Which lights for growing seedlings indoors?

Well, send well-wishes my way! I hunted this thread down when trying to figure out what kinds of lights to buy. After reading through these threads plus a few things on the web, I decided to just buy some cheap shop lights. Fifteen years ago, before I knew any better, that's what I used and I grew the stockiest, most impressive tomato plants ever.

Went and got a metal, five-shelf rack plus two four-foot shop lights and two that are a couple feet. Ready or not, I plan to get a bunch of seeds started this week. I'd posted a while back about getting seeds started early, due to the nice weather we'd all been having, then it went and snowed. Anyway, I putzed around so long that this is about the time I'd have started them anyway.

Jennifer Lowery wrote:I have metal shelving which is 3 feet wide and 2 feet deep.  Is this not an ideal size for shelving?   If the shelving is good, which lights would you get for each shelf?   I suppose i would put three 10" x 20" seedling trays per shelf.  

I got a 10" x 20" heating pad to grow some chilli peppers and would like to get them going.

Should I get compact flourescent or LED?

So many options, I have absolutely NO CLUE what to buy! LOL.

I've gone thru a lot of the options that are available in the stores, and found the 3 stage LED shop lights at Menards to be a dead ringer. They have 3 different light settings.. 3k(soft white) 4k(bright white) and 5k(daylight), with 5k being what we needed to get flowers and fruiting from peppers. They are also not hot enough to kill the smaller insects we use as part of natural controls.. Something rare even among LED grow lights. On top of that, they come in at about the same price or less than a spot LED plant fixture. Unfortunately, they don't daisy-chain like some of the other similar lights they sell.

Here's a link to the one I'm talking about. We've had some of ours for 2 years now with almost constant use.  
https://www.menards.com/main/lighting-ceiling-fans/indoor-lighting/shop-lights/smart-electrician-reg-5000-lumen-42-led-shop-light/cl-4sl5kcct-st/p-177023398352445-c-1472133557086.htm?tid=-7944025221073670391&ipos=4&exp=true

I have been unsuccessful with several methods of trying to grow a crop indoors.  This (aerogarden) has been the most successful!  it was a little expensive, but it was a birthday gift:)  So far, I've grown tomatoes, herbs, and lettuce.  I also started some watermelon seedlings for transfer.  

this takes up hardly any space!

The aerogarden is an expensive hydroponic system so I assume you feel it is worth the money.

Did your kit come with the tomato seeds or do you use regular tomato seeds?

I do feel like it is worth the money, if you need a sure thing.  the other ways I've tried, cost more with not good results.  If I were better at growing, I would love a larger set up.  For me, it's hit or miss with my own pods and seeds.  The pods that came with it have been a sure thing.

Thank you, Tiala for the reply.

It looks like a really nice setup.

That's interesting- I have wondered about the kit options like this since I am dealing with such space and light limitations where I live. I'd be curious how your results are with any other types of plants (tho the tomatoes look pretty lush!)

Jennifer Lowery wrote:Eight $1 ceramic tiles ($8 per shelf) seems to be a great way to get a solid rugged waterproof surface over the wire rack:

That's brilliant. 🤗