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heater failed


chesara

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Hi all

Couldnt believe it,checked my plants this morning and the heater had packed up during the night :shock: ive already had to cut a lot back and some of them are going black by the hour,the LFS in the Burbidgea was fozen and crispy to the touch,not sure if its going to make it.

Baught a new heater and cables today but it might be a bit late for some of them :( will have to let you know how many have had it :cry:

Bye for now Julian

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Oh no Julian what a disaster :cry:

I always dread either that or a power cut happening. And it needs only happen once :shock:

Even down here in the SE the frosts have been particulary nasty, and a power cut did occur last week. Only for an hour and a half but it left a nasty feeling. I really hope all your plants recover.. fingers crossed.

cheers

bill

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Oh no that is bad luck!! I had a similar problem in the winter of 2003 when the trip switch tripped and I didn't notice for at least two days during the coldest weather. All the Neps looked terrible and all the pitchers and some growing points went black. the good news was they all recovered eventually, though it took all the following growing season and they only started pitchering properly again last year. With luck yours will recover as well.

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Crikey, hope the damage isn't too terrible. I have to admit I'm uncomfortable using electric heating, especially as power cuts are not unheard of here. Until this time last year I used propane but I have been using electric since as the propane needs substantial ventilation to avoid the byproducts of combustion damaging plants. A bit of a gamble perhaps... :?

Bruce

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:-( Bad Luck Julian :-(

We had a power cut on the same morning, only -4C here, I dashed to the greenhouse fearing the worst but the cut could have only been minutes as the temp was still around +7C.

I hope you haven't lost too many and that those that have gone can swiftly and not too expensively be replaced.

Good luck.

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Putting in backup systems isn't cheap, but it can be done. When it takes 6 years or more for some plants to get to maturity I think it's worth it.

I have two independent electrical supplies into the greenhouse, each feeding a seperate set of systems with one of each key service (ventilation, circulation, heating, fogger). One board has just one each of the newest of these and should be the most robust, the other has older equipment and non-essential stuff as well (lights, etc).

To cope with total electrical failure I have a non-electric gas heater on pilot, and my latest development is I have just bought a unit which connects to a 12V battery and switches over to it in case of mains failure. This should keep my fans and foggers going for about a day or so.

I can discuss details offline if anyone is interested.

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:shock: Checked again this morning,Bongso looks trashed,Burbidgea is looking sick but i hope its going to pull through.A few others are looking very ill especially Ephippiata its all brown and like rubber .

I think i will have to rig up some sort of back up system for sure.

Black arm band at work tonight i think :(

Bye for now Julian

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Hi Julian,

This must be every Nep grower's worst fear.

I too am currently relying on electric. We have had two power outages since we moved house in August but fortunately neither was on frosty nights.

I am nervous for the rest of the winter, but until I can get a proper greenhouse set up, I have no choice.

I hope your plants make a speedy recovery.

All the best.

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I hate to hear about your plants getting damaged. Years of hard work can be lost in just a few hours.

I've always used a temperature alarm on a battery system after my first freeze. A thermostat hooked up to a doorbell or fire alarm works well.

In Florida, the summer heat can do almost as much damage as a freeze in the winter elswhere.

Good luck,

Steve Stewart

Florida, USA

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Hi Julain,

that's sad news from your plants. I'm afraid chances for surviving are very low when already the Sphagnum in the pots was frozen. I got two highland Nepenthes by mail few weeks ago and temperature levels were near to freezing when I found the parcel after some hours outside. Some leafes immediately died back but the growing points are still green - also they still look dehydrated.

A backup system is what growers with more valuable collections do have here in their greenhouses. Also a temperature alarm ringing a bell inside your house might help in the future. Professional systems will automatically call your mobile to give you a chance to do something immediately wherever you are.

Best luck with your plants!

Joachim

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Hi Julian:

I am really sorry about your accident with the plants. There are polymer solutions like ENVY or PLANTWAX that helps protect plants against freezing temperatures in winter and excessive heat in summer. You just spray the plant with it and hope for the best. Of course, this should be done as a precautionary measure. Once the plant suffers what i call "plant frostbite" it is not effective anymore.

Gus

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  • 10 months later...

Hi Nick

the only plants i lost in the end where Bongso,truncata lowland and Ephippiata the rest have made a stunning recovery in fact it took the burbidgea 6 months to show any life again i wouldnt recomend such lows but i was surprised how tough they really are the spagnum moss they are all planted in was froze solid 8)

Bye for now Julian

infact i am using an oil filled rad this year so will see how it goes :tu:

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  • 4 weeks later...

a little off topic maybe but kind of related.. i work in IT, ive recently installed some environmental monitoring hardware for monitoring computer room temp. humidity etc.. the equipment is pretty cheap considering what it does (around £300 with a temperature/humidity probe) and if u have a pc and a mobile phone already your halfway there.

it can alert you via sms, pager, email etc..

http://www.openxtra.co.uk/products/em1/index.html

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  • 5 weeks later...

Hi, slightly late posting but have only just found you guys..and girls.

I use lpg gas as my primary heater which stands completely independant from the utility suppliers! ie it has a mechanical stat. there are no problems at all with fumes in the greenhouse so long as the appropriate air supply is provided. The output from lpg is co2 and h2o and so is in fact beneficial (I have grown Neps and Orchids for five years)

A well insulated setup also helps and you can get a very inexpensive electronic thermo/hygrometer with multiple remote sensors and a max min alarm with receiver to put in the house for well under £100.

Best of luck

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Hi

i have thought about gas but after hearing about a pro grower who,s collection was blown up when an electric heater mixed badly with the gas, :wink: i am using an oiled filled rad at the moment and am pleased with the results :D

Bye for now Julian

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