How Close Can I Have my T5 Fixture to my Plants?

I have a 2-foot 4-bulb T5 fixture. How close to these bulbs can I veg the plants (at 8-inches tall)? Could I put the fixture just an inch above the vegging plants?

after a plant is well rooted and established, it can run into your lights without any ill effects.
obviously you dont want that to happen, because it kills light penetration and spread.

i also run t5's in veg. currently 2 x 4ft - 6 bulbs

WileyCoyote said:

I have a 2-foot 4-bulb T5 fixture. How close to these bulbs can I veg the plants (at 8-inches tall)? Could I put the fixture just an inch above the vegging plants?

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I keep my 10-bulb 48" T5's roughly 2-3" from the plants. This is what I settled on after trying all the options. At 1" it's a bit hot, T5's run at 95 degrees. If you have a fan set up just right so it oscillates right over the surface of each bulb, I think you can get away with closer, but I don't have a perfect fan set up so not all the bulbs get directly cooled. I find 2-3" is safe in this situation.

I'm going to try to grab an oscillating fan and see if I can sweep the whole area, just haven't gotten one because they're no where to be found int he winter where I am... going to check the hydro shop soon though, need to go there anyway... for more T5s... haha.