Input needed for Lighting!

[zachkent29]

I need some input for lights in one of my growing areas. You can see from the pictures I currently use a "plant" spotlight and a floor lamp as extra lighting. The blinds are just closed for the pictures. This window is fairly bright but it only gives the high light necessary the cattlya's and vanda later in the afternoon. For this reason, I have these two other lights on for 12 hours a day. Both these bulbs are 15W 6500K 650 lumens CFL spotlights. At the distances they are placed all the plants receive between 2,000 and 4,000 FC's all day.

The issue is...my fiance wants her floor lamp back at her desk. So I need a new setup. The main reason the lights are like this, is that this is in our living room and I wanted the least obtrusive setup possible. So please consider this in your comments.

I have considered hanging a light from above the window, as long as it doesn't block too much of it. I also thought about screwing my spotlights (I have another) on each side of the window, but the bulbs I have aren't strong enough.

Soo..any ideas? I also want to use save on wattage if I can (that's why I have CFL's, I know they lose a lot of light..).

[zachkent29]

Come on guys! Somebody's got to have an idea for a non-obtrusive lighting setup. How about a smaller hanging light? I've seen some plant light reflector kits that hang, but most are fairly wide.

I thought about just buying another floor lamp, but I'm really not sure if they were meant to be ran 12 hours a day.

[sithwitch]

I just want to say I am no great expert first! But I do understand about having limited window space (and limited wattage availability on my "grow room"'s circuits) and having to grow pretty much everything under lights.

If wattage is one of your limitting factors, then LED grow lights might be your answer, but you'd have to choose them very carefully. Ray here sells some of the good ones Orchid Growing Supplies Semi-hydroponics Hydroponics Orchid Books PrimeAgra and has some nice t5 lights too, which you might be interested in.
LED lights last for a long time too. I am currently buying and trying different kinds of LED light arrays to see which fits my limited space, since I can't plug in another 400 watt MH lights in here without tripping the circuit breaker!

I also tested some halogen lights with my light meter in a store and the amount of light given off was great, but then so was the heat generated which is a no-no for me, since the MH light brings the room temperature up 5 degrees already.

The advantage of the LEDs aside from low electricity cost is that a lot of them, inluding Ray's, screw in standard e26 Edison fixtures. You'd need something else for the halogens but it shouldn't be too expensive. Those 2 choices and CFL are pretty much the only things that match "low-watt" as a criteria to my knowledge

As for a non obstrusive setup, I can't think of much of anythng except a hanging lamp with a standard socket with a flood LED bulb (like these E27 93 SMD1210 3528 6W Led 380Lumen 6500K Light Bulb Lamp 110V | eBay) or you could keep going with the spotlights if they currently work for you. I've just ordered 2 of the bulbs I just link to try them out, so I can't confirm their effectiveness yet but they should work out.

Hope this helps and that someone with more lighting experience pops in too

[RosieC]

Giving you a bump, but I'm afraid this is just the reason I grow in natural light... for windowsill growing lights would be too obtrusive and I don't have space to set up a lit area

[Paddle_grl]

There's a artificial lighting area, maybe ask there. I grow mine in a converted curio cabinet with a soft white and bright white 17 watt T-8's. It works, but I think your set up looks great! I doubt you are going to hurt a floor lamp by being on 12 hours a day. I'd just use your same setup if it works.