Lighting from the side.
- Thread starter Hank
- Start date
i'm not familiar with using cfls as a main source of light, so i don't know if you have enough light or not, but if you haven't already, i would check out the lighting section of the growfaq- there are some good posts in there about calculating how many lumens are getting to your plants. side lighting can be really good, i'm doing it with some cfls, but i've got a 400w mh above my garden.
Smoke2Live420
New Member
i have 3 flours. and 1 26 watt cfl (=100 watt) on one plant and its nice..it starting to get white hairs..its crazy.
i got my 400 watt metal halide agrosun multi spectrum bulb, lumatek digital ballast, cord set, and econo hood for $300 at the local hydro store.
most people would say that mh isn't ideal for flowering, because the color spectrum of the mh is better for what the plant needs in veg. mine is a multi spectrum bulb, so it provides some hps spectrum light, which is ideal for what the plant needs during flowering. you'll get bigger, denser buds with hps rather than mh. however, since i'm on my first grow, and building up my equipment a bit at a time, i decided to use mh for the whole grow to see how it does. there is a lot of talk about mh being better for more thc production because of the uvb light it emits... supposedly the result is that you have smaller, fluffier buds with mh, but they are stronger in thc. for what it's worth, i'm going to add a 600 w hps to my next grow's flowering period, but i'm gonna keep the mh in there...
growtall420
Active Member
I just bought this 400 watt hps for $140 including shipping yesterday at htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=47929
(would have made it a link but it has to be approved)
(would have made it a link but it has to be approved)
So what im saying is i'd rather spend 140.00 on weed than lighting. I dunno.growtall420
Active Member
you may miss the money this week but it'll more than pay for it self in the long run.
Puffin Afatty
Active Member
I like this idea too...I wonder though, if another 400w HPS on top wouldnt produce more than lighting the sides with 320w flouro???
The problem is the light intensity decreasing as it gets further from the plant. If you have some 3 foot plants with a nice green canopy on top, the light won't reach the lower branches. Using side lighting would help the lower branches I would think. Using CFL or floro for side lightning (in sufficient wattage), you could place your lights fairly close to the plant. You'd get more lumens with a vertical HID, but you have to deal with the heat and keep a longer distance between bulb and light.
smokeganja420
Active Member
i grow my marijuana in the dark light is for the weak and shitty growers....so ha beotch
andyshrew420
Well-Known Member
ya they should do fine, i've had 4 plants all at once go thru both veg and flowering stage under 6-13watt cfls and 2-26watt cfls in a 1.5x2.5 foot box in my closet just used 2 pc fans for air circulation came out just fine