Cfl grow

this is my first grow and i am very excited!. I am running 3 23w 6500k and 2 23w 5000k lights. my grow room is 2x2x4 and i am building a box to these specs. Growing in a soil mix of MG seed starter and MG potting soil with added compost. i have run in to a nute burn problem on the bigger plant. my other plant is just entering the veg state. watering schedule is wedensday and saturday for the big one and about once day for the little one. the small one will be getting transplanted later tonight after i find a organic soil locally. my lighting is 24/0 until my box is complete then i will go 18/6 until 12/12 for flower. i dont have ph test but i have been using cub brand spring water. this should be 6.5 correct?

few question for u guys. what wattage cfls are you using? where did u get them? mainly speaking of 6500k cfls as i have found higher watt 2700k but not 6500k.


a few pics.
 

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B166ER420

Well-Known Member
Yes, your spring water should be around 6.5 to 7.5:).I found my 6500k's at Kroger, I bought 4 they come in a 2/pk.It looks like you should have added some perlite to your soil, it could affect your root growth and poor drainage:(.I have no idea why you have yellow leaves,im sure someone will have an opinion or reason why:)GL.peace
 

Bakatare666

Well-Known Member
this is my first grow and i am very excited!. I am running 3 23w 6500k and 2 23w 5000k lights. my grow room is 2x2x4 and i am building a box to these specs. Growing in a soil mix of MG seed starter and MG potting soil with added compost. i have run in to a nute burn problem on the bigger plant. my other plant is just entering the veg state. watering schedule is wedensday and saturday for the big one and about once day for the little one. the small one will be getting transplanted later tonight after i find a organic soil locally. my lighting is 24/0 until my box is complete then i will go 18/6 until 12/12 for flower. i dont have ph test but i have been using cub brand spring water. this should be 6.5 correct?

few question for u guys. what wattage cfls are you using? where did u get them? mainly speaking of 6500k cfls as i have found higher watt 2700k but not 6500k.


a few pics.
Do you splash on those leaves when you water? That might be what's giving you that burning.
I vegged with 4x13w 5000k, and 2x23w 2700k bulbs for a month, and am now a couple weeks into flower, and am sorry i waited so long to do it, but Friday added another 200+w of 2700k, and I swear it's helped already.
As far as higher wattage, look online at Lowe's if you have a Lowe's close by, that's where I got my new ones, and I recall seeing some higher wattage ones online, but they don't stock them-you'd have to order.
I'm growing in MG moisture control, with about 40% MG perlite, which also says it has nutes in it and have had no burning, so I don't think it's your soil giving problems.
 

MikeHarrington

Active Member
Apparently Mg soil nutrients are released by water, so if you water too much you're plants will get burned. I had that same problem
 
hahahaha yeah then i guess we both made the noob mistake... i will be switching to new soil before flowering tho. that way i control what nutes the plant is getting. im trying to do this grow as simple as possible. on a pretty tight budget as well. so we will see how this goes. ive done hours of research and starting to feel confident in this. my box is going to be done in about a week here. i still have to come up with a ventilation system. i have a fan but need and intake and exhaust duct box is 2ft wide 2ft long and 4ft high. the back will be up against a wall in my closet. which is right next to window. any ideas you guys have for me? i ve been doing research in the grow room setup & design but havent had any luck with what i need.
 

Bakatare666

Well-Known Member
Don't forget to add some Perlite also.
I am using MG moisture control, with about 40% MG perlite, and the perlite alone made a big difference in drainage from my last grow without.
 

minnesmoker

Well-Known Member
I know I'm late to the party, but... With CFLs, higher wattage per bulb is not always the most efficient, or cheapest. If you were to get 3 65w 2700k bulbs, it'll set you back 15-30 dollars, you'll have 130.065 watts (roughly, with a shield, that's 2/3rds of the full wattage) of usable light (remember, the top of the coil on the CFL is putting out as much of the light as the bottom.) A single 200 watt will set you back somewhere between 35-90. You'll be able to utilize approx. 133.4 watts. and all of it will be at a single source. You can utilize 3 bulbs more efficiently, and cover more area than with a single 200 watt, you'll also have a difference of about 3.2 watts of usable lights, with an expenditure of 5 watts less for the 3 bulbs. Wattage does NOT translate directly into lumens, or usable light, but they can help measure efficiency.

The math:
3 65w CFL (195w total): ((65/.667)*3)
1 200w CFL (200w total) 200/.667

The reason for the arbitrary appearing 2/3rds: Half of the bulb illuminates away from the plants, but most growers utilize a shield, which will reflect about 70% of the light back, at an angle which will benefit the plants.
 
so things having been going better im still seeing some nute burn. today i transplanted plants into mg organic mix with added perlite. the bigger plant is 35 days old and i guess has a tri foliage? three leaves each node. plant number 2 is about 20 days old. will be switching to 12/12 in about 2 weeks. also box is done but still needs some tweaks for vents
 

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