New set-up using T5 hanging fixture! And a ? about a heat mat.

[Purple_phal_gal13]

Wow very creative with the fruit basket! I like. Like your desk, my coffee table in the corner has become an orchid haven.

I've found sitting the plastic orchid pots directly on the heating mat has done no harm so far. I can see condensation inside the pot so that must mean the heat is doing some warming of the roots.

[The Orchid Boy]

I like your set up. I like to here aout other young orchid fanatics. My room is in the basement and has a shelf with a 4 bulb 4 foot T5 light and a 2 bulb 4 foot T8 light. I keep my door closed to keep the pets out and it gets fairly warm and humid.

[Purple_phal_gal13]

I am currently in an apartment and keep my orchids on a coffee table near a west facing window. I keep the shades closed and thermal curtains pulled shut now with it getting chilly.

My light is a 27w CFL in the 6500K range. It's like a reading light of sorts. I also keep a heating mat underneath my orchids to help promote humidity and keep the roots warm. My 24 hr humidity and temp gauge let me know that the orchids aren't getting too cold. The light is on a timer, 14 hours.

I'm looking into getting a 3 light metal lamp so I can keep a grow bulb closer to the orchids to throw off a little extra light in a different spectrum.

This is not my ideal set up but it works keeping bill down and providing good light and warmth to my orchids. Also works for my current space. They seem to like it so far.

[PrognatusAfera]

@ purple_phal: Thanks! Once the power comes back (thanks Sandy!) I think I'm going to sacrifice my pebble tray for the heat mat, since I don't think the heat mat was strong enough to go through the plastic tray. (I guess I can check with a thermometer once the power comes back though..)
I can't really decide, I keep going back and forth.
Until the power went out, it looked like my plants are doing well so far under the new setup.
We'll see, I guess!

@TheOrchidBoy: Basement , huh? Kudos to you for setting up a light system down there. What kind of orchids do you have growing?

[Purple_phal_gal13]

One thing though, Afera, is it will be fun keeping your humidity up to where your orchids like it. I usually mist my orchids frequently to give a boost to the humidity short term.

But you'll figure out a system that works for you, my apartment is not very humid so it's a chore for me to get up my humidity.

[PrognatusAfera]

Yea, I thought about that, but decided I'd rather try other methods of keeping the humidity up and take the pebble tray out, just because in my room, heat seems to be more of an issue. I do mist them relatively often; I also have a humidifier I run occasionally when the humidity really drops (I have a hygrometer I check constantly). I used to have one of those gorgeous little table fountains, you know, like the zen ones, that actually did a good deal for the humidity (but then it broke). So I'm working on getting my hands on another one I like, and that should hopefully solve most of that problem as it used to.

[Purple_phal_gal13]

You know a table fountain actually sounds like a good idea. Kudos to you for having a humidifier. I'm going to look into one and see what'll work best.

[PrognatusAfera]

Thanks--I got the humidifier for $16 at Bed Bath and Beyond! I'm pretty happy with it, I just don't use it unless the humidity level drops significantly (like in the middle of winter) as it's somehow a beast, despite how cheap it was! The table fountain was several years old, so it broke a little while ago, but it really, really worked to keep my room at a happy, consistent level without actually fogging things up like the humidifier does sometimes. (And it's pretty too!!!)

[The Orchid Boy]

You asked what kinds of orchids I grow. I currently have 7 noid phals. 1 Paph. Magical Venus, 1 paph. delenatii, 1 large Paph. sanderianum (my favorite), 1 Paph. gratrixianum seedling, 2 Pot. Memoria Irene Feil 'Ruby Red' AM/AOS, and 1 Masdevallia Aquarius. I'd like to give away some noid phals to make room for more paphs, an Onc. Sharry Baby, and a few other orchids. Then I'll be happy, at least for a little while...

[PrognatusAfera]

I don't blame you at all for your favorite choice; the sanderianum is fantastic! Have you gotten blooms off of it yet?
How's your Masdevallia doing? I just got my first one a few months ago, and it seems to be doing well... except I'm always afraid I might be rotting it or something, since it's the only one I keep potted in moss.