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Grow lights...

  • #21
I think it's a matter of definition; Cephs slow down in certain conditions but don't go "dormant" the way a temperate Drosera does. I prefer to reserve strong words like dormancy for the more dramatic cases.
~Joe
 
  • #22
Not enough info...

What kind of reflectors do you use?
(2/3rds of the bulb is pointed in the wrong direction)
Photoperiod?
Distance to bulbs?
Age of bulbs?
Kelvin rating of bulbs?
CRI of bulbs?
Wattage?
Bulb type?

and I'm from the other school of thought who thinks that there can be a significant difference between bulbs.... IMHO most will grow plants, but some can do a much better job then others

but ymmv :)

but regardless, I wouldn't use any type of UV bulb.... if you've got to do that to get color you have some major issues somewhere

just my 2 cents,
Av
 
  • #23
i dont think Cephs go dormant.....i thought like mexican Pings they had a winter and summer growth phase but they dont go dormant.....ive never had one go dormant.....

Cephs need dormancy in order to survive long term.
 
  • #24
its not that simple johnny, australia has a "wet" and "dry" season its not the same as like a summer and winter in the states...in most cases of course.

dormancy for most North american species of Cp's means they dieback basically... that doesn't happen with ceph's ( with the exception of their rumored random diebacks not due to seasonal changes ) no matter what cephs should be maintaining active growth ya know?

if you want to upload a photo which I'm finding more and more with this thread as necessary... you can use a photohoster like Photobucket.com and make an account then they give you an image link for each photo. post the link and we'll see the photo...

Good luck
 
  • #25
Cephs need dormancy in order to survive long term.

I've seen a number of accounts that would say otherwise. Cephs grow when they want to under optimal conditions; there are plenty of people who grow them inside under constant photoperiod and temperatures year round, and there are just as many that grow theirs in a window or outdoors where they're fully exposed to seasonal variations. Different clones respond in various manners. Some halt growth during cold, short days; others produce non-carnivorous leaves. I haven't come across any convincing evidence that they have a dormancy the way VFTs or temperate sundews do, though. Cephs must photosynthesize throughout the winter to survive, unlike the temperate CPs - I think there may be a distinction based on metabolic characteristics.
~Joe
 
  • #26
its not that simple johnny, australia has a "wet" and "dry" season its not the same as like a summer and winter in the states...in most cases of course.

dormancy for most North american species of Cp's means they dieback basically... that doesn't happen with ceph's ( with the exception of their rumored random diebacks not due to seasonal changes ) no matter what cephs should be maintaining active growth ya know?

if you want to upload a photo which I'm finding more and more with this thread as necessary... you can use a photohoster like Photobucket.com and make an account then they give you an image link for each photo. post the link and we'll see the photo...

Good luck

I understand all of this and never said they were dying back. They were kept warm and on the dryer side until I cycled them. Now they are resting at much cooler temps with a diminished light cycle and are now in a tray of water to simulate the wetter part of their annual cycle. The plants are fine except for the color which was the whole reason I started this thread to begin with. It's gotten a little off topic here so, I'm done with it. I just wanted to know where to get some damn GE grow lights !
 
  • #27
Try Lowe's.... around here they carry both the GE plant and aquarium and the GE "Sunshine" bulb (T12). The sunshine is just a new name for their "Chroma 50".

It is also practically the same as the GE broad spectrum grow bulb. Both have a CRI of about 90.
The sunshine still says Chroma 50 on the bulb itself

Given the option I would recommend the sylvania grolux (non wide spectrum, no WS in part number.... there are two variants) mixed with the Chroma 50, its a magical combination for the T12 format. It uses a rare earth red phosphor that is very desirable (670nm output).

http://bluegrasscarnivores.com/research1/grolux.pdf

Following pics are from the Sylvania Std. Grolux/GE Chroma 50 combination with DIY mylar reflectors
d_graomogolensis_1.jpg

cephalotus2.jpg


Av
 
  • #28
The plants are fine except for the color which was the whole reason I started this thread to begin with. It's gotten a little off topic here so, I'm done with it. I just wanted to know where to get some damn GE grow lights !

i would say lights arent the problem cause ive gotten clones that color up to color up under 4 cheap T8 bulbs.....seems others agree with me which is why this went off on a tangent....we are just trying to help YOU figure out why YOUR plants arent coloring up.....if your going to gripe bout opinions given than maybe keeping questions to yourself might be a better plan....BTW your theory that cephs NEED a dormancy dont pan out in the real world....most growers dont give them one and have no problems....i have never given my plants one...

ceph grown under 4 T8's in my basement
IMG_0917.jpg


a clone thats more green
IMG_0919.jpg


both clones growing together
IMG_0403.jpg
 
  • #29
With T12s, just go ahead and buy the cheapest fixtures you come across. I buy a few whenever I see them on sale. A basic two-tube, four-foot shoplight is less than $10 around here on sale. More commonly I come across ones for $20 or $30, but they usually feature things I don't need, like built-in switches or low-temperature ballasts.
If you're able to make an investment, http://www.contractorlighting.com/ has awesome deals on T5 fixtures.
~Joe

I'm trying to upgrade my lights to T5HO... problem is I can't find any. My grow area can only fit a 3' or 36" bulb system. The high bay T5 fixtures at contractor lighting would be perfect, but they're only in 48". And at $120 thats the cheapest I've seen. The only things I can find that fit what I need are the 400 dollar tek light's and aquarium hoods, which are ridiculously expensive. I'd like a 4-6 bulb unit, but I guess I have to make it from scratch and buy all the pieces separately. You guys know where I can find this or get all the pieces at a decent price?

also found this, but its a darn hood
http://cgi.ebay.com/36-T5-HO-Aquari...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item439bfd27a9

---------- Post added at 08:01 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:23 AM ----------

found some single 3' striplights w/ 39w 6400k ho t5 for only 25 bucks that are daisy chainable so I might just buy 6 of these.
 
  • #30
Those sound pretty cool, but one thing I'll suggest is that you look into the prices for tubes of various sizes. I never would have gone for four-foot T12 shoplights before I researched it, but it turned out that the tubes (and fixtures) were significantly cheaper than the alternatives. In a lot of cases, a single four-foot fixture or tube was cheaper than a single two-foot item of equivalent wattage. I don't know what it's like for HO T5s, but among T12s the industry seems standardized at four- and eight-foot form factors, as those are the ones that seem cheapest and most plentiful.
~Joe
 
  • #32
There was a deal at contractorlighting.com that came with bulbs, but I think it ended at the beginning of the month. Spending money on the fixture isn't a bad thing - you want to best fixture you can get to take full advantage of the bulbs. And it's a one-time expense (barring replacements at least.) But in the long run, bulbs are where the real cost is because that's the thing you have to replace all the time. Apparently T5 tubes rarely need replacing, so the cost is fairly marginal when you work it out over a number of years. So, when I was working out the prices myself, after I figured that out I was less concerned with the price of tubes in my overall evaluation of the various brands. For what it's worth, the cheapest cases I could find outside of eBay were at 1000bulbs.com.
~Joe
 
  • #33
Absolutely, the bulbs are the cost in the long run. On average though being rated at 20,000 hours that could take a while to add up (Big plus). I did run into a couple deal that had a 25 year warranty on the ballast and a 2 year warranty on the bulbs (also a Big plus) but they were asking a bit more. It all depends on the initial investment you're willing to make, it may be a better deal to just wait and save up and grab a more expensive deal that will pay off better in the long run.
As for where to get the bulbs I get my T12s in packs of 10+ at Lowe's I wonder if they offer the same deal on T5s? I wont get my hopes up, they dont even carry high bays over here.
 
  • #34
Not at my Lowe's. There's a reason I was considering paying shipping for just a box of tubes - they're really hard to find outside of specialty suppliers. The only places I've been able to find them in town are at aquarium shops and plant shops. The hardware stores have standard (not HO) T5s... at 14W or something. Even at case prices I can't find the HO tubes for less than about $12 a piece, so the $3-$5 range of some of the brands at 1000bulbs.com is super tempting. I made a thread about it shopping around for T5 HO tubes last month - it has some good information.
~Joe
 
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