I used something very similar to start my seeds indoors this year. I fabricated a 3 bulb fixture with 100W cfl replacements. Using flourescent bulbs didn't really heat up the thing, so I put my cable modem and router inside and zipped it up. Adding the moisture to it helped them grow pretty well. I was surprised to see that it would fog up with what little heat and moisture I had inside. I got a much better head start on plants than I did last year without it. Just keep an eye on the temp and humidity, especially if you put it in direct sunlight, and you should be alright.

I have a similar setup in my TV room. I use the shelfs to hold the CFLs and Im using a heat mat that i got at a pet store. The heat mat seems to keep the temperature in the greenhouse at about 85. notrod is correct, it does seem to fog up, especially after you water the plants. Im growing Korean Maraca, Bhuts, Serano, Hungarian Yellow Wax, Fresno and Zimbabwe Bird Eye. Good Luck with yours. I got a very good start on mine.

Where did you get it, and how much did that run you?

Not a week yet but today I had to purchase a $10 fan to keep the air circulating in the grow house. I'm experiencing some white mold on a few of the planters. I'm also thinking about cutting two round holes at the top and covering them with some insect netting to let some of the humidity to escape. I'll post some pics when I hopefully have some growth,

Notrod: Nice engineering! A thermometer and humidity reader is a definite must. Fluorescent is just not enough. It does fog up a lot.

Captaineo: Keeping the temp at 85 works as long as the sun doesn't hit. I've managed to keep the grow house out of the sun to about 90%. There is slim beam of sunlight hitting it and it affects the temp some.

Reynal:

http://www.amazon.com/GARDMAN-5-Tier-Heavy-Duty-Growhouse/dp/B001QIPJZG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1248550527&sr=8-1

I'm going to need some commission. LOL...

/Fred

i use this...

http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs126.snc1/5416_101533934326_505529326_2253258_3349915_n.jpg

hmm... how do you attach a photo?

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1011095}}

Nice Chinamon! Have you grown anything on the tent before and to what success?

How to post images:

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/pepper/2002072150000611.html

/Fred

fred, it is my first time growing with a tent. i just got it about a month ago. the plant in there right now is a naga jolokia. i have some thai basil and golden habanero germinating in rockwool right now and they will be grown hydroponically (dwc).

oh cool. i didnt realize this forum supported html tags.

fmalmgren, i only had mold when i used compost as a seeding mix, i have since changed to an organic mix. My greenhouse is indoors though, no sunlight at all. The top two levels both have 2ft CFLs, which seem to fit perfectly. I cut a pice of supawood for the top shelf, so that i could get 3 2-bulb cfls together.
reyna1, Im in South Africa, i bought it at a hardware store. Mine cost about 65 US dollars.

I'll post some pics tomorrow.

Ok. So it's time for the 7-day update. At this point at least one (actually more) of each plant is sprouting. The first sprouts were recorded on Monday only five days after dropping the seeds. The mold seems to be under control. I am really surprised the Bhut Jolokia was germinated so quickly. I'm going to wait for a few more days to let a few more to sprout before I let the cover off for a few hours a day.

I am also contemplating giving them a little spray of some light fertilizer to help them on their way.

Chinamon please keep me posted on the success of your grow tent.

Captaineo I used orchid mix this time to see how it would affect growth rate of the seedlings. I normally use organic as well. For future reference I will probably use the organic soil. Please post the pictures!

So everything is good for the first week. I'll post new pictures next Wednesday.

Thanks all!

/Fred

{{gwi:1192624}}.

Nice looking sprouts there final,but I'm thinking you should get them outside after the 2nd or 3rd set of leaves!
I'm thinking you should save the greenhouse for starting in the new year!Best of luck!

Hi Fred, My apologies for taking so long to up the photos, my 3 year old used my digital camera as a soccer ball. I used my phone to take these pics.

You can see a ceramic tile on my top shelf, there is a heat pad underneath, the tile is used to spread the heat.

I had just watered them and i normally stick cd or dvd covers underneath to keep them closer to the lights. The little joghurt tub has got some seeds in which i am busy germinating. On the lower shelf, you can just barely see my Korean Maraca and a Fresno plant which have taken off very nicely.

I only had one aphid incident, the tribe had spoken and he was promptly evicted off the island.
I am growing: Korean Maraca, Fresno, Yellow Habs, White Habs, Hungarian Yellow Wax, Bhut Jolokia, Zimbabwe Bird Eye, Seranos, Miracle Fruit, Red Savina and Kiwi.

hey captaino what kind of light are you using, how many watts or lumes, and is it a grow light or normal white light. I am starting to make my grow room for the winter.

sambo725, the top are normal CFL OSRAM cool white bulbs that you can pick up at the hardware store, i think they are 28W. There are six bulbs altogether at the top in 3 sepaerate CFl housings.
The bottom is an aquarium light unit i had laying around, i'm not sure about the specs, but they are specifically for growing plants in aquarium conditions, they seem to work nice. I suspect it has a higher lumens count than the other bulbs.

sorry, looks like they are 18W, not 28W as mentioned above.

Hey all!

14 Days at this point. They're growing pretty nicely. Most of them are at 1" and are setting their first true leaves.

Some are getting a bit leggy and I am thinking about stripping the grow house of its cover and move it somewhere with more light. Unfortunately my patio is in a SW corner and no exposed area for sun until late afternoon. The mold (White and Green) was promptly dealt with by using some hydro peroxide. It eliminated the fungus almost instantly and made 90% new sprouts over night over the ones sprayed. If anybody has some suggestions it would be extremely appreciated. I used to have great luck growing in the garden but this year everything died. I would like to make up for it in nice thick strong growth. So suggestions would be great.

Scoville: I agree. I am using it because I donÂt want to put those Jiffy growers all over. Come fall I am planning on growing some Broccoli, Corn, Cucumbers, Green onions/scallions, Onions, Potatoes, and Pumpkins. They will grow in the ground. I am adding all new soil and putting on a cover and using drip irrigation.

Captaineo: Hahaha! Your pictures look fine. I am also using a phone. It doesnÂt matter; indoors or out those aphids find their way. Brutal evictions are ok in my book. Everything is looking real good! I am trying to get my brother who lives in chilly Sweden to do some indoor growing. Which one is your favorite of the peppers? YouÂre growing? Great pics!

If there is some dramatic change IÂll post new pictures.

Thanks again!

/Fred

{{gwi:1192628}}.

Hi Fred, Your sprouts are looking great. I hope you don't run out of space when you have to move them to bigger pots. :)
It's my 1st year growing indoors and i only previously had Zimbabwe Bird's Eye, but I am looking forward to the Hungarian Yellow Wax. My wife normally buys them from the market and stuffs them with garlic and ginger and pops them in the oven. We have them with a nice curry.
The weather has just started to change and we are going into Spring now and i have to start hardening off my plants, so this weekend I will be busy putting them into bigger pots as well.