grow room lighting question, please
 

Hi,
This time I have a question concerning lights for a grow room, please. At this time, I have around 27 Orchids that I have accumulated so far this summer which I have outside on our open (but covered) back porch, but I will soon have to bring them in before cold weather gets here, of course. My husband is going to turn a room adjoining our house into an Orchid grow room for me, but we are unsure of the best lighting system that should be used. Nothing elaborate or expensive...we want to keep it simple, but sufficient. The room is approx. 10' x 10' initially built with a high ceiling for an electronics shop. He would like to put up two 2-4', 4 bulb each fixtures, but before he does...he wanted me to ask your opinion. First of all, does that sound good to you? Or, would you have another suggestion? Secondly, we would like to know about the bulbs that will go in them. What do you suggest? He says the fixtures he had in mind are built for 4 large fluoresent bulbs. Do the bulbs need to be specifically plant/grow bulbs, or do people use just regular fluoresents? As far as plant/grow bulbs this size goes, I haven't had time to do any research, so I don't even know if they are made ?? We would really appreciate any suggestions/advice that you might have for us.
Thank you,
Vicki

The larger bulbs are called t12. Better yet are the newer t8 florescents. They use a different fixture. They are used now in kitchens and other areas that require higher light. The best is t5 (skinny tubes) which require their own fixture and are mostly found in shops dealing with hydroponics stuff. As the tube gets skinnier, the light output gets higher. All of these will work - it's just the distance from the plant. The t5's can be as much as a foot or so away while the t12's need to be within inches. Hope this helps.

Thank you, Ross!
 

Thank you for the info, Ross. Gr8 help!
Vicki