why do people use like a 150 watt CFL that costs around 70 bucks and puts out around 8500 lumens, when they can spend like 40 bucks on 4 42 watt cfls and get 10,000 lumens?

Larger CFLs dont' seem to be too cost effective. Is there any added benefit to them?

Besause a 150 watt is way closer to being like 'the sun,' than a 26 watt or even a 42 watt. Simply put use both. I have 13 watts up to 1130 watts. Use them depending on the circumstances. peace

what ???? that comment about being more like the sun doesnt make any sense

No dude "more like the sun" makes total sense. Think bout it, 4 bulbs or one? In nature plants grow towards the sun acting on photototropism, if you have one big bulb the "whole" plant will face the "sun". But if you have 4 or more smaller point light sources the plant can't take up photons as easily making for inefficient photosynthesis. That's the reason for big CFL's. For the record I'm poor and use all 13-26 watt CFL's, but I also have 600 or so watts of them. Peace out and good growin.

hmmmm, stoner talk. good one

I've read some posts on here from folks who reported that the higher watt CFL's produce less heat. If true, that would be a potential benefit.

well, go get a light meter, the one i have shows that intensity halves at abuot every inch, i wonder if that is the same as the sun ?

42 watt cfls are the most efficient for cost and benefit. People who spend 70 bucks on a 150 watt cfl are idiots. You can make a 150 watt HPS for less than that.

Actually 42's and 55's have proven to be the most efficient overall(Multiple bulbs in those watts) compaired to one large 150 watt. The cost of larger CFLs IMO outweighs their light out put. A 150 watt HPS would also cost about $70. The same as your big CFL but with double the lumens. Also one of the major benifits of smaller cfls is that I can place 8-42's and 4-23's in my flower room and move them around to allow light to reach differnt parts of the plant. Thats 428 watts and 28,000 lumens.

Try to find grow journals using 1 large light over several plants, compared to multiple small light ones. The plants usually suffer from some form of light stess such a stretching or "reaching" for the light source. One of the major benifits of CFL Growing IS THE ABILTY TO MOVE MULTIPLE LIGHTS TO SUIT PLANT NEEDS.

CFL's only penetrate about 24 inches of vegetation effectivly. Meaning any plant grown over 2 feet with cfls will more than like have less dense buds and uneven maturation of flowers. I usually only flower 4 plants under 2 feet in my grow space. They are normally budded from the base of the soil the tip-top of the cola, with relativly dense buds.

hey, what do yo think.im planning to run about 8 26 watt cfls with also a 70 watt hps-is that a good idea??

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