CFL predicament

So, I want to try a cfl grow and have been checking the internet for some good lights, I have two different routes I could go down, which do you think would be the best. I could go for some compact cfl's, buy 3 red spectrum 125w's and 2 blue 125w's and 3 sockets so I can run both blus and a red for veg then switch to all red for flower. The 125w cfls are £15 each and the sockets are £2.50 each so it would cost me about £90 including postage. Or I could get 2 red 125w cfls and a 144w t5 tube set up from this site http://www.nlites.co.uk/growgood/eco-light.htm the whole thing including the hanger for the set up, the 125w cfls and the sockets would cost about £125. My growspace is 20'' deep, 36'' wide and 6' high. What do you think?

Man, I 've done 9 gorws with CFLS, each time I increased the number of bulbs and wattage.
3 years ago, I started with two 65s. Later added some 85s, then some 105s.

Point I want ot make is, those 125s DO GET HOT! I've had 4 65s, and 4 85s, with NO heat, but when I added thsoe 105s, they DO GET HOT.

You go with `125s, you'll have to VENT the heat.

im running 6 26w (100w equ) and it is just bearable in my small box for the girls, but the outside the box temp is 30 degrees...lol

Roseman said:

Man, I 've done 9 gorws with CFLS, each time I increased the number of bulbs and wattage.
3 years ago, I started with two 65s. Later added some 85s, then some 105s.

Point I want ot make is, those 125s DO GET HOT! I've had 4 65s, and 4 85s, with NO heat, but when I added thsoe 105s, they DO GET HOT.

You go with `125s, you'll have to VENT the heat.

Click to expand...

Hey Roseman...Question for ya that no one seems to want to answer yet. 9 grows, adding lights each grow. How much have you spent on bulbs and is it worth it compared to what a MH/HPS system costs?

I'm not hating on CFL's just wondering because EVERYONE!! keeps adding bulbs and t-5's and even HPS/MH. What is the fascination with CFL's?

I've had a whack at the vents already and I think it should work. I've taken 4 computer fans wired them up to 2 phone chargers, one of the fans is the intake, one is the output which goes through a carbon filter made from a sock stuffed with activated carbon in a 500ml coke bottle with the ends chopped off. and the other two fans are blowing on the plants.

Boneman said:

Hey Roseman...Question for ya that no one seems to want to answer yet. 9 grows, adding lights each grow. How much have you spent on bulbs and is it worth it compared to what a MH/HPS system costs?

I'm not hating on CFL's just wondering because EVERYONE!! keeps adding bulbs and t-5's and even HPS/MH. What is the fascination with CFL's?

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Here in the uk ballasts for hps lights are about £90 or $150 so spending £100 on some cfls isn't that bad.

I am and I started as a "Personal Use" grower. Also a STEALTH grower.
I started growing in doors 3 years ago, and I was overly paranoid, which, really, in my opinion, we ought to be. I WANTED TO BE SAFE, NOT SORRY.
I worried aobut heliocopters seeking my lights with heat detectors.
I worried about my power bill.
I worried about HEAT and the expense of VENTING.
I just wanted to grow enought for me to smoke for free.
I did not want to spend a lot of money but i figured IF I spent the price of a bag of two bags, and got two or three free bags back, I would be glad and come out on top.
I wanted a STEALTH grow, so I could have STRAIGHT friends visit and not know I was growing but I did not want to run ducts and vents and fans.
I do not chagne my own oil in the car, I am not a DIY kind of person, I make too many mistakes and so I looked for a KIT.

ANSWER?
CFLS.

I bought a kit, that came with two 65 watt bulbs, a 6500 K and a 2700 K. I was so tickled, and every one on every grow site I visited said I would get more, if i had more watts or more lumens, or more LIGHT.
So, I added two 85s the next grow. Still no HEAT, still no spike in electirc bill. So each grow, I added more 65s and 85s and last year, two 105s. And then I found some cheap 42s at Lowes and Walmart, for the sides.
When I added the two 105s, I did have a heat problem, they do get hot. And I had the rpblem with my circuit brakers, I had 4 65s, 4 85s, 4 105s, and about 6 42s. Each and eVERY grow, that I added Lights, I got more yield, and bigger buds.

Now I got :












and it's like an addiction, to add more lights.

I am very happy with 4 65s,a dn 4 85s, vERY HAPPY, adn the additional 105s are great, but I have to keep a fan running and I am not as STEALTHY as I used to be.

Dual Spectrum 65 High Output Fluorescent $23.99 for 65s

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$29.99 for 85s
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And $9 each for the 42s.

The pics do not show the 42s that I put ont he sides, on a STAND I made from a metal shelf.

I like being able to move the CFLS around, adn lower them down in between the plants, the clamp- reflectors are just $10 each.

I don't know about Siberia but it's COLD in the uk this time of year. I think the cold would be a bigger problem then heat off the lights, and I have some venting anyway and it's a pretty big growspace, 28 square feet. I think the temperature should be ok. Good luck with your future grows. I think I'm going to put 3 plants in and veg for about 5 weeks under 2 blues and a red then flower with all red until they're done. Do you think that would be plenty of light?

Armadillo Slim said:

I don't know about Siberia but it's COLD in the uk this time of year. I think the cold would be a bigger problem then heat off the lights, and I have some venting anyway and it's a pretty big growspace, 28 square feet. I think the temperature should be ok. Good luck with your future grows. I think I'm going to put 3 plants in and veg for about 5 weeks under 2 blues and a red then flower with all red until they're done. Do you think that would be plenty of light?

Click to expand...

Very adequate.

Info on CFLs - Marijuana Growing read that

I think i've read that before on your original post, I was just wondering whether it would be worth the extra money for the t5 tubes, they're supposed to be more efficient and the tubes are easier to replace becuase in a cfl you have to throw the whole thing away. But if 3 125w cfls are plenty enough then I won't bother with the t5's but then again, you can never have too much light.

Armadillo Slim said:

So, I want to try a cfl grow and have been checking the internet for some good lights, I have two different routes I could go down, which do you think would be the best. I could go for some compact cfl's, buy 3 red spectrum 125w's and 2 blue 125w's and 3 sockets so I can run both blus and a red for veg then switch to all red for flower. The 125w cfls are £15 each and the sockets are £2.50 each so it would cost me about £90 including postage. Or I could get 2 red 125w cfls and a 144w t5 tube set up from this site http://www.nlites.co.uk/growgood/eco-light.htm the whole thing including the hanger for the set up, the 125w cfls and the sockets would cost about £125. My growspace is 20'' deep, 36'' wide and 6' high. What do you think?

Click to expand...

I used CFLs and got tired of all of the damn wires,light sockets,splitters etc.
I finally changed over to a 400 watt HID system , much cleaner operation, BUT I know there is the cost thing , if I were in your situation I would go with a T-5 set-up , augmented with side light from CFLs.

llLOU said:

I used CFLs and got tired of all of the damn wires,light sockets,splitters etc.
I finally changed over to a 400 watt HID system , much cleaner operation, BUT I know there is the cost thing , if I were in your situation I would go with a T-5 set-up , augmented with side light from CFLs.

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Yeah, that was my original plan, 6 24w t5's that I could use cool white tubes in for veg and red tubes in for flower plus a 125w red cfl on each side in flower. But that would be £35 more then just 3 cfl's and I wouldn't get much more light. I thought about getting a HPS but the ballasts are ridiculously expensive and I heard they were quite noisy so I decided to go for flourescents.

A pack of 10 15w 6,5ooK , CFLs cost $12 , light sockets cost $3 a peace , power cordes = priceless cuz I saved them from my old DVD player and such that died on me. For me growing with CFLs is better cost wise , heat wise , I have a 45w CFL going about 12 hours a day when I'm awake and it isn't heating my room up not a single bit.


I'm planing on doing a CFL grow but I'm just trying to get my grow area done up , been busy with christmas , present shopping , wraping presents , family dinners and such that I've only done 1 out of 3 walls perfectly , and still have the seeling of my grow area to do. The reason why I'm doing it so that it looks perfect is because I am also painting my room to so a half job on my closet and or room = waist of money. But feel free to check out my grow journal , I have the stuff that I'm gonna use posted up and leave messages.

Yeah I'll check it out, I'm waiting for some money to come through so I can get started myself, I should be finished for may if it comes through soon just in time for summer.

Roseman said:

Info on CFLs - Marijuana Growing read that

Click to expand...

Thanks for the answer Roseman But the questions still lingers how much has it cost? I truly admire your set up and results and I am only asking a dollar amount question which still has yet to be answered. I am coming up with approx $600.00 if I calculated correctly from your post? Is that close?

I am not CFL hating, nor am I trying to make any type of point. That is not my intentions. I am just trying to figure out, for my own self how much it costs. I can never get a straight answer from anyone I have ever asked.

Beautiful setup and fantastic results my man!! Thats for sure!!

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Our Price: $99.95 Normal Price: $129.95

Extras that you need add about $100 more, plus lights and reflector clamps:
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Our Price: $79.99

Is about $279 total, and that is what i started with 3 years ago. You get a 5% discount for saying the word GROWTIPS, so the kits is about $260.

How's that? And you could DIY for much less and jsut buy the parts you need.

Roseman said:

Man, I 've done 9 gorws with CFLS, each time I increased the number of bulbs and wattage.
3 years ago, I started with two 65s. Later added some 85s, then some 105s.

Point I want ot make is, those 125s DO GET HOT! I've had 4 65s, and 4 85s, with NO heat, but when I added thsoe 105s, they DO GET HOT.

You go with `125s, you'll have to VENT the heat.

Click to expand...

i'm running 20 of those 125's and yes there is some heat. But remember that you need to vent anyway to circulate co2, the other is have a fan rotating over the plants and another 1 blowing down from the ceiling. This will make the temps uniform.Oh yeah..I cut vent holes in the light hoods as well. Mine are made of wood painted white on the inside.

Anotheroldephart said:

i'm running 20 of those 125's and yes there is some heat. But remember that you need to vent anyway to circulate co2, the other is have a fan rotating over the plants and another 1 blowing down from the ceiling. This will make the temps uniform.Oh yeah..I cut vent holes in the light hoods as well. Mine are made of wood painted white on the inside.

Click to expand...

Why do you use wood painted white? I would of thought using tin foil would be easier, or does that not work as well? My entire grow will cost me about £155 for 4 plants; £90 for all the lights, £30 for soil, plants pots and nutrients, £30 for seeds (white widow from ministry of cannabis) and £5 for a bag of activated carbon for my filter.

I had the wood and the paint and with paint the reflection is uniform. I couldn't go to the sheet metal shop.."excuse me.. I need 5 hoods for lights" Umm No.. I think I'm going to cover the paint with mylar to increase the reflectivity. i wish mine were that inexpensive*lol* But i grow for several med users..unofficial of course in this state. Besides..growing is addictive..Let's see..WW DP Kush AK47..SSOOO many choices.Ya know!