Light Strip? rack? help me figure it out! :D

Hello guys, im building a pc grow box, and for the lights im planning 4 100w 1100lumens CFLS softwhites, now the thing is that i have very limited space ( atx tower not full tower) and i was thinking in aligning the lights in some sort of power strip but this takes more room than actually needed, now, ive seen in sears and walmart arround xmas time a power strip the add where you can test your xmas lights, this thing is like 1 inch wide 1/2 inch thick and length varies, its like some kind of long strip with 2 channels where you plug in whatever you need to plug... well i kinda need that powerstrip thing :(, dunnno if im explaining correctly :S hope someone understands what im trying to say.

thanks in advance guys!!

it looks something like this
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but the middle lines are solid not spaced like those.

i think i get what you're saying, but not what you're talking about. you need some way to put 4x100w bulbs in a pc case? that's unnecessary IMO. a regular power strip and 4 mini cfl's works just as good in that small a space.

so, just 4 mini wil do? they are just 14w = 60w incandesent equivalent....

jummm i also thougth of just going softlight and 12/12 from seed cause i dont want them to get huge since of the small space. will this work?

thanks for the fast reply and advice!

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Originally Posted by dolamic

i think i get what you're saying, but not what you're talking about. you need some way to put 4x100w bulbs in a pc case? that's unnecessary IMO. a regular power strip and 4 mini cfl's works just as good in that small a space.

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Yes, I would agree, 400 Watts is an over kill..
An average grow room is 50 watts per ft.

Take width and times it by length = X, and divide total watts by X...
So lets say your atx case is 12" x 24", you have 3 sq ft. Then divide 3 by total watts..
If you use CFLs that have the output of a total of 150 watts, that would be 50 watts per sq ft.
150 divided by 3 = 50 watts per sq ft.


Personally I would use 3 of the GE 26 Watt CFL which equals 100 Watt ouput each..
That would give you something equal to 100 watts per sq ft. (if your case is 12" x 24")...

First, a small mathematical correction -- a space that is 12 inches (1 foot) by 24 inches (2 feet) is 2 square feet, not 3.

At the ratio of 50 watts per square foot, you would only need 100 watts equivalent for the whole box, so if you went with 2 of the 23 watt CFLs, you would have PLENTY of light (200 Watts equivalent).

Make sure the inside of your grow box is white or a light color for reflectivity all around.

If you grow from seed at 12/12 from the beginning, it will probably retard the plants (not in a good way) and they wonâ??t grow right.

If you are growing from seed, the plants need to have at least 6-weeks after producing the first set of 3-way leaves before you can place them into flowering. They must have enough time to develop strong roots and stalks before they start flowering or they wonâ??t flower properly. You can keep topping them to control size.

For the first six weeks, I suggest 18/6 or 20/4 for lights.

Because of your space limits, when you switch to flowering, you want to trim off most of your side branches, leaving only one or two branches so all the flowering will be concentrated on those two branches.

When you put the plant into flowering, cut the height back to half the size you want it to finish at. If you want it to finish at two feet tall, cut it back to one foot tall when you put it flowering.

To grow like youâ??re talking, you need to grow and flower a pure indica, preferably a ruderalis or auto-flowering strain. The genetics of these cause them to grow short and have a short flowering period, so the plant shouldnâ??t out-grow the box.

Some pure indicas are:

L.A. Confidential
Hash Plant
Grand Daddy Purple

There are others you can find, as well.

Hope this helps. Good luck with your grow.

We have a book called Professor Grow's Book of Strains that lists the top 50 strains most commonly found in dispensaries, with the average THC content, how easy or hard it is to grow, Flowering Time, Awards won, and ailments that each strain has been used for in the past, etc.

We are in Colorado and will soon be offering grow classes. Check out ProfessorGrow.com for future announcements.


Professor Grow

Use the actual wattage rating, not the "rated" part...here the 100w equivalent draws 23w actual, so yea, use 4. There is something similar to what your describing called plug moldling...flush mounts to a surface, but has regular old 3 pronged outlets on it...I've not seen what your describing exactly...Are you in the USA? If so, go get 1 single bulb fixture, mount it to the top, 3 "y" socket adapters (turns 1 socket into two), screw this into the single bulb socket you mounted and then screw the other two "y" adapters in to the first adapter and then screw in your 4 bulbs. If your not in the USA you may not be able to find the "y" socket adapters. No, it's not a good idea to start seedlings on 12/12...let them veg long enough to get a root system going, (a couple or 3 weeks) then flip 'em to 12/12...if they don't have any roots, you won't get any buds. They aren't going to grow above ground that much the first 3 weeks anyway...they are focused mainly on growing roots at that point.

good info tankjar but dont you think that he gonna lose space in hight wise if hes using Y adaptors.

Yep Dex....but there aren't a lot of options when your trying to grow a wannabe 5 foot plant in a 18" space...unless they make 12" T5HO's there's gonna be some space taken up by lighting, but without enough light it's a waste of time. Honestly, I feel like spending 3 months growing a couple of grams in a PC case IS a waste, but if that's all one can do... oh well!?!?! :sorry1:

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Originally Posted by ProfessorGrow

First, a small mathematical correction -- a space that is 12 inches (1 foot) by 24 inches (2 feet) is 2 square feet, not 3.

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Yep... It's times not add.... LOL
Gojira tip for you, don't burn a fatty and then try and do math... ;)