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Growing under Lights

light wattage and exposure time

19 years ago

How high should the wattage of my lights be? I have 40 in now (2 long bulbs per fixture) but suspect I should be using higher wattage. Also, how long per day should I leave my seedlings under the light? I have a frame built of 2x4's wrapped in foil (dull side in towards plants)with the light just a few inches over the tops of the seedlings.

Comment (1)

korney19
19 years ago
40 watt bulbs are enough, as long as you don't have the trays sticking out the sides--then you need more fixtures or wider reflectors. If the fixtures have electronic ballasts, T8 bulbs (1" diameter instead of T12's 1.5" diameter) are brighter.

As for time, try for 16 hours per day on.

Hope this helps.

Mark
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