What lighting can I use for flowering?

HPS is the optimal indoor way to go... just as a guideline, i have a 400W in a 4X5foot closet

 

Standard, low-wattage, household fluorescents don't stand up to the average HID. They just won't reach as far, no matter how many you use. There are higher wattage CFL's that do compare to HID's.

The light strength depends on the size of the flowering area. 3x3 plants taking up about a square foot each would do well under a 600w HID.

 

HPS Is good, make sure not to scorch your plant's with it but it will lead to denser buds.

 

^ this is true. I used a cfl for 1/2 a cycle then switched to mh/hps and will never turn back. Huge difference in bud size and density.

 

The best ratio of money spent on lighting vs. return in yield I've ever gotten was off from a blend of MH and HPS. I had a super MH daylight up top on a track and regular HPS shining in @ 45's. The spectrum was so incredible it looked like outdoor sun in fall. Opinions vary on the subject wildly, but that's my opinion if you can afford it. If your only doing a single light grow take the Monkey's advice and go with HPS. In my exp. HPS light will make plants stretch more during vegging, but the extra canopy penetration during flowering more than makes up for it.

 

Agree with 600w HPS in about 9 sq ft. You could do CFLs, but it would take a ton of bulbs and fixtures and custom wiring and will end up generating HPS-like heat so not worth it. HPS is about twice the lumens per watt as CFLs, so you're better off burning those watts for a lot more light from an HPS.

 

T5 lights might be worth looking into.

 

I agree with poppy 100%. I use a mix of MH and HPS with great results.

 

They really arent that bad when you consider having to buy a whole bunch of cfl bulbs. In my case, the cfls bulbs and hardware to do 6 plants was going to run close to $80 new but I ended up getting a 400w hps for $100 second hand. Cfls make some sense doing just one or two plants, but nine is a different story.

High output t5's arent cheap by any means either. I have two 4' 4 bulb ho t5's I use for salt water fish tanks, and they ran me right at $300 each.

I just dont think good yields and low budgets go well together once your talking about a bunch of plants. I would consider either growing a lower number of plants, or waiting until there is a better budget if you really want great yields per m2.

 

300 watts of HID would light a 2x2 ft area nicely. Are you growing from seed? I could see growing one nice plant with a setup like that. I think a 400 HPS would be more cost effective when you factor in lamp replacement, additional electrical usage running more than one ballast, etc.

 

i paid 400 for a 400 watt hps.. i use cfls to veg. thats for ballast hood hps bulb and hangers. you will save that in the first grow in just mj that you won't have to buy versus any other light (except the sun of course).

 

The CFLs add up. I built a custom 2x2 hood that used 300 actual watts through a combination of 26 and 42 watters. Off the top of my head, I'm guessing I spent something like $50 for the bulbs, $20 for the sockets, and $20 on plywood, paint, ducting, chain and wire. Upgrading to a 400 watt HPS didn't cost me that much more and offered better growth, a bigger footprint, and an end to constantly having to adjust my lights. I'm left regretting the time and money I wasted on CFLs.

 

yea... i could have got one 70 bucks cheaper or so, but i wanted the high dollar one. plus everything is more expensive where i live... big city prices. i found them a little cheaper on line but wasn't comfortable with the ordering then.

 

I found that some of the better deals online were available from stores in my big city. I would post a link, but I'm not trying to have a breach or revoke my non-shill status.

Back on topic, the answer is high pressure sodium. Buy whatever you can afford online for the maximum bang-for-the-buck. Even a 150 watt HPS spotlight is better than what the equivalent in CFL would cost.

 

i didn't see that in a rules. i post links all the time. i'll have to watch out... i post for attitude... just the other day i posted the link for where to buy a pocket microscope... i'll have to check into this

.. not trying to jack the thread.... yes... lights are bright

 

"7. Advertising and posting links to competitors are not allowed. It's fine to post an occasional interesting link to another website, within the context of a thread's topic. If you have your own website, you cannot put the URL in your profile or display it in your signature; to do so would be advertising."

that's all i found... now back to the light stuff... sorry for the interruption.