DIY Mini Plexiglass orchidadirum questions

[Orchidtinkerer]

I'll second what Mr Fakename has said.

The Bellina will grow twice the size of that box so will soon outgrow its space.

The best solution is a 30x30x30 cm polystyrene fish box available on ebay - second hand they are not too expensive. You can leave the lid on with a slight gap. Like this I can heat the inside 10 degrees C warmer than the outside using only 2 watts of power. With no insulation it would be in the region of 20 watts.
A plexi glass tank would probably need 10 watts. If you add a fan like you are suggesting it will be 18 watts as the fan will blow most the heat out.
The only big problem with a polystyrene box is lighting, there are mini led's available that would suit such a box but depends where you live whether you can source the right light.

I can highly recommend an adjustable heat mat, otherwise you will need a thermostat to regulate it.
You will also need a timer to turn it off at night.

If you grow on a heat mat you will soon find that your plant drying out from the heat will be your main concern. Ventilation will just speed up the rate of drying and once you have it all set up (with a heat mat) you won't want any ventilation, certainly not for only one plant - you won't need it. But it is always good to have a spare computer fan on hand if you do think that you need it. If it gets too humid or the substrate doesn't dry out fast enough (I would still recommend a faster drying media over a fan or opening the lid more but a fan should of course be used if it is needed) I'm just saying from experience I doubt you will feel that you will need a fan with only one plant - the air current the heating of the heat mat will create (heat rises so heat creates air flow) and a gap in the lid.

But as a ps: If you read this aricle here you will find this grower keeps his Bellina at 14 degrees C in winter

Advanced Phalaenopsis Care: Summer vs Winter Blooming Phals >> Here But Not

I have not tried this low myself but 29 degrees is way too hot for a bellina, 24-25 degrees C during the day and 20 degrees C at night is the general guideline but it seems the plant might be able to handle colder.

[YokaYampi]

Oh wow! Thank you Orchidtinkere
Ill definitely look at that link!
After reading everyone's reply i think ive come down to a good plan.
So, since she does like warmer temps and the winters in Quebec get.. very cold ill definitely need some kind of tank to put her in.
Since i already have the plexiglass ill build it out of that but ill change my measurements to the length of the shelf which is 24" however i need to keep the width at 5.5"-6" so itll be 24"Lx5.5"W 9-12"H (im not sure about the height exactly yet)
ill make the top open up on hinges so i can leave it partially open, closed or fully opened. I also bough two CPU 40mm 5V fans i can put one or two depending on the airflow in the tank. and ill definitely get a heat matt control/timer!

[Mr.Fakename]

Originally Posted by Orchidtinkerer

I have not tried this low myself but 29 degrees is way too hot for a bellina, 24-25 degrees C during the day and 20 degrees C at night is the general guideline but it seems the plant might be able to handle colder.

How did you come up with those numbers?

Around 30 during the day is the sweet spot for bellina/violacea and other species from lowland Borneo; with nightly temps never going below 23°C.

They'll handle cooler (for short periods of time), but will not grow properly and will be much much sensitive to diseases.

[YokaYampi]

Orchidarium BELLINA - Album on Imgur
UPDATE
I made the orchidarium twice as big as originally planned, L 24in x W 5.5inch x H 12inch with two holes on either side of the tank. A cpu fan attached to the outside of one side of the tank. The top is two panels on plastic hinges that I can open/close as much as I want depending on the humidity inside. I also have a reptile heating Matt connected to a thermostat and timer. Led lights on the outside. So far( almost 3 months) inside the bellina has started to grow a new leaf and recently a root of stem Im not sure yet! She seems happy so far

[hypostatic]

my experience with using acrylic and plexiglass for terrarium lids is that they both warp inwards due to humidity over time. So at least as removable lids that aren't fused to the rest of the terrarium, I wouldn't recommend plastic

[YokaYampi]

It’s something I considered and actually the one Im currently using the second out of 2 I made, ( the first I used the wrong silicone and not aquarium which left the tank smelling/curing for months still.) so I made a second one with aquarium silicone and I have tones of left over pieces to make more tops is necessary however 3 months later and there’s no rounding or sign of warping just yet.. I’ll have the first tank if that ever does happen and I don’t want to replace the tops, aha! however before then I hope to have a much bigger space for growing ☺️

[Orchidtinkerer]

looking great yoka. Now you pretty much have the recipe to expanding it to bigger sizes in future if you want to.
I started with an aquarium about the size of yours, now my biggest grow space is 120cm x 70cm x 60cm high.

I just set that up this year and I was originally going to use heat mats but they just could not heat the space well enough so I am slowly converting to greenhouse tube heaters. I found for half the wattage I could heat the same space as with the heat mats and I am constantly trying to reduce my yearly electric bill so worth thinking about. The tubular heaters usually come in sizes of 60watts for a foot length, 120w for 2 foot etc. But 60w can be quite a lot and it will heat up to 100 C which is what probably makes it so efficient but can be quite hot directly next to plants so I use a simple fan speed controller to adjust the heat it gives off.
Just a little trick I picked up along the way. You can get thermostatically controlled tube heaters but from what I understand they will still heat at maximum power but it then turns off once it reaches a set temperature. You want one that can be adjusted. I'm sure you must be able to buy one where you can adjust the temperature like I do with a fan controller but just in case anyone has wanted to use a tubular heaters but thought at max power they were too much, you can use a fan controller, turn it down and it will be more efficient than a heat mat.

Originally Posted by MrFakeName

How did you come up with those numbers?

Around 30 during the day is the sweet spot for bellina/violacea and other species from lowland Borneo; with nightly temps never going below 23°C.

They'll handle cooler (for short periods of time), but will not grow properly and will be much much sensitive to diseases.

It costs a lot to heat to 29 degrees in winter. That is the main reason my phals gets 24 degrees. In Summer they get warmer. Currently a few of my Bellina's are doing fine with 17 degree C nights. I wn't go lower than 16 but have seen no signs of stress yet.

According to travaldo where I get most my info from 20-24 degrees is ideal - I just follow what I read online, so far travaldo has been a godsend helping me figure out how to keep each type and I don't feel it has been wrong yet. I have grown Bellina's for 2 years now. They seem to flower on and off for 8 months a year, then rest for 4 months. Maybe I could do better - in fact I am sure I could but I have a lot of orchids to look after - my bellina's are amongst my most reliable bloomers so I am quite happy with what I'm giving them.

Phalaenopsis bellina care and culture | Travaldo's blog

[YokaYampi]

Thank you! Orchidtinkerer!
It was a fun little project and you definitely helped a lot! I’m very excited to be able to have more orchids in the future and gain experience until then. I’ll have to look into the tubular heaters once Im ready for an upgrade for now the timer and mini Matt work well but I know for a larger set up it’s unrealistic.
My next question was going to be temperature! I set the tank to 22-23 during the day and it goes to 18 at night in the winter with it switched off (I might have to set it to a night temp when cold Canadian winter hits) should I set it to 23? Or 24?
I also have a mini phal in there that’s dehydrated due to mild root on the roots and it’s enjoying the high humidity while it recuperates.. any other tips are more then welcome with the BELLINA! How long do you run the lights on it?

[Mr.Fakename]

Originally Posted by Orchidtinkerer

According to travaldo where I get most my info from 20-24 degrees is ideal - I just follow what I read online, so far travaldo has been a godsend helping me figure out how to keep each type and I don't feel it has been wrong yet.

Phalaenopsis bellina care and culture | Travaldo's blog

It is a pain to get those temperatures all year round for sure, which is why so many people struggle with hot growing species.

The temperature range that's suggested in the article is way off.

According to the late E. Christenson, Phal bellina is found in the Sarawak state of Malaysia.

Here's a website presenting the climate for the past 20 years in Sarawak : Climate in Sarawak, Malaysia

[Orchidtinkerer]

lol lets agree to disagreee then Mr.
Every orchid needs a certain temp difference to flower. Some need more, others need less.
Bellina's do not need more than 4 degrees difference to flower. Of course you can give them more than they need but that is a waste.

Justin from herebutNot is a very experienced grower who has far more experience than me so if he keeps his Bellina's at 14 degrees than I trust him 100% Should you keep a Bellina at 14 degrees? Certainly not it will cause stress but if you can get away with it in freezing Canada without affecting blooming, then why waste more electricity.

Going under 20 is going under the general guideline, Fakename you think it is 23 degrees? You will have to show some results with statements like that as not even my Rhynchosyilis Gigantea - my hottest growing orchid- gets that temp!
I like giving my orchids the best, most people don't actually, most just try their luck in the conditions they have so I know I treat my orchids well, there is no need to go to hypothetical extremes to achieve what I am not entirely sure.

But each to their own

At this point I am usually faced with being pointed out how orchids grow in nature which can be interpreted a million ways so never a veryy good argument imo but before the nature remark comes along I will make my own... In nature phals grow under trees, are thus shaded from the sun and are never exposed to the same extremes that an orchid growing above the tree canopy in the same climate would be exposed to for example.