I have a 2' x 2' x 4.5' grow tent I'm going to use for mothers, clones and veg. The light I have on hand is a 4' x 2' 8 bulb T5 fixture. I don't have the $$ to buy a new light so is there any reason I wouldn't want to hang the light vertically against one of the inside walls of the tent? So rather then the light coming from above, it will be hitting the entire length of the plants on the side. Keep in mind I want to house a small mother or two, and about 16 clones until they are ready to SOG.
Dude thats more then enough to veg under..Go for it. Erm didnt see the vertically. it should still work imo.T5 lighting keeps it strenght further form the bulb then say a MH IMO.Switch it from side to side daily or weekly. GL
Yes...IMO Look at your MH lamp when on.The light emits from an area about 2".Look at a HPS,and its 5x longer or more.Hence why HPS push more lumens.My 2' T5's for example push as much light as a 4' in the smaller area.The wider area the light is emitting from helps the strenght/distance ratio or something. I did read all this somewhere when I was researching lights before buying my first T5.I do not know all the real terms facts ect to a T.
My plants grow way more compact,and tight noded even up to 1 1/2' under 200 watts of T5 compared to my 400w of MH.Way less heat as well. Have you ever even used a T5?I doubt it.
The heat is obv biggest thing with an hid. But I don't know what to tell you, there's plenty of other factors that could be attributing to the tighter nodes and growth. I dont have exact numbers, but there's no way that that a 4lamp t5ho with approx 20,000 lumens can be better then one HID which will put out anywhere from 35-45k+ lumens if not higher depending on the lamp. It just doesn't make sense to me Not really trying to argue.. I'm at work on a Friday night so I'm trying to keep myself occupied
At least that's what science says. So anyways, this thread isn't about MH vs T5. There are plenty of those threads out there already. Back to the original topic; how would having my lighting in this configuration effect growth. Is there a reason I wouldn't want to do this?
I have heard of a few people using T5 lights vertically. Of course they will work, but remember that the sun leaves normally absorb light from above, not beside them. You would have maximum photosynthesis if you were able to hang them horizontally within 2-6 inches of the plant. In my experience, vertical light sources to the sides of plants work well as supplementary lighting, not as the main light source.
A plant will grow towards the light. It will turn itself to obtain whatever it can. I used to grow using vertical aeroponics with lights mounted vertically. The plants where dropped in at 12" vertical they would turn towards the light and grow at a 70 degrees until they finished. Look at what happens with LST. Go look at some of Possums friends vertical setup in the organic journals. Can you cock the light fixture so it will fit? You could then put the mothers under the greatest distance and run the clones under the shortest distance. If your going to SOG then you'll want them as vertical as possible. Just a thought. HTH SF