how many cfls?

I have 2 seedlings so far about 2 '' tall each and plan to have a third, currently I have 4 27 watt cfls which give out 2000 lumens each. is this enough for my vegetative cycle or will I need more, and how many more?

I would do at least 3 per. plant but that's just me

well I had to kill off a seedling so now I have one seedling with 8000 lumens shining on it.

If you're only gonna work with the one plant then it will be plenty. Also dont hang all of them directly above the plant. put one on each side and two on top. You can use a can to make a reflector for the side lights so all the light is directed at the plant. You cut out half of the middle part, just the flat side, cut a hole in the top big enough to get the screw part of your bulb. Take the light out put the bulb in the can and through the hole (make sure you get it all the way past the metal screw piece and on to the plastic) and screw it in.

BE VERY CAREFUL IF YOU TRY IT!!! lots of sharp piece af metal. you will want a pair of thick gloves and either a small drill and goggles or a VERY sharp knife.

wow uh.. well considering my grow room is a 50 gallon tubberware container with two 120mm fans blowing through it with the lights hanging from the top. I'd say your approach would be to complicated.

I'm just gonna ducttape the lights by the cord to the appropriate height.

It was just a suggestion. The thing with cfls is they have to be close and they have poor penetration. Once your plant gets more than 6 in tall with a more than a few leaf sets the bottom leaves will be getting next to no light. Plus all that heat from the lights will probably scorch your growing tip. Its the most fragile part of the foliage and it burns easy. I use 3-cfls and at an inch and a half away and the tip still burns a little. Since you are working with a rather short space youd be better off putting all the lights around the plant. This will increase coverage and give your plant a little more over head to grow.

kieahtoka said:

I have 2 seedlings so far about 2 '' tall each and plan to have a third, currently I have 4 27 watt cfls which give out 2000 lumens each. is this enough for my vegetative cycle or will I need more, and how many more?

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Okay lets look at this objectively.

You need about 2,500-3,000 lumens per square foot at the plant tops for healthy vegetative growth. For seedlings and early clones you only need about 500 lumens per square foot at the plant tops for healthy growth.

Your 27 watt CFL's should be fine at the moment for your 2 inch seedlings, use a couple of them horizintally about 6 inches above the plant tops. Once they get to about 6 inches tall, the cfl's should be no more than a couple of inches above the plant tops. Once they get much bigger than 6 inches you need to start thinking about getting a light that puts out more lumens than 2,000 because its not enough.

You can only add together lumens for area coverage, not for depth penetration due to the 'single point light source' and 'inverse square law' of diminishing light which diminishes to the square of the distance. Eg, your 27w CFL will output 2,000 lumens at 1 foot distance, at 2 foot distance it outputs 2,000/(2x2) = 500 lumens.

Well I currently have 2 lights above the plant and 2 lights on each side, from above the lights are in a square configuration. if I get another light for above once it gets above 6 inches will this be enough light?

well I bought 2 42 watt cfls that produce 2700 lumens each for each of my plants along with 2 27 watt cfls on each side that produce 2000 lumens each so 2will that eb enough for each plant?

Damnit, the light fell down and fried the little plant, now I just have a couple sprouts to start with.

You have sufficient lights for GROW or VEG stage, but you going to need much more for the BLOOM-FLOWER stage or you will just get little popcorn fluff buds. For those Coke Can size colas, you need some 85 watt cool or red spectrum CFLs, or
HIS lights, which would be too hot for your space.
Peace

Go to FAQ here at top of page and read up on lights.
Roseman

I went there and read up some, I feel stupid for not checking there before.

You can possible save those little sprouts with the right amount of light, water and nutes.

well right now I'm using a 4th of the recommended dosage of miracle grow plant food. and I have enough light now for my two new sprouts. it has 8% nitrogen, 7% phosphates, 6% potash, and .10% chelated iron. Is this enough for my plants?

Oh and also one more question, can I order cannabis seeds like the ad on this page if I'm in the USA?

Wow sorry to hear about the plant being smashed and burned : (... yeh that is good for your seeding, as a baby it needs more nitrogen then potash, and phosphorous. Also, if you have enough cfls, I have heard really good things about this setup. If you have 6 cfls, put 4 of them around it, one on each side, and then 2 right above it. If you have Mylar, with this setup its incredible. just a suggestion : ) goodluck buddy

Yeah most places will ship to the US it will say it somewhere on the site. Sorry bout the sprouts. I had four and scorched three of them. Im down to one. Hope its a she.

well is it legal to? I mean would I get busted?, and I currently have a 42 watt one above each plant and 2 32 watts on each side.