Very important find for all CFL users - please read (read if a moderator)

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erbium

Well-Known Member
I have been testing many sizes of CFL's that are self ballasted and can be used with a traditional light fixture .

I was looking for CFL's that would be the most beneficial for side lighting . I will just use the medium/high wattage ones for this thread .

The tighter spiraled (the type sold everywhere) 42w CFL's that are 150w incandescent equivalent - burned the hell out of the foliage even when 2-3 inches away .

The 55w wider spiral that are equivalent to 200w incandescent I found at an electrical supply store (they also sell T5 fixtures much cheaper than grow stores and you don't have t go in a grow store to get em!!) . I have them right up against the plants and they have not done any damage . The wider face distributes the light better as well . While they cost a good bit more you can get a lot more usable light from them without damaging your plants.

I am excited about this find as it will make bright light to the lower and inner growth much more obtainable for my HPS room . It will also make CFL boxes much more efficient if you can obtain these bulbs .

FE-US-55W 5000K Daylight Photography Compact Fluorescent Lamp
 
On3Tim3OnLy

On3Tim3OnLy

Well-Known Member
?Um 3600 Lumen Light Output for 55 Watt isnt great ...there is alot better buls found all over the uk ,... with higher output lumen and wattage
 
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erbium

Well-Known Member
On3Tim3OnLy said:
?Um 3600 Lumen Light Output for 55 Watt isnt great ...there is alot better buls found all over the uk ,... with higher output lumen and wattage
Click to expand...

You missed the point . It has 3600 lumens and can be put against the plant with no burn where as a 42w 2800 lumen bulb will burn the hell out of the plant even at a couple of inches away .

Link your comparable bulbs please .

Edit - Most of the people's set-ups in this section are using the tight corkscrew type of bulb . Many have referred to the exact 42w one that is found at Walmart that was used in this test . Can you please link the UK super bulbs? I would love to find something with better output that can be used for the lower parts of my plants . These are the best I have found for side/bottom light to use in conjunction with an HPS in a small to medium size unit .
 
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On3Tim3OnLy

On3Tim3OnLy

Well-Known Member
yh well i use cfls for vegging only and a hps for flowering ....i use 2 x 125w cfls 10,000lumens each blue 6400k
and it grows 4 - 6 plant and its not about getting the cfl to go against the plant as the more lumens the less you need to ...


6100k Blue for vegetative growth.
Envirolites are becoming a more and more popular alternative to HID lighting. They are effective, energy saving, reliable and come in blue and red spectrum giving excellent results and lower operating costs for all indoor growers.
Plants need light between 400 & 700 nana wave and Envirolites produce high output, 100% PAR light in this exact spectrum!
-Envirolites give 100% PAR (photosynthetic ally Active Radiation) High output lights are used successfully for all stages of plant growth.
-Envirolites do not generate excessive heat and can be used directly above the plants (3-4cm).
-Self ballasted lamps are simple to install.
-Uses a standard E40 socket.
-Lower running costs than HID lighting.
-10'000 lumen output directly above plants.
*All Envirolites Compact Fluorescent Lamp’s are self ballasted lamps. This means that you don't need anything special to make them work. All you need to do is screw them in to a CFL lead and plug them in to the wall. We recommend these CFL leads for growers who wish to add extra light to their grow room by hanging CFL’s vertically in-between the plants. If you are using CFL’s over your plants then it is best to use them in a reflector such as the new parabolic reflector.
 
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On3Tim3OnLy

On3Tim3OnLy

Well-Known Member
LOL yh i can put my 125w 10,000 lumens 2 inc and still fine ..!!
i am not saying the light are not good for heat or anything but the Watts to lumens could be better ..!!!
 
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erbium

Well-Known Member
There are much better light sources but this is a heat to light ratio . Once again , these can be on the plants with no burning . This makes fully developed buds on the whole plant much easier .

The envirolights compared to them is like comparing HPS to envirolights .

Don't use them if you don't think they are any good . I am going to get a hell of a lot of benefit out of them and am sure many others will as well if they can get them . That bulb is patented so there is only one company making them it seems .

And to the other person , I am glad you can have your's 3/4" away with no burn but these are more lumens with no burn and can be used in the same fixtures . They have a wider face as well for better light distribution . I have 5 of the 42w ones in there and they all get hot and if you use a reflector they get super hot .

I am not going to argue with people . If you don't want to use them don't . For those of you who do use them , enjoy 1! I sure will . I am replacing every supplemental CFL in both rooms with these , and at $20 a pop I wouldn't be doing it if I thought I could get near the benefit from the cheap Walmart ones .

Try them side by side before you discount them is my advice .
 
On3Tim3OnLy

On3Tim3OnLy

Well-Known Member
Yh my bad i see your point ...!! good information + rep ...!!

As people use cfls with heat problem....!!
 
On3Tim3OnLy

On3Tim3OnLy

Well-Known Member
This is only for the USA and CANADA as these are not for sell in the uk ...!!

But in the uk ....a 30w cfl cost about 8-9 pounds which is $ 16-19 bucks
where as them growing lights 125w cfls cost 15 pounds only 7 pounds extra
 
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roadguy

Active Member
I like full spectrum bulbs, you can buy cheap ones at the hardware store but they are not full spectrum. Most of these lights have a small CRI (color rendering index) sorry for the poor spelling. With a full spectrum light you get a 80-90 CRI, (closer to actual sun) this is way better for plants due to it gives them all the benificial rays they need. It is not all about lumens and watts although these are important, you can have high lumens and not get the same benifits as you get from full spectrum lighting, check out Sunblaster.com - Sunblaster Resources and Information. This website is for sale!
 
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erbium

Well-Known Member
On3Tim3OnLy said:
Yh my bad i see your point ...!! good information + rep ...!!

As people use cfls with heat problem....!!
Click to expand...
Now you are getting it !

On3Tim3OnLy said:
This is only for the USA and CANADA as these are not for sell in the uk ...!!

But in the uk ....a 30w cfl cost about 8-9 pounds which is $ 16-19 bucks
where as them growing lights 125w cfls cost 15 pounds only 7 pounds extra
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Damn , that is painful . They are giving out the small wattage CFL's for free around me to counter the rising electricity prices .

itsgrowinglikeaweed said:
I've heard the same good things about those 55W bulbs. Its all about the blunt shape of them. You can also get 15W and 20W as well as the 55W in the same style from 1000bulbs.com. The 55W ones are only 15$. if you buy 6 or more they are only 14$
Here is the link.
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You understand where I am coming from .

I am not a big fan of having things delivered and have to pay someone each time they get a package for me and you will have S&H as well so I don't mind if it is a couple more dollars permalink


"I like full spectrum bulbs, you can buy cheap ones at the hardware store but they are not full spectrum. Most of these lights have a small CRI (color rendering index) sorry for the poor spelling. With a full spectrum light you get a 80-90 CRI, (closer to actual sun) this is way better for plants due to it gives them all the benificial rays they need. It is not all about lumens and watts although these are important, you can have high lumens and not get the same benifits as you get from full spectrum lighting, check out Sunblaster.com - Sunblaster Resources and Information. This website is for sale!
for the safety and convenience . If you got the $$ give them a try ."

Really good points but points for another argument . The point of me starting this thread was getting that much light with that little bit of heat . I stressed supplemental lighting but these would be great for your main lights in a CFL room with smaller lights of mixed spectrum . I am using them with T5's and HPS to supplement the light and get good exposure to the lower and inner parts of the plants , just like I said in the first post .

I only wanted to let people know about this find . I find it incredibly useful information being someone who likes to maximize my light to all parts of plants . This allows me to do that without damaging them . These bulbs will be great for people who have small stealth boxes as well since the plants can be that much closer .


I don't want to argue the point . I just think this will help some people . Take the information of this find and use it or don't but please don't try to discredit it without trying yourself . This could really help some of these people especially those who are limited on space . I own a 3 bedroom house and live alone and it is still beneficial . Those with small boxes could really benefit .


:peace: & Love
 
SenorSanteria

SenorSanteria

Well-Known Member
erbium said:
And to the other person , I am glad you can have your's 3/4" away with no burn but these are more lumens with no burn and can be used in the same fixtures . They have a wider face as well for better light distribution . I have 5 of the 42w ones in there and they all get hot and if you use a reflector they get super hot .
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They have 800 more lumens, and cost DOUBLE. For $20, I could buy a 3 pack of 42 watters. Im not saying that those lights arent effective, im saying they arent COST effective. They have a poor lumen to watt ratio, and are very very expensive!

If you want to use them, be my guest. But theres no benefit to it.
 
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erbium

Well-Known Member
Keep using the inferior product then. I don't care. I don't mind spending a few more dollars. My concern is the electric bill or I would fill 3 bedrooms with lights.Spending a few more dollars (in the grand scheme) is not something I need to even think twice about.
 
spontcumb

spontcumb

Well-Known Member
erbium said:
Keep using the inferior product then. I don't care. I don't mind spending a few more dollars. My concern is the electric bill or I would fill 3 bedrooms with lights.Spending a few more dollars (in the grand scheme) is not something I need to even think twice about.
Click to expand...

I've got to agree with you. I used to grow outdoors but my living situation changed a few years back. Now I'm indoors. I read alot about cfl grows before jumping into it. Excellent results. If you've got the extra bucks, it really does result in an incredible grow.....imho. Just my 2 cents worth.

Peace! :peace: :joint:
 
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Untold

Well-Known Member
SenorSanteria said:
They have 800 more lumens, and cost DOUBLE. For $20, I could buy a 3 pack of 42 watters. Im not saying that those lights arent effective, im saying they arent COST effective. They have a poor lumen to watt ratio, and are very very expensive!

If you want to use them, be my guest. But theres no benefit to it.
Click to expand...
The benefit is getting a few ounces of bud out of the lower nodes of your plants instead of a few little fluffy popcorn nugs here and there. Look at my flowering box:

https://www.rollitup.org/cfl-growing/89060-new-cfl-grow-pics-up.html

I'm using 42w CFLs for side lighting and its burning the hell outta my foliage. I've already ordered replacements with wider spirals to fix this problem so I can yield off the bottom of my plants to. I figure I'll get at least an extra QP off my plants with side lighting thats why I did it in the first place. Rep+ for OP. Thank you for this thread.
 
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