Over-wintering fluorescent setup and questions/help

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samreu
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Dec 19, 2017 8:54 pm
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Re: Over-wintering fluorescent setup and questions/help

Post by samreu »

Just an update on the setup.
jm - i purchased some of the AC Infinity fans you suggested and they work nicely and silently and very easy to position.
With the lights setup at different heights and anywhere from 2 to 4 to 6 fluorescent tubes on, I have found 2-3 positions that are keeping temps cooler and maintaining some not bad light intensity.
Again, my space is 2x4 feet, with a 6 x 54W bulb Agrobrite for total of 30,000 lumens. I have white side walls up to 40", white flooring and the ends walled up to around 24" so the fans can move air out efficiently.
Measurement 1 - 10,000 - 12,000 lux with a temp of 69F/21C running 2 lights only - night temps 65F/18C.
Measurement 2 - 17,000 - 20,000 lux with a temp of 71F/22C running 4 lights
Measurement 3 - 18,000 - 22,000 lux with a temp of 73.5F/23C running 6 lights.....and that's with the lights at 39" above the plants - quite a bit of heat, no doubt - although.
jm I also liked your box/window idea- I also have a north facing window sill in my basement - the window sill is about 6" wide by 4 feet long and I can close it off with the blinds - with temps now at 32F/0C, I am getting 59F/15C in there, when the room is 69F/21C. So I can probably reach even cooler temps when the colder weather settles in.
Bottom line - I'm going to try putting some plants in the window sill for 2-3 months, dry, and then put them under the lighting in let's say end of February?? I'll also try putting a few in the light set-up full winter length and water monthly??.
I know I won't really be able to compare results unless I had the same plants in the different scenarios?
Quick question to those with light experience - is there an acclimation for the plants with the fluo's or are the intensities still rather low to worry about it?? Right now, lux measurements at my windows are pretty darn low with the lower sun?
Thanks for any comments.
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J-M
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Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2015 11:16 am
Location: Quebec, Canada

Re: Over-wintering fluorescent setup and questions/help

Post by J-M »

Glad to hear the fans are working for you.

Your windowsill setup should work fine. Wait as long as you can before putting them back under the lights/warmer temps. Early march sounds good.
I never had to acclimatize my cactus to fluo lights after being in the dark for weeks, your setup produces more lumen than mine though so I can't say there is nothing to worry about.

For the watering, very little water is what you have to remember. Some will shrink a little bit, but others will look almost as good as always.
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jerrytheplater
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Location: Bloomingdale, NJ (USDA Zone 6b)
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Re: Over-wintering fluorescent setup and questions/help

Post by jerrytheplater »

samreu wrote: Sun Oct 28, 2018 5:21 pm Just an update on the setup.
Any more updates on your plants and how they made out with this setup? Or another that took its place?
Jerry Smith
Bloomingdale, NJ
45 inches (114 cm) rain equivalent per year, approx. evenly spread per month
2012 USDA Hardiness Zone 6b: -5F to OF (-20C to -18C) min.
samreu
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Dec 19, 2017 8:54 pm
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Re: Over-wintering fluorescent setup and questions/help

Post by samreu »

Hey Jerry, I have been happy with my lights and the setup - it isn't what you'd call an expert set-up but it keeps my little hobby desires fulfilled. I set up a 2nd setup, the same 4 x 2 for 8 square feet and for this second setup I purchased a Mars TSL-2000.
With the original fluorescent setup at about 26" height from the bottom, I'm getting about 14-15,000 lux with 4 bulbs and around 20-22,000 with the 6 bulbs - heat is about 70-74 depending on the lights run but there are 4 small computer fans in each setup. 4 fans run during light period, 2 run at night when temps will drop to a low of 63-65.
With the LED setup, at 28" I can get around 51,000 lux - the beauty is there is a dimmer which is VERY flexible. Don't let anyone tell you LED's are cool running however - at 28-30" height running at its higher output levels, temps will run around 82-84 with 2-4 fans running. Drop the output to something like 30,000 lux and temps drop down to 74.
So I mix my cacti and succulents between the 2 setups and usually put them in there beginning to mid-November to mid-end of March. I have at this point started to cut back on water significantly from the growing period and have stopped every watering fertilizer (using pumice/clay pellets/ bonsai block / pine bark mixtures I make up at different ratios) by mid-September. Winter watering in both scenarios, genralizing, depending on the plants, is monthly to every second month. Following this, I haven't really noticed any stretching over the winter months, at least to my eyes.
When everything comes out in mid-March, I start growing my herbs, annuals, dahlias, etc in the light setups which works wonders and gives me a great head start to our shorter growing season here in Ottawa - to give you an idea, our safe date for frost in the spring is usually around May 24th !!
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