lol bullshit. You don't NEED a HPS for flowering... sure, they have high spectrum around the 650Nm area (red-orange) which is good for flowering but you definatly don't need one. A couple 42w CFL's? sure, why not. It'll take longer and produce less than a HID lamp would, but it can surely still make some quality shit - just remember its the small things that count, such as reflective surfaces, lamp reflectors, grow medium, etc. Also if you still havn't bought them yet, definatly go with the Warm Whites, they have the better colour spectrum for flowering s12
I'm flowering with 2 42w CFL's right now (also with a 30w daylight and some LEDs). My plant isn't huge, but it's definitely healthy. The soft white/warm white spectrum is close to HPS anyway. Look for a color temperature near 2700k.
look at vokals LST method he only used a couple 42 watters as i remember dont quote me i am to lazy to look for that thread and look how huge his one plant was. growing is a long process whats a couple extra weeks matter anyways you know
Yes you can use cfls to grow. I think we've all tried it once. But once was it for me. Yes you can get a respectable harvest out of cfls, but it takes a fair amount of cfls and a lot of attention to detail. If you put that same detail into growing with a HID system you will double your results. And I really do mean that, there is no comparison to a HID system. The light is the right spectrum, it penetrates farther. Grows more plants under less watts, or simply bigger ones. So if you can afford to get a HID system and can use it in your set up I would say go for it. If for some reason you can get a HID system that’s ok too, grow with your cfls enjoy your harvest and dream of the future when you can use one.
Its all about Watts and efficiency. (and the allmighty Euro) HPS good efficiency for flowering, fluro good efficiency for vegging. If you are growing for you to consume, 200W of fluro power is more then enough, assuming two things : a. You have a good grow in a good growbox, including some form of LST. b. You have a 'normal life', not being able to smoke 24/7 due to obligations/duties. Also, you can use a 400W HPS and spend no time on LST-ing yer plants. Just let it go straight up! I go for fluro's myself, because it costs me less money on electricity and I get to spend some time with my plants for LST-ing. I like tinkering with the tech stuff and I like tinkering with the plants too.
im using the 42w cfs too and my buds look delicious. it will get the job done i think floros are great for the beginner learning to grow on a budget. have the hps on the way i cant wait.