BIG CFL's V.S small CFL's? PLEASE help

Stickystickyganja

Stickystickyganja

Well-Known Member
Hey everyone. I was looking to order a couple 105watt cfl's to grow 2-3 plants under in my stealth grow I got going on. I was wondering would it make more sense to rig up a bunch or 26 or 42 watt cfl's or get the higher wattage Cfls.
I know it would be ideal to get the bigger bulbs but i herd someone say the opposite. Can anyone fill me in with some good old green thumb knowledge?
Thanks
 
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gobskiii

Well-Known Member
i think it depends really...the reason people go with a bunch of smaller ones, is because they can space them out and really close to the plant to get better coverage...cfl's penetration blows...even the bigger 250 or 300w cfl's only penetrate about 8-10 in. if you LST them i'd go with a bigger one...if not, then many smaller ones is the way to go.
 
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gobskiii

Well-Known Member
if i were you, i would veg. with a bigger one...and save up to get atleast a 250w hps...i know eboay has 'em for cheap...they also have 400w digi ballast and hps bulb, reflector...134.00 cant beat that man...i got one, and i just went out and bought a dual arc bulb...the one that comes with it is a little low in the color spectrum for my liking. i can give u the link if you'd like.
 
Stickystickyganja

Stickystickyganja

Well-Known Member
Ok cool. So i guess it would be smarter to use a bigger one on a autoflower due to the fact that LST on autos isnt very effective?
 
Stickystickyganja

Stickystickyganja

Well-Known Member
Ok since your a HPS guy I got another question if u dont mind. If im using approx250 watts(5 48watt cfls) worth or electricty on my cfl grow and I grab a HPS 250 watt. they would be using the same amount or electricty right?
 
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gobskiii

Well-Known Member
ummm...no. cfl's are energy efficient, so in the long run they would be cheaper...but if your gunna go cheap...and trust me i know cheap, i'm a ghetto grower myself, then skimping on lights is the last thing you want to do...but hey there are some amazing grows i have seen with just small cfl's. to each his own i guess...but it is a bit more complicated using small cfl;s as apposed to just throwing in a lumen blaster hps.
 
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xxnickbxx89

Member
hey guys, ima new grower myself using 7 26 watt cfl's right now for three plants. the plants are only 2-3 weeks from seed, but so far so good. No signs of stretching or anything like that. i know i am gonna have to upgrade eventually, but im not sure if i want to add a larger amount of low watt cfl's or a smaller amount of high watt ones. In my conditions, hps or mh really isnt an option unfortunately :(
 
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VanishingToaster

Active Member
i used my 300W dual spec CFL alone on my autos and they failed miserably. was Mi5 and from the two plants i got 10g, looking at about an ounce and a half from the photos.

with an auto u have 70 days to make the plant all it can be. i'd go with many bulbs so u can get maximum light all over the plant, maybe look at getting a couple t5's if u wanna go down the low energy cost route.

check out www.jungleseeds.com

after my grow i'm definitely sticking to photo's till i learn a bit more and i plan on vegging under my cfl then sticking them under an HPS, the size of the buds under my big CFL is also a bit disappointing, and for the cost of running 1 100w light bulb extra it really seems daft to sacrifice the potential of the plant
 
Stickystickyganja

Stickystickyganja

Well-Known Member
So if i were to grab a 250wat HPS would i be able to use that for both flowering and veg, or is there multiple color spec bulbs.also i herd ppl saying it gets maddd hot and you will need a cooling unit just for the lights. Like you have acknowledged I am a cheap shit(for now I hope) and a whole new cooling unit for the lights is more money spent. what I use now for cooling is pc fans i have hooked up to a controller.If i were to move 2 near the HPS would that cool it down ragher then buyin a cooling unit?

thanks gob next bong hits for u
 
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gobskiii

Well-Known Member
whats up nick...cfl's dont put out to much heat, esp. the smaller ones...if you can fit as many higher wattage cfls as you have low ones now...then you will not regret it...just make sure to try and have more soft white ones in flowering then bright white ones...recommended 2:1 ratio
 
Stickystickyganja

Stickystickyganja

Well-Known Member
VanishingToaster said:
i used my 300W dual spec CFL alone on my autos and they failed miserably. was Mi5 and from the two plants i got 10g, looking at about an ounce and a half from the photos.

with an auto u have 70 days to make the plant all it can be. i'd go with many bulbs so u can get maximum light all over the plant, maybe look at getting a couple t5's if u wanna go down the low energy cost route.

check out www.jungleseeds.com

after my grow i'm definitely sticking to photo's till i learn a bit more and i plan on vegging under my cfl then sticking them under an HPS, the size of the buds under my big CFL is also a bit disappointing, and for the cost of running 1 100w light bulb extra it really seems daft to sacrifice the potential of the plant
Click to expand...
How did your 300 watter do for the veg stage?
 
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VanishingToaster

Active Member
was pretty beastly, i had a mirror fall on a plant and snapped the main stem above the tiniest branch with a little 3 pointer leaf on it. 6 weeks later i've got 4 main colas about 9 inches long. gotta love Jack Herer

very little stretching and thick healthy main stems strong branching. was more than happy with it
 
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gobskiii

Well-Known Member
no problem sticky...i wish i could rip somethin right now...but i am looking for another job, so i gotta stay clean...still growin though...hehe, anyway...whats your set-up? dresser? box? closet? and how big? i have about a 3dx4wx6h closet, and i run a 400w hps, and 125w full spec side lighting and just a small oscilating fan on high in front of my reflector blowing at the bulb and out of my closet...no heat issue, and i also have a bog square fan blowing air at the base of my plants from my a/c'd living room...but your grow specs will tell me if you'll have a heat issue...250w hps's put out heat, but nothing compared to a 6...even 400 surprised me by the lack of heat they produced...people make 'em sound like heaters, but it really isnt that bad.
 
JointMasterJay

JointMasterJay

Member
i'm currently 14 days since popping head through soil, i'm under one 85 watt 6400 cfl, i have another 85 watt 6400 and i also have 2 85 watt 2700's i was originally intending on going for a massive cfl grow and i probably will try it out one day but the heat ive got from the one 85 watt cfl in my 2x2 tent sits perfectly at 29 degrees c. when its at 28 days i'm putting into flower in a 4x4 tent using a 600 watt hps and will be using the 85 watt 2700 cfl's as side lighting, i'm jus deciding wether to jus go stupid on it and throw another 10 23 watt cfl's in as well as the temp they kick out and power they use is next to nothing over the next week i will be taking clones to put into flower at the same time as the mother
 
JointMasterJay

JointMasterJay

Member
when i say massive i mean massive amount of wattage/lumen was going to be using 12 85 watts for flowering but after seeing the heat one of those babys kicks out decided i'll keep the ones ive got but go for hps and make sure ive got a decent cooling system on the go, only going for 4 plants for fist but will be putting new ones in every month so after first month will have 8 plants in that tent this is when i''ll be most likely be going for all the extra small cfl's if i do decide to go for it,
 
Stickystickyganja

Stickystickyganja

Well-Known Member
gobskiii said:
no problem sticky...i wish i could rip somethin right now...but i am looking for another job, so i gotta stay clean...still growin though...hehe, anyway...whats your set-up? dresser? box? closet? and how big? i have about a 3dx4wx6h closet, and i run a 400w hps, and 125w full spec side lighting and just a small oscilating fan on high in front of my reflector blowing at the bulb and out of my closet...no heat issue, and i also have a bog square fan blowing air at the base of my plants from my a/c'd living room...but your grow specs will tell me if you'll have a heat issue...250w hps's put out heat, but nothing compared to a 6...even 400 surprised me by the lack of heat they produced...people make 'em sound like heaters, but it really isnt that bad.
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Goin through the whole job issue myself myself man. good luck bro.
Its a wardrobe that stands 6 foot tall, 2 feet deep and 3.5 feet wide. but I plan to cut the grow in half and use the bottom for my storage of grow stuff.
I was looking at the setup that came with a socket that holds 250 MH or a 250 HPS bulb and obvious if i get that i will use the mh for vegg and hps for flower. but do u know if there is a difference in the cost of using those bulbs even tho its the same wattage and ballast. also mh i herd causes cancer, u think its safe in a wardrobe grow?
 
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gobskiii

Well-Known Member
lol...never heard of mh lights causing cancer...and i am not 100 on the cost difference, but i am almost certain cost is the same...same wattage...same electric bill...difference is in the lumens with hps vs. mh...250 halide will get you like 25,000 lumens, where as hps would get you 30,000 or so. if you want to reduce stretch, then veg with 250mh, and then flower...going from a cfl veg to a 250 hps would give you a huge lumen increase...thus increasing size. exponentially...and thank you good luck to you on the job hunting as well!.
 
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