kase on Feb 4, 2014 21:59:48 GMT -5
Those are good points, however I only paid $12ea on ebay and I'm hoping to not replace them for 5+ years
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Post by Devon on Feb 5, 2014 11:43:58 GMT -5
Also the colour was horrible and I didn't like looking at the plants. My wife hated the colour. The lights even gave me a headache if I looked at them more than 10 minutes. Right that was the other issue with then you couldn't expect happy employees working under around the LEDs all day. Yeah, I can't even look at it with my peripheral vision or that spot of my vision with have a bright green spot for a few seconds. Pretty sure mine are lacking in the blue spectrum. I wonder if the plants under the LED's with grow slower than the ones that will be under the T5HO's. Maybe the LED will influence them to flower more instead of vegetative growth. Edit* Looking closely at the plants now, it looks like the new growth is going to be significantly smaller. It would make sense if the growth was just a little bit smaller, but I just fed them so it really shouldn't be that small. I'll post pics of the new growth in a week or so. Edit again* Nevermind, lol.
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Post by canuk1w1 on Feb 6, 2014 17:01:24 GMT -5
I hooked up the LED lamp from Lloyd (thanks again!) last night and it does take some getting used to. This one has both blue and red (about a 1:2 ratio). I'm guessing the LED plants will not grow as well. From what I read, they will probably come out "leggy". T5HO should give better all around growth as it is full spectrum. It'll be interesting to see your results.
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Post by Devon on Feb 7, 2014 19:23:23 GMT -5
I just got the T5HO hooked up. It makes the T8's on the shelf above it look so dim!
Maybe I'll do a quick comparison of the different lights I have in the summer for fun. I'll be using the 40W CFL lights again soon too, as well as some 18W (I think) fluorescent tubes.
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Post by canuk1w1 on Feb 19, 2014 15:37:24 GMT -5
I got the induction light setup now too. Very nice light output (a touch on the greenish side maybe) and silent. I moved my P. ehlerisae under it. It'll be interesting to see if it keeps its color. Lloyd, thanks again!
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Post by Apoplast on Feb 20, 2014 14:40:27 GMT -5
Hi all - Ah, the perpetual LED debates. I'm going to have to run a quick experiment soon. I'm behind on all sorts of posts I want to do here, but with most lighting moving to LED, they may "be the future" whether people want them to be or not. Canuk, please let us know how your plants do. Same goes for you Devon. I'd like to hear about your experiences too once you've had some time with these lights.
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Post by canuk1w1 on Feb 22, 2014 18:53:02 GMT -5
Pics of sundews under the LED lamp: D. aliciae - imgur.com/a/oDVRq#0D. dielsiana - imgur.com/a/AMGtj#0D. aliciae seems to be growing more vigorously but that could also be a seasonal growth spurt. I'll add a link to D. Capensis pics once they're uploaded.
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Post by canuk1w1 on Feb 23, 2014 16:00:41 GMT -5
Hi all - Ah, the perpetual LED debates. I'm going to have to run a quick experiment soon. I'm behind on all sorts of posts I want to do here, but with most lighting moving to LED, they may "be the future" whether people want them to be or not. Canuk, please let us know how your plants do. Same goes for you Devon. I'd like to hear about your experiences too once you've had some time with these lights. Interesting observation today after about 2 weeks of use. I just spotted a new leaf with much more intense color: i.imgur.com/jFbB8Ua.jpgi.imgur.com/Fyjt9ge.jpgThe older leaf is almost colorless. FWIW, here is how it looks under the LED light: i.imgur.com/tx2aMKX.jpgThe 'red' form is not showing the same intense pigmentation (yet). The 'Volgegat nature reserve' form is looking a bit ratty but I think I overfed it - not too concerned as new leaves are sprouting so i expect it'll spring back.
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Post by Apoplast on Feb 28, 2014 20:00:31 GMT -5
Hi Canuk - For me it's a little early to tell, but then I'm not there in person to see it. Still, growth is good! Thanks for sharing!
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Post by Devon on Mar 4, 2014 16:24:32 GMT -5
I can see that the newest leaves have redder tentacles. Certainly they will continue to get redder now. Here's another update: They're growing in 2 inch pots. The D. burmannii and D. intermedia "Cuba" have never had problems with small pots for me but the other ones seems to be staying a lot smaller than usual. It could also be because of the lights, who knows. Even with near constant feeding the plants are all showing lovely colours. unknown D. burmanniiHumpty doo form February 19th Same plant now D. x [anglica "Ca x Hi" x "Lantau Island"]
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Post by canuk1w1 on Mar 4, 2014 17:59:03 GMT -5
I have one that looks the same. The bulbs kept blowing and I had to replace them all the time-very tedious. I gave up on it and switched to T5HO's. I would not go back to LED's any time in the near future. Just a follow up. I've been doing some research (before I pull it apart and fix yet another blown LED...) and this seems to have been an issue with the 90 watt versions. I found multiple posts from 2012 where half the lights went out. I also saw some DIY plans and not really that difficult. You can build a 300 watt unit for around $200. I stumbled on this LED grow light summary that gives a good rundown on LED lighting. They are growing different plants than (most of) us but the basics are covered very well. And after seeing those pics Devon, I need to fix that light to get colour. Great work!
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