Greetings: Brand new at the growing thing but I've got my lighting narrowed down to either CFL or FLOR TUBES,... the HID is out because of the heat factor. Power usage is not that big of concern so which ever is most efficient between the CFL & Tubes. Can someone throw some ideas my way? It would be greatly appreciated. My order of seeds arrived and that is what I was waiting on before purchasing anything else. My grow area is 2' wide, 2' deep, and 3' high. I've got some dwarf, autoflowering seeds to start with. Also got the pots, soil, nutes, and most everything except the lighting. I thought I could pick up the fixtures and lights at Home Depot, Lowes, or Ace Hdwr. but they don't have hardly anything in the way of grow lights and fixtures. I'll probably order the stuff through one of the links here. Any good sources for that you can recommend for lighting materials? Thanks in advance for any help, mapmaker2
CFLs all the way. much more lumens/watts for the space. you can fit a lot more CFL wattage in there than you would be able to with tubes.
This should help you with the cfl's http://forum.grasscity.com/general-indoor-growing/347362-cfls-any-good-flowering.html
Howdy,For growing my bud I use a mixture of both. I have 4 tubes and 4 CFLs in my budding chamber. My veg room is made of 4 tubes and 2 CFLs Flor tubes are best used for a closed in area where the light won't leak. I run 4 ft T12s which are big bulky tubes used for office lights. Each tube being 40watt which means 10watt per foot. There are HO Tubes also they admit 100+watts per tube. CFLs are great for growing as well, They are easy to move,work well for veg and budding.Puts out a decent Lumen.etc
I would say that tubes work well when they work well in your space and for the number of plants you have. For example, to put 1-2 plants under 4-foot fluoros would be a waste, too much of the light is too far away from the plants. CFLs have the advantage of being concentrated in a closer space. Conversely, if you are growing 10-20 plants and don't want to use HID then tubes might be better than using cases of CFLs.
I was looking into PL-L floros to solve a space issue I was having here's what I found: Philips PL-L 50w 50 watt CFL, 3500K spectrum, 4800 lumens (little over 87 lumens/watt) 22.5 inches. These bulbs are 11$ each here. 2G11 Socket 3$ Fulham Workhorse 8 Ballast It will run 4 of the above bulbs. 40$ Hope you can make some use of that info.
Greetings (again): Thanks for all the information, ideas, and tips y'all sent in. I appreciate it a lot!! The journals and photos are a great help. I figure this first grow is gonna be mostly to get the feel of things and learn what to do and when to do it. And what NOT to do. I know I'm gonna make some mistakes until I get everything fine tuned and running good. But with all this info I received from everyone, hopefully, the mistakes will be kept to a minimum. I'm gonna try the CFL's to begin with,... as I mentioned, I can't have the heat from the HID's. I think I can find most everything at local stores and won't have to order anything by mail. One question about the lighting schedule; for the dwarf, auto-flowering strains,...I understand the lights can be kept on 24/7 from seedling all the way through the veggin' phase. BUT for the flowering phase, do they just start to flower on their own or is there something I have to do to initiate it. I know they say AUTO-flowering,.... but....? thx again, mapmaker2
autoflowering you want 20/4 schedule. just keep it that way the whole time. they take care of the rest. autoflowering means exactly what you think. they dont need a change in light schedule to flower, they take care of it themselves
I would get maybe 2 or 3 2 foot fixtures from the cheapest source, then purchase Floro tubes from a indoor grow store so the bulbs specifically fit the bill for the lighting required. If possible post a Grow Journal, I always like to see the results from the auto flowering varieties. especially the length of flowering time under 18/6 or 20/4 and the finished product.. GooD LucK
Thanks,.... so right after germination, and the bean goes in the dirt, the lights go on 20/4 and remain that schedule until harvest? Makes it pretty easy, huh?
Great,... I think I'm ready to get the paper towels wet. And, yes,... I will start a journal and, hopefully, get some photos of the farm. Please keep in mind this will be my first try at growing since I stayed on my grandfathers farm, in Michigan, when I was 12 years old. Of course it was a different crop back then. LOL Also, I'm changing my user name to cliptoke. thx again for all the info, mapmaker2
Well technically you won't have to turn on the lights until the seedling has broke through the dirt. While waiting for the planted seed to break through a warm dark area is fine, I usually use a seedling tray with a plastic humidity dome cover to keep the conditions ideal for germination or you can place the item that you have planted the seed in into a clear plastic bag, this is just to keep humidity levels up.. * Just remove cover or bag once the seedling has broke through soil surface. GooD LucK