distance are 2 100w cfl about 20" overhead and 2 24" flouro tubes as side lighting about 12" from plant
I think your lights are too far away.

TT, I don't know what your 100W CFL's are like. But I usta run a pretty impressive T5 array within 2" of my tops, with some small fans blowing lengthwise along the tubes / in the airspace above the plants. Use the back of your hand cross-referenced against a thermometer and keep the temps at or below 85-87degF at the tops. (The lower sections of the plants will be cooler, unless you're growing in a "tiny" enclosure as well. )

IMO, the sidelight tubes are unneccessary at this point. Basically, your plants don't really have "sides" to light yet. If you need them for heat, go ahead--the more light the better. But I'd get them as close as I could also, within an inch or two, temps permitting, if you're going to bother with them.

If you have to choose between adding sidelights or positioning your primary overheads correctly, ditch the sidelights. All that "NASA" data about how effective sidelighting is, is misquoted and/or taken out of context. I've read it. A lot of the figures I see bandied about were taken from an annual report that basically said, "Here is what we EXPECT so get next time, if you renew our grant funding." Grant funding was NOT continued, the experiments were never conducted, yet I see these 28-35% improvement figures flung around as gospel. It was a sales pitch, and the claims were NOT substantiated in experiments conducted by D. Hermie & Associates.

Visit a commercial greenhouse. Observe the conspicuous lack of sidelighting. Speak to the resident horticultural expert and prepare to get scoffed at for suggesting such a thing.

But like I said, I don't have a clue what your hundred-watters are. Maybe they can peel paint at a foot away. But they've GOTTA be able to go closer than 20". I've run 400 watt HPS without vented hoods closer than that.

Throw up a picture or some specs on your CFLs and maybe some folks will chime in. (I've used CFLs before, but nothing bigger than the ~46 watt ones with a standard E-26 Edison base.) But get those babies in as close as possible, and get reflective material in place, also--as well as you can without obstructing airflow.


Hermie :hippy:
DreadedHermie Reviewed by DreadedHermie on . stupid DWC ?? this is probably a simple stupid question but what is the easiest way to do a water change in a 5 gal DWC bucket?? I dont run DWC as of yet but thinking about doing a mother plant this way and continuing E&F in my cab and tent. so if I have a 5 gal bucket, netpot lid, airstone and pump what would the simple method be?? just didnt think popping the lid of and exposing roots to light to change water was a good idea but I have no clue hehe :wtf: Rating: 5