some light systems come with a standard HPS bulb, think I should stick with that bulb or upgrade to a better HPS for pricey $45's more? I can post a link if u want me too
i thought your t5 bulbs were 5000 lumens each, & these are 5200 lumens, yea i get the same on my 2ft t5's, some will say 22", some will say 21.5"
ok look here, my NewWave 2ft T5 System came w/ T5 GE Ecolux bulbs ( 46703 - Specifications - GE Commercial Lighting Products ), which are 24w 6500k w/ CRI 85, w/ lumens @ 1880 & these ( 46699 - Specifications - GE Commercial Lighting Products ), which are 24w 3000k w/ CRI 85, w/ 2000 lumens. the GE Ecolux bulbs cost between $8-20 now i recently bought these Naturallighting.com - Natural Full Spectrum Lighting[title] which are 24w 5500k w/ CRI 91, w/ 1880 lumens & cost me 10$ a tube, but after further research, i should of bought these BlueMaxâ„¢ 5900 23" F24-T5HO Mini Bi-Pin which are 24w 5900k w/ CRI 93+, w/ 2250 lumens & only cost 9$ a tube conclusion: GE bulbs have a lower CRI, lower Lumens output, & a GOOD color temp & cost the most. The NaturesSunlite bulbs have a higher CRI, same lumens output as GE, & a GREAT color temp & cost is about the same as GE & BlueMax. The BlueMax bulbs have the highest CRI, highest lumens output, & a GREAT color temp & cost the least to same. but if u read this article right, lighting for plants is best if u look at the CRI of the bulb next to the color temp, w/ lumens being the least concerning
go w/ the Sylvania grolux. The Sylvania GROLUX bulb was the first bulb in this country that was designed from the ground up specifically for growing plants yes, even the Eye Hortilux bulb was not originally designed for plants. The GROLUX has the highest PAR rating meaning it has the highest plant-usable light output of any 400 HPS bulb on the market, in addition to having 30% more blue spectrum than a standard HPS bulb, and far less green spectrum thats unusable by plants. It is the best bulb you will find in the U.S., far exceding the performance of all other bulbs currently available, including the Eye Hortilux and for less money. The 400W Gro Lux Super Enhanced HPS (high pressure sodium) lamp is optimal for the flowering and budding stages of your plants. The Sylvania super LU400 delivers 58,000 lumens of light initially, and has an enhanced energy spectrum to ensure that your plants get the optimum light at every stage of growth. grolux hps color spectrum, very little green light. Grolux is a dual spec bulb, thats why it has blue color in it. Even Sylvania's standard 400W Sylvania HPS Grow Bulb has very little green in it, so most of your light is usable by the plants. see chart below.
Hey Pot God, This is my third time growing. First 2 times the plants died as baby's, now they are yellow. Here is my setup!!! new htg non digital 400w hps w/ 55,000 lumen bulb 1 x cfl 150w 1 x cfl 43w I'm a little light on money, but feel I need a affordable veggie light, preferably, cfl style. Please help!! I found 2 old non cfl Philips 70w plant bulbs @ 700 lumens in my parents garage. They get hot, and they are purple in color!!! My question is what are they? Are they worth using? Would they be good for vegetative cycle? I can't seem to find any useful info on the internet for these bulbs.
Kai Surf, Soil or hydro? Nutrients? Air temperature? How many inches are the lights from the seedling? Watering schedule? Are the cfl's equivalent watts or true watts? If the 150 is true watts and 6500K color temperature, then it will be enough light for two or three seedlings, for a couple weeks until they are old enough for the 400 hps. However, keep the 150 watt cfl about 3-5 inches away from the top of the seedlings. Seedlings don't need a ton of light to get to the vegetative stage of there life. Also, more intense light comes out from the sides of the cfl bulbs, not the top. One more thing. Don't over water or over feed the little babies. If you are using a good brand name soil, it should have enough nutrients to keep the seedlings going for 2-3 weeks at least and then remember, less is more when it comes to nutrients until you get dialed in with growing. Oh, I almost forgot; DO NOT USE THOSE 70 WATT PHILIPS PLANT BULBS. THEY ARE GARBAGE AND WILL KILL YOUR PLANTS!
I found this site last night looking up some info. Take a look at the real numbers, and the ppfd (photosythetic photon flux density) which is the best translation of wattage to photosythesis. http://www.personal.psu.edu/sbj4/aquarium/articles/MetalHalideLamps1.htm Take a look. It's a bit technical at first but it is clearly explained and gives some real value to the hype and advertising jargon. Oh, and the Iwasaki chemistry is the best for growing. As a result, Eye Hortilux bulbs are the best in the industry.
Does anyone have a link (or know) the CRI ratings for: 1. Eye Hortilux 430W Super HPS Light Bulb 2. 430W Philips Son Agro HPS Bulb Thanks.
Regarding Cervantes books: of all the parameters available to him, why did he selectively choose Kelvin color temperatures as his standard? According to this sticky, it is least relavent to good lighting. Yet J. Cervantes chose it. Thoughts? And please, don't say "because he's a sell out". He's profitable and I'm jealous.
hey man i got a small cabinet grow, and i have 5000k 100W CFL's. is the 5000K good for growth, or should i get the 6500k
Wow thats alot of info to wrap my stoned head around! So basicly if i understand this right that degreesK, lumins, etc are like heart, lungs and organs of the body. The CRI is the blood, and the higher the CRI is the more oxygen in the blood. That would be why the best bulb has a high CRI and a little less Lumins - its the equivalent of trading that 3rd kidney for more oxygen in the blood. Yeah a 3rd kidny would be awsome just not as usefull as more oxygen in the blood. Right? I figure im either fairly accurate or completly 100% off so unless i hear other wise i think ill stick this analogy in my mind for when im looking at lighting and lighting options. Thanks for the awsome info.
Just a simple question. What is the best distance for a 1000w HPS with cool tube reflector to be placed above canopy? Is there an optimum distance or is it just as close as you can get to it without burning?
hi all,have any of you tried the new efdl lights they are in the right spectrum and the difference is amazing my mate just got 1 from china an been using for 3 weeks and the difference is pretty cool the amount of bud sites compared to the 600w next to it is like double check em out man
ummmmmmm way too much info... lol its really impressive it is... but i dont have the attention span to read it all lol
great thread, + rep. Im just starting out my grow process, and have a quick question. The prices of the bulbs are cheaper than i thought, so I was thinking about getting multiple bulbs of the bluemax 5500k's and angling them a little differently, spreading them out. logs ive seen show that will help produce yield. Do you perfer the bulbs or the tubes for a beginner?
If you want a good guage on what CFL bulbs will do look at my mini fridge grow. The link is in my sig. I got a little over 1.5 oz from 6 26w CFL bulbs. And I had some mess ups. I could have gotten close to 2 oz Im sure of it.
great grow. Thinking about doing something similar with a full size fridge or a modified dresser. Thanks!