T12's

[Eric Warwick]

I recently got some old T12 florescent lights from a friend for an indoor aquaponic system. They said they were using it to sprout seeds indoors and it failed. They are 725  lumens; the light is a GE Bright Stick. Should I use them, and what are some peoples experiences with them? Thank you in advance.

[Jon Parr]

Green cup? Craziness. Green is the spectrum of light that plants don't use, so placing a green cup over the plant would be aout the same as turning the light off entirely. Logical and TC tactfully have it right. Green flashlights can be used to guide us through a dark growroom without goofing up a light schedule because plants don't register green as any light at all. Anything that filters light reduces the light available to plants and photosynthesis this being detrimental, including clear glass, air, and dust on the leaves. There are even some studies that indicate infrared and UV as advantageous in modest quantities. As for t12's, they work, just weak and inefficient.

[Eric Warwick]

Yes, the green cup didn't stay long.

Jon Parr said:

Green cup? Craziness. Green is the spectrum of light that plants don't use, so placing a green cup over the plant would be aout the same as turning the light off entirely. Logical and TC tactfully have it right. Green flashlights can be used to guide us through a dark growroom without goofing up a light schedule because plants don't register green as any light at all. Anything that filters light reduces the light available to plants and photosynthesis this being detrimental, including clear glass, air, and dust on the leaves. There are even some studies that indicate infrared and UV as advantageous in modest quantities. As for t12's, they work, just weak and inefficient.