3D Growing Plant Light Stand

Plant Light Stands can be really expensive and take up lots of space. I wanted to build an affordable, customizable 3D printed plant light stand that could fit comfortably in our house. This one we'll build can hold two seed trays, fits well on a small end table and cost only about $25 to make (not including the lights).

1 x 2 lumber, four 8 foot lengths

3/4 screws, #8

3D printed brackets, access to 3D printer

1/8 plywood, one piece 26 x 16

pegboard, two pieces 26 x 14 each

Liquid nails glue, one tube

Wood working tools

2 ft grow lights - lots to choose from, but I chose this set: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B082ZL2L3N/ref=o...

This 3D designed bracket should fit snugly into your 1 x 2 lumber. After you print one, check the fit and be sure to consider if you are going to paint your lumber as well. I ended up changing my slicer to 99% for these brackets to ensure a tighter fit. For this two-tier plant stand, I'll need 4 of each of these brackets, so 12 in total. Once you have all 12 brackets printed, lay them out to see how they'll fit. You'll use two tops and two bottom brackets for the base, then the other two top and bottom brackets for the top of the stand. The 4 point connectors will be in the middle and all components will eventually be secured with glue.

Starting with a standard sized seed tray, which is about 11 x 21 inches, I wanted to be sure that my stand had room to accomodate a water tray base with wicking material and a plastic dome. I chose to make my stand 14 x 26 inches with a height of 14 inches. This will give me enough room for the whole tray and some options to make my lighting adjustable. This is similar to the dimensions of most of the metal plant stands that I have seen. For lumber, I'll cut:

6 pieces at 26 inches

14 pieces at 14 inches

With the wood cut, it's time to test the fit of all the brackets and see if the shape looks good. Once I feel confident about the dimensions of the stand, it's time to paint. I used a primer and then a color we had left over from painting walls. You could also add a poly to the whole stand.

Time to glue the brackets into place. I used an ample amount and then wiped off the excess from the edges of the bracket. I wasn't brave enough to assemble the whole frame at once. Instead, I glued and assembled the first tier of the stand, let it dry for a day, then added the second tier. While you're waiting for the second tier to dry, cut your plywood and pegboard.

The plywood will become the base for the second tier. I decided the first tier didn't need a base since it will sit on a table. You may decide otherwise. Measure your plant stand to confirm, but for mine, I needed a base of 26 x 16 inches. I then had to cut notches at each corner to accomodate the brackets (see image). I cut these notches out with a jigsaw so the interior lengths of the rectangle were 23 x 12 and 3/4 inches. I painted this to match the posts

The pegboard will be used as the base for the lights. I cut two pieces at 26 x 14 inches. No notches are needed. I painted these white.

While you're waiting for your glue to dry, print eight of these brackets. These will make the lights adjustable on each tier. Once the brackets are printed, screw them in at the top of each vertical post. (The bottom notch is intentionally thicker to give you a visual point of reference at the bottom of the piece.) Test the fit of the pegboard.

This design should give you four different heights for your grow lights from about 10 to 14 inches above the base. For more height options, add more brackets!

Time to turn on your lights. I decided to add three light bars to each tier. These light came with different mounting hardware, but with the pegboard in mind, I used zip ties to secure the lighting and wires, then snipped the excess. I chained each tier of lights together. Be mindful of where the brackets rest on the pegboard and avoid placing wiring and lights that might interfere.

All the light are working; it's time to start some seeds. Happy growing!

These are the four files needed for the project.