Things to Know About Lighting

purpdaddy

purpdaddy

Well-Known Member
tusseltussel said:
if you need side lighting cfls will work why are you saying this prove it cfls will work for side lighting.. personally i think if you grow your plant right you shouldnt need side lighting but if you need it cfls will do the job
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Thank you....thats what i was trying to get at.
If you are already using HID lighting,Mylar or just flat white paint the walls to distribute light properly and bye bye cfl's.
Prove it??
i have nothing to prove,,ive grown under cfl's and hid.You experiment with it.I dont have time for that.
 
KaliKitsune

KaliKitsune

Well-Known Member
Depends. Some studies suggest that a balanced lighting (say HPS for the flowering but use 6500K fluoros for side lighting/spectrum enhancement) results in better growth and production.

When I get my 400w HPS working, I'll use it as the top light and my T5HO system for side lighting to make a huge light 'box'
 
purpdaddy

purpdaddy

Well-Known Member
Now yes that will work indefinitely!Its a small crop. if you got 2 or 3 600w. hids burnin,theres no point in using cfls,you just need proper reflective material on the walls.
And i am not nocking cfl's in any way cause they are very useful if you use the correct ones at the correct time.They are great for vegging and clones!
 
Barncle Bill

Barncle Bill

Active Member
I am running 1 six bulb HO T5 lights. That come out to 30,000 lums of 3000K light. This is for an 11 sqrft grow box. That equates to 2900 lums per sqrft. Is that enough light for flowering? I am running 8 plants with LST to maximize the room. Does anyone have any really good results with that much light and T5 setups? My last grow was with a 4 t5 ho system and it was ok.. but i would have like to see better results. Here is a pic of my last grow using only T5s
 

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purpdaddy

purpdaddy

Well-Known Member
Thank you.There is no point if you have the proper reflective materia surrounding the plants.Works a hell of alot better.
 
KaliKitsune

KaliKitsune

Well-Known Member
Hey BarnacleBill

I've had great results with T5HO lighting. I use it for growing all sorts of plants. I've got all sorts of stuff besides pot growing in my closet and it all thrives.

What I'm *REALLY* curious about is the stuff used in stadium lighting. Hydrargyrum-iodide lighting. It has almost the same color temperature as the sun, and outputs UV radiation as well (but it only required to have a plate-glass filter, which can be removed for plant UVB exposure)

Hydrargyrum medium-arc iodide lamp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
herballuvmonkey

herballuvmonkey

Well-Known Member
You should be o.k. dude. I try to strive at a minimum for 3k lumens per sq/ft. I've never gone under it no matter what type of light I used but I've also never used t-5s. they seem kinda expensive for the output that you get. Supposedly they put out less heat but the big cfls can put out some heat in a small space so i'm not sure the t5's would be worth it seeing that they are HO. I say go to HPS at some time and get the full 50k lumens for your spot. You would be puttting somewhere in the range of 45k lmns per sq ft. Your grwth will xplode and you wont be using anymore or much more power. if ur scared of the heat factor get a fan to suck it out or a cool tube .
 
purpdaddy

purpdaddy

Well-Known Member
herballuvmonkey said:
You should be o.k. dude. I try to strive at a minimum for 3k lumens per sq/ft. I've never gone under it no matter what type of light I used but I've also never used t-5s. they seem kinda expensive for the output that you get. Supposedly they put out less heat but the big cfls can put out some heat in a small space so i'm not sure the t5's would be worth it seeing that they are HO. I say go to HPS at some time and get the full 50k lumens for your spot. You would be puttting somewhere in the range of 45k lmns per sq ft. Your grwth will xplode and you wont be using anymore or much more power. if ur scared of the heat factor get a fan to suck it out or a cool tube .
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yea i got a 400w hid setup in a cool tube and i can lower it to like 12 inches and not burn.Works well!
 
Barncle Bill

Barncle Bill

Active Member
Thanks for all the great advice. The lights i have are a gift from a guy that did all the warehouse for me.. So i didn"t pay anything for them.. they are $300 a pice...so i can't complain. I am looking into a 400w hps.. Heat is a little issue and so is hight. I am LST the ladies but even with that, i only have 70in to work with... and with 8 plants that might be pushing the limit of that 400w lamp. With the t5s I can get the plants all the with in 1 in without burn.. as long as they don't touch. i will post some pics of the set up so you guys could see what i am talking about. Thanks for all your help.. and i love this site!!!
 
Barncle Bill

Barncle Bill

Active Member
Hey BarnacleBill

I've had great results with T5HO lighting. I use it for growing all sorts of plants. I've got all sorts of stuff besides pot growing in my closet and it all thrives.

What I'm *REALLY* curious about is the stuff used in stadium lighting. Hydrargyrum-iodide lighting. It has almost the same color temperature as the sun, and outputs UV radiation as well (but it only required to have a plate-glass filter, which can be removed for plant UVB exposure)

Kali,
l
That might be a great idea.. i looked into this light a little more. The only thing is that it does not have a good range on the spectrum.. Most of it is 5000K to 6000K only. So that would work for veg growth but for flowering... it might be a little hard.. thats not to say it can't be done. They do put out a lot of like.. 100 lums per watt.. thats like a hps. What kind of range do they run in...do you know? Keep me posted if you find something new..
 
KaliKitsune

KaliKitsune

Well-Known Member
5400K is the color temperature of noon sunlight. I'd think plants would do well for vegging under it, what you need to do is see the actual spectral bands. This type of light does have some red emission, and the color of the lamp itself (just went to look at one at the nearby high school stadium) has some red to it. It may not be optimal for flowering, like a CMH bulb would be, but it would do the job, and the extra UVB emissions will help with trichrome production.

I'm hoping to get ahold of one to test it out. Just judging from what I see, it should do an adequate job, probably better than fluorescents of equivalent wattage.
 
purpdaddy

purpdaddy

Well-Known Member
KaliKitsune said:
5400K is the color temperature of noon sunlight. I'd think plants would do well for vegging under it, what you need to do is see the actual spectral bands. This type of light does have some red emission, and the color of the lamp itself (just went to look at one at the nearby high school stadium) has some red to it. It may not be optimal for flowering, like a CMH bulb would be, but it would do the job, and the extra UVB emissions will help with trichrome production.

I'm hoping to get ahold of one to test it out. Just judging from what I see, it should do an adequate job, probably better than fluorescents of equivalent wattage.
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Man im hearin all this talk about the lights.Why dont one of yall get one and see how it works..N.ever know you might start a new trend of lighting.I say go for it!
 
Barncle Bill

Barncle Bill

Active Member
OK here is the set up i have and the light system that i talked about. Like i said before. Its T5 HO 6 lamp hood, The box has 2 sections. The lower is for veg and clones and the upper is for flowering only.

Lower has 6 veg lights that seem to work very well (walmart @ $8 a pice)
Lights are on a 24/7 cycle.

The upper is has the HO T5s that can be lowerd to within an inch of the plants.
if needed the lower section is removalble and i can have upto 70" of growth.

All controled by thermostat and a 4" inline vortex fan that is attached to a 6" X 20" carbon filter that move about 80 to 100 cf.

This is all inclosed in a sealed air tight box on wheels for easy transport.

This whole project at the current time has run me less then $500 but i did not pay for the lights. with lights it would be just shy of 1K.

So my question is... it this enought light for 8 plants..or do i go with HPS.. and might run into heat issues

I could always get a cool tube.. I found 150w HPS for $20 bucks each.. that is an insane price.. 2 would be more then enough i would assume.

Let me know. Thanks guys.
 

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KaliKitsune

KaliKitsune

Well-Known Member
So far looks like you've done a nice job on the box construction. Looks tidy and neat, and your lighting is more than sufficient for flowering if you're running the 3000K bulbs.

The veg section could prolly stand to be a lil taller but that's personal preferences there.
 
Barncle Bill

Barncle Bill

Active Member
I'm going the LST so i think i should be ok... but i can always raise it as it does open up. Thanks for all your support. Send some of your work.. i would love to see your set up. I want a green house...lol
 
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