Tokeybear12
Well-Known Member
Can I use both red and blue spectrum cfls for flower? I'm currently using four 2700K cfls, and three 6500K with a total of 11,200 lumens
spectrums
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Budzbuddha
Well-Known Member
You should surround your plant with light .... CFL puts out the most light from the side.
To maximize light to plant - use a reflector . I built a hood for 12-16 bulbs ( depending on socket - 3 or 4 bulb per ) - A mixed spectrum is preferred ... 2700k / 6400k .
Allowing CFL to " free hang " wastes light in directions away from plant , which wastes your effort .. Even common work shop reflectors will work.
THIS IS FROM A BUILD AND GROW DONE A FEW YEARS AGO , BUT WILL GIVE YOU AN IDEA.
I actually liked growing with this ( personal grows ) and it gave me good plants.
It's all in how much light you can give them. Supplemental lighting is a must with CFL.
Forget that " how much lumen bullshit " .... More light = More Bud
To maximize light to plant - use a reflector . I built a hood for 12-16 bulbs ( depending on socket - 3 or 4 bulb per ) - A mixed spectrum is preferred ... 2700k / 6400k .
Allowing CFL to " free hang " wastes light in directions away from plant , which wastes your effort .. Even common work shop reflectors will work.
THIS IS FROM A BUILD AND GROW DONE A FEW YEARS AGO , BUT WILL GIVE YOU AN IDEA.
I actually liked growing with this ( personal grows ) and it gave me good plants.
It's all in how much light you can give them. Supplemental lighting is a must with CFL.
Forget that " how much lumen bullshit " .... More light = More Bud
BudmanTX
Well-Known Member
not bad plants i must say
a mix is good, i usually do like mixing till i wanna go into flower though. I stay with the 6500k bulbs for veg, and then when i'm ready, i would click on the 2700k bulbs for the mix and plus the extra lighting it gives.......more the better.
@Budzbuddha does have a good point, nice setup dude
each grower is different though...
growin-Jables
Well-Known Member
This guy is absolutely right about the most intense light is given off the sides of the CFL. Once I learned this. I went a purchased one those 55w 6500k flat panel CFL that are built in with a reflector. Those things work fantastic since you have more surface area facing the plants and more surface area facing against the reflector . Vs having the spirals where only 25% of the bulb faces the plants directly. They put great intense light , but only for 6-10 inches. Then they start to loose intensity dramatically .So the more surface of the bulb that you can get within the 6-10inch range the better. I also read the you want the bulbs as close together as possible to increase the intensity from each individual spot. So instead of strategically placing and spacing out 8 spiral cfls with no reflector around the plant vs If you chose 4 spots to produce light from and jist used a splitter plus reflector, and run 2 bulbs at each of the 4 spots . Would produce better results.
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mauricem00
Well-Known Member
the 2g11 55 watt CFL work very well in small closet grows https://www.1000bulbs.com/category/55-watt-4-pin-2g11-plug-in-compact-fluorescents/ I have been using them for a few years now with good grows in a 2ft by 2ft closet. they are much more efficient than 23 watt CFLs and a little more efficient than f24T5ho lights.I have played with LEDs as well but the most efficient leds are the 561 strips and in my test grows they did not perform as well. a nasa report would suggest that mono's work better for plant growth but high efficiency mono's like cree or osram are very expensive and the spectrum would need to be adjusted for the plant being grown. for PU MMJ closet growers like myself T5s or 2g11 CFLs may be the best option. the popularity of T5s would suggest that I am not alone in this opinion.commercial growers that do not answer to shareholders may have the luxury of spending $100 per square foot for grow lights but PU growers do not
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nobighurry
Well-Known Member
One word of caution using larger cfls in small reflectors especially with plastic bulb holders, the base of cfls can overheat because there is not enough air space and the plastic bulb holders do not radiate heat as well as the porcelain ones...
Tokeybear12
Well-Known Member
Is it ok to switch lighting during preflower? She just started preflower a couple of days ago. I'd be switching from CFLs to a 45w led full spectrum panal. UV and IR. In a 36"×20"×63" grow tent. One plant
growin-Jables
Well-Known Member
I mean i don't see why not. Although i prefer going from cfl to MH. I only use led as supplemental lighting and I only use the higher watt lights. 45w will be enouhh to keep vegging while its under a foot tall. But once you start to flower your going to want a min of 100w per plant. In my opinion atleast . Maybe pair the cfl and led together
Tokeybear12
Well-Known Member
is this flower or preflower?