Started growing using CFLs. I have 4 100watt replacement CFLs in a tinfoil lined box with some regular store bought soil. I know I need more and what not but I'm having trouble finding the right questions. I know CFLs are pretty easy on the electric Bill but other than that Idk too much. Looking for experienced growers to reply to any questions any individual can ask and since there is no such thing as a stupid question I think any question could help so ask and answer away people.
I didn't see a question there. Or, was the question who would respond to your questions? I'm not sure ...... but good luck, cfls grow great plants
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I didn't see a question there. Or, was the question who would respond to your questions? I'm not sure ...... but good luck, cfls grow great plants
Ok so heres a question... I have two soft white lights I guess. And 4 daylight lights... Will this offset my plant or cause her confusion? Will the soft light bring me issues?
Lazarus13
Well-Known Member
I use a combination of cfl spectrums. Daylight for seedling and early veg, even mix of daylight and soft white for heavy veg and mostly soft white for flower. Those daylight bulbs make for some really great, bushy plants. I throw in whiyes during later veg just to encourage some stretch.
Ive switched to leds now but still start under daylight cfls.
Ive switched to leds now but still start under daylight cfls.
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Lazarus my man! See that's what I was looking for. Now you spoke of led... How's that working? Can you help me understand leds? I'm confused on what everything means and I'm more hands on. So it gets frustrating to read about with so many useless things that I find when I search... Now that CFLs have been simplified for me I'm curious. What do I look for in an led. What makes the best suited led, the best suited led? Of you go on my page and look you'll see my setup isn't shit compared to what anyone else uses... I mean it's a tin foil lined cardboard box and my plant hasn't even reached 6 inches in almost 2 months. I'm doing somethi g very very wrong I know but she seems so so... I mean some of her top fans have odd deformities.... One even stopped growing as fast as the others and appears cripple. I started a New seed. Germinated and dropped her into some miracle grow which I later read could cause nute burn but its too late now I suppose... I don't and can't test my ph levels yet bc of money... I mean.. I'm broke. I don't even have them on a light cycle. Time is such an issue for me that I have these on a 24/7 light cycle with a half hour of night on the regular. I'm not scared of her flowering early but Idk man. Help me figure this led thing out please!
crazycatlady
Active Member
My dear Scout104 I feel your pain!!!! If you don't mind I will be watching the answers you get because I am in the same boat.
I have the Sunblaster CFL 55w 6400 output (5 of them) and things are going okay but when I look at eBay and see the LED lights with double chips and 300w and whatever, I am about to fall out of my chair my head spins so badly!
I started exactly as you did, cardboard box and tin foil. I have since graduated to a small greenhouse and an emergency blanket (dollar store and extremely reflective). Like you I am pinched for funds so making due with what I can.
Good growing!!
I have the Sunblaster CFL 55w 6400 output (5 of them) and things are going okay but when I look at eBay and see the LED lights with double chips and 300w and whatever, I am about to fall out of my chair my head spins so badly!
I started exactly as you did, cardboard box and tin foil. I have since graduated to a small greenhouse and an emergency blanket (dollar store and extremely reflective). Like you I am pinched for funds so making due with what I can.
Good growing!!
TanR
New Member
Hi Scout104.
Welcome to 420 Magazine and the community of members that gathers here!
I reviewed the photos you uploaded to your gallery and have to agree that your plant is pretty small for almost 2 months old. The good news is that she looks great and is a very bushy little girl.
I suspect you have a couple things going on that is hindering her development. Do you have any idea on the temperature and humidity level in your grow area. I suspect both may be a little lower than ideal during the lights on phase and possible during lights off as well. Ideally, you would have temps in the mid 70's to mid 80's (lights on) and not much lower than 60'ish lights off and humidity, in this stage of vegatative growth, in the range of 45% to 70%. I also suspect that while the light your providing is "enough", it is not strong enough to really drive the explosive growth I suspect you want.
To add to the info provided by Lazarus13, I would add that "daylight" and "soft white" are marketing terms that aren't terribly useful for your purpose. Ideally, you would want to use bulbs with the highest Kelvin rating possible. You'll see this info on the packaging displayed as 6500K or 3800K, the closer you can get to 6500K the better during this vegatative period. Once you begin the budding period, you would want to move more toward the 3000K or even a little lower K number. This light should appear to you to be more yellow than bright white.
You mentioned your girl is growing in store bought soil. Could you be a little more specific? Did the soil have any fertilizer or nutrients in it? I ask because, although your girl looks great, I didn't see any nutrient/fertilizer information. Realize you put the second seed in Miracle Grow, is it the same soil as plant #1? Are you giving her anything? Again, your plant doesn't look to be suffering, I think she might benefit from the addition of some type of fertilizer. Ideally a balanced blend of NPK - think along the lines of something you might give to a tomato plant.
One additional consideration is the 24 hour light period. I think at this point there is little debate that our plants benefit from at least a little "lights out" time each day. Most of us try to provide around 8 hours of dark per day. Once budding/flowering is desired we provide at least 12 hours of dark. The dark period at this stage reduces the stress on the plant and provides time for it's internal processes to reset and replenish.
LED's are simply another form of light source. Light Emitting Diodes are approximately twice as energy efficient as CFL's. So if you compare the light from a 60 watt incandescent bulb (obviously uses 60 watts of electricity) to the CFL equivilent you can achieve that light using around 13-15 watts. You can acheive the same amount of light from an LED using only 6-8 watts. LED's are still fairly expensive comparatively speaking but the great news is they last about 6x longer than CFL's and use about half the electricity. If you wanted to use some the LED bulbs meant for household light fixtures you could use the same info as above re: CFL's in choosing the bulbs based on their Kelvin rating. LED panel (grow light) manufacturers get way more detailed than a simple Kelvin rating in choosing which diodes to use, but that's another conversation entirely.
I hope you find some of this usefull and your plant takes off like a rocket!
Be well and happy growing.
Welcome to 420 Magazine and the community of members that gathers here!
I reviewed the photos you uploaded to your gallery and have to agree that your plant is pretty small for almost 2 months old. The good news is that she looks great and is a very bushy little girl.
I suspect you have a couple things going on that is hindering her development. Do you have any idea on the temperature and humidity level in your grow area. I suspect both may be a little lower than ideal during the lights on phase and possible during lights off as well. Ideally, you would have temps in the mid 70's to mid 80's (lights on) and not much lower than 60'ish lights off and humidity, in this stage of vegatative growth, in the range of 45% to 70%. I also suspect that while the light your providing is "enough", it is not strong enough to really drive the explosive growth I suspect you want.
To add to the info provided by Lazarus13, I would add that "daylight" and "soft white" are marketing terms that aren't terribly useful for your purpose. Ideally, you would want to use bulbs with the highest Kelvin rating possible. You'll see this info on the packaging displayed as 6500K or 3800K, the closer you can get to 6500K the better during this vegatative period. Once you begin the budding period, you would want to move more toward the 3000K or even a little lower K number. This light should appear to you to be more yellow than bright white.
You mentioned your girl is growing in store bought soil. Could you be a little more specific? Did the soil have any fertilizer or nutrients in it? I ask because, although your girl looks great, I didn't see any nutrient/fertilizer information. Realize you put the second seed in Miracle Grow, is it the same soil as plant #1? Are you giving her anything? Again, your plant doesn't look to be suffering, I think she might benefit from the addition of some type of fertilizer. Ideally a balanced blend of NPK - think along the lines of something you might give to a tomato plant.
One additional consideration is the 24 hour light period. I think at this point there is little debate that our plants benefit from at least a little "lights out" time each day. Most of us try to provide around 8 hours of dark per day. Once budding/flowering is desired we provide at least 12 hours of dark. The dark period at this stage reduces the stress on the plant and provides time for it's internal processes to reset and replenish.
LED's are simply another form of light source. Light Emitting Diodes are approximately twice as energy efficient as CFL's. So if you compare the light from a 60 watt incandescent bulb (obviously uses 60 watts of electricity) to the CFL equivilent you can achieve that light using around 13-15 watts. You can acheive the same amount of light from an LED using only 6-8 watts. LED's are still fairly expensive comparatively speaking but the great news is they last about 6x longer than CFL's and use about half the electricity. If you wanted to use some the LED bulbs meant for household light fixtures you could use the same info as above re: CFL's in choosing the bulbs based on their Kelvin rating. LED panel (grow light) manufacturers get way more detailed than a simple Kelvin rating in choosing which diodes to use, but that's another conversation entirely.
I hope you find some of this usefull and your plant takes off like a rocket!
Be well and happy growing.
Lazarus13
Well-Known Member
Check out the thread on mars hydro in the sponsor section. Those are the lights i use at the suggestion of people on here. Got mine on the Bay for like $62 a piece and they work great. My knowledge of leds is about like yours so i took advice from people i respect on here.
Scout, ph is sooooo important. If you cant afford a pen at least get some strips from walmart or something. If youre ph is off it can lock out nutrients and seriously stunt growth among other things. I am on a tight budget too and used strips until i could scrape enough together for a pen.
Also a timer. Not so important in veg but you're going to want one in flower. Maintaining that strict 12/12 is important and you dont want to be turning lights on and off by hand. They cost like $4 for the basic cheap timer at home improvement stores.
I started out in a shelf lined with white cardboard, 2 four inch desk fans for intake and exhaust and a diy 10 bulb cfl reflector. It was a disaster from beginning to end. I had no way to check ph at first, got some root rot, etc... But still managed to pull a little under 2 zips. Not stellar but my first time seeing a grow through and a goal to beat on my second try.
I am a beginner like you man. I do a ton of reading. This is my only cannabis growing site but i read a lot of other horticultural info. Start a journal and post pics. Let people see whats up and give you a hand. Get to know people throught their journals. Vote in the monthly contests. Read the FAQs and the growers lounge. Theres a huge thread on leds in the sponsor section and just a wealth of knowledge and good vibes on this site in general.
I will be more than happy to help out as much as i can but there are people on here who are 1000x more experienced than i.
Lazarus13
Well-Known Member
There you go, told you smarter people were around. lol TanR thanks for chiming in. I was trying to keep it simple but yeah, my daylight bulbs are 6500k and my soft white are 2700k. Those are the ones ive found that worked best for my situation.
Ph, temps, humidity, soil, nutrients, genetics... There are a ton of things that can determine success or failure. Cover the basics at least and you can get some successes.
Ph strips, a cheap thermometor/hygrometer, decent soil, a timer, exhaust fan, circulation fan, correct k rating bulbs... Check out the other budget growers on here to get some $ saving tips too. Ive seen threads specifically on things to do to save money.
Ph, temps, humidity, soil, nutrients, genetics... There are a ton of things that can determine success or failure. Cover the basics at least and you can get some successes.
Ph strips, a cheap thermometor/hygrometer, decent soil, a timer, exhaust fan, circulation fan, correct k rating bulbs... Check out the other budget growers on here to get some $ saving tips too. Ive seen threads specifically on things to do to save money.
MrRudeSnowman
Well-Known Member
hi,
The whole thing about LED's is their superior efficiency per watt, problem is the starting price. It's always cheaper to get some CFL's and for beginner it's not a bad idea to star out that way and see if you become regular grower. Top notch LED's will cost you but cheaper ones can be found for 100$ or so. 4 100W CFL's should be enough for you first grow and you don't need to fire them all from day one. First week/two weeks you can use one and add others as plant gets bigger.
The whole thing about LED's is their superior efficiency per watt, problem is the starting price. It's always cheaper to get some CFL's and for beginner it's not a bad idea to star out that way and see if you become regular grower. Top notch LED's will cost you but cheaper ones can be found for 100$ or so. 4 100W CFL's should be enough for you first grow and you don't need to fire them all from day one. First week/two weeks you can use one and add others as plant gets bigger.
Lazarus13
Well-Known Member
Agree 100% i found that for 1 or 2 plants for the first few weeks you can use 1 or 2 bulbs and keep em nice and close. They really promote bushy growth and tight node spacing when kept close.
TanR
New Member
Thanks for the compliment Lazarus, but I have to give credit for most of what I've learned, to other members of the sight. There is just so much information available here to help a learning grower out. As someone that has been a member for a minute, I'd like to thank you for jumping in to help this newer member. The sincerety with which people take an interest in one another is the best thing about this site.
Like you, I was trying to refrain suggesting any expensive "run out and spend money on this" kind of suggestions. Based on Scout's photos, I'm not seeing any evidence of PH related issues so I'm hopeful he can proceed with worrying about the PH at the moment.
Be well and happy growing all.
Like you, I was trying to refrain suggesting any expensive "run out and spend money on this" kind of suggestions. Based on Scout's photos, I'm not seeing any evidence of PH related issues so I'm hopeful he can proceed with worrying about the PH at the moment.
Be well and happy growing all.
Lazarus13
Well-Known Member
Im new too but i really do try to help out when i can. People have been so great on here. Even when it is a question thats been asked 100 times 100 different ways, someone still takes the time to help out. The community atmosphere is what makes this the only cannabis grow site i frequent. Wish i wouldve known about 420 when i started the first go around. lol
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Ok guys.... I'm going to upload more pics later today. I can't right now or else I'll compromise my life with these people around. Just to update..... I had fimmed my plant about a week ago maybe 2... But two days after I fimmed the light ended up burning the tips so I topped her. I think I might have found a way to develop 6 tops... She started growing back again and now from one hub she has 6 nodes popping out. Is this ok? Is this a blessing? Could I take that and possibly mainline with a hub that provides 6 tops In one spot? I can't wait for her to grow some more so I can see If that's really what I got... Check my page at about 2200 est and I'll have New pictures uploaded. You guys are the greatest. Fr
TanR
New Member
Sounds like a great unintended result Scout.
I'll watch for the pictures later.
I'll watch for the pictures later.
AKgramma
Well-Known Member
Scout: I also grow in soil, under CFLs, because of energy costs. My ladies don't have that House Beautiful look, but they do produce some good smoke. Even the fluffy and popcorn buds make good edibles, if you don't smoke. I also keep it simple, not stressing over pH and such.
But you WILL have to invest in a couple of timers, one for veg and one for flower, if you have two grow areas. The goal is the crop. How you get there is up to you, what you have time for and your finances.
But you WILL have to invest in a couple of timers, one for veg and one for flower, if you have two grow areas. The goal is the crop. How you get there is up to you, what you have time for and your finances.
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Lazarus13
Well-Known Member
Pretty happy looking little girl so far. 
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AKgramma
Well-Known Member
No need to do that. Decide what you want for the mature plant: tall and fewer buds or short and bushy with lots of buds. If hte latter is what you want, then just pinch and tie down branches to keep her low and producing more future bud sites.
At this point, just let them grow out enough to train them.
