Im on the hunt for a plant shelf and I was wondering if anyone has gotten shelves on amazon and if you like them? I’m looking for a shelf with grow lights but I’m not sure if the lights have timers. Would it be easier to find a shelf and install grow lights myself? If anyone has suggestions or experience let me know!
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0 gillningarI bought my shelves from Amazon, they have grow lights with timers and 3 different light settings. I think they’re great. I did add grow lights on the top, but thats all.
My suggestion would be get separate shelves, grow lights, and timers. Reason is, not all grow lights are created equally. And many times the lights that come preinstalled are often poor quality and not strong enough lumens for the darker months. I use those cheap wooden amazon shelves that come in a whole bunch of different configurations. I like that I can build them how I like and change it if I want. Sansi is the brand of grow lights I like. But there are other good brands out there too. Depends on your price point and what you’re looking for. This also allows you to move the lights around as you want vs built in. I use cheap mechanical timers that I plug my lights into. I can set on/off vs the usual 6/8/12 hrs settings that come with a light. I’ve done a lot of trial and error with different setups and this is just what I’ve found I like the best. Doesn’t mean built-ins won’t work. But keep in mind plants change and grow and get taller/wider/longer. So having a setup that you can adjust as they grow is very useful.
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I agree with GreenLeaf. Buy them separately. I have many Sansi lights. I particularly like the pot clip on lights. The post by Borg Family Plants looks good but those lights may not be bright enough for some plants. Depends on your plants. I really like Borg’s stands though. Make sure to pay attention to the wattage. It should be 10 watts for a light for one plant. If they don’t mention wattage, then it’s not strong enough. And you don’t need the goofy purple lights. They do nothing for houseplants. It’s marketing hype. You need full spectrum. I have a lot of plants lights because I have a lot of succulents. It’s a lot and I’m sizing down. I would prefer having less metal shelving.
Thank you! Your setup is amazing! I will definitely continue looking. Your explanation on the grow lights make a lot of sense, they’ve always confused me. My shelf will be in front of an east facing sliding door so my plants get a lot of light, however it’s just winter I’m worried about.
1 gilla Barrina makes some great long lights that install under a shelf. It’s an easy installation. I use four tubes under each shelf because of the succulents.
Your succulents look fantastic, are they just the barrina t5's? My succulents are super etoliated under 1 strip of the barrina t5 so it'd be nice if I just need to get more instead of an all new light
0 gillningar Thank you. They are Barrina T5. I install 4 strips side by side on each shelf. Long shelves have 2 footers and shorts have 1 footers. They are not as bright as my Sansi though.
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