I have a balcony garden where I get a ton of sunlight on my wall, but not much on my plants beneath this wall. I planned on using a reflective panel made from cardboard and aluminum foil to reflect some light down.
Will be effective? Will it be safe? I don't want to start a fire on my balcony!
Aluminum foil can be very effective at reflecting light. There are better materials out there, like reflective mylar that are easier to work with. There is also a product called Reflectix which is a mylar bubble wrap used for insulation and it won't tear of bend like aluminum. Even just painting something white can work really good. I think the reflectivity of aluminum and mylar is around 95% while white paint is around 75% depending on the paint. Of course, cannabis growers debate this endlessly. Here is a good video testing the different materials.
