Well, I really don't have much for indoor light. The only usable south facing window has been usurped by my 3mo. old. No growing aloud in that room. So, I just have an east facing window in the kitchen that's mostly blocked by the adjacent west-facing wall of my neighbors house. So, I definitely am going to need more than the puny single bulb low-output fluorescent that I'm using now. I could have grabbed one of those 6 or 8 bulb T5 fixtures, and I think that would have worked fairly well, although it does produce some heat -- probably a good thing for winter in the kitchen.
LL, you joke, but from what I could tell just about everyone using those tents was doing so for the big M. Not only that, but it seems those guys are on the cutting edge of lighting technology and all kinds of indoor growing. I cringe to think if my work ever scans some of the sites I've visited in my research for lighting using the company laptop.
In any case, I think I've gone overboard with the LED light I purchased -- could have got a fluorescent setup of near comparable output for around a quarter the cost. I'm hoping this light will be worth it in the long run with energy savings, and heck, it's just cool.
From everything I've read (and common sense), it really helps to have the reflective mylar (or like material). I think it can increase the total light directed at the plant by something like 40% in an ideally enclosed area. Of course, you'll give something up if you have nice natural light coming through -- don't want to block it off. I'm thinking of running the reflective material on all sides except that which faces my single window. That will give me an access point as well as the benefit of at least some natural sunlight in the mornings.
|