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T5 Bulb Brands?

  • #41
Sounds interesting, especially the 90 CRI part. I'm a tad less impressed with the $152 / 600 lumens part ... :crazy: Although they mention that they use 20% less power, there seems to be a reluctance to publish actual power / lumen values for these LED setups (or have I just missed them??).

I don't know about your 5 year timeline - at least for residential lighting (vs plant lighting). The advances / improvements seem to be coming at a pretty good rate. If the industry believes that energy efficiency is here to stay and the bottom won't fall out again like the 70's & 80's, they'll start to put some serious effort into research ...
 
  • #42
oh the 5 yrs is for plant, residental is just around the corner... or already here
 
  • #44
nice find gregny better price than i've found .
Thank you
 
  • #45
I don't have any experience with that fixture or the bulb, so I cant really say..
Also, the area you are going to illuminate and the plants you want to grow must be taken into consideration.

However, my golden ratios are:

40 watts per cubic foot for Heliamphora, Dionaea and Drosera
30 watts per cubic foot for Cephalotus
20 watts per cubic foot for Nepenthes and Pinguicula

Of course there are exceptions

Wattage values are real values, not any BS "equivalent" numbers. High quality bulbs and reflectors are also assumed.

of course, ymmv
Av
 
  • #46
Cubic? How so? Obviously this must be an approximation, because it gives weird results for large and small n.
Also seems strange to me that you have Neps and Pings at the bottom of the scale.
~Joe
 
  • #47
Cubic? How so? Obviously this must be an approximation, because it gives weird results for large and small n.
Also seems strange to me that you have Neps and Pings at the bottom of the scale.
~Joe

Let's take one of your 6 bulb T5's as an example.

They are 320 watts of energy with an approx surface area of 8 square feet, so with a distance to plant at 12" this becomes 40w per cubic foot of energy dissipation.

At 2' from the bulb this becomes 20 w per cubic foot (or 1/4 the energy per inverse square law)

It seems to also work out well when using other types of fluorescent lamps...

But here are some real world examples...

Here is a heli in the 40w/cu. ft zone:
tatnebhis2009.jpg


Here are a couple neps in the 20w/cu. ft. zone:
ventricosa.jpg


sghA12_2009.jpg


The red leafed hamata is a good 24-30" from the bulb

But this only works if you have good bulbs/reflectors, no matter how much you polish a turd, its still crap

Av
 
  • #48
But the energy isn't absorbed evenly throughout the cubic area. The significant portion of absorption happens along surfaces in the space and (I think) approximates to two dimensions. Transparency of the air the light is passing through has a diminished effect on distribution next to solid objects. Are you talking about cubic feet of the growing space, or cubic feet of plant matter?
~Joe

PS - Hey hey, speaking of polished turds, did you wax the back of your reflectors as well as the front? I remember you describing the corrosion in the past, but was is just bad for reflectivity or was it actually compromising the metal? I want mine to stay shiny... forever!!!
 
  • #49
OMG Joe, growing space mate.....

Its just a rule of thumb i use, nothing more..... just a starting point mate

whew.... the other would hurt my brain and have so many variables that it would be of no practical value
Av

just for laughs and giggles, I had to study all that when i got my infrared thermography license.... substances have characteristics of reflectivity, emissivity, transmissivity and absorbtivity... it hurt my brain back then too

---------- Post added at 10:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:17 PM ----------

PS - Hey hey, speaking of polished turds, did you wax the back of your reflectors as well as the front? I remember you describing the corrosion in the past, but was is just bad for reflectivity or was it actually compromising the metal? I want mine to stay shiny... forever!!!

Just the front Joe, when the surface of aluminum oxidizes the dull coating of aluminum oxide is a great corrosion inhibitor. So no need to do the back side.

My favorite product is Klasse "all in one"

I use the Klasse products on my vehicles and they will bead water for over a year with 3 back to back applications... its an acrylic sealer

I know what your thinking, but its not very expensive at all..... a 15$ bottle last for yearssssssssssssssss

http://www.autopia.org/forum/guide-detailing/80218-klasse-user-s-guide.html
 
  • #50
Thanks, good to know... I'll check my local auto parts store.
Volume isn't that hard to estimate! :) Just curious, anyways... it especially threw me since Neps aren't particularly demanding for light but I've always had a hard time with Pings, and the best Ping growers I've see prescribe high light.
~Joe
 
  • #51
... it especially threw me since Neps aren't particularly demanding for light but I've always had a hard time with Pings, and the best Ping growers I've see prescribe high light.
~Joe

I think you are underestimating the capacity of your new lights, here is a ping that is 24"-30" form the bulbs

20w/cu. ft zone ping:
p_agnata_csuf.jpg


But to be honest I do have a couple in the 40w/cu.ft zone as well...
here is an example:
p_cyclo.jpg


I think both are good looking and have good color.... I have one in the 20w region that is more colorful then either pic... so Ill stand by my rule of thumb.

But again, thats all Im saying it is.... a starting point for wattage calculations based upon good equipment selection.

Every newbie wants to know how much light they need... this is the standard I use with decent results imho

Av
 
  • #52
Cool. Here's another question for you - I have some vining Neps that are two to six feet long. What should I do with them? My DeRoose's Alata has climbed up past the shoplights and has suspended itself from the shelf above, growing horizontally towards the window. Another two pots recently reached the lights, and several others would have, had I not been able to train them over on their sides. How far do I have to keep them from the bulbs? From my test, I can tell that I certainly can't let them get close to touching, but I only ran the fixture for about 15 minutes so I'm not sure it got up to the real operating temperature. Is one foot a rule-of-thumb, or a bare minimum? Should I cut my leggy plants to keep them from getting fried?
~Joe
 
  • #53
Temp wise it will depend on the ventilation system you use. In my setup my heli flowers get withing a couple inches. But that wouldnt be possible without constant cross ventilation.

As far as the amount of light the plant will tolerate, that will depend on the species itself. One trick Ive used ot to place a plant at the far end of the fixture.

But plant placement is just something you will have to experiment with.... if you have multiple fixtures on one area your options will open up even more. The canopy penetration of the T5 is very good!
 
  • #54
That's good to know. Now, if I could only find something to hang it from...
OK, so, rereading your guidelines, it appears that you're basing the volume calculation on the surface area of the grow space and the distance from plants to lights. So, first, is that distance between the lights and foliage, the lights and the soil surface, or the lights and the bench? Second, do you determine your distances by genus? (Yes, I know those are approximations.) :D
That's what it looks like to me. If I go by your wattage tiers and work backwards, Dionaea and Drosera make a lot of sense at one foot (Helis are a little surprise but I guess it's just a matter of controlling the heat.) Pings at two feet seem a little odd - I thought most of them expected intense light during active growth - but everything else fits nicely with my understanding of light requirements.
~Joe
 
  • #55
Pings at two feet seem a little odd - I thought most of them expected intense light during active growth - but everything else fits nicely with my understanding of light requirements.
~Joe


hehehehe who said 2ft isn't intense, these aren't your momma's walmart fixtures. You gotta admit those pings don't look light deprived ;)

and yes these are approximate values, obviously the relationship of energy to distance is not linear but exponential.

In theory a 200 watt bulb with a distance of 2 foot is not equal to a 100 watt bulb at 1 foot... doubling the watts while doubling the distance would still be a 50% reduction in energy... ummm I think LOL

just a starting point based upon genus and good lighting...

you're going to have a lot of fun, and with the number of fixtures you have.... well I'm thinking "walk in" indoor cloud forest LOL
 
  • #56
I don't plan to use them all at the same time... I don't think I could afford that kind of power bill. At least I probably won't need to run the heat this winter. :D
But I want to put some plants into propagation and I figure something with a little oomph was called for. I've got those enormous Neps and I'd like to start experimenting with cuttings now that I have ample material, as well as air layering and other techniques. The T12s are a nice entry point but they're just too awkward for big plants.
~Joe
 
  • #57
with your rule of thum there av i dont suppose that to much light could ever be a bad thing?
 
  • #58
with your rule of thum there av i dont suppose that to much light could ever be a bad thing?

I wouldn't go that far Da, photoinhibition and burn are a concern....
Nepenthes do not "enjoy" the same intensity as Heliamphora
 
  • #59
i think it mostly comes in 2 and 4 foot. i some some tek that was 3. I just bought a 2 foot 4 bulb rack that is comin in the maill (woohoo) im gonna alternate bulbs with 6500k and somthin lower but havent decided.
 
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