First grw wth cfls

[PurpleWreck]

can i use 68 watt warm white, 2 27 watt daylights and a 33 watt bright white cfl to grow healthy plants?

PurpleWreck Reviewed by PurpleWreck on 01-14-2010. First grw wth cfls can i use 68 watt warm white, 2 27 watt daylights and a 33 watt bright white cfl to grow healthy plants?:D Rating: 5

[bigtopsfinn]

That's a good start but it won't be enough if you want da dankness :jointsmile:

As the plants get bigger you will need to fill the area with more CFL's because they don't penetrate the canopy well, so it will be necessary to surround the plants with lights. How many plants are you growing? How much space to grow? What's your budget? HID's is the way to go, but you can still have success with CFL's if you do it right. This endeavor requires a decent investment to make it worthwhile...

[PurpleWreck]

4 for now 2 on the way. they are about 10 days old and the 5 finger leaves are opening up. tallest one about 4-5 inches tall. the room bout 3*3 and 8ft high. was going cfl to save money but was thinking about hps or mh, but wouldn t cost a fortune to run 18-24 hours.

[PurpleWreck]

if i went to hps or mh how many would i need. if i continue with cfls if i use higher watts do i still need alot?

[Faddenator]

if i went to hps or mh how many would i need. if i continue with cfls if i use higher watts do i still need alot?

You would only need one HPS bulb... But this would require a ballast and a reflector (My first grow I went out and bought a 400W HPS bulb thinking I could just screw it into a normal socket HAH), so you're looking at 100+ dollars depending on what type of deals you can find. It is much better to pay in cash for this type of thing however, so your best bet is to go to your local hydro store if you have one. Things are a bit pricier, but the confidentiality is worth it.

For CFL's, The more wattage the less you'll need... to an extent. but in order to get good penetration, you'll still want to surround the plant. Don't quote me on this, but I think it's better to have five 50W cfl's around a plant, than one 250W cfl directly above it... (feel free to correct me, anyone) Also, a few more things about cfls:
-Focus on the real wattage, not the equivalent wattage. The real wattage is what's important.
-While on the 20/4 or 18/6 (vegatative) light cycle, use DAYLIGHT (5500-6500K) cfls, and for the 12/12 (flowering) light cycle, use SOFT WHITE (2700K) cfls. You can also combine the two for both stages.
-Get them close the the plants, between 1"-2" away.

I'm personally using four 26W cfls, one 46W cfl, and two 4' 32W tube flourescents... and even that isn't enough.

Good luck :thumbsup:

[Charbud]

I just finished my cfl grow. Its true about the cfl's poor abilty to penetrate but if you can get side lighting around the plant and keep it close it would grow you some nice buds. Obviously not as good if you used an hps or mh but the electrcity will be less and it will be cooler if your growing in an unventillated area.

Hope this helps

Charbud

[Phunnyman]

I've started by using cfl's but am seriously thinking a 600 watt hps will be in order for the flowing stage, moving my cfls to the vegging chamber vertically up the sides and across the top to maximize growth across the bottom.

My personal goal is to grow bud that is better all day long than what I could buy, and from my business minded perspective, the better quality of inputs increases the better quality and yield potential of output. I'm not selling to anyone, just use for my own med and enjoyment.

I think the cfls can produce a great grow if done correctly, however what I think I've learned is that the for fatter, thicker, juicier buds and a better overall plant, an hps is def in order due to a more efficient and effective use of energy; the amount of lumens put out at a given costs will be greater.

[bigtopsfinn]

4 for now 2 on the way. they are about 10 days old and the 5 finger leaves are opening up. tallest one about 4-5 inches tall. the room bout 3*3 and 8ft high. was going cfl to save money but was thinking about hps or mh, but wouldn t cost a fortune to run 18-24 hours.

Get a 400w HPS with ballast and reflector and a way to cool it also. Yes, CFL's use less electricity but from a growing standpoint, they are not as efficient in lumens/watt as HID's, and therefore you will need to veg and flower longer, which will also run up the costs (and the risks).

For one or two plants, CFL's are OK. But when you need to cover a 1m x 1m space, CFL's would become a nightmare to wire and constantly reposition for optimum penetration.

CFL's can be great for beginners, but since we are all taking risks to some degree, I'd rather be investing my time and efforts into a quick, efficient grow with superb results.

:twocents:

[PurpleWreck]

Get a 400w HPS with ballast and reflector and a way to cool it also. Yes, CFL's use less electricity but from a growing standpoint, they are not as efficient in lumens/watt as HID's, and therefore you will need to veg and flower longer, which will also run up the costs (and the risks).

For one or two plants, CFL's are OK. But when you need to cover a 1m x 1m space, CFL's would become a nightmare to wire and constantly reposition for optimum penetration.

CFL's can be great for beginners, but since we are all taking risks to some degree, I'd rather be investing my time and efforts into a quick, efficient grow with superb results.

:twocents:

Thanks guys. I am doing research on my mh and hps. I also changed my setup with cfls-2 27watt daylight(5500k and 1750lumens each) on left and right-68watt warmwhite(2700k 4200lumens)hanging in the center-33watt brightwhite(3000k i forgot the lumens i think1500) on back side . all lights are close to each other and bout 1-2 inches away from 4 plants. how does that sound?

[Roughrider]

I agree with others here--it's not enough. You've got around 10000 lumens total, which will be fine to veg plants. But that's enough light for about 2 sq. ft., which is enough to take two small plants all the way through flower.

If closet size is an issue, I'd consider going with a 250w HPS. You can grow 4 plants with that--not monster plants, but decent 29-36" plants that take up around 15" x 15" each.