Associate
- Joined
- 14 Sep 2008
- Posts
- 2,485
- Location
- Portsmouth/Salisbury
Germination!!!!!!! 
Nice present to come back to after a few days away
Nice present to come back to after a few days away
The 2011 Chilli growing thread - it's scorching!
- Thread starter NickK
- Start date
Hmm, can't seem to find any info on the mylar from the first 3 or so pages of google. I might just try it as it is supposed to cast a diffused light, so shouldn't create hot spots.
I did see a few people have used aluminium ducting to make a reflector. Seems like the perfect solution, as long as it is very cheap to buy. Otherwise I think some plywood will do the trick.
you know the basic shape is a coke can cut in half make one out of cardboard and coat it in mylar
cardboard needs over 200c to ignite CFL/flouresent tube wont get anywhere near that as you can hold the hottest part with your hand.
if you want to do a proper job using plywood use "flat white" spray paint
"flat white" pray paint is around 90% reflective , mylar is 95%
if you had a long enough round plastic tub you could just cut it in half and spray paint the inside
cardboard needs over 200c to ignite CFL/flouresent tube wont get anywhere near that as you can hold the hottest part with your hand.
if you want to do a proper job using plywood use "flat white" spray paint
"flat white" pray paint is around 90% reflective , mylar is 95%
if you had a long enough round plastic tub you could just cut it in half and spray paint the inside
Last edited:
So I'm jumping the gun in relation to harvest time, but I've been looking forward to making my own hot sauce, so I thought I'd have a go. Some of my own chillies here and some shop-bought ones. Nothing particularly spicy, mind - only growing properly hot ones this year ...
Recipe (an amalgamation of the best bits of MANY internet recipes):
Rough-chop one white and one red onion and most/all of a clove of garlic. Stick in a pan and sweat with some olive oil. Peel and chop a carrot, slice a pepper and the chillies (number and inclusion of seeds according to taste!). Add those and sweat for a bit longer, taking care not to let anything burn. Add 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup orange juice, add a couple of chopped tomatoes and gently simmer down until it starts to thicken. During this time, season with all or none of the following: salt and pepper, a bit of (decent) vegetable stock, English mustard (for a slightly different kick), chilli powder, mixed herbs. Juice a couple of limes and a lemon and get some of the zest from the lemon with a grater. Peel and stone a ripe mango and add with the lemon and lime juice to the mix. Add 1/2 cup white wine / cider vinegar to lower the pH for preservation and simmer down a bit. Whizz the mix with a hand blender to get the preferred consistency - I like slightly lumpy, but it's up to you. You can strain it through a sieve to get rid of some of the liquid if necessary. Bottle with a funnel, allow to cool and stick in the fridge - should keep for a few months. Take care to be hygienic throughout, as any mould will stop it from keeping. Sterilise things like the funnel and bottles in the oven / microwave / with boiling water before using. If you see anything suspicious growing in the bottle after a while, don't eat it
Serving suggestion - adds a great kick to a ham and lettuce sandwich
As my chillies weren't particularly hot, I was adding both more chillies and more chilli powder throughout to try and get the heat up a bit. It's very tasty, but I failed on the heat side a bit :/
Recipe (an amalgamation of the best bits of MANY internet recipes):
Rough-chop one white and one red onion and most/all of a clove of garlic. Stick in a pan and sweat with some olive oil. Peel and chop a carrot, slice a pepper and the chillies (number and inclusion of seeds according to taste!). Add those and sweat for a bit longer, taking care not to let anything burn. Add 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup orange juice, add a couple of chopped tomatoes and gently simmer down until it starts to thicken. During this time, season with all or none of the following: salt and pepper, a bit of (decent) vegetable stock, English mustard (for a slightly different kick), chilli powder, mixed herbs. Juice a couple of limes and a lemon and get some of the zest from the lemon with a grater. Peel and stone a ripe mango and add with the lemon and lime juice to the mix. Add 1/2 cup white wine / cider vinegar to lower the pH for preservation and simmer down a bit. Whizz the mix with a hand blender to get the preferred consistency - I like slightly lumpy, but it's up to you. You can strain it through a sieve to get rid of some of the liquid if necessary. Bottle with a funnel, allow to cool and stick in the fridge - should keep for a few months. Take care to be hygienic throughout, as any mould will stop it from keeping. Sterilise things like the funnel and bottles in the oven / microwave / with boiling water before using. If you see anything suspicious growing in the bottle after a while, don't eat it
Serving suggestion - adds a great kick to a ham and lettuce sandwich
As my chillies weren't particularly hot, I was adding both more chillies and more chilli powder throughout to try and get the heat up a bit. It's very tasty, but I failed on the heat side a bit :/
Last edited:
is it 6400 or 6500 I need?
Just about to buy now. Also ventilation/wind, is it mainly for air movement or something else? will a bathroom fan do?
The lamp I bought recently was 6400k. I put two pc fans in my box, one at the bottom blowing air directly towards the plants to strengthen the stems, and one at the top to extract the warm air. I suppose a bathroom fan will do! The 60mm pc fans have worked for me.
6400k.
bathroom fans arent designed for prolonged use so no unless want a fire.
use a 120mm+ pc fan its just to keep the box cool and stop heat build up from the lights and provide fresh air , you can either use it as an exhaust fan and have it high up in the box or you can use it as an intake and have it blowing directly over the cannopy of your plants which will cause them to grow nice healthy thick stems.
most pc fans as you know are going to 12volts , a lot of old chargers you might have laying around your house for old modems , routers , old phone chargers etc will be 12volts.
most fans will use around 0.6amps or so it will tell you on the fan so you just need a 12volt charger capable of delivering atleast the amount of amps labeled on the fan.
if a fan requires 0.6 amps and you havre a 1.2amp charger it can run 2 fans. (electrical items only pull as many amps as they need you cant over amp, you can over volt though so dont use more volts than the fan says it needs)
as you probably also know you can voltage mod pc fans so they dont run as fast and produce less noise by lowering the voltage so even like a 7volt charger would work aslong as it has enough amps. (the fan just wouldnt run at full speed)
Last edited:
thanks
EEK
darn this thread, I'm meant to be saving up for Australia.
I better get some bloody fruit all year round.
8 x F30W/865 T8 3ft Triphosphor daylight (6400)
4 x F30W/827 T8 3ft Triphosphor extra-warm white (2700)
4 x Elec Twin T8 HPF Fluorescent Batten Fitting C/w 3ft 30W Tubes
1 x 10m mylar sheeting
1 x TIMEX WIRELESS IN / OUTDOOR THERMOMETER WITH HYGROMETER
5 x seeds Spanish Naga Morich Chilli
10 x Curry Chilli Seeds
10 x Hot Cherry F1 Chilli Seeds
10 x Hot Lemon
Chilli Plant Food 300ml
Total £153.46
and the unused wardrobe I'm going to convert. Going to stick a chain adjustable shelf with the lights on.
H = 5ft, width = 4ft, depth 2ft
EEK
darn this thread, I'm meant to be saving up for Australia. I better get some bloody fruit all year round.
8 x F30W/865 T8 3ft Triphosphor daylight (6400)
4 x F30W/827 T8 3ft Triphosphor extra-warm white (2700)
4 x Elec Twin T8 HPF Fluorescent Batten Fitting C/w 3ft 30W Tubes
1 x 10m mylar sheeting
1 x TIMEX WIRELESS IN / OUTDOOR THERMOMETER WITH HYGROMETER
5 x seeds Spanish Naga Morich Chilli
10 x Curry Chilli Seeds
10 x Hot Cherry F1 Chilli Seeds
10 x Hot Lemon
Chilli Plant Food 300ml
Total £153.46
and the unused wardrobe I'm going to convert. Going to stick a chain adjustable shelf with the lights on.
H = 5ft, width = 4ft, depth 2ft
Last edited:
Associate
- Joined
- 14 Sep 2008
- Posts
- 2,485
- Location
- Portsmouth/Salisbury
That's going to be an interesting electricity bill 
yea im wrong massively!
would only cost you £220 a year if you were running them for 12 hours a day.
but i guess you will be doing more than that ?
started building a diy reflector today. Cut an old 10l washing powder tub in half and then riveted it to a piece of pvc D bead. Then added ply to both ends to support the light bulb holders. then a couple of timber braces to add some rigidity to it.
I might use a double ended bulb holder (if such a thing exists) and plonk that in the middle, instead of a bulb at each end. Then I'd just need 1 wire to plug into the mains.
I have a plastic tub that I'm going to line out with mylar and this reflector fits nicely on top. Should be perfect for putting my seedling in for a few hours a day to stop them getting too thin.
I have 1 45w bulb that seems a little under powered. Thinking of getting an 105w bulb, would this be overkill?
I might use a double ended bulb holder (if such a thing exists) and plonk that in the middle, instead of a bulb at each end. Then I'd just need 1 wire to plug into the mains.
I have a plastic tub that I'm going to line out with mylar and this reflector fits nicely on top. Should be perfect for putting my seedling in for a few hours a day to stop them getting too thin.
I have 1 45w bulb that seems a little under powered. Thinking of getting an 105w bulb, would this be overkill?
ive seen the americans do some really nice ghetto light fixtures
i found a site selling the 3pin UK plug versions
http://www.sourcingmap.com/250v-plug-e27-light-lamp-bulb-socket-holder-stand-adapter-p-102585.html
you just need a multiplug power strip thingy and some bulbs.
this guys got the right idea
probably cost twice as much to make in the uk if you can even find the bits to do it
i found a site selling the 3pin UK plug versions
http://www.sourcingmap.com/250v-plug-e27-light-lamp-bulb-socket-holder-stand-adapter-p-102585.html
you just need a multiplug power strip thingy and some bulbs.
this guys got the right idea
I watched the alu ducting video, thats where i got the idea for mine .
I think this will work a treat once ive put the diamond mylar reflective sheeting onto the tubs. With one bulb either side it should give a nice even light. Should hopefully be perfect for the 12 plants ive got on the go. At least for a few months, till the weather gets warmer.
I've drilled a pilot hole into the ply and put a screw in with a blunt end, to hold the ceramic E27 bulb holder in place. Just need to do the same to the other side now and its good to go.
Cost so far - £0.00. Well, will be about £4 when I add the mylar, but still a lot cheaper and probably better than the crappy bent alu ones on ebay.
Is there any way I could wire both the bulb holders together? So that I wont have to use 2 plug sockets?
.I think this will work a treat once ive put the diamond mylar reflective sheeting onto the tubs. With one bulb either side it should give a nice even light. Should hopefully be perfect for the 12 plants ive got on the go. At least for a few months, till the weather gets warmer.
I've drilled a pilot hole into the ply and put a screw in with a blunt end, to hold the ceramic E27 bulb holder in place. Just need to do the same to the other side now and its good to go.
Cost so far - £0.00
. Well, will be about £4 when I add the mylar, but still a lot cheaper and probably better than the crappy bent alu ones on ebay. Is there any way I could wire both the bulb holders together? So that I wont have to use 2 plug sockets?
Associate
- Joined
- 23 Jul 2007
- Posts
- 2,225
- Location
- Central Scotland
So... chilli oil.
Can I add dried chilli's straight to a new bottle of olive oil and leave to infuse or am I better heating the oil with the chilli's and sterilizing the bottle.
Can I add dried chilli's straight to a new bottle of olive oil and leave to infuse or am I better heating the oil with the chilli's and sterilizing the bottle.
