OMGOSH! I own one, not yet used and that is SO good to KNOW!
I thought I would wait to use it for tomatoes and peppers, and I don't want to start Those until March. I also have my unheated, glassed in (3 sides, facing east) front porch that stays about 20 degrees warmer than the outside to move them all to before hardening off outside.
Give me a report on the LED's. I brought one of my light units in to Menards so that I would buy the right size, and they didn't have any LED's, which was what I really wanted. So I had to settle for traditional grow lights. still, my red cabbages and the onions have gotten a little bigger. I have them about 1 foot away from the lights, but I figure to use bricks and scrap wood this weekend and bring the plants up to the lights.
You should use it for what ever you are starting. As you move on to more starts move the first plants off of the heat mat. You can add another heat mat every year for a while to build up your collection if you do not mind the expense.OMGOSH! I own one, not yet used and that is SO good to KNOW!
I don't put my plants any closer than a foot from my lights. I saw a program comparing bulbs. They said the cheap florescent bulbs were not much less effective than the expensive bulbs.
I don't use them for onions either.
It is hard for things not to do well. Over plant seeds and then thin right away. Do not use cheap seed starting formula. There is a lot of cheap junk out their. If something goes wrong don't give up. Likely soil would be the culprit. All seeds have different requirements and seed companies don't tell you the secrets. Some flowers nee to be on top of the soil. Google anything that you thin may bee exotic to start.
Will post once home
