question about cfls

[qldstoner]

hi all, just starting to set up my first grow room and wondering how many 130w cfl bulbs i should use. i am planning to build a room around 2400mmlong x 1200wide x 2000 high. i have found 4 130w cfl bulbs on ebay.heres the link http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...em=370338836024 . i am going to make my own shade from folded aluminium to house them all. would that be enough light for good veg or should i go more. any help would be appreciated, thanks

[Frazz]

heya qldstoner welcome to OzStoners ... start with about 20 of them globes at minimum, 30 would be better though, depends on your budget i guess

 

im curious as to why you would want to use cfls, as they are really only toys that grow fairy-floss buds

honestly i cant see much point in the exercise, nevertheless

 

all the best

[Chronmasta]

im curious as to why you would want to use cfls, as they are really only toys that grow fairy-floss buds

lmfao

yeah fuck the CFL`s off n go the HID mate

 

 

good luck with it, whatever way ya decide to go

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chron

[qldstoner]

thanks for your replies, seriously 20 or 30 bulbs. thats 4000watts or more of current draw just for them i am only using them for veg, i will be using 2 600w hps for flower.

[Innocent criminal]

Good to hear your not intending to piss fart around with fluro's for bloom, although Frazz may be overestimating a just a wee bit he wouldnt be far off for a decent bloom .

With a room that size I would use at least 8 x 130w fluro's to give good light balance (a decent minimum for HID lighting would be 2x400w).

 

[Frazz]

ok these are just my estimates but lets say your hps light produces 150 lumens per watt and you fluoro produces 75 lumens per watt

so you will need at least 2 times the wattage in fluoros than hps

given the dimensions of your grow room the minimum of hps light you need for strong lush growth is going to be 40w per sq ft, which equates to about 1250watts

personally i prefer to grow on about 50-60 w per sq ft as that gives tight buds comparable to outdoors

 

perhaps someone else who has more experience with fluoros can point out whether my estimates reflect real world operational conditions