CFL Questions, planning 1st grow

BenRHx

Active Member
Basically my funds are limited, but are cfls a total waste of time or can you still produce some pretty killer green with them? If it's just losing some weight and avlittle bit of quality for a first time grow I think I'd be ok with it, I mean can you still get some good crystaly bud with cfls. Also is there any techniques to makes cfls more efficient so quality and yield isn't sacrificed so much? Any advice would be very helpful:leaf:
 

crazed1011

Well-Known Member
From what i have read(about to start my first cfl grow) of course your gonna get better product with HIDS but CFLS are a good way to start and get the hang of growing you dont sacrifce that much quaility but yeilds could be less? dont quote me on that but im pretty sure thats how it is. Just keep your cfls Close to the plants like inches.
 
With limited funds you can still setup a pretty nice CFL grow. My first CFL grow was with an autoflowering strain and had 6 13w bulbs. I managed approx. 1/4 oz off that, in soil. If you use CFL, I recommend you look into Low Stress Training (LST). CFL's don't have the light penetration that more expensive lighting options offer and I feel that LST allows the cfl bulbs to do more than if there were just a single cola growing vertically. (just an opinion though)

I've grown all my bud off of CFL and I've been pretty happy. I really recommend that you look through the DIY section for ideas on how to cut costs on your grow.

GOOD LUCK!!!
 

roidrage152

Active Member
Bro, with like 6000w HIDs going and needing more lights, I've actually been shopping cfls recently. They can do some good work for you. Low heat and good spread at e right wattages. Hopefully u can benefit from my research, this is what I was thinking as the best deal I could find In Optimal color spectrum, price per watt for cfl. I'll get the link but it's n 1000bulbs
.com like $22 for 105w (that's true watts) 6500k color spectrum optimal for veg. If I'm not mistaken ita the smaller socket too rather than the mogul if that makes a difference. Anyhow the sockets are like $2 on the same sight. I've seen these equivalent bulbs at the hydro shop about $50. They burn my eyeballs to look at.

Here's that link, even pricing cheaper cfls, I couldn't really find anything to match the wattage for the money. Plus it's even got a better color spectrum than the metal halides that are draining my bank account. I've been thinking of switching my veg to these, I feel like I'm liking these better than even t5s at the moment.
http://www.1000bulbs.com/product/62837/FC105-FEIIIB10565.html

Please excuse the typos, editing on the iPad is annoying.
 

BenRHx

Active Member
So if I wanna do a small set up like 2 or 3 plants, how many cfl bulbs do I need total? I can use cfls for veg and flower correct?
 

pompieru22

Member
rumors are 100w for 1 plant (cfl's), and for the veg you should use some daylight 6500k and for flowering 2700k warm white
 

BenRHx

Active Member
And also I apologize for the typos, I too only have access to an iPad not a computer lol so typos are common, sorry
 

pompieru22

Member
some bulbs with 2700k.
  • You might see a lot of different labels when shopping at the store for CFL’s. Label’s including Soft White, Warm White, Cool White, Bright White, Halogen White, Daylight White, Full Spectrum. And also label’s like 2700K, 3000K, 3500K, 4000K, 5000K, 6400K, and 6500K. These are all the color temperature of the light you are using. This is a measure of how warm or cool the light given off by a lamp appears, with warmer colors having a yellowish tinge and cooler colors being tinged with blue. What confuses some people is that the warmer a color is, the colder its color temperature is. (ex. Warm White = 2700K). Bulbs ranging in the 2700K-3000K spectrum are usually labeled Warm White or Soft White, bulbs ranging in the 3500K – 4000K spectrum are bright white or cool white, 5000K is labeled Full Spectrum, and finally 6400K – 6500K is labeled Daylight. You can grow an entire crop with CFL’s if you chose the right spectrum of bulb’s. For Vegetation you will want to use 6500K or 5000K, and when you flower you will want to switch to 2700K or 3000K . The reason being, throughout the year the plant’s outside receive more 6500K light because the day’s in summer are long and hot and as Autumn/Winter get’s closer the day get’s shorter, and gradually receives less 6500K light and more 2700K light as the plant flower’s. Do what you can to avoid bulbs within that 3500K – 4000K because they emit very little light that Is useful to your plant. Notice here the difference between the CT of these lamp’s "

    you can read the entire post https://www.rollitup.org/cfl-fluorescent-lighting/107992-tutorial-growing-cfls.html
 

CaptainCarnival

Active Member
correct but just like the article said use the full or daylight ones for veg and the warm/soft white for flower. you can get smaller wattage ones at the hardware store but dont be fooled when they say something like "43w equivalent to a 60w" you would need the actual 60w not just the equivalent
 

DKing420

Active Member
Cfls work great for a limited budget! I just harvested not too long ago, it was my first grow.. I veged with 6 6500k cfls for 5 weeks and flowered with 10 2700k cfls for 8 weeks. I used fox farm ocean forest soil and botanicare pure blend pro grow veg and flower formulas with liquid karma. So to answer your question, you most deffinately can grow some good frosty bud with cfls. Make sure your setup is dialed in and you will harvest some good bud. Mine was super frosty and smelled great when she was growing. The properly cured bud got me high but not overpowering which is what I like. Good luck to you on your grow man! Btw is it just a bagseed or did you order them?
 

BenRHx

Active Member
It's just bag seed, but it was good herb, I don't find em too often,dking420 for that setup you just described, how many plants was it for?
 

BenRHx

Active Member
I know this is a newb question but how do you get the yellow box quote feature to work if I wanna put someone elses info in my post wherebit says originally quoted by so and so, I have looked in the site support section but I can't figure bit out, any help would be awesome thanks :leaf:
 

DKing420

Active Member
It's just bag seed, but it was good herb, I don't find em too often,dking420 for that setup you just described, how many plants was it for?
I only had one plant.. It got huge I wouldn't of even had room for more unless I lst'd or didn't veg for as long as I did. But I got a good amount from it, my dry weight was just under 70 grams.
 

DKing420

Active Member
I know this is a newb question but how do you get the yellow box quote feature to work if I wanna put someone elses info in my post wherebit says originally quoted by so and so, I have looked in the site support section but I can't figure bit out, any help would be awesome thanks :leaf:
Lol dont worry man I didn't know either when I first came here. Right next to the reply button theres another one that says reply with quote.
 

ML75

Active Member
CFLs are good if you are just going to be growing a few plants here and there. Ive been using CFLs and my buds come out kind of fluffy but very crystally and smells dank. gets me high. :)
 

RangerJ

Well-Known Member
Or by the time you are done dicking with cfl's you could just buy a 150w MH/HPS setup...I got my 400w kit shipped to me with hnagers,timer,2 bulbs,cool tube,and digital ballast for 200 bucks...save a little coin and do it right...I learned fast
 
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