Are these big CFLs even worth it? It's my understanding that a 300 watt CFL will put out as much or more heat than a 150 watt HPS and with much less light penetration. Am I right in this? Or is this question one that is hard to answer and can go either way ?
300 watt cfl's are about 15-18,000 lumens. 150 watt hps is about 15,000 lumens. They're almost the same light output. If you went with a larger HPS fixture it would handily outperform the CFL but HPS fixtures have a sweet spot in wattage. The efficiency of hps fixtures varies a lot depending on wattage. 600 watt hps lights are by far the most efficient with some putting out up to 160 lumens per watt or 96,000 lumens with just the 600 watt bulb. That's almost twice the output of the 150 watt hps fixture which is near 100 lumens per watt. 1000 watt hps is slightly lower at about 140 lumens per watt. 150 watt hps fixtures are actually in the same lighting efficiency range of t5's. They are also around 100 lumens per watt. IMO larger CFL bulbs are nothing but a bad choice starter veg light or placeholder until you can get a real grow light fixture. They do ok in veg but will never grow you dense buds at harvest. They don't have the output efficiency to flower that well. They're basically the most inefficient indoor light you can run with the exception of a few older t8 lights and incandescent bulbs. 150 watt hps fixtures are much the same story but a little better. As you can see by the lumens output per watt the 150 watt hps is about twice as efficiency with the amount of light it makes. Since a 300 watt cfl is near the price it really doesn't make any sense to run one. Consider this: a 150 watt hps is about 60-$70 and puts out 15,000 135W QB LED Kit That kit is 150 watts for $168 and puts out 25,500 lumens. It will also run cooler then any of the other alternatives for the output.
I have a 150 watt hps and love it it works for compact grows too just have to be careful. Sent from my LGLS755 using Tapatalk