Re: Okay, serious stuff

Thanks, Kitty.

Two things. First, I would assume the cookie sheet would be only to catch my sloppiness in watering and keep it off the heating mat and, maybe, to raise the humidity now and then, not for any capillary use--although that's an interesting notion to put in the mix. Second, where can I read about APS units? If I'm going to put together the be-all-to-end-all indoor seed starting factory, I'd better understand all the options.


On Saturday, March 5, 2005, at 04:26 PM, Fort Wayne, IN wrote:

Jim,
I've often wondered how to utilize both capillary matting and heating pads
as, since I use APS units I sense that my seeds are too distant from the
heat mat to benefit. Your irigation/humidity cookie pans - will the water
be always in contact with the medium or is this just to catch the excess
moisture?
I wouldn't think you'd really need to place anything between your heating
mats and the wood. They only get to something like 75 F, not likely to
start a fire or anything. Heating coils, though - I think some of them come
with adjustable temperature gauges and could be set hotter.

----- Original Message -----
From: "james singer" <jsinger@igc.org>
To: "Chat" <gardenchat@hort.net>
Sent: Saturday, March 05, 2005 2:16 PM
Subject: [CHAT] Okay, serious stuff


I think I'm going to clean up a big part of my garage workbench and
install a seed-starting station. I've got seed beds outdoors for big
stuff, like palms and loquats, but no really good place to start small
seeds--peppers and cacti and such.

The bench has fluorescent shop lights overhead and they can be altered
so they can be lowered and raised as need be.

The top of the bench is 2-inch by 12-inch pine/fir planks. I want to
lay down heating mats or heating coils. What, if anything, should I put
between the mats or coils and the wooden planks?

I think I will put something like cookie sheets, the kind that are
shallow pans, on top of the mats/coils so I can control both irrigation
and humidity. I do not intend to enclose the growing medium [some
variation on peat pots, unless someone has a better idea] in a tent or
one of those little "greenhouses" since the garage never gets below 50
degrees.

What else do I need to consider? What would you do differently? I've
never started seedlings indoors before [bet it shows, eh?].

What say ye?

Island Jim
Southwest Florida
27.0 N, 82.4 W
Hardiness Zone 10
Heat Zone 10
Minimum 30 F [-1 C]
Maximum 100 F [38 C]

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Island Jim
Southwest Florida
27.0 N, 82.4 W
Hardiness Zone 10
Heat Zone 10
Minimum 30 F [-1 C]
Maximum 100 F [38 C]

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