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CHEAP GROW LIGHT

Here is grow light in my basement that i build for very little money.
I put together two light bulbs of each in use 6 light bulbs bathroomfixture.

Here is list of what you need:
-light fixture-$4.00-habitat for humanity store
-chain 8'-$4.00- home depot
-screws- $4.50- home depot
-light bulbs- $5.00- lowe`s (on sale)
-timer(set of 2)-$4.30-home depot
-left over radiant barriers from roof replacement-$?

Here is CFL light bulbs i use:
2 of 1640 lumens and 3000K
2 of 1640 lumens and 2700K
2 daylight bulbs of 1200 lumens and 6500K

So all together i have 24400K and 8960 lumens



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That is great!  Looking forward to seeing fig trees under those lights!

You can not add like that the degrees Kelvins as they refer to the color temperature...

Eden,
I wish it worked the way you have posted. I like the idea and commend your independent thinking, but you haven't created a grow light that produces all the light frequencies of a true grow light. That's not to say that this light won't help as it will, it's just you'll need to supplement it. In other words if this set up is the only light provided you won't get optimal results. I use a similar set up in one of my bathrooms as I have plants in there. It has helped but the plants are can't miss varieties (pothos, peace lilly) that grow anywhere I put them. I've also used this on a bunch of arabica coffee trees (my little Costa Rica coffee finca) and they did ok but did start to get a bit "leggy" after 6 months.
Daylight is 5500K - plants will do well under this.
MH (1000w) is 3700K - this is perfect for growing figs.
An inexpensive but "professional type" grow bulb (again MH at 1000w) will produce 110,000 Lumens and be good for an area about 5 feet x 5 feet and last - they claim - 10,000+ hours. Most folks I know replace their bulbs 1x per year as they do degrade over time.
All the above figures are approximate as I was too lazy to look them up.

Eden,

You mentioned: Here is CFL light bulbs i use:
2 of 1640 lumens and 3000K
2 of 1640 lumens and 2700K
2 daylight bulbs of 1200 lumens and 6500K


These bulbs will give you good accent lights to pop other colors. With Kelvin one is unable to add the various frequencies together to "create" or "blend" a new Kelvin. These will not contribute to a significant growth amount due to the lower level of lumens, however this unit would be great with 6 of the daylight bulbs for seed starting or cuttings. 

Thank you Michael and Chris. So your recommendation is to use all 6 daylight bulb. This is the first time I'm doing this and any suggestion is welcome.

Eden,

As mentioned above the fixture is perfect for starting seeds and cuttings. For growing plants out to a larger size I would look for a setup that produces more lumens. 

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