CFL Light Tutorial

standupman said:
wow didn-t know if you could grow wit cfls..I always used tubes above window 2 getem 5-6'' for outdoors.. Was reading on led lites so i bought 4-25w box panels thinking if you get 8-10 of em you could do something nice..But now thinking of usen my 4 leds with cfls...Finally time 2 grow my own....thankyou for all the info everyone..
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:welcome: to 420!

Yes, CFL's work great for supplemental lighting as well. ;)

G-Dog said:
I have been all over the web and reading many boards with folks using the CFLs. I have had great results myself and so that is all I use indoor. It it the safest thing from a security standpoint because of the low heat and low power usage.

I would not mind growing with giant HIDs in some settings like a legal commercial grow... but for small personal use you cannot beat the CFLs.
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Agreed :)
But I believe you still need to use max lumens per sqft to flower with good results.
 
sm0ker420 said:
also keep in mind some people like to quote 50watts per sq foot at least to get some good tight/fat buds. Just throwing that out there. :)
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Very true, that is a good general reference. :thumb:

However when it comes to CFL's, they typically only put out 75% of the light that an HID does. And with CFL's you don't get the same amount of light per watt as you go up in wattage bulbs. (just sayin' :) )

Here's a quote back from the beginning of the thread:


Roseman said:
Look at a lumen/watt ration of various CFL's. The higher the wattage of CFLs, the lower the lumen/watt ratio. This chart was submitted by Jerry Garcia, a grow buddy from another grow site, and edited for typos.

For example...

the 200w listed at 9250 lumens for a lumens/watt ratio of 9250/200=46.25

the 150w is listed at 7500 lumens for a l/w ratio of 7500/150=50

the 125w is listed at 6500 lumens for a l/w ratio of 6500/125=52

the 42w are listed for 2700 lumens, l/w ratio of 2700/42=64.28

I have some 26w that give off 1700 lumens for a l/w ratio of 1700/26=65.38

GE lists some 13w that give off 825 lumens for a l/w ratio of 825/13=63.46

So, according to these numbers the most efficient bulbs for growing are the 26w that emit 1700 lumens. If you used 8 26w bulbs (208 watts total) you'd be getting 13,600 lumens...4,350 more lumens than a single 200 watt CFL. AND the eight 26 watt bulbs would cost less than the one 200 watt bulb.

I suppose you need to purchase more sockets and cords and things to support 8 bulbs, but in the long run more lower watt CFLs seem like the way to go.
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I was just turned on to this by my fellow grower JuicyFruit4me. He used a vanity light strip similar to this 5 bulb model. If filled with five 85 watt cfl's, that would be 425 watts and around 27,000 lumens. He used a couple disposable turkey pans to make a reflector. This sounds like a killer setup for anyone working with a small budget.
 
I pulled this from a post I made in another thread - hope it helps. :)

How much $$ to run a device:
Here is an explanation to help you figure out your own usage...
I found the formula... this assumes $0.12 per KW hour price.
(If you pay a different amount change the formula below)
Explanation: Watts used by device x hours used over the course of a month = total watt hours
Example: 400 watts x 24 hours a day x 30.5 days a month = 292,800 Wh

Explanation: Now you have to convert Wh (watt hours) to kWh (kilowatt hours). Wh / 1000 = kWh
Example: 292,800 Wh / 1000 Wh = 293 kWh
Explanation: Now take you kWH and multiply it by the price you pay your electric provider
Example: 293 kWh x 12¢/kWh = $35.16 a mo. or $422 a yr.

When you buy electricity they charge you by the kilowatt-hour (kWh). When you use 1000 watts for 1 hour, that's a kilowatt-hour.
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To answer your other question,

Amps = Watts/Volts
EX: 105W/110V=0.96A

:peace:
Agent Green :smokin:
 
Thanks for the welcome green!
and thanks for the answer.that really helps me out a lot. i am in the process of doing a stealth dresser scrog. Just wanted to make sure i got the maximum light/watts for my space to maximize my grow. in a dresser that size how many plants using the hempy method would u suggest be feasible. And thanks again for the response. I dont know how to do the "qoute" thing as to where i can show u answering my question. <Still a noob. but i love this site aside from the "other" 3 i WAS following. YOU GUYS ROCK!!
 
:thanks: for the +reps you two!

The nice thing with CFL's is you can add them as the plants grow. You don't need 40K Lumens for seedlings, you can start low and build up as the plants grow.

I like mixed spectrum with 2700K and 6500K.
Veg = 2/3 6500K & 1/3 2700K
Flower = 2/3 2700K & 1/3 6500K

But opinions and results vary. I've read journals where great results were had with 50/50 and 25/75 split as well. Also where other Kelvin ratings were used like the 5000K. So make a plan, give it a go, and see what happens. That's the fun part of growing, learning and making changes and improvements based on your situation and results.


@ sm0ker420 - remember using that many CFLs are going to give off heat and you will need some venting.

@ CaneyeBus - I've never done a SOG or SRCOG, so you might want to do a search on it here and also look at some journals that have. There are a lot of them on this site. The only thing I can tell you is that because of your height restriction you want to pick a short strain, switch from veg to flower early, and read up on LST and Supercropping. Most strains get 2 to 2-1/2 times there size when switched from veg to flower. (approx)
 
Great thread, keep up the good work Green and everyone else. We all grow and learn together. Has anyone heard from Rose? He created this thread and many other useful threads and he seems noticeably absent. In our world a change like that is cause for concern.
 
@ Green- Will do , thanks man u rock!

@sm0ker420- swiss cheese eh?. good looking out. I may just try some bagweed for my first
attempt. don't want to spend the money on great genes and not have all my ducks in a row.i have taken note of that strain. how do you guys feel about trying the auto flower strains considering my height restrictions? Thanks again and i love this forum Big ups 420 MAg:reading420magazine:
 
Glad to help! :)

Since this is a CFL thread, I suggest you pose that question in a new thread in the Grow Room. Then you will have a better chance of many more people seeing it and responding. But sure that may work if it is a short strain.

:peace:
Agent Green
 
I had fantastic luck with CFLs growing short strains like Apollo 11.

However, I often wondered if you could place CFLs all around a larger plant, maybe even a sativa. I have a lot of sativa and sativa crosses to play with but I am sort of afraid to try them out. In my concept I would have some kind of lightweight frame going floor to ceiling. I would use the frame to clip those cheapo clip on reflectors all around the bud sites. The whole thing would still be surrounded in white foamcore or something to get as much use of the light as I could. When ever you try something new you have to be able to act quick to improvise as the situation dictates.
 
Smoker

Years ago I read about how fluorescent lights work. Basically you have a sealed tube with powdered chemicals that vibrate when energized by higher voltages (the reason for a ballast or transformer). It is not like incandescent lights that make light by heating up a filament.

To achieve a certain color in Kalvin you need to put different colors of powdered chemicals in the tubes and/or coat the interior of the tube with a colored translucent substance. These things block light and decrease lumens.

Just for the record, I do not think that all plants benefit that much from varied spectrum lighting. I
 
I'll be checking the lumens/watts on CFL floods also.

They should work just fine, if not better than regular spiral CFL's.

There is no way someone at home is going to design a more efficient and focused reflector, and that will probably more than make up for whatever loss there is from the glass lens.
 
Thanks SS,

i have read your lowryder journals and enjoyed them. +rep:popcorn:
as a matter of fact, it has become my auto flower bible. This site is filled with so much proven and "true life" data and grow love it almost feels as if i have been born anew. IT's cacophony of information is ALMOST too much to bear as i find myself reading for hours on end brain swelling like nice cola near harvest. Keep up the great work and love.:bravo:
 
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