My ladies are in the middle of week 4 flowering, and have grown a shit ton. Two different strains (as expected) are growing completely different and my canopy is a mess. It looks as if the spread from my 600 w HID and reflector isn't spreading enough light to the sides of the tent. To even things out, I've been moving the 600W light from one side of the tent to the other side daily, and I've put four 24wCFLs (6500K) over the darker part of the tent (pictures provided). Questions: 1) Should I just move my light up to spread over the entire tent? Currently the lights are about 12 inches from canopy. 2) Is the CFL even going to add any necessary light to the darker side of the tent? CFLs are about 6 inches from canapy top. 3) Should I just get another HID (like a 400w)? Any suggestions are appreciated!
I've seen people pull 2 pounds off 4 plants with a 600w. I see a lot of space in that canopy to fill in before you have to worry about more light.
Are the 4 cfls in the panel hot5s? In bloom/flower you want ~ 3000K. 6500 is for veg Yes some people mix but... ZooMed's Florosun does a nice bulb for both veg/flower I have used them in 4ft hot5 You might want to move into LEDs, ala Amare Technologies Solar Specs I just harvested 4 plants under 2 Solar Specs @ 150w See my threads for pics
Agreed, I've seen the same, however there is a noticible difference in bud size when comparing the buds in the middle of the tent to the buds on the outside. Should I just move my light all the way up so there is an even spread? Thanks for the tip... I wasn't aware that blooming plants prefer a cooler light temp... good to know!
You could rotate your plants or is it full scrog? I have grown with 600 in 3x3 tent and they loved it did even rotate them
I've used a 600w in a 4 x 4 tent, basically 4-5 plants. After the plants got about a foot tall, I raised the light to the top of the tent. 3 foot plants gave a pound of choice buds. 4ozs of popcorn and sugar leaf.
My grower friends were all talking shit because my light was too high so I lowered it, only to cut off half the light to the side of the tent. It's all the way back up to the top now. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
Get a bigger hood. I have a crappy little 6" hydrofarm hood (600w) next to a big ass raptor, the difference between footprints is amazing. No dark spots in a 4x4 area under the raptor.
Well homes, it really is a troubleshoot, during the veg stage. You have to balance your light height to your growth. You have to find that sweet spot where the plants are making descent spaced nodes and still stretching toward the light. You don't want the nodes to close or you have bad air circulation in the middle of the plant and they are prone to mold. Too high and they grow "up" too fast with stringy, weak branches and less nodes. Every strain is different, so this makes a great argument for running the same strain. You really have to watch your plant closely and adjust accordingly. In bloom, I set the height where my side light from the reflector make a bright line of light on the wall at the top of the canopy. This covers your whole canopy with the brightest light possible. Light straight from the bulb has the most lumens. Reflected light is always less than from the bulb. By looking at your photos, you are doing it right. Plants look good, you'll have a great harvest!