BTW: I made this household LED lightbulb mount yesterday:
That's basically the same folding arm used in my
"flexible" top-light fixture. And, my
tent-leg mount (of which you see one below the folding arm). The only difference:
1) The folding arm operates on the horizontal plane.
2) I added an addition joint for the "hand" at the end (where the light's mounted).
3) I used a 3/4" PVC "T" fitting instead of a coupler.
That's a 10w GE Brightstick. A reflector can be threaded onto the end of that socket (i.e, the socket came from a clamp-on reflector sold at Lowes or Home Depot).
The reason I made this is because the tent-leg mounts aren't great for when you need the light closer to a smaller/younger plant. (They're good for when the plant fills the tent.). These folding arms will nest/collapse and the bulb will be near the tent leg. But, not as snug/close to the tent leg as the original tent-leg mount (which the clamp-on swivel mounts to directly). So, the folding arm isn't meant to replace that tent-leg mount. But, I'm thinking it may be possible to install the clamp-on pivot part into this "T", and use the T for both purposes. Extend the light when it's beneficial. Or, mount the light to the PVC when maximum clearance is needed.
One thing I don't like about these is: It's not easy to add/remove them when the tent's set up. A tall 7' tent, you can unzip the floor a little, and separate the two-pole leg. That's not too bad. But, in this 4' tall tent, it's not as easy. You have to peel the roof back a little and separate the pole from the 3-way corner joint. I'm trying to think of a way these can be "halves" and clamped onto the leg.
BTW: That's a seedling in Kellogg Palm & Cactus potting mix. I saw a bag of that torn open at Lowes about 5 years ago. I *immediately* thought it look like the right consistency for cannabis. I've always wanted to try it, but never did because my soil (56% Pro-Mix HP, 22% Kellogg Patio Plus, 22% Perlite) works fine. Lately I've been thinking I should give it a try because it's much simpler to acquire and start growing. It could be good for the new grower who wants to try growing, without getting into fine-tuning things.
The seedling is stretched more than I like. I recently got a PAR meter, and read that seedlings like 100-300ppfd (something else said 200-400). So, I started at 130ppfd. That was one globeless & reflected 8.5w (60w-equiv) 5000k GE "basic" bulb from Lowes, with the lip of the reflector about 12" above the plant (the LED suface would be about 3" deeper into the reflector). I think that's why it stretched. Those 5000k bulbs probably aren't as blue as they should be. 6500k would probably be better. No stores carry those. I might buy some on Amazon for next time.[1] I'd like to see if 130ppfd (the low end of what a seedling needs) would work better with cooler/bluer light.
Normally I use a globed 5000k bulb (in a reflector), closer. The globed light is more diffuse. I just cut some globes off new bulbs, so I reached for one of those. And then, I just got the PAR meter, so I thought I should use that to "do it by the book." If I had done it the way I normally do, I don't think it would have stretched that much. It stretched a lot that first day.
Anyway, so far it seems like a good soil last Thursday 7pm. I planted directly in the soil (didn't soak the seeds; didn't use a fine peat seedling bed like I do in my soil, which can be too chunky for seeds). One seed was breaking ground Sunday 7pm. The other Monday 7am. So, 3-3.5 days was pretty good.
The soil seems a little heavy by my standards. I wanted to add 20-30% perlite. (It already has a fair amount out of the bag. Much more than any other bagged potting mix I've seen.). The heavy appearance may be misleading because it's sand & pumice. Drains fast. Very frangible. It's not like moisture-holding peat clumped together. So, I decided to grow in it without adding perlite. See how it works. If it work well, that would be useful for new growers, keep it simpler.
[1] Viribright 13w ASIN: B07BGBTR4X
I don't know anything about those bulbs. But, when I found then, I saw this lamp holder:
I like that! Those joints are flexible (you can aim the sockets a little). It's made in a 3-socket version, and a 5-socket (same as the 4-, but has a straight-down socket in the center).
