Full investigation on CFLs lumen output vs wattage vs price

[skycowboy]

When ya go to Lowe's go to the electrical aisle and find the board where all the different switches, lampholders an such r mounted on pegboard or whatever. There are some lampholders that screw flat to the wall, ceiling or whatever for around 4 bucks an' change. Want better bang for buck hit yard sales an' get any hanging multiple light fixtures or those bathroom light bars. That stuff is really basic wiring, black=hot, white=nuetral, bare or green=ground. Take it apart with a screwdriver an' make whatever ya want.

 

[zolar]

just to confuse the issue more look up CERAMICMETAL HALIDE Bulbs these are a crosss between hps/mh in spectrum and come in lowaer watts too 50,70,100.150 250 400 philips advanced tech lighting

 

[CharlieMopps]

^^^ they have lower lumen per watt ratio then most are looking for. And they put out a lot of heat. I would group them slightly higher than incandescent bulbs but cfl's are better in my oppinion.

 

[LadyLiberty]

I have heard about these cmh bulbs but what I hear is that they are not so special. They are too small I hear and don't put out that much light. But I also read somewhere on the forum that they are supposedly better. I really have no clue. But I was in loses recently and found outdoor hps fixtures for around 70$. The bulbs looked luke crap be aust they put out like 6000 lumens at 150w and good hps bulbs do about 16000. So I am considering it but switching the bulbs out. Is the ballast ok?because I would imagine it isn't efficient enough, seeing the bulb is trash.

I love how this thread has changed direction from cfls.LOL I have to agree that cfls are great for veg, but every cfl grow journal I look at never finishes. It's annoying because I haven't seen an actal yeild with cfls at about 100~150 watts

 

[happiehippie]

WJATS UP MAN.....I use one of those "SUN BLAZE 48" T5 lights....it has 8 T5 bulbs 4' long.

There are 4 RED bulbs that have 7,000 lumens a piece (28,000 in red flower spectrum) and 4 BLUE T5 bulbs that have 3,500 a piece (14,00 lumens of veg light)....they are stagered and they all run right now for the veg cycle of 18/6....for a tottal of 40,00 lumens.

It cost me $32.00 a month. It is held at 1 foot above the plants and keeps the temp at 86 deg. while the light is on and around 75 deg. when off....I love it...here is a pic. of the light and stuff.

the grow is going good right now.....check it out..........PIECE

 

[happiehippie]

the whole shootting match..........PIECE

 

[tee44]

check this site out bud Contact Us: Express Light Bulbs

 

[TorturedSoul]

I appreciate the fact that people support their opinions by posting grow journals here.

But could you either post a link to your journal when referencing them in threads like these or just add the link to your .SIG? Some of us get distracted pretty easily and when wandering into the journal forums, an hour later we realize that we've just been drooling around and at that point have forgotten what we were supposed to be looking for.

I don't know why that happens <GIVES BEST INNOCENT LOOK>.

 

[bigp420]

hi im new to this site im not sure if this is the place to post this but im gonna do it anyway im gonna setup my first grow room in my closet and i wanna use cfl's they are 75watt light output giving off 1,100 lumens each i have 4 right now but i can get more if needed im only gonna have 3 plants tops just for personal use. I was wandering if this would be enough light to produce decent numbers. thanks for the help

 

[CharlieMopps]

Yes, until they reach a foot in height. When that happens you need to re-evaluate what you want to happen and how much resources you can allocate to the grow. Remember that off 3 medium sized homegrown plants you'll get about 5 ounces of smokables. That is worthover $1000.

How much money you invest into a grow, you can make it back 10x in the end value of smokeables.

More money spent on quality lights increases quantity. More money spent on quality nutrients and growing environment increases bud quality.

 

[TorturedSoul]

DO NOT go by the "watt light output" as that is in comparison to the regular incandescent bulbs. Since those won't work for growing, it's apples to oranges. Go by the ACTUAL wattage, which is probably somewhere around 16 watts?

I was wandering if this would be enough light to produce decent numbers.

In what size grow room? You really want a minimum of 3000 lumens per square foot for veg and 5000 for flowering. So, 4400 lumens - depending on the color temperature of the light they output - would be enough for veg in a space that is 1.46 square feet, or 1 foot by 1 foot 5 1/2 inches or so. And it would be pretty weak for one square foot of flowering.

That doesn't get into the bit where CFLs don't really penetrate that well, which kind of complicates a strict "lumens per square foot" ratio.

In a ScROG setup, this would not be so important, but if you are growing in another style where you are expecting your plants to have some "depth," you would wish to have your CFLs at various heights in the canopy.

The preceding is just my opinion; hopefully others will chime in with theirs.

Also, check the grow journals that use (only) CFLs for some practical knowledge.

And remember, it's not "how much light do I require for # plants," it's "how much light do I require to properly illuminate # square feet (or meters) of growing space." How many plants you put IN that space is up to you and depends on your growing style. I have seen nine plants per square foot and I have seen one plant fill a three foot by four foot ScROG growing space.

 

[zolar]

if you do 12/12 from seed your plants will be short and maybe only 1 foot tall cola depending on pot size you could have 6 plant or so per sq foot and CFLs would do fine for this similar to scrog method

 

[bigp420]

thanks for the input i actually just read this book and the guy who wrote it grew 3 plants in a huge open room he kept the cfls within about an inch or so from the plants the whole time and he harvested the plants at about 26in tall and got a main cola with 15.1 grams on it with a total of just over a half pound (3 plants) so i may just try and do step by step out of this book


my grow area is 1.4ft deep x 2ft L x 3ft H ( if i need to i can go up to 3.9 ft L)

The box says 18 watts per bulb
sorry if these are stupid questions i just wanna do it right and know what im doing haha

 

[CharlieMopps]

Your best bet is to get those 11" aluminum shoplight reflectors and put a Y inside with 2 bulbs.

 

[bigp420]

i was planning on using the y setup one reason why i wanna use these cfl lights i have is that i get them free from work and i cant afford my electricity bill to go up that much cause j had to move back home cause my hours at work were chopped

 

[Rave420]

Compact T5 GROW mh/BLOOM hps FLUORESCENT LIGHT 2'ft CFL - 10,000 Lumens
Price $110 - Ebay -8 bulbs compact 2 each 4 for vegg and 4 for Flowering.

4X 23 watt - 100W equivalent from 23W usage - 6800 Lumens - 25 pack $30 Free Shipping - Ebay

This 16800 Lumens would be ideal for growing This is more then HID or MH bulbs have to offer "No Heat" so you can get them close with exploding growth. The best part is this would be under 200 watts of power. Yes they have more Lumens but this is not safe for growing and more fires are started with these lamps. Giving the movement a bad name
and this must come to end.

I beleave if you are going to educate people on growing you do this with safty.
Some will agree and some will dissagree but lets face the facts the FLUORESCENT LIGHT
are long lasting and you can do well if the needs of the plant is met. Some would say it does not give a big yield when you use these lights. I say to you its not the lights its the grower that does not understand the plants needs. Face it harvesting a plant befor the plant is done is one of the biggest things you see now days. Understanding the flowering peek times are the key to big yields if you are leting the plant grow 12" and then flower it your not giving the plant what it needs to hold the big budds you seek
Try giving it more veg time 1 month for clones 24" or better you will find your yields much bigger stronger and better.

So some say well how much light do you need to get big yields? Well i have seen people on you tube with 8 23 watt cfl's with monster yields. The question is how much you trying to get out of one plant. If you use the small plant method you can get about a once per plant X4 would yield you quarter pound every 3 months 4 harvests per year thats about a pound maybe a little more depends on what your growing Sativa are short plants where Indica are tall and large yielders if you let them grow to max but you cant realy expect large plants to be grown small and have huge yields some do some dont.

If your going to grow your own at home here is a few tips for you.

1. If you are under 21 years of age how can you expect to help make it legal when your a minor child ?

Ok i get it you are 18 years old and you feel it is your right as well to join the movement right on man but lets face it children are not allowed in bars XXX shows and the reason should be the same for Cannabis unless your under a doctors care and have some one over the age of 21 that will look after you. Cannabis harms none but the people who abuse the right to smoke it makes it hard for the adults.

So what can you do to help the movement you may ask simple VOTE we need you in every "US Major City"

Why shold i vote if we can't smoke or eat Cannabis ?

It is your choice to vote or not to vote witch would you rather have? The right to smoke at 21 or the right never! your not helping the movement if you are convicted and bring bad press to the issue.

2. Safty

Your lights should all be safe wires all over the floor and the lack of safty to prevent mold are high health risks. So how can you fix this you may ask? first tie up you cords for lights fans and hydro systems hange them out of the way with zip ties this will show your grow room is not at risk to shock and kill some one. Simple

Next you should have a scrubber in your room this will remove the mold and make sure your room is well vented thus not a health risk to you or your family.

3. Next don't steal power!

There is no need to steal power you can get the job done with 1 mother plant and 4 clones and a little space there is no need for huge grow op's unless you are selling to Cannabis Clubs you should have a license by the state and follow there guidlines or state laws. Abuse it you will lose it !

4. Movement.

We thank all of you who take the time to grow smoke and enjoy Cannabis our numbers are large and grow larger every day. The people of holland for showing us the way that it can be regulated taxed. Adult only coffee shop with no abuse of other drugs shows us it works and can be done safe and for this we thank you. For all of the farmers who grow and do not abuse there right to do so by selling on the black market giving it to children and who work night and day to pass out the flyers and buttons and give there all to the movement.

5. Education

Educate your self on growing the needs of plants there needs can be met with just a little education and some time. The information is out there and this technolagy is here 24/7 don't be bashfull ask questions and read the advice of others but make a sound judgement on what there telling you when in dought look it up Seedbanks have information on the types of Cannabis there flower times yields and thc % and this information can tell you a lot about what you whan't to know about your plant and all you have to do is look. I do not have a phd in the subject however I do educate myself every day about the plant and find there is always new things to learn.

 

[TorturedSoul]

Compact T5 GROW mh/BLOOM hps FLUORESCENT LIGHT 2'ft CFL - 10,000 Lumens
Price $110 - Ebay -8 bulbs compact 2 each 4 for vegg and 4 for Flowering.

It's got T5s, MH, HPS, and CFLs in it? Huh?

You're going to pay $110 for something that only produces 10,000 lumens? Again... Huh?

4X 23 watt - 100W equivalent from 23W usage - 6800 Lumens - 25 pack $30 Free Shipping - Ebay

Ahh... Ebay. I thought I recognized the creative language style lol.

BTW, I wish people would stop stating that CFLs (or ANY grow light for that matter) are "equivalent" to any light of higher wattage since that is comparing them to bulbs that can't grow plants in the first place and is therefore completely irrelevant to any discussion that concerns the growing of plants.

This 16800 Lumens would be ideal for growing This is more then HID or MH bulbs have to offer "No Heat" so you can get them close with exploding growth. The best part is this would be under 200 watts of power. Yes they have more Lumens but this is not safe for growing and more fires are started with these lamps. Giving the movement a bad name
and this must come to end.

I'm confused again. First you state that it's "more than HID or MH bulbs" (I'm assuming you meant HPS or MH since MH is an HID too) and then you state "Yes, they have more Lumens" - which is it?

And the bit about the HID bulbs being unsafe for growing... You really shouldn't spread such misinformation. They are completely safe if they are used correctly. In the past 20+ years I've known a LOT of people who've grown indoors with artificial lights and not a one has burned their house down.

I beleave if you are going to educate people on growing you do this with safty.

The occasional FACT wouldn't hurt either.

I think I'm going to stop here and let someone else debunk the rest of the post. My BS meter has already had a meltdown due to getting readings off the scale lol.

The majority of the post has nothing to do with the thread topic anyway.

 

[Rave420]

"Ahh... Ebay. I thought I recognized the creative language style lol.

BTW, I wish people would stop stating that CFLs (or ANY grow light for that matter) are "equivalent" to any light of higher wattage since that is comparing them to bulbs that can't grow plants in the first place and is therefore completely irrelevant to any discussion that concerns the growing of plants."

"completely safe if they are used correctly"

This is a point of view i do agree with however have you ever heard of cfl starting fires I think not. Thus they are unsafe. end of story !


"BTW, I wish people would stop stating that CFLs (or ANY grow light for that matter) are "equivalent" to any light of higher wattage since that is comparing them to bulbs that can't grow plants in the first place and is therefore completely irrelevant to any discussion that concerns the growing of plants."

I see your to stuck in your ways to look at other peoples point of view watage is not what we are after it is lumens and safty god i feel like a broke record lol anywyas




Hid and MH cause heat the wattage of a HPS or MH give off to much heat and are more at risk for fires. You do not have to agree with me and i am not spreading missinformed information. How do you think people get Busted.

Here is what you do go to youtube and search for grow op fires then you will see for your self how much of a risk they are I give you facts not fiction.


"You're going to pay $110 for something that only produces 10,000 lumens?"

yes the risk of no heat and digi balist made with this system makes sure you get the full
use of the light unlike other ballest for hid That gives out more surge and does take from the bulbs life time. Less risk of fires heat and problams are the issue here.

"I'm confused again. First you state that it's "more than HID or MH bulbs" (I'm assuming you meant HPS or MH since MH is an HID too) and then you state "Yes, they have more Lumens" - which is it?"

No Im not saying is has more Lumens I am saying that you can get the same yields with out the risks ok you say that " people have grown with them for 20 years"
Safty is the issue I agree some people use them but this " not a one has burned their house down" is not a fact maybe you should research your findings befor you make such a bold statement.

People like you who feel that this is the best light in the world are to stuck in your own views. I dissagree not saying your a bad person but your childish remaks make me wonder your age

Who are you? Why should any one care about your librial view so befor you flame one of my post you should have more facts because it is all about true facts your just some whanna be who thinks his siznit dont stink. ( Grow up )

Face it they cause fires ( Fact ) ( They Burn Energy ) (Fact) They cost more Money to run ( Fact ) They show signs of growing on your bill (Fact)

Ever heard of Stelth growing not so stelthy when the eletric company turns you in and they kick down your door to find 100 plants or more The fact is they will not come after the small growers because we do not abuse the system. Grow for profit or break state laws when people abuse it they gives canibus a bad name when the fire trucks find 100 plants you go to jail a long time. The amount you grow is what puts you at risk renting a house to make it a grow op to fund a cartel/gangs stealing power those people need to be put in jail Why because they abuse there rights as growers. and thats why we have trouble making it legal. I will say this about HPS lights in a glass tube this is more safer then a light with out one the risk is not as bad but the energy issues are what can also get you in deep water. That sayed you can take you Bs meater and shove it !

I give you fact not BS

Rave420

Click here to see for your self Facts!

grow op fires - YouTube

 

[TorturedSoul]

I was afraid this was going to happen...

"completely safe if they are used correctly"

This is a point of view i do agree with however have you ever heard of cfl starting fires I think not. Thus they are unsafe. end of story !

They are NOT intrinsically unsafe!

Neither are electric heaters, wood stoves, fireplaces, kerosene heaters, or Bic lighters!

ALL of which have "caused" house fires. But a tiny bit of checking - which I admit may not be possible if your only source of information is Youtube - will show you that in 999 out of 1,000 cases of all of the above being involved with a fire, user-error turned out to be the cause. The light, heating appliance, or cigarette lighter was just the instrument of their destruction.

Guns don't cause hunting accidents, camping doesn't cause forest fires, automobiles don't cause traffic deaths, alcohol doesn't cause pregnancies, and HID lighting doesn't cause fires!

People who forget (or never knew) how to think do. Sensationalizing the very low percentage of idiots that attempt to clean up the gene pool by "customizing" a parking-lot light without directions, vastly overloading 40-year old electrical circuits, or putting 2000 watts' worth of light into a small box and then attempting to camouflage it by stacking 1,500 issues of Grit newspaper on it... Isn't at all helpful.

I thought only certain UK newspapers did that?

"BTW, I wish people would stop stating that CFLs (or ANY grow light for that matter) are "equivalent" to any light of higher wattage since that is comparing them to bulbs that can't grow plants in the first place and is therefore completely irrelevant to any discussion that concerns the growing of plants."

I see your to stuck in your ways to look at other peoples point of view watage is not what we are after it is lumens and safty god i feel like a broke record lol anywyas

I'm not stuck in my ways any more than the next guy. I can't seem to stop tinkering, experimenting, building, and occasionally buying new things just to see if they are better than old things. That wasn't my point. Please reread my original reply.

I never inferred that people should stop using CFLs. They definitely have their place.

To put it plainly, I wish people would stop comparing them to incandescent light bulbs!

I've already had to explain to one person - and in person, no less - that his rather frightening collection of old-fashioned incandescent bulbs were NOT going to produce any MJ for him, even though the people that push the CFLs stated that thier bulbs were equivillant to 1200 watts of what he had and he'd seen those work.

(Talk about someone who's destined to someday star in his own Youtube video outside a smoking ruin.)

Hid and MH cause heat the wattage of a HPS or MH give off to much heat and are more at risk for fires. You do not have to agree with me and i am not spreading missinformed information.

Too much heat? That's a relative statement and while your average HID light fixture gives off more heat than one CFL bulb... One small 600-watt HPS produces almost 100,000 lumens. Yes, and some heat. Now gather up enough of those 23-watt CFLs to equal that lumen figure - because you are absolutely correct, it's the lumens (also color temperature, spectrum, etc.), not the wattage - and then you tell me which produces more heat. In case you don't have a calculator handy, it'll take 56 of those bulbs(!) to equal one 600-watt HPS. That's 1,288 watts'(!) worth of CFLs, all presumably on one circuit. Even with modern CFLs there is an induction load that is larger than the actual in-use current draw and if you stick 58 of them on one home circuit (generally 15-amp), you are asking for trouble. Especially when you add in an a/c unit to cool them since you can't just stick that many bulbs in a simple air-cooled fixture and use a fan lol.

In case nobody ever told you, a light produces two things - light and heat. The more efficient it is at producing light, the less heat is produced. As you can plainly see from the previous paragraph, HPS bulbs are MUCH more efficient than CFLs and therefore not only cost far less per lumen of light, but also produce less heat. The fact that the heat from the numerous CFLs is spread out does not decrease the amount of it. All it does it make it impossible to vent separate from the rest of the GR.

How do you think people get Busted.

By failing to keep their mouth shut. Also, occasionally, by jumping headfirst into something that they read a little bit about on the internet and decided that they knew all they needed to.

go to youtube and search for grow op fires then you will see for your self how much of a risk they are I give you facts not fiction.

I try to be a reasonable individual and attempt to see the other side's point of view, so I did that. Searching for grow op fires gives 67 results.

Searching for drunken pilot gives 533 results. Searching for jealous husband gives 665 results. Searching for trampoline accident gives 2,890 results. Searching for tiger attack gives 4,360 results. Searching for decapitation gives 6,750 results.

If you had done a little checking (I did) you would have found that those 67 results aren't about 67 grow op fires. There were a lot of repeats.

"You're going to pay $110 for something that only produces 10,000 lumens?"

yes the risk of no heat and digi balist made with this system makes sure you get the full
use of the light unlike other ballest for hid That gives out more surge and does take from the bulbs life time. Less risk of fires heat and problams are the issue here.

<PSST!> Don't tell anyone, but there have been electronic ballasts for HIDs for quite a while now. There might even be one or two people on this site that use them lol.

No Im not saying is has more Lumens I am saying that you can get the same yields with out the risks ok you say that " people have grown with them for 20 years"
Safty is the issue I agree some people use them but this " not a one has burned their house down" is not a fact maybe you should research your findings befor you make such a bold statement.

Maybe you should quote a little more accurately (using the actual QUOTE option in your posts would help).

And the bit about the HID bulbs being unsafe for growing... You really shouldn't spread such misinformation. They are completely safe if they are used correctly. In the past 20+ years I've known a LOT of people who've grown indoors with artificial lights and not a one has burned their house down.

I did research my findings. Not a single person that I've known in the past 20+ years has burned their house down by growing MJ. One did burn it down by placing a live Christmas tree too close to an open-faced gas stove.

People like you who feel that this is the best light in the world are to stuck in your own views. I dissagree not saying your a bad person but your childish remaks make me wonder your age

Which light? HPS? MH? CFL? Tube-style florescent? LED? They all have their place and I've used all of them - with the exception of the LED - at one time or another.

As for my age, you'll have to keep wondering because I'm not telling.

I'm also not going to allow myself to get baited. I've learned that when someone wants to argue without having substantiated their viewpoint with facts, when they take a few miniscule statistics and attempt to state them as the norm, when they steadfastly refuse to consider another person's point of view simply because it disagrees with what they've decided to believe... The best thing to do is to ignore them in hopes that they will go away. So I won't be posting in this thread any more (you can have the last word if it will make you feel better). I will also be unsubscribing to it, which is a shame since there was at one point some useful discussion about different CFL's efficiencies.

Who are you? Why should any one care about your librial view so befor you flame one of my post you should have more facts because it is all about true facts your just some whanna be who thinks his siznit dont stink. ( Grow up )

Facts? You've rather successfully disguised them as sensationalistic ravings, unsubstantiated opinions, and insults.

Face it they cause fires ( Fact )

No, that would be some idiot improperly wiring or using them. EVERY time.

( They Burn Energy ) (Fact)

Every single electrical device "burns" energy. If you'll take the blinders off you'll realize that a decent HPS light uses LESS electricity to produce a given amount of light than any setup of CFLs do. They're just more efficient and that's a ( Fact ) lmfao.

They cost more Money to run ( Fact )

Sorry, you are in fact badly mistaken here. Please see above in this post where I calculated that it would take almost 1,300 watts of CFLs to equal the output of ONE 600-watt HPS and then try saying that HPS costs more money to run than CFL (with a straight face).

They show signs of growing on your bill (Fact)

You must have a different electric company than I do. I kept my highest electrical bill ever and just dug it out. I couldn't see any statements about the fact that I was growing on that bill anywhere.

And while I thought at the time that it was rather high, I later found out that there were people that didn't grow a single plant that had higher electrical bills than I did. Go figure lol.

Ever heard of Stelth growing not so stelthy when the eletric company turns you in and they kick down your door to find 100 plants or more The fact is they will not come after the small growers because we do not abuse the system. Grow for profit or break state laws when people abuse it they gives canibus a bad name when the fire trucks find 100 plants you go to jail a long time.

You mean STEALTH growing? I might have heard something about it. That's where you grow for over two decades and don't get caught, right? Yes, I did that at one time. When I did I never had anyone kick down my door. I never experienced having a fire truck find 100 of my plants either. Or a fireman/woman for that matter.

The amount you grow is what puts you at risk

No, there have been idiots that got busted for growing a single plant. Talking is what causes the vast majority of people to get caught.

renting a house to make it a grow op to fund a cartel/gangs stealing power

You HAVE been reading those sensationalist "news"papers from the UK, haven't you?

Oh, and by the way... I really don't see what ANY of this has to do with comparing different CFL's wattages vs. lumen outputs.

So I wonder, are you a TROLL? Wikipedia seems to think so:

An Internet troll, or simply troll in Internet slang, is someone who posts controversial, inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum or chat room, with the primary intent of provoking other users into an emotional response or to generally disrupt normal on-topic discussion.

To the moderators: Please feel free to remove any of my posts from this discussion that do not concern the thread topic.

 

[Be Irie]

Yes, this does need to stay on topic.... Rave, if you feel it necessary then you can start a topic on your concerns so it can be addressed there.. I don't see a reason for that, because you were just schooled. If you are going to claim something, you better be able to back it up, otherwise you will get called out.. So with that being said lets keep this thread on topic..