You can get a pretty nice fixture complete with plastic difuser for under fourty bucks, or a bare bones 2 bulb four footer like youd use in a garage for around twenty.

As for the PH I never worried about it as I use store bought soiless seed starting mix and then transplant to pots with Miracle grow potting soil.
I feed my stuff a half strength mix of Miracle grow feed 15-30-15 and this last year I started adding a quart of regular garden dirt mixed in about half way up the pot when transplanting to the final five gallon black pot.
Seemed to work pretty good for me.

WOW, those bare bones fixtures really went up in price since 2003. I went to Home Depot and paid $8+ for each fixture and 99¢ for each bulb.
I just went to HD to link this thread to the site and now the fixtures are $29.97. The one they list that looks like mine are a different brand and have a pull chain to turn them on.
Anyway, here's the link. Click on Fluorescent lighting.

I just checked Ace and they have them w/o the hood for $8.99.
Looks like Lowes has a nice one w/ a diffuser for $19.97
I would check Wally World too.

Paul B.

I think the shop lights I get from the Mart are about $13--and yes, they were cheaper in the past--think 40 watt tubes are about $2 each

Paul you need to get out more.

:)

hendrik_vanderdekin, for me, frugal is part of what makes this hobby enjoyable. :)
I can't see prices for a simple shop light increasing over 300% in 3 short years. But then again, Republicans are in control, businesses are outsourcing offshore and gouging prices, taking advantage of foreign labor.

And thanks to our fine President, looks like I'll be getting out even less now that gas prices average $3 / gal. :)

BTW captain, I took a second look at the fixture Ace offers for $8.99 and it does have a reflector hood over the bulbs. It's hard to see by the angle of the photo.
That's the one I would buy. You can order it online and the shipping is free (more frugal stuff) to any Ace near you.

Paul B.

so any flourescent bulb will work? or any better than others?

You can still buy a fluorescent fixture (2-40watt bulbs) from Home Depot for about $8.00. I just bought one about a month ago. A pair of bulbs can be had for $4.00. I look for the bulbs with the highest output (max lumens) and don't worry much about the color temperature.

There are two basic el cheapo fluorescent tubes (bulbs) readily available, Warm White and Cool White.
Because they each render light in a visible spectrum of different wavelengths (nanometers), I use a combination of both. Cool White distributes light in the blue/violet part of the visual spectrum (shorter wavelength) while Warm White distributes light in the red part of the visual spectrum (longer wavelength).
Plants utilize certain ranges in the sprectrum for specific purposes.

Paul B.

I get the cheapest 40 watt at the Mart which tend to be cool white and they work for me.

thanks alot everyone. but seeing as how i am no home improvement expert (haha), are those suggested lights/hoods just going to plug into an outlet and be good to go, or actually be hooked into the electrical wiring of my house? maybe a stupid question, so i dunno.

Just plug those suckers in.

well I got 2 Daylight Deluxe, 1 Natural Sunshine and 1 Plants/Aquarium

so I'd think they are getting a wide spectrum of light then

Captain, the fixtures I bought at HD came boxed and needed minimal assembly. They just plug directly into an outlet or plugstrip. I use a plugstrip as a multiple outlet which enables me to switch the lights on and off. I believe John does the same.

Paul B.

Paul is correct about the price. A simple no frills fixture w/out a hood is $7.98 at Home Depot as of last month. Bulbs then cost around $2.

Forget about the daylight bulbs and other junk, they may put out a wider spectrum, but they put out way less light (in terms of lumens) than simple cool/warm white bulbs. All you really need is cool white, but if you want to give them a little more spectrum, then add in a warm white also (the warm white seems to be more expensive though, $4 at HD).

ok I just swapped out a cool white with one of the Daylights...

I must have hit it just right in 2003. HD had cool white and warm white tubes in an end cap box for 99¢ ea., your choice. Haven't had to replace one since.
Now I'm reading the cost is 200% more for the same tubes (bulbs)? See what I mean about being frugal?
When I do get out, I make it worthwhile. :)

Paul B.

Why is it that my annual salary increase doesn't keep up w/ these price increases?
I can sum it up in one word Republicans.

Paul B.

We are getting off topic a bit. But I want to weigh in on this.

I work for a state legislature and I am involved with politics every day. Personally, I don't favor either of the two main political parties AND I have never been a fan of the current administration.

Paul, while technically you may be correct that Republican's are stingy with their money and don't spread it around much, they also don't believe in taxing you as much. They espouse the philosophy that YOU know best how to spend your money.

Democrats on the other hand, believe in giving you more (liberalism), but they also believe in taxing you more and sharing your money with others (socialism).

So either way, it all evens out in the end, in my opinion. You either get less money but give less to the government OR you get more money and give more to the government. It's six of one or a half dozen of the other.

The only redeeming thing about politics is that the two opposing philosophies counterbalance each other and it keeps either one of them from getting out of control.

Now if you really want to talk about progressive political ideas, we need more political parties. What good is a choice between two bad options? Look at most democratic countries around the world and you will see that there are very few that only have two political parties. The consequences are greater for poor polical choices when there are more than one other party to compete with. In our current system, public opinion will swing back in your favor eventually when people become frustrated with whoever is currently in control. Sure, you can claim we have more than two parties (green party, libertarian, independent, etc.), but we really don't. No third party candidate will ever be able to compete with the big money involved with the two major parties. Our two party system will crush any other rivals before they even have a chance to get off the ground. It is a horrible rut and I see very little chance of it changing when you are challenged with wrestling authority away from the people in control.

actually your best lighting is a 400 watt HPS system. You can pick one up on ebay for $99. this will give you much more light for the same electricity. fluorescents really are no good for growing plants. they will get them started but barely. the hps will really grow them.

the best fluorescent lights are the warm whites. they give off much more light that the plant lights. dont waste your money on plant or aquarium fluorescent lights. the cheap warm whites give off much more light than the plant lights.

the best value for the money is the 400 watt hps. I think this gives off way over twice the light that 400 watts of fluorescents give off.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-400-watt-HPS-GROW-LIGHT-400w-High-Pressure-Sodium-w_W0QQitemZ7758396491QQcategoryZ42225QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

He was selling these same units for $99 recently. see if he will give you the lower price.

i know this sounds a little bit obsessive, but are you sure that my jalapenos will grow better under flourescent lighting than say, a window sill? that's where ive been keeping them and they seem to be doing well. i have the lights now, but they're in my basement and im afraid the plants wont get enought light, even though the flourescent fixture is there. any thoughts?

Capt. you could leave a few in the window sill and place a few in the basement to see wich works best for you. Fluorescents really work well for seedlings. I've found that seedlings I leave under fuorescents until they are about 6 inches tall do better than seddlings I plant out earlier. They also look healthier. The first few sets of leaves grow larger and the entire plant is a healthy deep green.

I don't recommend fuorescents for an entire growth cycle however. Left under fluoros your plants will probably get tall and spindly as they stretch to find more light.

"fluorescents really are no good for growing plants. they will get them started but barely. the hps will really grow them."

The above statement has some TRUTH.
The fact that "they will get them started but barely" is WRONG!!

Fluorescents work great as temporary lighting for me and many others.
There are several local nurseries in my area that start cuttings and seedlings w/ fluorescents.
For long term growth, they are not recommended, but initially they do a fine job.

Most people don't have a garden in their home (unless you're cultivating plants used for Glaucoma treatment). The majority of us start plants indoors to be transplanted outdoors when the season warrants.

Fluorescents are a GREAT source for starting seedlings and for use as a temporary light source to put growth on them until plants are permanently planted outdoors.

Fluorescents are a temporary solution PERIOD!

Paul B.

Fluorescents are a GREAT source for starting seedlings and for use as a temporary light source to put growth on them until plants are permanently planted outdoors.

Fluorescents are a temporary solution PERIOD!

Paul B.

Are they good to finish off peppers? Last year I had to throw away a bunch of my Tabascos cuz they took too long to fully rippen and they died from a frost or two :(

I am actually shocked at how big my pepper plants have become under flourescent lights. I measured them just now and some of them are 13 inches high. All grown inside under flourescent lights. Several of them have sprouted flowers. I started germinating them March 10 and the first sign of life was March 18. I started with all Cool White and mixed cool and warm whites when transplanting them and did not have room enough on one shelf. I also had to put the lights a little higher and I noticed that the lower plants were leaning more towards the Cool White than the Warm white one.
They really are getting too big for my rack. I took them outside for a small period on Thursday and put them outside when it was warm. I think any more inside flourescent lighting will make them grow, but they will get to spindly and break when taking them outside in the wind. I almost wish that I had started them a couple of weeks later, so they would not get this big before going outside full time. (half of them will ultimately live in 12 and 14 inch pots, so I can take them inside the garage if frost is expected).
I am definitely a total believer in the cool/warm white flourescent growing method. Very good for at least 6-7 weeks. Might not always be the sharpest pencil of the bunch but I do not think wifey would appreciate 31 pepper plants in 12-14 inch pots under lights in the living room!