So I've been reading a lot of leds without leds, 100+ pages, love it, and wanted to ask folks their opinion. I got my start as a micro grower, and the community is always close to my heart. I've grown up, but still like to think of improvements i could help others i know make. I know a few micro growers that can pull an oz or two from only four 23w cfls. Yields are restricted with the canopy only being the footprint of the box though (say 8"x18"), and even with a tall case we know the par output of cfls are what they are, even 1" from plant tops the entire grow. We know there are better ways to pay for a watt now. And, more recently in my life I've had so much success with my own vertical grow when i realized how much bigger i could make my own canopy going vert. So, I'm picturing a 2 plant vert grow in a 27x8x18 tall PC tower, with better lights than cfls, boom, both problems solved.
I'm sure the increase in overall canopy, and more PAR, would make for more yield, and better meds. Penetration problem solved also with T5's running the entire height of the grow.
So, keeping in mind only 92W of cfl is what I've found to be the average to attain the aforementioned yields in said 18"x8" footprint, what kind, and how many, 24" T5 bulbs would you vertically put into such a space?... Or wouldn't you at all? ha!
At first i was thinking like two 24" T5's mounted vertically right down the center, a plant on either side, protected from the heat of the bulb. A mini vert grow. But then i thought how little penetration would be a problem and got to wondering if i could also incorporate my love for perpetual growing into this as well. If the strain grown was auto flower and under 24/7 light anyway (like a lot of micro growers do) what if i made one side of the case more for flowering and one more for veg? I'm wondering if putting the T5's vertically on the outsides of the two plants in the case would be better. Say a UVL Red Sun on one side for the plant flowering most, and a Fiji Purple on the other side for the one not as far along. I'm not sure which would be best if only going with two, or if one can even get a ballast to power only two 24" T5's so ill stop rambling now
Thoughts?