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Old February 12, 2012   #11
SEAMSFASTER
Tomatovillian™
 
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Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: American Fork, Utah
Posts: 160
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I ran the numbers several times and just could not justify purchasing T-5's or even T-8's over the old T-12's. The T-5 bulbs were 8 times and the fixtures 3 times the price. It would take over six years to make up the difference in energy savings. And that's assuming the bulbs never need to be replaced.

I use the T-12 bulbs in tight over young seedlings. When it's time to transplant, the larger seedlings go under metal halide lights (I lucked out and got these fixtures for free - rescued from the trash).

I keep the window open at night to try to get the temperature under 60°. I also try to give all seedlings at least 30 minutes per day of fan time to stimulate stalks to strengthen.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg Tomato Seedlings 1-24-2012 E.jpg (271.8 KB, 114 views)
File Type: jpg Lights 2-16-11 B.jpg (337.2 KB, 128 views)
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