I guess I should start a journal since I seem to have new questions daily. Tomorrow will make one week in the soil, and all have germinated and have first leaves. They are under twelve 6500k cfl in two homemade fixtures, about 8” from the seedlings. When should I add the LED lights? I have two PAR 450 (210W actual) ready to turn on. Manufacturer recommends a 28” distance with a blend of wavelengths and I’m wondering if I should keep the cfl on as well, for a while?
What’s the actual wattage of the cfl’s? If they’re 23 watt, I would guess that your led fixtures would draw less power on the veg spectrum. Meaning it would actually be cheaper to run them under a single dimmed led fixture right now than the cfls.
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13 watts so total 156 for 12 bulbs. The LEDs are dimmable so you’re probably right. With the LEDs turned down to their specs they probably would use less juice, but my main concern is for the plants. These are NL auto flowers and I’d like to give them everything they need, or can handle, at the proper time. I’m pretty sure one week is too early for LEDs but wanted to get some input from the knowledge base. Thanks @dbrn32.
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I respectfully disagree. I go from start to finish under leds in most cases. And the leds I’m using are going to be quite a bit more powerful than what’s in the vipar lights.
Plants are all subject to light intensity minimum and maximum. How you get to within that range isn’t really important outside of spectral distribution. If you have a light that is more efficient, you can provide the same amount of light with less energy right? If the more efficient light has adjustability that’s even better. But even if it doesn’t you can still adjust intensity levels by height. By most standards doing the same job with less energy is a win/win.
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I started a journal, I think it’s good. Though I just started. I’m using Miracle - Gro All purpose plant food with water mixture to soak in my peat pellets to germinate my seeds I don’t know if I’m doing it right yet nothing’s come up yet. Two day’s in. Any suggestions. Greatly appreciate it.
just starting and I got my Hydro set set up , now I’m waiting for the seeds to germinate. I don’t know if I did them right. I’m using Miracle gro all purpose plant food mixed with water that I have my peat pellets soaking in and now I have the seeds in them. I’m 2 days and nothing yet. any suggestiion. would greatly appreciate it. thanks.
Should only be water… your cooking those seeds at the moment… 
No nutrients until 5 set’s of true leaves…
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Best suggestion I could give is to not feed while germinating. Especially that!
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@dbrn32 So you’d start with the LEDs right away? Would it be if any benefit to use the cfl also, in addition to the LEDs?
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thanks I thought so so I start the seeds two different ways. 2 pellets only water and unfortunetely 4 where the other. I still have 2 seeds left gonna do only water with the last 2 and order more thanks.
guess there dead now huh!
I start my seeds under a T5 on 24 hours and a 300 watt LED above that at 25" on for 16 hours. It seems to keep the seedlings from stretching. I get rid of the T5 once the seedlings hit the top of the dome and just go with the LED from there.
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It depends on the application really. I wouldn’t see an advantage to using both in your case. It depends on how many plants, how much light intensity your lights produce at a height that produces large enough footprint to cover all the plants.
But ya, you can use leds all the way through. There’s probably more people here that use the same lights start to finish than anything else.
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I use a 300w Meizhi LED for seedlings and have never lost a plant or burned up a seedling. I keep it higher and lower if need be. Happy growing
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I pop my seedlings under both, I have a cheap azz 50w China light that’s supposed to be blue heavy with full spectrum and ir and I use 2 23w 100w equivalent cfl 6500k bulbs this time I waited until they all had a root sticking out of the starter plug and placed them into coco and in 625 true watts or 2 galaxy hydro 300 and 3 roleadro 2nd generation 300w each at 125 tru watts
Edit… they had roots in 2 days
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There not dead until there dead…
Pull them out of those plugs and throw them into new plugs with just good ph’d water and a lil warmth under neath them and they should pop…
I’ve done alot of things to plants just to see what would happen… there stronger than you think…
@pullensteel said he had seeds sitting in water with nutrients in it… 3 or 4 posts up from my last post… he must have high jacked your thread…
Well, and I’m so easily confused anyway!
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