First time set up questions! Lights * Tent

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xkaijinx

Member
Hey guys, just doing some research and wanted to run my results to you all before doing so.

I want to grow 2 plants in the tent below. Is this grow tent enough to grow up to 3 plants? I will start with 2 but may do 3 in the future.

Agromax Window Grow Tent - Size Original (39 x 39 x79) or 3.5 x 3.5 x 6.5

I am using soil as a medium.

I plan on using 5 gallon buckets for each plant to carry from vegetative to flowering stages.

Lighting:

For the seedling stages (2 Plants) I plan on using this fixture which takes two 24' T12 fluorescent lights.
http://www.amazon.co...words=hydrofarm

For the vegetative and flowering stages I plan on using CFLs.

1 set of 40-watt 6500K (Daylight) for Vegetation.
1 set of 40-watt 2700K (Soft white) for flowering.

How many CFLs should I plan on using? I was thinking of using 3 sets of these (total of 6 CFLs): (Adapters & Reflector)

I would hang 2 above each plant. And one in between the plants 2-inches from the soil

Are 6 40-watt CFL bulbs overkill for 2 plants?

http://www.amazon.co... socket adapter

http://www.amazon.co...d_bxgy_hi_img_y
 
Cascadian

Cascadian

Well-Known Member
2 or 3 plants should work well in that tent. You could get by with that lighting on 2 plants but you will need more lumens to get a decent yield. Growing in 5 gal pots I have to assume you will be vegging them for at least 3-4 weeks, they are going to get big in flower and the CFLs will not give enough light penetration/coverage unless you add a few more of them strategically placed (maybe 200 true watts per plant total). I would think about getting a 150 watt HPS and supplementing with CFL (if heat will be an issue) or better yet get a 400w HPS if you have decent ventilation.

If you are going to stick to CFL maybe think about adding 2 more 300w equivalent CFLs. You will have to hammer out the round fixtures you linked, to get them to fit.
 
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xkaijinx

Member
Does 150 watt HPS have more lumens that 200W CFL?

I was under the impression it was 50-100 watts per plant.

What about using just a 250w HPS without supplements? Ventilation will be going into a basement (not outside) which is decent sized.

If I end up going with HPS, will I need a Ballast AND an air cooled hood?
 
Cascadian

Cascadian

Well-Known Member
A 150w HPS has more lumens than a true 200w CFL. Roughly 16000 vs 14000, the HPS is more efficient. It will depend on the size of the plant but my opinion especially for a plant grown in a 5gal is that more than 100 true CFL watts per plant is best.

Lumens is a better measure, I would say 25,000-35000 total lumens would be good for your space. I did some quick math and it looks like your 6 bulbs would be about 16,000 lumens. You could add a couple 300w equivalent CFLs and get about 4,200 lumens each out of them, that will get you close.. or add either the 150HPS or 200 True CFL and be in pretty good shape. The 250 HPS (31,000 lumens) would be fine by itself but would also benefit by adding a couple CFLs for side lighting. The 250 with side lighting is probably what I would do. Hope this helps.
 
Cascadian

Cascadian

Well-Known Member
Whether you need an air cooled hood will depend on the ambient temps outside your tent etc. I have an open hood set up in a tent in my garage and live in a cold climate so it actually helps me keep the temps high enough. If you are in a warmer area/growing in your living area an air cooled hood is probably the best idea.
 
gtran

gtran

Active Member
If you plan on growing more then one plant then you have to get a HPS light. They sell them on amazon for 120 bucks for a 400 watt that comes with a hood, ballast, hangers, mh and hps bulbs. Search apollo 400 watt grow light. I bought one two years ago and ive never had a problem. If you expect to get even a half ounce per plant then you cant use CFLS. Even if you put 4 of them in the tent with 3 plants youll be lucky to get an OZ per plant. Also the bud quality of a CFL is absolutely nothing compared to bud grown with a HPS bulb. Ive found that if you dont have at least three or four cfls then its pretty hard to get the plants to flower properly, it will takes up to a month for buds to start forming from 12/12. Your the price of about 5 bulbs and sockets for cfls you can buy that light mentioned aboved and get 3-4 oz per plant.
 
Bucees

Bucees

Well-Known Member
gtran said:
If you plan on growing more then one plant then you have to get a HPS light. They sell them on amazon for 120 bucks for a 400 watt that comes with a hood, ballast, hangers, mh and hps bulbs. Search apollo 400 watt grow light. I bought one two years ago and ive never had a problem. If you expect to get even a half ounce per plant then you cant use CFLS. Even if you put 4 of them in the tent with 3 plants youll be lucky to get an OZ per plant. Also the bud quality of a CFL is absolutely nothing compared to bud grown with a HPS bulb. Ive found that if you dont have at least three or four cfls then its pretty hard to get the plants to flower properly, it will takes up to a month for buds to start forming from 12/12. Your the price of about 5 bulbs and sockets for cfls you can buy that light mentioned aboved and get 3-4 oz per plant.
Click to expand...
This ^

Since you mentioned in your original post that you have future grows planned don't make the same mistake I did and buy all that equipment for a CFL grow. Save yourself some money in the long run and get higher quality meds with HID lights. It might cost a little more to get started up, but trust me it really does make a huge difference. Don't get me wrong people do grow well with CFL's, but those grows usually have LOTS of bulbs(12+) or several high wattage ones. I actually had worse heat problems with my CFL's than I did with my current 600w HPS. A cooltube/hood with a cheapass fan/filter combo and some ducting works magic to vent the heat.
 
Alluissus

Alluissus

New Member
xkaijinx said:
Hey guys, just doing some research and wanted to run my results to you all before doing so.

I want to grow 2 plants in the tent below. Is this grow tent enough to grow up to 3 plants? I will start with 2 but may do 3 in the future.

Agromax Window Grow Tent - Size Original (39 x 39 x79) or 3.5 x 3.5 x 6.5

I am using soil as a medium.

I plan on using 5 gallon buckets for each plant to carry from vegetative to flowering stages.

Lighting:

For the seedling stages (2 Plants) I plan on using this fixture which takes two 24' T12 fluorescent lights.
http://www.amazon.co...words=hydrofarm

For the vegetative and flowering stages I plan on using CFLs.

1 set of 40-watt 6500K (Daylight) for Vegetation.
1 set of 40-watt 2700K (Soft white) for flowering.

How many CFLs should I plan on using? I was thinking of using 3 sets of these (total of 6 CFLs): (Adapters & Reflector)

I would hang 2 above each plant. And one in between the plants 2-inches from the soil

Are 6 40-watt CFL bulbs overkill for 2 plants?

http://www.amazon.co... socket adapter

http://www.amazon.co...d_bxgy_hi_img_y
Click to expand...
I grew two plants in an area 42 inches wide, they were touching the wall and blocking light from each other. I think it depends on how long you veg for that determines your space requirements. Three would of been to tight for me. I vegged 52 days.

Good times
 
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