Need Pro Tip To Help Maximize Yield (lighting)

If you want to maximize your yield, ditch the cfls and get some big boy lights in there.....max yields and CFLs dont mix.

 

What size is your closet?

 

Cfl's are good

 

Nothing wrong with cfls, but the OP is wanting to maximize yield with his space.....with a closet grow, you can easily pull 5-10x the weight with HIDs vs CFL as long as you have sufficient cooling/airflow.

 

8000 lumens on 130w? My 600w HPS pushes 90,000 lumens, so for similar power you'd get 1/3 the output

real yields come from powerful light, you're not gonna get it with cfl

 

I thought hid's are used in flowering?

 

Nope, you can use em for both. I use a dimmable/switchable ballast and run 400 MH for veg and then 600 w HPS for flower. You can veg with cfls just fine but you will get much faster and explosive growth with MH

 

How high is your power bill with the 600 watts?

 

Light = primary source of energy for your plants. More energy (light) in= more bud. Cfl = light fluffy buds, low yield....their main advantages are their low cost and low heat output. HID = much more intense light = more energy to plants = tighter, heavier, and more buds. They put out tons of heat and require proper ventilation to cool them

 

Will depend on your power rate. Mine only costs me $25 a month

 

And that is with all my fans and such....my entire grow only adds $25 to my power bill. Considering the amount I produce and save myself from having to purchase, it's a no-brainer. Growing is a lot of work..... If im putting in 3-4 months of work for a crop, im not doing it for an ounce or two of fluffy cfl buds, thats for sure. My time and effort is worth more than that.

 

How about hps light

 

hps spectrum is better for flowering, mh is best for veg

that reminds me, gotta swap my bulb out, I kept my MH in for the first 2 weeks of flower. shoulda done it when I was watering last nite. oh well, next time.

 

Actually, 400 or 600w MH/HPS setups are perfect for 3-4 plants, and can be bought in packaged with ballasts, bulbs, and hood for less than what you spend on those cfl grow lights. A 400w light is perfect for 3'x3' area and 600w is perfect for 4'x4'.....so you dont need a huge space for these, just a air cooled hood and a good fan to keep temps down. Also, no need to spend months studying air flow, its not rocket science at all.....really simple to set up and get going. Lots of pics and tutorials in journals, mine included.

To answer your question, 100 actual watts per plant is the minimum you want....the issue with cfls is that the lights have to be within a couple of inches to be effective so you have to constantly move them, and when plants get bigger its impossible to get good light coverage which results in airy buds and lower yields. If you really want to max out your space's potential, i would consider returning the cfls and looking at a little 400w mh/hps kit in your closet. You can find them for less than $200 online, and will just need to invest and extra 60-70 on a decent fan to keep it cool. It would be well worth it....for $50-100 more in start up costs, and the same amount of work, you will easily get 5x more (and higher quality) smoke. A no-brainer IMO.