Fluro

[Wal]

I'm fairly new to growing and would like some advice on fluro tubes. I have two small plants in a double door cupboard, I am using a twin 2ft tube set up, at the moment I have grow-lux tubes , are they any good and if not what ones should I use? Thanks

[Luke Skywalker]

I think growlux are okay, but the main thing is to have good wattage, (as much as you can, as fluoros don't put out much light) keep the lamps close to the plants as possible, and to have the right "temperature" lights.

 

Fluoros can be measured in kelvin temps, which shows what kind of spectra they produce. You'll be wanting ones which are around the 5000/6000 mark for vegetative growth, which is more influenced and enhanced by the blue part of the light spectra, and ones around 2500-3500 for flowering, which is helped along by the red part.

 

You can certainly use fluoro tubes to great effect, but there have been some newer developments in fluoro technology which allows them to be much more effective as an indoor lighting system for plants. You can get compact fluoros, which use far less wattage than a conventional light, (incandescent, which you can't use for growing anyway) and are now available in anything up to 48w or even higher some places, and you can also get some high-intensity fluoros, sometimes with wattages past the 130-200 w mark. These are generally thought of as better for growing indoors, because they put out more light than a comparable tube, and are more effective in growing plants as that's what they're designed for.

 

Hope that helps.

[RobbieGanjaSeed]

I'll use fluoros as long as I continue to grow weed. In fact, they may well be the last things I ever have use for, if I ever return to outdoor growing.

 

They're outstanding for veg growth, but I've never been able to get any heads to do well under them. I have seen a pic of some heads supposedly grown completely under fluoros, but I can't vouch it was true though.

 

My brother in law was broke and wanted to start growing inside. He had a string of batten holders from a christmas light set up. Ten in a line. He put a compact fluoro in each holder, each one emitting a total of 100watts. The veg growth was out of the world, but again, the heads were just a joke. Truely not worth it.

 

If I ever go back to growing outside, I'd use fluoros for cloning and to get them up to 30 cm. Fluoro light diminishes extremely quick as you move away from the source. So as already said, lower the lights to the very tops of the plants. The plants can suffer them touching even for long hours. Maybe even days. Even if they do burn it's minor. The benifit of the extra growth for the lower lights, far outweighs any damage that could ever be caused by the temps.

 

The thing to think of with veging plants with fluoros, and I wont go into heading, as I just don't believe it's viable for the time/money/risk involved; is max. watts. The most watts you can get from a fluoro tube is "cool white", and

'warm white" lights. Geting tubes in the right spectrum will reduce the overall amount of light available to the plant, and seeing as hopefully you'll have a HID by the time heads are due, the appropriate spectrum for vegging is well and truely covered in the el-cheapo 3 dollar white light tubes.

 

There's a new fluoro available in hydro shops that plugs right into normal 240 volt wall outlets. It's a huge compact fluoro looking outfit. i forget how many watts it puts out, but it's a hell of a fluoro. But if you're going to lay money out for one of those, it'd be best to go for a HID light really.

 

cheers

rob

 

PS. Here's a couple plants I have under fluoros right now. I raised up a batch of "Double Dutch", sexed and culled them without having to use up precious space under the heading lights. I usually use 4 x 4 foot fluoros set close together. Fluoros are truely under-rated in the grow.

[Wal]

Thanks guys, I have upgraded to a 400 son t and there doing much better now