Sunlight Sensing Controls

[calbunn]

I'm a new member and I was hoping there may be some on this site that have had some experience with this issue.

I was going to add supplemental lighting in a greenhouse and wanted see if anyone has advice or experience with any sensors that would automatically raise or lower the lamp output based on the available sunlight.

I know there are daylight sensing controls for area lights that adjust all the lights in an office for example but I was interested in controls that would sense and adjust for plant canopy micromole levels that could assist me with maintaining daily mole saturation levels under each supplemental light.

Any thoughts or recommendations as to the type of light and controls that were used would be appreciated but I'm primarily interested in;

What type of lighting was used and was it used for veg, flower or both?

Was there any effect that the dimming of these lamps caused either an increase or decrease in usable lamp life?

What was the dimming range? Were you able to dim it from 0-100% levels or somewhere in between dependent on available sunlight levels?

When dimming the light to 50% of it's light levels did it reduce energy consumption by that same 50% and did you see the difference on your utility bill?

Did you adjust each light individually for the plants beneath it or the room as a whole?

Did the plants do better with the managed consistent light levels in terms of yield, quality and time to harvest?

Thank you for any assistance you can provide.

[WhiteRabbit]

[Ray]

I doubt that there are "off the shelf" controllers that will give you the precision you are seeking, nor do I think that it's really all the necessary.

A controller that turned on supplemental lights when the ambient gets below a preset level is probably sufficient.

[keithrs]

Im with Ray... I think cost will out weight the befits. The amount of light we get here in S.D. are pretty consistent anyway.... Even through the winter. If your on the coast you will have overcast condition but I don't think its going to effect your plants that much.... Most orchids see these conditions on a regular bases. Culture sheets from Bakers will tell you how many clear days that area sees.

[camille1585]

Lights aren't my area of experise, but coming from an horticultural background I'm a bit familiar with commercial greenhouse setups. Those growers generally have their lights set up to a sensor, and everything turns on (or off) at a preset lux threshold. The point is to insure a minimum light level, maximum isn't as important.

As to 'yield' and 'time to harvest', sounds like you aren't growing orchids! I'm thinking of a certain other plant that loves to grow under lots of lights...lol