Interested in an Alt. Propagation-Light Stand?

I've watched (with great interest) here the PVC seed starting stands with lights. However, I don't want a stand that's hard to move/store as I'm in a temporary house and it will have to either be moved or stored, or discarded. (What a waste discarding would be!)

I've designed a stand that is easy to build, can come apart easily to transport or store, and I plan to build it tomorrow. If anyone is interested, I'll take photos and post them here.

Sure let's see it.............

No construction (thus no photos) today... it's light rain/snow outside, not good conditions for using electric power tools.

I'd love to see your stand darius, I've got two with 3 shelves each, but getting ready to build a couple more, went to home depot today and wanted the girl to cut the pipe for me, I have corple tunnel, and the pipe I saw her cut as I went up to her was... well lets say not up to standards :-), so I left, going to ACE hardware tomorrow, I have some plans for a plant stand, it has 3 shelves and you can take it apart. Sure would like to see yours, I know this weather has been a trip the last few wks. here, just when you think you can get out and get your hands dirty, it...well you gotta stay in.

Can't wait to see it.

Paul

I'm interested as well. Thanks for sharing!

LeBug, I'm going to hang my lights from EMT pipe (which is used to run electric wiring). It comes in 10' lengths and costs $1.40 each at Home Depot. I'll cut it here, and plan on hanging the pipe from pegs angled along the side supports every 2". That way I'll be able to move the lights up or down as needed.

sounding interesting, can't wait for photos.

Darius, that sounds good, I might hold a little bit on my pvc pipe and check yours out if you don't mind, sounds a little cheeper, and very intresting. Tell the weather to cooperate with you :-) Can't wait for those pictures. I'm on unemployment, so a penny saved is a penny earned.

Okay, I've started (but not yet finished) my grow-light stand... but it's also a multi-task stand. (There's no place for my hanging houseplants plants here until it warms up, so I'm using the top of the stand to hold them. I have it in an unused sliding glass door so the houseplants get some natural light.)

Right now, I only have one light hung, and 3 seed trays on the shelf below it. The rod for another light is there, and part of another shelf but I ran out of daylight to work on it. I still have to add 45º braces on the top to keep it square.

The capacity is 4 shelves if I don't hang plants from the top. I will have just 3 shelves this year for seedlings. No place to plant more until I find a home!

Construction is simple: Each side member is just scrap lumber: a 2x4 and a 1x4 for the cross piece. The horizontal pieces for the shelving are 1x2 (on edge because they are not very strong otherwise). I had them left from something or another. There is a small 1x2 brace on the bottom of each side support, but I need to remove it and use a 1x4 or a 2x4 for more stability.

The lights hang from half a 10' piece of EMT (used for electric wiring, $1.40 each @ Home Depot), and are supported just by pegs at a 45º angle in the side members, spaced 2" apart so I can raise and lower the lights as seedlings grow.

I had planned to fasten the cross pieces to the side supports with long machine screws and wing nuts so I could take it apart easily for storage. Dummy me bought screws too short, so for now it's fastened with deck screws.

Each shelf is just 4 pcs, of 1x2 on edge and only one is actually fastened to the side support. I could screw them all down but that's just more to take apart later.

Close-up of the pegs holding the EMT tubing for the lights:

That's a new concept. I like it.

Close-up of the pegs holding the EMT tubing for the lights:

I probably would have maybe $20 in it IF I had to buy all the lumber... most of what I actually spent (under $10) was for the long machine screws (which I need to exchange for longer screws), a pkg. of dowels and 2 pcs. of EMT tubing.

darius, that's nice and what's even nicer, it's cheaper than I was going and you can take it apart. I wish I had an imagination, by golly I think I'll try it. Great job even if you aren't done :-) Hope you find a home soon, got to get there before your seeds are ready. Thanks, are you going to be in the same zone you're in now?

It's great. Why couldn't you just drill 1/2" holes through the 2X4 and run the conduit through the holes. You wouldn't need the pegs. Just a thought.

Paul

Prettty nifty Darius! You're a clever gal :)

Paul. If I drilled holes for the conduit in the side pieces, then I'd have to take the light off the rod every time I wanted to raise the lights. The structure wouldn't allow putting the conduit in new holes otherwise... no flexibility.

LeBug... Yes, I expect to be in the same zone.

I'm not completely pleased with it at the moment, and won't know until I'm finished if I'm really satisfied.

The price was right, though! :)

You just SO ROCK Darius!!

:)

Darius, I don't know what I was thinking, I have my plants in the basement, it gets too damp there at times, I guess will have to go with the pvc pipe, I'm afraid if I made them with wood they would warp, I don't have an inch upstairs, but I have made a mental note for the future:-)

LeBug... you probably are making the right choice, unless you can get cedar, redwood or cypress locally, but those are more expensive materials these days. Those materials resist rot in damp conditions wonderfully.

For me, warping wouldn't matter because it would not alter functionability, and COST was my primary concern, plus the ability to knock it down for storage.

I have lots of PVC fittings and lengths of 1/2" PVC pipe from an old screened area I once made. That's what I will use for permanent grow-light stands IF I ever get a place for them.

Darius,
Fantastic, I wish I had an OUNCE of creativity in my body!!