I got this galvanised square pots from IKEA. Each are about 2 inches. I meant to use them for my lithops but I don't have that many yet. I am just wondering if the roots will get cooked in the hot sun? Any ideas?
Galvanised Pots
Galvanised Pots
Hello,
I got this galvanised square pots from IKEA. Each are about 2 inches. I meant to use them for my lithops but I don't have that many yet. I am just wondering if the roots will get cooked in the hot sun? Any ideas?
I got this galvanised square pots from IKEA. Each are about 2 inches. I meant to use them for my lithops but I don't have that many yet. I am just wondering if the roots will get cooked in the hot sun? Any ideas?
~ShaZ
With square pots, the ones to worry about are those on the outside facing the sun. You could put a piece of expanded polystyrene along that size to slow down heating. Also remember to use a light coloured top dressing. Lithops plants more or less stay at the same temperature as the soil they are in with no other way to cool down.
--ian
Are these pots going to receive any direct sunlight? (That would be ruination where I live)
Shiny is definitely more reflective than white paint of any sheen. (Reflectance coefficients of .71 and .58 respectively)
With metals two additional factors are also at work.
(1) Shiny finishes go hand in hand with low emissivity. So even though a shiny bit of metal is reflecting most of the heat away, it is holding and not releasing the heat that does penetrate the surface.
(This is why a shiny black finish on metal makes a more efficient solar collector than a dull black finish. The dull black finish absorbs more heat, but that advantage is more than lost because it re-radiates it back into the air.)
(2) Metals in general have high internal thermal conductivity. Heat absorbed in one area is quickly and efficiently conducted to the rest of the structure.
These two factors together tend to overwhelm surface reflectivity, which is why a piece of metal polished to a shiny finish will attain a higher temperature in direct sunlight than it will with a flat finish of any light color.
Shiny is definitely more reflective than white paint of any sheen. (Reflectance coefficients of .71 and .58 respectively)
With metals two additional factors are also at work.
(1) Shiny finishes go hand in hand with low emissivity. So even though a shiny bit of metal is reflecting most of the heat away, it is holding and not releasing the heat that does penetrate the surface.
(This is why a shiny black finish on metal makes a more efficient solar collector than a dull black finish. The dull black finish absorbs more heat, but that advantage is more than lost because it re-radiates it back into the air.)
(2) Metals in general have high internal thermal conductivity. Heat absorbed in one area is quickly and efficiently conducted to the rest of the structure.
These two factors together tend to overwhelm surface reflectivity, which is why a piece of metal polished to a shiny finish will attain a higher temperature in direct sunlight than it will with a flat finish of any light color.