Cheap CFL setups

Pineboy856

Pineboy856

New Member
Hey everyone, wanted to start a thread containing cheap cfl setups that run efficiently, feel free to ask questions, post pictures, and drop comments so we can spread some advice to each other so we can all grow great weed for a low price on a setup. I'm posting pictures of my setup to show how inexpensive it can be to get started. This closet costed me less than $100
 

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THE KONASSURE

Well-Known Member
dump the cfl`s

buy e27 induction bulbs

40w ones are like $20 to $60 and 40w of induction matches 105w cfl`s

or you can look for a bigger lamp I see 40w to 400w induction lamps on ebay go for £10 to £100 all the time

way better than cfl`s ok for starting babies going to your local supermarket and getting some bulbs is all well and good but when its time to flower its nice to have something better
 
Pineboy856

Pineboy856

New Member
My general setup consists of a 4ft section of 2x4 with joist brackets holding it up, I have brackets going up the wall so I can adjust the level of my light structure, each bracket is 67¢ and the 2x4 less than $2. The standing lamp was an extra around the house but are usually around $15. The lamp has 3 sockets which I attached a splitter to each one to turn 3 into 6. There's 4-100watt bulbs and 2-150watt bulbs. For the splitters and bulbs it costed around $35. I have my walls and ceiling lined with panda film which you can find online $15 and up depending how much space you need to cover. Other than that its soil and nutrients but everyone has their own liking to wich brand.
 
Pineboy856

Pineboy856

New Member
THE KONASSURE said:
dump the cfl`s

buy e27 induction bulbs

40w ones are like $20 to $60 and 40w of induction matches 105w cfl`s

or you can look for a bigger lamp I see 40w to 400w induction lamps on ebay go for £10 to £100 all the time

way better than cfl`s ok for starting babies going to your local supermarket and getting some bulbs is all well and good but when its time to flower its nice to have something better
Click to expand...
For flowering I plan on buying a HPS 400watt I have a separate closet for
 
T

THE KONASSURE

Well-Known Member
hps will do the job on a budget as long as the heat is not an issue

maybe a 30w to 70w cmh would make a good veg bulb when your ready to swap out the cfl`s

I`m a budget man too only cfl`s I`ve ever found worth the hassle past a few for seedlings/early veg are the 105w 3000k ones (they draw 105w) and even they are kinda lame, £6 to £10 each so cheap but waste of power compared to other lights out there, but they work I guess
 
GuyLeDuche

GuyLeDuche

Well-Known Member
Pineboy856 said:
Hey everyone, wanted to start a thread containing cheap cfl setups that run efficiently, feel free to ask questions, post pictures, and drop comments so we can spread some advice to each other so we can all grow great weed for a low price on a setup. I'm posting pictures of my setup to show how inexpensive it can be to get started. This closet costed me less than $100
Click to expand...

This setup was about $80 total I think...

PICT0001 (1).JPG PICT0003 (4).JPG PICT0003 (5).JPG PICT0011.JPG


I started with a small modular greenhouse meant for tomatoes ($20) and took a section out to make it the right height...

Next were the 2 4 bulb fixtures, each use 1 "T" splitter and 2 "Y" s , with the "T"s hard-wired to extension cords I cut the ends off of and spliced on, then topped with $1 store turkey trays which I then cut out above the bulbs for heat venting. ( I estimate $20 per fixture)

Finally I wrapped it in a scrap of old panda film and stuck a small exhaust fan in the roof and a scrap of ducting with an intake/circ fan blowing in fresh air ($20 for the 2 fans)


I don't use it anymore, but it was a cheap solution that worked well for me....
 
Pineboy856

Pineboy856

New Member
GuyLeDuche said:
This setup was about $80 total I think...

View attachment 3795492 View attachment 3795493 View attachment 3795494 View attachment 3795497


I started with a small modular greenhouse meant for tomatoes ($20) and took a section out to make it the right height...

Next were the 2 4 bulb fixtures, each use 1 "T" splitter and 2 "Y" s , with the "T"s hard-wired to extension cords I cut the ends off of and spliced on, then topped with $1 store turkey trays which I then cut out above the bulbs for heat venting. ( I estimate $20 per fixture)

Finally I wrapped it in a scrap of old panda film and stuck a small exhaust fan in the roof and a scrap of ducting with an intake/circ fan blowing in fresh air ($20 for the 2 fans)


I don't use it anymore, but it was a cheap solution that worked well for me....
Click to expand...
That's an awesome setup, its funny because I saw turkey pans at the dollar store and thought about grabbing em, thanks for the pics and happy growing
 
Rottedroots

Rottedroots

Well-Known Member
If money and space are concerns than CFL's make for a great poor man's grow. I've successfully produced just shy of 1.5 ounces per 2.5 gallon mop buckets. My CFL set up was a 4x2x2 ft plywood box capable of holding four buckets. I used cheap 5000k daylight bulbs to veg and 2700k soft white to flower. 19 or 20 hours of light while vegging and 12/12 to flower. I did split splitters with gooseneck splitters and ran a couple of computer fans spliced onto 9volt transformers as well as a very small heater for warmth when lights out. I'm upgrading from the old box but it will see life again to start cuttings or hold a mother. If money is tight a little cash and a MacGyver mentality can make it very rewarding as well as entertaining to grow with CFL's. The key to keeping the cost down are stay away from the grow stores and not buying pot specific products. You don't need expensive soil or nutrients to grow a weed. The industry has made it overly complicated and costly and we pay the price. I was just looking at fans in a grow magazine and I know you can get them much cheaper without a pic of a pot leaf on them.
 

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TigerSquad

TigerSquad

Active Member
THE KONASSURE said:
dump the cfl`s

buy e27 induction bulbs

40w ones are like $20 to $60 and 40w of induction matches 105w cfl`s

or you can look for a bigger lamp I see 40w to 400w induction lamps on ebay go for £10 to £100 all the time

way better than cfl`s ok for starting babies going to your local supermarket and getting some bulbs is all well and good but when its time to flower its nice to have something better
Click to expand...
Do youre self a big solid and find a hydro store and get a full spec cfl. For what ever reason you choose this lighting media, or if your like me you thought mh or hps would be too hot for your area so you choose cfl. I was 3 weeks into flower before i bought a 125watt full spec.
And make sure its full spec. You can do it with any 1650lumn cfl from the store but you need a lot of them, and they need to be very close. If your going grocery store cfls Then mix the spec with cool/daylight and warm stay away from the 3000k color temp the plants dont need that color your best bet is 2700k (that even may be too close to 3k ) but its what i used; i hade 14 of them and some random led sticks to help with lux.

Just stay with full spec and you cant go wrong. Even in full spec; They make warm and cool color tones. (flower/veg)

Idk if youve thought about MH or HPS but i have a 600w digitial MH i paid $20 for and its 55k lumns.

Now i was told (this is untested by me ) you can run the same MH bulb throught the entire grow. It will keep your plant short and bushy with massive trich coverage. Thats what ive been reading anywayz lol.

And im not knocking the e27 indctos idk what that is this is just my advice about cfls from my own mistakes and things i wish i would have done diffrent. I spent atleast 140 on store bought cfls when i could have gotten an actual grow light for as little as $40. I got really lucky i found my MH lamp fixture at a pawn shop but i took a hudge risk on it because its not new and i including any one who worked there could give me any info on it so i took a chance and my ladies are loving it

Just tomake this reply just a bit longer, lol; have you thought about led. They make full spec and they run at a more efficent rate: Lum\lux and watts/hr.
They have a very similar cost and they can come in prebuilt unita or individuals.
Idk like i said i threw a few in as well. Including a 19watt 6500k duel tube full spec. Led i got from home depot. Its good for veg and to keep my smaller plants nodes closer together.

Or stay compact like rottedroots. Thata a decent cfl grow. Great example of how simple works.
 

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THE KONASSURE

Well-Known Member
TomThe"Ripper" said:
Do youre self a big solid and find a hydro store and get a full spec cfl. For what ever reason you choose this lighting media, or if your like me you thought mh or hps would be too hot for your area so you choose cfl. I was 3 weeks into flower before i bought a 125watt full spec.
And make sure its full spec. You can do it with any 1650lumn cfl from the store but you need a lot of them, and they need to be very close. If your going grocery store cfls Then mix the spec with cool/daylight and warm stay away from the 3000k color temp the plants dont need that color your best bet is 2700k (that even may be too close to 3k ) but its what i used; i hade 14 of them and some random led sticks to help with lux.

Just stay with full spec and you cant go wrong. Even in full spec; They make warm and cool color tones. (flower/veg)

Idk if youve thought about MH or HPS but i have a 600w digitial MH i paid $20 for and its 55k lumns.

Now i was told (this is untested by me ) you can run the same MH bulb throught the entire grow. It will keep your plant short and bushy with massive trich coverage. Thats what ive been reading anywayz lol.

And im not knocking the e27 indctos idk what that is this is just my advice about cfls from my own mistakes and things i wish i would have done diffrent. I spent atleast 140 on store bought cfls when i could have gotten an actual grow light for as little as $40. I got really lucky i found my MH lamp fixture at a pawn shop but i took a hudge risk on it because its not new and i including any one who worked there could give me any info on it so i took a chance and my ladies are loving it

Just tomake this reply just a bit longer, lol; have you thought about led. They make full spec and they run at a more efficent rate: Lum\lux and watts/hr.
They have a very similar cost and they can come in prebuilt unita or individuals.
Idk like i said i threw a few in as well. Including a 19watt 6500k duel tube full spec. Led i got from home depot. Its good for veg and to keep my smaller plants nodes closer together.

Or stay compact like rottedroots. Thata a decent cfl grow. Great example of how simple works.
Click to expand...

I use e27 induction bulbs for my seedlings......... 3000w of led in 1m x 1m or more I`ve been seen doing ? mh ? hps ? I`ve usd 1k supers for veg, induction tubes veg and finish way better than any cfl, hell w for w big induction tubes can smash MH`s for coverage

But when I`m being cheap I diy together some 100w to 1000w led lamps from magic and duct tape.................. How many strains have you grown ?
 
Budzbuddha

Budzbuddha

Well-Known Member
They work fine for micro/ small grows ... I still do it for shits and giggles and sometimes during summer because of heat.

12 bulb Y splitter ( mixed spectrum ) 5000k/6400k/2700k
With 4 way splitter plate i can double lights.

I also add side lighting when necessary.
Shit works for me .....
Took a bit of experimenting but its all good no matter what anybody says.


I even built this " seed pod " - for starting seeds and clones .
image.jpg

I get pretty dense buds with my auto grows using CFL

image.jpg
image.jpg
image.jpg
 
420producer

420producer

Well-Known Member
good lil set up.. but imo. if you would have super cropped that lady you would get an even coverage or even scrogged it. to make the most from them cfl's.. good job :}
 
Pineboy856

Pineboy856

New Member
Pineboy856 here just posting an update on my cheap cfl grow, my blue dream plants are 5 weeks old now and thriving, I'm using black label nutrients, veg A, veg B and root enhance. I've topped each plant twice, so far I'm extremely happy with my results from CFLs. Regardless I'm switching my light source after this grow but its an awesome starter setup for first timers in my opinion, I'll post another update in a few weeks at the start of flower.....
 

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420producer

420producer

Well-Known Member
nice job on your CFL growers . when you say dense?? How dense/weight are you getting with that pic with cola.? how many watts are you using?? side lighting?? i use 150 watt CFLs for my clones and for any plant that looks sickly. i built a CFL grow box for them.very versatile lighting systems.. imo
Budzbuddha said:
They work fine for micro/ small grows ... I still do it for shits and giggles and sometimes during summer because of heat.

12 bulb Y splitter ( mixed spectrum ) 5000k/6400k/2700k
With 4 way splitter plate i can double lights.

I also add side lighting when necessary.
Shit works for me .....
Took a bit of experimenting but its all good no matter what anybody says.


I even built this " seed pod " - for starting seeds and clones .
View attachment 3801880

I get pretty dense buds with my auto grows using CFL

View attachment 3801878
View attachment 3801888
View attachment 3801894
Click to expand...
 
420producer

420producer

Well-Known Member
SPLFreak808 said:
I've used those before, not sure how i feel about 11000 lumens @ 250 watts when you could have 12000 with 110watts. They can flower a plant though
Click to expand...
true ... im just now stepping up to D/E...A local shop has the gavita knock-offs with bulb for 400.00 out the door.. and they doing a lot better than my raptors and with just 3 lights instead of 4. so power is saved.. ? and just raised room temp 2 deg.. with winter coming that will fix that issue.. but for now i have them power down one at a time.. starting at hour 10 i have just 2 and hour 11 just 1 is lit. sorta simulating sunset. or when temp goes past 78 deg a light will power down. has not had to do that . ill go get a window ac unit .lol happy growing..
 
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