No plant will grow in no light. 12-14 hours on should be ok.

you can start with something simple like a clamp on shop light. The kind with the round reflector. Get a 5000k (daylight) 100w equivalent led.

This is thinking that the plants aren’t too big. clamp the light right above and as close as you can get it to the plant.

LED shop lights are very affordable today - I paid $20 per fixture at Sam's Club for a Honeywell 4' LED light just a few weeks ago. It is 50 W and is equivalent to 500 W incandescent light. I am replacing my T-8 lights (64 W) with LED when they stop working. The lumen (light intensity) of the LED is about double of the fluorescent lights (5000 vs 2850).

This picture shows a T8 fixture (left side) next to an LED fixture.

Sansevieria I have in another room with three T8 fixtures hanging from the floor joists (all my plants are in the basement). The ones on the shelf just get the light through the door window though. The bigger sans are on the floor and a wooden planting bench on the left and get the benefit of the overhead shop lights.

HC, None of the T8 replacement led tubes are 5000 lumens each. In most cases, their output numbers are just slightly below that of the fluorescent tubes.

each bulb will be around 2500 lumens, both led and fluorescent. The lamps total output will be 5000 ish lunens.

That Honeywell, is the same as the replacement tubes. 5000 lumens total, not per bulb.

lastly, a 500w light is going to put out about 10,000 lumens. So the Honeywell light is not comparable.

not trying to give you a hard time, just trying to clear it up for others.

You are right Dave. I know what you are saying.

I was 1) going by the box from Honeywell - it said 500W equivalent and 5000 lumens so you are correct that the total is 5,000 lumens but that is what I meant (not per bulb or at least I don't remember saying that it was per bulb).

I do own up to making a mistake in the T8 lights though as the figure 2850 was for one bulb, not the entire fixture (in this case two bulbs). I think my bulbs have weakened over the years as the light meter shows the LED as nearly twice the light output as the T8 next to it. I did not hold a ruler under each fixture but approximated six inches (I know a foot is standard but the tops of the plants are too close to measure a full foot). I know some folks recommend changing out all the fluorescent bulbs every six months to a year but replacing 180 bulbs makes no sense to me.

Anyhow, Mea Culpa!

How to measure light:

https://www.standardpro.com/how-to-measure-light/

Anyway, I am going with LED from now on as it uses less energy, is bright, very light weight to hang, and is finally affordable.

I think those lights will work just find and I agree. I was just correcting the leds being twice as bright as fluorescent. I do like led better anyway. Fluorescent is old school technology.

the 500w equivalent is definitely a misprint on their end. That’s no where near a 500w light. I think they meant 50w.

I don't know if it is a misprint, maybe misleading as the wattage is 50W as it is. Lumens is the better way to tell the consumer what they are buying. The actual wattage usage is probably required so we can get a mental idea on how much energy we are using.

Seems like 6 to 8 years ago that the first LED shop lights were selling around $80. The prices continue to fall as last year it was $25, now $20 and I saw some off brand at Walmart last week for $12.

The price and rebates with leds have come waaay down. I’m an electrician and I can’t tell you the last time I installed anything even fluorescent. Well, two years ago just because some old fixtures were being used.

a lot of companies print things on their packages that just aren’t true.

just about anything from Amazon is a complete lie these days. I know yours is from sams club. Just don’t know why they’d put that it’s equal to any 500w light. It’s just not possible.

Well to be fair, when is the last time any company ever pointed out a flaw in their product. That would be a first. False advertising - sure. Negative advertising of their own prodcut - no. The only negative advertising would be their competitor's product but that would bring on a war between the two companies.

What is a complete lie about anything from Amazon? Are you saying the products they sell are all fakes? I have done a lot of buying from Amazon this year - small things and for the most part, they deliver as promised if not earlier and the products are generally what was advertised. I've returned a couple of things over the years because the product was not what I thought I was getting.

A lot of these products are just not available around town. Just this week alone I ordered 3 different things and all were delivered on the day promised or a day early. A few years ago when I was still swapping out T12 to T8, our local HD store was out of the fixtures I was buying from them. I went to Amazon and ordered 10 of the exact same thing. They were delivered to my house, no tax (at that time), and free shipping (Prime Membership does have some rewards) in two days. Saved me time driving to HD and loading up a cart with ten fixtures, checking out, loading my truck, and then driving them home.

Amazon - I’m speaking of lights and their lumen numbers, etc.

Theres no one checking To make sure all of the info they provide is legit. They just throw these high output figures out there and everyone buys into it. They’re a source of Chinese made junk for the most part.

Amazon is also ruining brick and mortar stores. I’m not going to get started with that.

Ah, lights - got it. I don't think it is Amazon's job to check numbers for a manufacturer or third party's facts and figures. Kind of like Home Depot doesn't care if the stuff they peddle is junk or not. Glad to have a Home Depot every few miles as it is convenient for tools, home products, lumber, etc versus the old hardware store and lumberyard but they also have some products that just fall apart after a year or two. GRRR!

At least we no longer claim it is Japanese junk (or American junk) these years. It is sad and laughable since most things made today are in China, computers, iPhone and all the others too, cameras, TVs, etc. A lot of American companies set this up decades ago as a cheaper form of labor and to sweeten the executive board's bonuses.

Amazon is just using good old capitalism, the American way. Walmart is being pushed by Amazon but some things are just easier to pick up at the brick and mortar store such as groceries but that is changing too. I don't cry over the old mom and pop stores of the past as they nickle and dimed us to death. Goodbye Sears and K-Mart and so many others. When denim jeans cost less today than 50 years ago, that is a good thing. Not good for the earth but certainly good for the wallet.

The old adage of "The rich get richer and the poor get poorer" is truer today than it was in the past.

I guess I just don’t support Amazon, what they do or what they’re about. But that’s just me.

I do believe home depot and Lowe’s don’t sell misleading junk in their stores for the most part. Yes, it’s not amazons job to check numbers for a manufacturer or third party's facts and figures, and that why you get what you get.

I don’t order any lighting off Amazon. I usually don’t get it from box stores either, electrical supply houses usually have a much better array of offerings. But, you have to really know what you’re looking for. Those kinds of stores aren’t good for browsing.

I never said Japanese junk. Their technology has always been one step above ours.

China on the other hand, makes lots of cheap knock off products that try to mimic things that are made over here. They end up sold of amazon to unsuspecting buyers.

American flags for example. Amazon is flooded with them. They throw in “veteran owned business.” And you have no idea how many people fall for it. They buy a junk flag. Not because it’s made in China, but because they’re not using the same materials, and they don’t have the same lock stitching, fly ends are weak, etc. ends up shredding in half the time of an FMAA certified flag.

Sorry to go on for so long, this is why I have issues with Amazon.

I think those same flags are sold in the big box stores too but then we don't buy flags so can't compare quality.

I am the one who said Japanese junk. It used to be Japanese junk back in the 60's through the 80's, maybe longer. I had a 82 Datsun (before they became Nissan) King Cab. In five years it was a total piece of junk. Isn't most Japanese stuff made in China today like American companies - find the cheapest labor.

I ordered lighting off Amazon that one time because I could not find the fixtures at our local HD store. Metro Atlanta probably has a HD every 10 miles or less since HD was founded here. Anyway, the same light fixture from Amazon was probably cheaper because of the "no taxes" and so convenient to be delivered to the house without any shipping charges.

Amazon is not always the cheapest prices either. I looked for orchid bark mix around the local stores this summer - Home Depot, Lowe's, Pike's (nursery chain store in the Atlanta area) and couldn't find any - maybe due to COVID. I looked at eBay and Amazon and finally ordered orchid pots, fertilizer, and the orchid bark mix from Amazon. The mix took over 3 weeks to come in and was around $20. I had a dental appointment before it came in and decided to visit Lowe's, Pike's, and HD. I found the orchid mix at Pike's for $8. I passed it up since I didn't know the size of the bag I ordered but when I stopped at HD, the same bag was $5 so I bought it. The next day the order came in and it was the exact same size and maker of the bark mix. And it came from central Florida no less. I was not happy but I kept the bag (it had a little slit in it as well). Oh well.

The box stores do not carry Chinese made flags. They’re either Annin or Valley Forge.

I guess Amazon has its place for certain things, but everything i bought from there has been junk.

I will take your word about the flags. We bought one flag 19 years ago after 9-11 but never used it. Never thought about the quality as there was quite the run on it back then and they were hard to find. I can't even remember what store we picked it up in.

Sorry to hear you had less than good results with Amazon. I will continue shopping there plus Walmart and Home Depot and several other stores. A lot of vendors use Amazon for their online store which can be a mixed bag.