Would the Roleadro 300w full spectrum light be overkill for my 18" x 18" terrarium?
I received a beautiful terrarium as a gift a couple years ago, and I'm sorry to say that between work, kids, home reno, and other "life" stuff, it's just sat there collecting dust. Now that I have my new office finished I'd like to finally get it setup with some CPs.
The terrarium is about 18" on all sides. There is a decorative area in the top that will work to hide a growlight. I'm trying to find something that will work for me, with the following criteria in mind:
Some information about the environment:
So I'm considering the "Roleadro Upgrade and Newly Developed LED Grow Light Full Spectrum 2nd Generation Series 300w Plants Light" that I found on Amazon. Everything else that meets most of my criteria is either way too expensive, heavy on the red/purple end of the spectrum, or far too weak. My questions about this light are:
I received a beautiful terrarium as a gift a couple years ago, and I'm sorry to say that between work, kids, home reno, and other "life" stuff, it's just sat there collecting dust. Now that I have my new office finished I'd like to finally get it setup with some CPs.
The terrarium is about 18" on all sides. There is a decorative area in the top that will work to hide a growlight. I'm trying to find something that will work for me, with the following criteria in mind:
- Bright enough, but not overly bright, for my CPs
- Provides appropriate frequencies of light for my plants
- Full spectrum in appearance; I like to show off my plants and don't like the purple/red hue of traditional growlights (yes, I know I need to give up efficiency for this)
- Bright enough to properly display the plants
- Not so bright that it's painful to look at out of the corner of my eye 8+ hours per day (the fixture itself will be hidden)
- Affordable. Under $50 would be great. Under $100 is a requirement.
Some information about the environment:
- The 12' x 15' office is lit by eleven 9w Aspect LEDs putting out 810 lumens each, usually run at full power; daylight also enters 60" double doors during the day
- The terrarium sits 6 feet away from my desk chair, at the 10 o'clock position
- I would like to grow a couple VFTs, D Intermedia, D Capensis, maybe D Scorpioides, and some small TBD Sars
- The light would sit 13"-15" above 'ground' level
So I'm considering the "Roleadro Upgrade and Newly Developed LED Grow Light Full Spectrum 2nd Generation Series 300w Plants Light" that I found on Amazon. Everything else that meets most of my criteria is either way too expensive, heavy on the red/purple end of the spectrum, or far too weak. My questions about this light are:
- Is it going to blind me? 5000 lumens seems pretty bright, but potentially bearable, especially with potential internal reflections from the terrarium glass.
- Will it provide sufficient light for my 18" x 18" of grow space without burning the plants if run for 12-14 hours per day? Many formulae and calculators I've found assume 360-degree bulbs. And lumens is a rating relative to human vision, and not light output, so I'm not sure where to even start calculating here.
- Is there a better option out there for my needs?
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