Seed Starting System

What has been taking me so long to get my seeds started is I needed a self and lighting system. So Tuesdays project was just that, we went out and got the wood for the shelves and I picked up the lights on Monday and we put it all together on Tuesday.

The shelves are eight feet tall; I used 1” by 3” for the uprights. The rest of the lumber is 1” by 2” for the side brasses, shelf supports and self slates. The construction was very easy; I have the shelves over a desk so the first self had to be 40” from the floor. The rest of the shelves are 20” apart. This is for room to move the light up as the plants get bigger.

The cost of the shelves was $18.00 for the wood; I already had a box of screws from other projects so they were free. But if I had to buy some I think they would be about ten dollars for the box, depending on the type that you are going to get. The lights were $45.00 total the one light cost $10.00 the other $15.00. The $15.00 light guarantees that it will turn on in -20 degree weather. I really didn’t need that guarantee but they were all out of the $10.00 lights except for the one I bought. The bulbs were $10.00 a pack and I had to buy two packs; I did buy a pack of warm fluorescents and cool fluorescents. This will give me a full spectrum of light or as close to humanly possible, that is.

The last two things were the hooks to hang the lights from which cost $3.00 a pack of four and a timer for the lights to come on by them selves at $4.00. So for $70.00 I have an in door green house. That sure beats the hundred or hundreds of dollar ones you see in the catalogs.