Jump Start CK64050 Germination Station w/Heat Mat Tray, 72-Cell Pack, One size, 2" Dome

I bought this specifically to start my garden from seed. Save money from buying plants. So I'm keeping track of all my $$. The heat mats are not cheap to buy. This heat mat is plastic but does not feel brittle. It fits under the seed tray. The clear plastic lid comes with the side vent half circles open. So care will be needed to untake the half circle vent covers on and adjust to how you want them. The total hight is meh, I dunno maybe 6 inches from clear top to bottom of mat. Some might consider upgrading the plastic lid that this company also sells. Some might consider also buying the temperature adjusting thermostat. But EVERYONE who wants to use this will have to also purchase some sort of growing medium. The inside of each cell is small. If you have ever bought a pack of plants you know the plastic isn't very strong. Well this is like that except it has an outer base so the water tripping don't run out. I read a lot of reviews about this project and they seem across the board. When the box arrived on a cold day, I waited hours for it to warm up before I opened it (plastic gets brittle). Nothing was broken here. Just understand that when your seedlings get their true leaves you will need a real light source to avoid spindling plants (like 3 inches above the plants). It's also easy to confuse which seed you used in what area. There are 72 cells. I cut up an old plastic milk jug into spikes and labeled with black sharpie marker. I used rock wool as medium because I knew transplanting out of these tiny cells would be a challenge (Grodan a-ok 1.5 starter plug sheet of 98). These did work (I cut each square into 1/4 and stuck 2 per cell. One seed per 1/4 cell. I put a heavy boot mat under the whole thing to give it strong stability and prevent possible water damage to anything in my home.How has it worked? In 3 - 4 days I had 90% germination with my Sun King Broccoli. And now 4-6 days my Granex onions are coming up well. A lot of people are suggesting regular shop lights 3-4 inches above will make them nice and strong. I went ahead and invested in a grow light (not sure how that will work). I share this with you because I reviews as well. If you are going to plant with a heat mat, go ahead and get this station but understand that getting your plant out might prove to be a challenge.

The dome has 3 vents, 1 large top vent and two small side vents. The side vents have very very very cheap covers which do not work so a little tape and this baby is ready to grow! The dome and tray are made up of thin plastic, very light and easily broken if not given any care.The entire set up is very good and functions but with a few hiccups here and there. The condensation builds and drips off the dome outside of it, not into the tray, so I have to constantly wipe the side dry so my heat mat doesn't sit wet.The plastic is very flimsy so you have to be delicate when handling this product. Comes with 0.5oZ of CloneX and the tray holds most of the root riots i use in place, except for the top centimeter which is fine.The cord for the heat mat is about 6-7' long, everything is MADE IN CHINA. Every single part of this set up.3.5 stars due to the almost useless side vent covers and for being such a cheap product and not striving for quality which I will be looking for once I upgrade from this.Gets the job done, but there are better quality products available.***UPDATE: After using this for a quite a while now it has paid itself off ten fold. Although the materials used are thin and cheap feeling they get the job done. Seeds are germinating within 3 days to sprouts sometimes sooner, all clippings are at a 100% success rate. The heat mat is a winner and such a steal when alone it can be up to 25$! Very good product for the price. Recommended! Five stars for functionality, perfect plant starter! Updated 7/2/12

I just got this germination station set up today and my seeds are ready to rock! While the trays were both kind of flimsy, I really bought it for the mat and the dome. I then tossed the two trays and used just the Rapid Rooters tray I bought (which is a lot sturdier) with the dome and the mat. It’s cheap and comes with fifty Rooters coco plugs in it, but the plastic is really good quality and the little cups have an open bottom so you can easily push the plug out from the bottom. It also sucked that the there was no thermostat for the mat, but I knew that before I got it and didn’t care since I have one already I can use.Overall, it was what I expected for the price and I’m very happy with it. The only downside, which is why I went with 4 stars, is that the little sliders on the dome which slide open and closed are total crap. Every time I try to open them or close them, it pops out. I’ll probably just stick a piece of take over the vents when I want them closed rather than use the sliders. If you’re buying this for the mat, go for it it, and even the tray is okay—good 1020 trays cost a fortune—but the dome is crap because of the vent issue. Overall, a pretty good buy considering that the mat is nice and buying it alone would likely only be ten bucks or so cheaper.

Excellent product, reasonable price. The heat mat works great, and my tobacco seeds sprouted well. The vents on the side and top are a nice feature, although I wish they were a little sturdier in the way they are attached to the cover. But they did fine. Contrary to other reviewers, I found the plastic cover itself to be sturdy enough for the job. True, if you put much weight on it, it's going to crack or crinkle. But if you use it as designed, that won't happen. Since this unit was used outside in natural sunlight, I put an old ashtray on top to weigh it down enough to keep the wind from blowing the top off... and that worked great, but I wouldn't put any more weight on it than that. That being said, no plastic dome of this kind was intended to hold much weight to begin with, regardless of the manufacturer. They are designed to keep the moisture in and still allow light to get through, and that's it. This one did an excellent job at that. I wish the price were lower, as it was only a few years ago that a local retailer sold something very similar to this for $20, but other than that, this is a great product.