hid's work and work well but so do cfls, they got me well into flower on my first round of plants, i only switched over to hps as i was using 400 watts in total with cfls,
for veg you want a 2/1 ratio with the 2 been the 6500 or 6400k cfls so 2 x 6400k and 1 x 2700k for veg then the opposite for flower so you would want 2 x 2700k to 1 6400k cfl, i was using 23 and 30 watt cfls, id say you would need 4 to a plant, i had 4 plants and around 14 cfls, but they do work and they work well, i have got hps and my seedlings stretch like crazy under this even though it says its a dual spectrum bulb so it contains some of the 6400k light needed for veg, but clearly its not enough, now ive got a small cupboard set up where i start all my seedlings and clones, i use 3 x 30 watt 6400k cfls in this cupboard and i have around 8 seedlings in their and them lights are more than enough, their only an inch above the plants and they stop any stretch and make the nodes very close.
if i wasnt growing what i was and say i only had 1 or 2 plants then id use cfls as i would not need to use 400 watts, but cfls do work and ive seen some amazing buds with cfls, id say the best thing to do is a scrog or some decent lst work, you need to get as much light into all parts of the plant as possible, when you more than a couple of inches from the plant the light drops off pretty quick, so you need the lights as close as you can get them without burning the plant, id have a couple above each plant then another couple lower down to make sure the lower branches get light as well.
once mistake i made when i first started was not to check the temp, i had a few cfls and my temps where cold, i kept wondering why my plants where not growing, so i put a small heater in and they started growing like crazy, so if your using cfls then make sure everything else is ok, then they should grow with no problems, use reflectors on the lights and with cfls the most light comes off the side of the bulb and not the end, so mount the lights so the side of the bulb is facing the plant then make a reflector to reflector any lost light back onto the plant, use reflective mylar on the walls, all i did was buy some rescue blankets, cost me next to nothing for a pack of 5, or you can use white paint as long as its not gloss.
for veg you want a 2/1 ratio with the 2 been the 6500 or 6400k cfls so 2 x 6400k and 1 x 2700k for veg then the opposite for flower so you would want 2 x 2700k to 1 6400k cfl, i was using 23 and 30 watt cfls, id say you would need 4 to a plant, i had 4 plants and around 14 cfls, but they do work and they work well, i have got hps and my seedlings stretch like crazy under this even though it says its a dual spectrum bulb so it contains some of the 6400k light needed for veg, but clearly its not enough, now ive got a small cupboard set up where i start all my seedlings and clones, i use 3 x 30 watt 6400k cfls in this cupboard and i have around 8 seedlings in their and them lights are more than enough, their only an inch above the plants and they stop any stretch and make the nodes very close.
if i wasnt growing what i was and say i only had 1 or 2 plants then id use cfls as i would not need to use 400 watts, but cfls do work and ive seen some amazing buds with cfls, id say the best thing to do is a scrog or some decent lst work, you need to get as much light into all parts of the plant as possible, when you more than a couple of inches from the plant the light drops off pretty quick, so you need the lights as close as you can get them without burning the plant, id have a couple above each plant then another couple lower down to make sure the lower branches get light as well.
once mistake i made when i first started was not to check the temp, i had a few cfls and my temps where cold, i kept wondering why my plants where not growing, so i put a small heater in and they started growing like crazy, so if your using cfls then make sure everything else is ok, then they should grow with no problems, use reflectors on the lights and with cfls the most light comes off the side of the bulb and not the end, so mount the lights so the side of the bulb is facing the plant then make a reflector to reflector any lost light back onto the plant, use reflective mylar on the walls, all i did was buy some rescue blankets, cost me next to nothing for a pack of 5, or you can use white paint as long as its not gloss.