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lighting Want to see the colors your growlights put out

S

smokemaster

Build a spectroscope.

https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/awschwab/www/specweb_files/scopeinstruct.pdf

https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/awschwab/www/specweb.htm

http://www.ccaurora.edu/observatory/102/activities/cdspectroscope.htm

Looks like a cool toy to have and easy to make too.
Finally something to do with your disco CD's. :lol:
 
I just made one last night after reading your post. It was pretty easy and pretty cool. My grow lights have a nice smooth red spectrum and a spike in the green. Other lights in the house have other spectrums. I'm using the GE plant and aquarium lights as my grow light. There was a analysis done with these lights and compared it to other flourscents.

Flourscent Light Analysis

Thanks! i can use this in the future to pick a good grow light.
 
I've been just using a cd in the past.
Sometimes getting the angle right is a hassle...

When I saw the instructions for the spectroscope I thaught it would be a cool toy to have.

Is that a Disco Stu (The Simpsons) Smiley? :rofl:
Pretty good...

http://www.district78.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/disco-stu-air-freshener.jpg

I'm thinking about checking out several different Temps of white Leds.
I wonder they are as good as fluoros or better and if the different LEDs put out enough of the right wavelengths...See if any might put out more of the colors and lumens plants need or whatever.
 
PepperJam said:
I just made one last night after reading your post. It was pretty easy and pretty cool. My grow lights have a nice smooth red spectrum and a spike in the green. Other lights in the house have other spectrums. I'm using the GE plant and aquarium lights as my grow light. There was a analysis done with these lights and compared it to other flourscents.

Flourscent Light Analysis

Thanks! i can use this in the future to pick a good grow light.
Click to expand...

What an awesome experiment, I've been looking for a nonbiased piece done on florescence lights. I will look for a few of the "T5 GE's Plant and Aquarium Wide Spectrum" light bulbs to compare with the ones that I am currently using.
 
Played with my cardboard spectrascope today.

Was suprised to see the shop halides were so heavy with the yellow and green bands.

I thaught that people use them for their plant usable light output.

If the ones here are any example of other halides,massive lumens must be the main reason they work growing stuff.

Adds to my theory that if a light source is only in plant usable wavelengths you don't need the gazillion lumens a halide puts out,just whatever a plant needs/likes.
 
When I made mine I had everyone at work going around the place checking out all the different lights in the shop and offices.
Pretty funny.
Looked and sounded like a bunch of 60's Hippies doing LSD-Wow! Look at the colors of this one...
Red,Yellow-Oh wow ,this ones red and purple...Check out the colors...
 
Bump due to renewed interest.
Been a few years since I posted this.
Wish the Camera/computer plans were still up.
I printed them and have them somewhere,can't find them...
 
The computer one was cool,or sounds cool.
Here are scans to compaire your CD spectrometer to.
 
http://spectralworkbench.org/
 
Pretty cool stuff for a frame of reference.
Makers names etc.
Click on LED,Halide etc. to see what different ones put out or?
Then click on any specific pic for a graph of what the test showed.
 
More reason for my liking cheap Chinese LEDs. LOL
I want ALL the plant usable Nm plants use as MY light source,for what I NEED/Want them to do for MY grow.
 
I find this stuff more accurate to what I THINK I get from my light sources,using a CD compairison...Very cool data.
Assuming it's right.
I do see the LED one as looking a LOT like my LEDS.
 
Very cool info...taken,of coarse with a grain of salt.
Gotta be better than cherry picked info by vendors or?
 
Mikey likes it. LOL
 
See graphs,different LEDS put out a LOT of wave lengths besides what they are rated at/mostly put out.
 
For RED check out the EXOTIC graph.
Way cool in 660nm and lower reds,75% 660.BUT high in the right reds plants need too.
 
Now if there is a similar Blue,they might be all you need for both spectrums.
 
Can't find as pure a blue as the Exotic red yet.
Looking for a companies LED.The hevy blues are just aquarium stuff,not what a companies LED is.
 
Thanks for the reminder! I had saw this in the past and forgot to save it. Someday I'll actually build one. Then off to Harbor Freight to get a fancy Lux meter and I'll be set. Then I'll maybe actually get started playing with some LED's...................
 
This is really cool. I remember coming across it a while back but had forgotten about it.  I just ordered one of the desktop 3.0 kits. I am currently working on an LED project and will use this to help with the results.
 
smokemaster said:
Played with my cardboard spectrascope today.

Was suprised to see the shop halides were so heavy with the yellow and green bands.

I thaught that people use them for their plant usable light output.

If the ones here are any example of other halides,massive lumens must be the main reason they work growing stuff.

Adds to my theory that if a light source is only in plant usable wavelengths you don't need the gazillion lumens a halide puts out,just whatever a plant needs/likes.
Click to expand...
 
I was looking at the difference of my plants under the MH vs the ones under the T8's and remembered this quote. Even though the MH may not be a perfect or even close example of a plant usable spectrum they seem to make up for it in sheer power thrown at the plants. I try to move my plants around on my grow table so all plants get the whole range of light I have in use. 5 T12's fastened together to form an assembly, 4 T8 6 bulb fixtures and a MH. I use what I have. Not on purpose but as the space grows so all of my lighting gets called into duty. So in the last week or two I've went back to work (after being off for 2 month due to back surgery) and haven't had the time or energy to tend to my babies as I'm used to. That means I haven't moved all 27 trays around to get all plants under all the various lights. The Reapers and CP115's that are directly under the MH have really taken off. Smokemaster talks about his LED's and how it's like looking at the sun. I firmly believe that there is no replacement for having tons of lumens hitting your plants. The goal or holy grail is light that goes zorch and uses little electricity and little heat. That is where I think LED's will move us.
 
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