Rope Light Seedling Mat

Heat mats can really help speed up germination for many seeds especially tomatoes and peppers.

Rope light seedling mat.

With this in mind here is a quick way to make some heating mats for your seeds and seedlings. This is a readers favorite post our how to site. Hlhome led rope lights 16 colors usb rope lights waterproof multi mode rope lights for bedroom starry fairy lights for wedding christmas party home decor 129 price 19. I bought mine on ebay new hampton bay safe quality rope lignt 24ft kit.

I pulled one of the trays off the heat mat so you could see it better. Thankfully ipower has the beginner in mind with this starter kit. In building the mat the rope light weaves around long thin strips of wood and both are attached to a plank of plywood. The height can be adjusted either by moving the chain links on the lights or by lifting up the sides of the frame itself.

A similar diy bottom heater option uses lengths of christmas rope light not leds. Unlike the hydro seed mat it s easy to control the temperature and the heat can be evenly distributed. Usually two is enough to provide adequate temperature for this. The gaps between the wood strips serve to help with airflow.

The rope light will only emit a certain amount of heat not enough to burn the wood. My basement occasionally warms to over 70 f on a sunny day and a 20 f rise in temperature on top of that could mean the death of my seeds. For a shelf of this size you will probably need several 20 rope lights 2 3. The two trays in the back are on the heat mat.

A typical dimension is 12 by 18 inches and the size keeps the tray light enough to move easily once it s full of wet soil. How to make a heat mat for seed starting. Seedling heat mats typically raise the temperature of your flats or pots 10 to 20 f above ambient room temperature. I m now using lcd rope light system for the first time this year.

After putting the styrofoam you should loosely fasten some rope lights over that. When you are learning to grow from seeds often you might see reference to a heat mat for seedlings. After only two seasons 2 of my 25 00 hydro farm seedling heat mat stopped working. It includes a sturdy metal light stand a 4 foot t5 grow light a 10 x20 mat to handle one very healthy tray of seedlings and an easy to set thermostat.