CFLs and autoflowering strains. Question on spectrum and wattage.

Z

Zaoshin

Member
Hello everyone,
I've done some research but I'm still unclear as to which spectrum would be best for autoflowering strains?

1) Which spectrum of CFL lighting is best for autoflowering strains, 2700k or 5000-65000k, seeing as they begin to flower within 3 weeks?
2) Is 400w sufficient per plant? (1200w incandescent)

I plan to order 5 seeds of Lowryder #2 x AK47 autoflowering strain. From what I've read, this strain usually grows to be 18" to 24" and yield 20-30g's per plant.

Thanks for any and all assistance.
 
tsky

tsky

Active Member
blue 6500k for veg, red 2700k for flower 400w is easily enough for 4-6 plants
tbh as your only growing smaller plants id say a 250w cfl would be enough and be able to get good yeild
 
Z

Zaoshin

Member
So, in your opinion, should I use a vegging light until the flowering stage occurs?
This strain grows 7-8 weeks from seed to harvest, on average. And flowers within 3 weeks of germination.
 
djruiner

djruiner

Well-Known Member
i would only use 2700k cfls....with as fast as they flower its pointless to try and switch the lights...all my autos flowered at 12 days old.they dont really have a veg cycle...mine go from seedlings to flowering...i dont see much use of the 6500k with autos...ive done it both ways...started them with 6500k then finished with 2700k....it seems they like getting the same spectrum during its growth then switching them up after 2-3...plus it will save some money only buying one type of light
 
napa23

napa23

Well-Known Member
Use 6500K until flower. 400W per plant is a bit overkill. I have an auto blue mystic with something like 200W on it and it's doing well.
 
darkdestruction420

darkdestruction420

Well-Known Member
both.but if your going to run that high of wattage you might as well just get 1 400w hps, one all ready to go everything included can be had for 120 and will outperform the cfls greatly while needing less watts than you would of cfls for the same sort of growth rate and all that. my 400w hps puts out 55,000 lumens, my 10 40w cfls put out a total of 27,000. If your worried about heat and venting w/the hps dont, it is much much easier for me to keep my temps under control now than with all those cfls like i used to do, a remote ballast can be put outside the grow area greatly reducing the heat you have to deal with so all you have to worry about is the bulbs heat, which a aircooled hood can take care of quite easily.
heres the light i use, i chose to get the high output bulb that adds +$4 to the price that has blue spectrum added to it as well and the euro reflector air cooled hood.
http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=47929
 
tsky

tsky

Active Member
yea ideally 6500k then 2700k but tbh only using 2700k isnt going to do harm you'l just end up with slightly shorter more bushy plants which may be better if space is an issue
Zaoshin said:
So, in your opinion, should I use a vegging light until the flowering stage occurs?
This strain grows 7-8 weeks from seed to harvest, on average. And flowers within 3 weeks of germination.
Click to expand...
 
Z

Zaoshin

Member
darkdestruction420 said:
both.but if your going to run that high of wattage you might as well just get 1 400w hps, one all ready to go everything included can be had for 120 and will outperform the cfls greatly while needing less watts than you would of cfls for the same sort of growth rate and all that. my 400w hps puts out 55,000 lumens, my 10 40w cfls put out a total of 27,000. If your worried about heat and venting w/the hps dont, it is much much easier for me to keep my temps under control now than with all those cfls like i used to do, a remote ballast can be put outside the grow area greatly reducing the heat you have to deal with so all you have to worry about is the bulbs heat, which a aircooled hood can take care of quite easily.
heres the light i use, i chose to get the high output bulb that adds +$4 to the price that has blue spectrum added to it as well and the euro reflector air cooled hood.
http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=47929
Click to expand...
Thanks for the link. Sadly, I live in Guam, and am having a hard problem finding someone who will ship an HPS system.
We're a territory, like Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and Virgin Islands, but the lighting supply stores will only ship to states and PR and VI
It makes me sad.

I've found numerous suppliers that will ship CFL systems internationally,
does anyone know of a reputable lighting supplier that ships internationally?

If it's within my budget, I'll try to go with HPS systems, but I like the cost and power efficiency of CFLs and don't mind trying them out as my first indoor grow.
 
darkdestruction420

darkdestruction420

Well-Known Member
I found some after looking for a while, i found a good amount of them, heres the one i think was the best so far, its a lil more pricey than than the one i showed you earlier but you get both mh and hps bulbs with it and its an electronic ballast and while i'd still keep it outside the grow room it runs cooler than other ballasts. shipping isnt too bad on it either really for it being sent that far and it looks like this guys got a huge store with thousands of positive ratings from people and many grow items.
by the way, dont let that first pic where all thats in the pic is the reflector, bulbs, and mogul socket make you worry, you get the ready to go all you need included. You'll still want/need to find a air cooled hood for it still though, the stores probally even sells them w/the light as sort of a combo pack or something
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320398305018
 
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