What duration of darkness will plant start flowering?

hi guys..imma new...

im trying to setup a backup power-supply for my grow box and this info would be nice to have...

also what lumens would i need to sustain the vegetation growing during a power outage?

heres what info i can give u:

- 3x3x4 box
- air flow in/out
- 10 x 23W CFL's

thanx gents/ladies

well generally speaking.

most folks flower with a 12/12 cycle. its all a compramise u can add more dark, but u cant really ad more light

according to my understanding if u put 1 light on a computer upc it should provide enough light to not freak your plants out, just be like a shady day

so if i had say 2 of those cfl's backed-up with my battery bank it would suffice?

thanx for replying man...

First 12 on 12 off to flower. As back up light 2 23w cfl would do for one plant for a short time.

hmmm....6-72hrs are my projected times
and theres 6 plants....1 per sq. ft.

imma just trying to get the cheapest way...good batteries are 150$ a pop and energy consumption must be compromised

thanx for input guys...i realize theres probably no definite answer for this...imma just trying to conquer getting a ballpark estimate...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
my battery is 100 AH

2 x 23w = 46w
46w / 12v = ~4A
100AH / 4A = ~25hrs

however without damaging battery i cannot drop below 50% of the 100AH

therefore i only have about 12hrs power for those cfls @ 46w. So if i can know for sure that the baby's wont start flower under a lesser lighting unit...i can downplay the power consumption, thus extending my backup power duration and avoiding spending more money...

And E=Mc2...lol you'll get it

dude u can totaly use less wattage, it wont be great for your plant and you might get some stretching.

but as long as you wouldnt consider it dim light it shouldnt be destructive.

so how long does it take for the plant to get in the flowering state

12/12 starts the flowering cycle

i know but when do i know to start the 12/12 cycle

slanga said:

i know but when do i know to start the 12/12 cycle

Click to expand...

Honestly you can start 12/12 whenever you want. If your talking from seed I would say when the plant is a month old or 10-12 inches. If ur going with clone thats totally different as a clone inherits the age of is mother. You can go with clones with zero veg if you want.