Paying for light vs. paying for heat: Speculation

AJ Drew

AJ Drew

Planning an experiment.  My seedlings are indoors under florescent, as I fill up the seedling racks, they get moved under hps and mh.  Heating a a full size green house this time of the year is out due to the expense.  Thing is, heat rises and that is a lot of space being heated above the plants that is essentially wasted.

If a person were to build a mini green house, maybe three foot tall with a removable top, I have to figure the cost of heating the thing would be tiny.  Likely much cheaper than lighting the same space indoors.

Thing is, do you think there is enough light during the winter months?  I have run lights at 12 hours a day, so I know day length would be fine, but the sun being low not sure that it provides enough lumes for healthy plants.

Thoughts?
 
I thought that is what fans were for....to avoid the waste of rising heat and move it around. My indoor grow area is completely covered for that reason, outside the grow is 66 inside about 85. 
 
     Why not just keep it indoors and consider the "wasted" heat from your lights to be "free" heating". The more light you use indoors the less your furnace needs to run. All the light produced by the lights (that doesn't shine out a window) is converted to heat as soon as it lands on a wall or floor. 
     Whether or not this is economical depends on how relatively expensive electricity is where you live and what kind of fuel your furnace uses, though.
 
Hybrid Mode 01 said:
     Why not just keep it indoors and consider the "wasted" heat from your lights to be "free" heating". The more light you use indoors the less your furnace needs to run.
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I hadn't thought of the heat from the lights offsetting the cost to heat the home.  My grow room is a converted cistern, concrete walls, concrete floor, concrete ceiling, one heavy door.  Not wanting to cut concrete, I vent to the home.  Willing to bet that you are right and the furnace is working less.
 

could be a fun experiment.
 
Yep, is why I am pondering.  That and I really dig the idea of growing year round. 
 
Willard: Hybrid wasn't advising using lighting for heat.  He was just pointing out that in the winter, the heat of lighting isnt wasted because it offsets furnace use a bit. 

What I am wondering is which is more economical in the winter months:

A. Grow indoors and spend your money on electricity for lighting.
B. Grow outdoors in mini green houses and spend your money on electricity for heating.
 
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