What is the best light to use for growing?

I'm starting out with seeds,after they start growing and placed into soil and I'd like to know what is the best light to use for this first time grow

Ah the eternal question...if only we would have known it would only take a post like this,to settle this once and for all..you are gonna hear a million opinions.All of them right and wrong at the same time.

Every light has its pros and cons.
MH/HPS:
Most tested light is MH/HPS up to 600w with great yields. It's efficiency can be improved by vertical growing in a concentrical arrange. The problem with mh/hps is its cost (bulb/ballast/reflector/cooling system) and the low energy efficiency, meaning it loses too much energy by heat emision and it has to be too distant from the plant.
CFL:
It has been growing in popularity last few years, gaining acceptance from experts growers. It's highly energy efficient, it doesn't emit too much heat and it can be placed closer to the plant. Its best quality is the high resin output, with CFL you'll get frosty buds no matter the yield's size, the reason for this can be found on it's UV output. Bad thing with bigger cfl bulbs is that they lose efficiency, going with many 23w cfl bulbs would be better than one 100w bulb. Their color range is not so efficient either for our purposes, 2700K and 6500K being the most common, while the color t° should be at 3000K - 4500K - 5700K. Plus, CFL tend to be more efficient horizontally placed, and it's harder to do so.
LED:
The most infamous one, it actually has been proben to be excelent for our purposes, COB LEDS have the lead for now, with better results than smd and other techs, using one high output 100w COB 4500K can be enough for a "little" plant.
More info about Leds on the forum.

this light is perfect for veg,bud,not a lot of heat,small spaces
http://nanoluxtech.com/products/cmh-315w-fixture/

What Chuck-Estevez said...^^^^ Dont forget to consider CMH too... picking a light is a hot topic to many... I have used CFL, MH/HPS, CMH and dabbled with LED supplemental and looked into COB LED ... they all have pros and cons... the best choice is what works in your situation, environment and budget...

which kind of grow lights would you recommend for the first time grow?

FirefoxxKitsune said:

which kind of grow lights would you recommend for the first time grow?

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How much space do you have? Are you using a tent, closet or room? How many plants? Is this the start of a new hobby, as it does get quite addictive? What is your budget?

Just get a HPS but be prepared to deal with more heat.

I got CFL, wish I'd have spent the money towards a hps instead. My buds are frosty as anything but size at week 5 since 12/12 switch is pretty disappointing.

I may be acquiring a 400 watt hps soon though.

I found a hydrofarm t5 4ft 6 bulb for $100 on Craigslist its only my 4th grow and the light works really good but for seedlings I think CFLs work better till they reach a certain size but go with what you can afford I started with CFLs spend tons of cash so I'd probly just buy a decent light off the bat well good luck bro

chuckie86 said:

I found a hydrofarm t5 4ft 6 bulb for $100 on Craigslist its only my 4th grow and the light works really good but for seedlings I think CFLs work better till they reach a certain size but go with what you can afford I started with CFLs spend tons of cash so I'd probly just buy a decent light off the bat well good luck bro

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That's what I'm saying, I could have got a 400 w HPs with ballast and reflector for 60 pounds, but I thought I'd spend half and get a 200 w CFL with reflector and fittings for 30 pounds. Now I'm growing half what I could have been. Not all bad though as I have a nice cfl veg light to go with the flowering HPs when I get it.

I starters on cfl. Moved a 400w HP's, then added a 600w HP's. I yielded 15 times more.
But the heat,
The price of the bubs,
Ballast take a shit once in a while,
Money money money.

I grow on a micro scale 11"x20"x29". I started with cfls and battled heat and disappointment for awhile. I upgraded to a 70w hps and ended up with the same airy buds. I upgraded again to a 100w cmh but it was always to hot and I wanted more headroom. I finally settled on a custom built led that mounts through the top of my cab.

The led has worked the best out of all the lights I've tried. I used two Cree CXA-3070 cobs and a dimmable driver for each cob. I can run them each at 70w if I want but I prefer them between 40-50w. The extra headroom has been very helpful too.

After dabbling with CFL and HID for a while, LED is where I put my money now. Best gpw and in my opinion, better quality nug.
I like the Vero 29 and 18 cobs in the 4000k.