I am building a stealth scrog setup for 2 plants out an old nightstand. I considered using a 100w MH or 2x100 MH and then a 150w HPS to finish, but it looks like the space between the plant and the lights can be at best 8". I would need a LOT of cooling to keep from burning the plants which kinda defeats being stealth.

I have room for about 12 or so 23w CFLs (276 total watts) and am looking for advice on what bulbs to use and where I can get a good deal since I alreadyh own the HID lights.

if your looking for cheep low watt cfls go to walmart or menards lowes or any place like that. gl on your grow. may you be cursed with many buds.

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for the price to lumen measure, 26w is the way to go
for the best deal on the 5500k cfl's, which are a bit harder to find, home depot had the best deal i could find

you want 6500k bulbs for veg. 2700k for flower. i use both spectrums for veg and flower but i change the ratios around.

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dude thats gonna be hot, just a fyi, i was running 6 23 w cfls and switched to a 150w hps and it actually cooled my box down almost 5 degrees... i was one of the lucky ones to get the $20 econo light hps. i add the cfls now when i can for more light, if the temps permit

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@Kingb - thanks for the clue, I was wondering if anyone had any experience with this. I plan on setting up the night-stand w/ 3 pc fans for exhaust at the back and 1 or 2 for intake at the bottom rear.

Also I took the fronts of the drawers and to make it look legit I planned on screwing them on, I could always rig the bottom drawer face to open on hinges to increase airflow

But is 6" really enough distance to safely run 150w HPS?

I have never used HPS, but i would think 6' is enough for only a 150 watt bulb.
I wouldn't bother with PC fans. I run 286 watts of CFL's from 13 watters, to a 130 watt, and I need 3 fans pumping to keep it cool.

I was also thinking about just running a 150 watt HPS and a few of my CFLs. In the end I will probably just buy the 250 watt HPS, though I'm curious as to how these different systems compare.
How does 270 watts of CFL compare to 150 watt HPS? and to a 250 watt HPS?

Home depot has great prices on some cfls, today found some 23 watt 6500k bulbs for 97 cents. Also they have 2700k 68 watt cfls for under $10.

well you just have to look at lumens per watt...270 watts of cfls should give you even distribution of lights @4-to 6 inches away comfortably....but thats 270 watts@a lower lumen count than a 250 watt hps which should give you close to 10,500 lumens(if not more)of intense light,add to that a reflector and you could essentially cover a single plant with intense light vs the low lumens per watt that cfl's have,but dont get me wrong cfls are great if you stock up on 42's and 65 watters...about 8 can give you great results....your power consumption budget will usually dictate which one you should use

I already own a 100w MH lamp rated at 9k lumens and a 150w HPS rated at 15.8k lumens. So for me its really a question of can I make it work. I am thinking of using tempered glass to create a barrier between the growing space and the lights and keep that well ventilated to reduce heat.