Lighting question for 1st time grow.

[khadine]

Hi folks,

After reading all the great info here on this site it has given me the confidence to attempt my first time grow rather than buying. I have ordered seeds for two auto feminized, Candy Cane and Jack Herer. I wanted to take the easy route first before trying regular seeds. My grow room is 2 feet x 3 feet and 8 feet high. I will be using CFL's exclusively.

I've re read Hosebombers post a few times and still have a few questions. If I understand it right I would need 42.25w per sq ft for vegetative or 235.50w minimum (42.25x6), and 65w per sq for flowering or 390w minimum (65x6). In addition the light spectrum for the bulbs is 2700k for flowering and 6500k for vegetative. Here is where I get confused. For vegetative do I need six 40w bulbs rated at 2700k each and six 65w bulbs rated at 6500k each? I live in a small town and the 40w 2700k are available in my area but the only 65w bulbs I can find are only 4100k. Will this still work or will my yield be low?

Sorry if this is very basic stuff but my comprehension skills aren't my strong suit.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Graytail]

In veg, you want the plants to grow under a primarily blue spectrum to keep them from stretching, so the higher color is better. 4100K is allright if that's all you can get, but the higher numbers are better. Have you seen the 1000bulbs site online? It's easy and cheap to have CFLs shipped.

There are a couple of threads you should read. One is Tulip's stellar CFL primer/tutorial.

CFL Light Tutorial

And the other is a current thread by Sweetsue, who's growing some amazing flowers under her CFLs.

Sweetsue's First Grow - Stealthy Trio of Autos Under CFLs

 

[cannilingus]

i use a cfl, for my clones. then under a four ft t-8, four tube. then, under my four ft, eight tube t-5. both the t8, and t5, are 6500k. my god bud loves the t-5.

 

[khadine]

Wow, that was quick. You folks rock! Thanks Graytail!

Thanks for the thread links, I have been following Sweetsue's thread and it is an enjoyable read as well as informative. I'll give the 1000bulbs site a boo also.

 

[khadine]

Thanks err... cannilingus! Wasn't your hump on the other side? Loved Marty Feldman!

 

[Graytail]

Have you thoroughly checked out T5s?

I started with CFLs, bought all the sockets, built a couple big panels - a total of 28 bulbs. I probably spent over $200. So, when I got to the flower stage, I just bought a 600w hps online for less than $150. I kept using the CFLs for veg, but I wish half of that was in T5s instead. The CFLs seem cheaper, but the T5s are much more efficient and last longer. It's a pretty close cost/watt comparison when you add up all the costs.

 

[khadine]

Have you thoroughly checked out T5s?

I started with CFLs, bought all the sockets, built a couple big panels - a total of 28 bulbs. I probably spent over $200. So, when I got to the flower stage, I just bought a 600w hps online for less than $150. I kept using the CFLs for veg, but I wish half of that was in T5s instead. The CFLs seem cheaper, but the T5s are much more efficient and last longer. It's a pretty close cost/watt comparison when you add up all the costs.

No I haven't, but I will now!

Thanks