is it warm white or daylight/cool white CFL? short answer is you can put CFL as close as 2 inches away if it is daylight. If it is warm white you should get a daylight bulb for vegetative growth. I water my plants 2x a week. 1 time lightly and 1 time just enough so a little dribbles out the bottom. you should feel the top inch of soil.. if nothing sticks to your fingers then it is time to water. You should get a timer for the lights.
some popular light cycles for vegging are 24/0, 18/6, 16/8, and there is one that I just recently switched to called Gas Lantern Method aka 12-1...
gas lantern method is 13 hours of light total.. 12 hours on, 5.5 hours off, 1 hour on, 5.5 hours off... (24 hours total) repeat. This method is best for conserving energy.
24/0 lights always on... this works but I feel like there is more work getting the plants adjusted to flowering light cycle and costs a lot of money to run this way.
18/6 similar to 24/0 except you give it a small dark cycle (helps cool the room and save a little energy... plus some people think a dark period helps the plant use its energy more efficiently)
Its all a matter of preference and what works for your grow room. Gas lantern method is the safest method to go with for security and saving money.
