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Should I give up?

  • #21
Here is what a shop light looks like...

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  • #22
IS that your VFT? Cause thats a nice house you got, nice street too. looks almost like a dream spot.
 
  • #23
That light sits above two Nepenthes alata in a indoor greenhouse. Just under the Nepenthes are 14 VFTs, with additional grow lamps. The VFTs will be removed soon and placed on my back porch to receive natural light.

The neighborhood is nice. The window in the picture faces North. Not really a dream spot, I am less than 100 feet from a busy 2 lane road. However, the parades go right by.
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The house is 107+ years old.
 
  • #24
The pic. isn't loading for me
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I think my hubby has an idea now. We did that setup with the two lights, and now he wants to get a new aquarium lid, use the florescent glo bulb and put a small fan on either side, one to blow air in and the other to suck air out.

I guess we'll see!
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  • #25
I gave up.  
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I am getting two more VFT's though, bare-root. Any suggestions on potting them once they get here so I don't put them through too much shock?  
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  • #26
Just a thought, not sure how helpful it will be (I'm new at this too)

I have a 5.5 gal planted aquarium (with fish) and had the lighting problem unfortuantely they don't make florescent fixture hoods for tanks that small, they do however make incandesant hoods. With fish and aquatic plants incandesant is also too hot with poor light output. The solution that we came up with was compact florescent bulbs, you can buy them at places like Home Depot and they screw right in to incandesant sockets. they have a slightly (maybe 2 degrees F) higher heat output than comparable regular florescent which is easily taken care of with air circulation, and come in full-spectrum light ranges.

Might be worth looking into if you decide to go the terrarium route again

Mae
 
  • #27
Hi,
Just looked in on this one, VFTs are never ones for the terrarium in the long run, Suzanne is right when they need chilly winters and good light. Where do you live exactly?
Here in England, most of us grow VFTs in cold greenhouses where temps get to max 100 to 110f in the summer and down to 15f in winter. They grow in full sun (much more light than fluorescent lights) and exhibit strong growth.
 
  • #28
Hi! I live in Alberta. Dry and hot this summer, and down to more than 20 below on average in winter. I plan on keeping my VFT's indoors. It seems the conditions in the terrarium are finally leveling out. The temp. is steady at 80, and the humidity is steady at 70. I have a cup filled with distilled water in the terrarium that has an ultrasonic mister in it. I turn the mister on for about 1/2 hour every morning to water (at least I did when there was still plants in there&#33
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. But since I'm getting more VFT's and sundews, the terrarium will soon be filled again. The bulb I have is a 60 watt florescent, and I'll be putting a second in there as well. Seperate switches though so that I don't have to have both on at once unless it's needed.
I'm hoping these conditions will work, but VFT's have me pulling my hair out!
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  • #29
Hi,
Not an easy area you live in, but forget the misting with VFTs, grow them outside in the Summer and water them with the tray method in semi sunny position and use the refridgerate the rhizome method to force dormancy in the late fall. In short, terrariums are not the ideal home for a VFT!
 
  • #30
</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Maehem @ Aug. 28 2002,02:56)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">I have a 5.5 gal planted aquarium (with fish) and had the lighting problem unfortuantely they don't make florescent fixture hoods for tanks that small, they do however make incandesant hoods.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
I have the same size glass fish aquarium that I'm using. The pet store I bought it from did have a lid complete with fixture. But the florescent light I'm using is a 14/60 cool color light with a light output of 800 lumens. It screws right in to any standard fixture. Shop around a bit at your local larger pet emporiums (Pisces, Petland, etc.). They should have proper lids complete with fixture.
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  • #31
<sigh> see, now I am really regretting leaving Canada. Have been to every petstore/department store in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area, no florescent hoods for anything under 10g.I even checked the aquarium specialist that is run out of a storage unit... (that one threw me, almost as much as the beer in 7-11)

Now I find out that they are available in Canada.. figures doesn't it? lol

I MISS MY ISLAND!!! <sob>
 
  • #32
Check around online...maybe Ebay? I have found so far that pretty much everything I haven't been able to find anywhere else, I have been able to find there!
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  • #33
</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Mike King @ Aug. 28 2002,04:17)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Hi,
 Not an easy area you live in, but forget the misting with VFTs, grow them outside in the Summer...[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Summers here have unfortunately gotten too dry for that. The temps. have probably been ideal, but the humidity levels have been low, often as low as 30%. I know that a terrarium may not be ideal, but in the conditions we live under here, it's probably the only way if I want to have one (except for maybe a greenhouse made of shhet plastic!
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