Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with it?

[popolino77]

I want to buy extra lights for my grow tent and i dont want to order them online and wait for them to be delivered , can i go to home depot or lowes and buy any cold white 5000k cfl or led bulb and use it to grow ? And if yes is there any disadvantage to using these bulbs over cfl or led bulbs that is labeled a grow bulb ? And is there a difference from cold white and soft white or are they the same thing ?

 

[Amadeus Forzin]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

Hi pop. If you buy cfl's get a mix of 2700k and 6500k. You can buy these right off the shelf. Look for the actual watts not the equivalent watts and you won't go wrong. With led I would look for one that said grow light on it.
For vegging plants you want more 6500k bulbs and flower you will have more of the warmer 2700k.
Hope this helps

 

[popolino77]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

Hi pop. If you buy cfl's get a mix of 2700k and 6500k. You can buy these right off the shelf. Look for the actual watts not the equivalent watts and you won't go wrong. With led I would look for one that said grow light on it.
For vegging plants you want more 6500k bulbs and flower you will have more of the warmer 2700k.
Hope this helps

I only have money for one set of bulbs, would 5000k work for both vegging and flowering ?

 

[Amadeus Forzin]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

How many bulbs are you looking at? If you get 3 I would be getting 2 x 2700 and 1 x 6500. This should do for veg and flower

 

[popolino77]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

How many bulbs are you looking at? If you get 3 I would be getting 2 x 2700 and 1 x 6500. This should do for veg and flower

I was going to get 2 bulbs and screw them in to a e27 y adapter so i can have x2 bulbs in one socket, i will get 3 bulbs if i can find a adapter to screw 3 bulbs into one socket, what kind of adapter is that called a e27 t adapter ?

 

[popolino77]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

How many bulbs are you looking at? If you get 3 I would be getting 2 x 2700 and 1 x 6500. This should do for veg and flower

What am i talking about cfl bulbs are cheap, i can buy a set of 2700 and a set of 6500, but how do i know when to switch bulbs ?

 

[Amadeus Forzin]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

I would always run a mix of the two 2 x 6500 and 1 x 2700 for veg then swop a 6500 out for a 2700 when you switch to 12/12 lights

 

[popolino77]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

I would always run a mix of the two 2 x 6500 and 1 x 2700 for veg then swop a 6500 out for a 2700 when you switch to 12/12 lights

My plants are autoflower i dont ever have to do 12/12, i am doing 18/6 all the way threw, what cfl lights should i get ?

 

[Amadeus Forzin]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

I would always run a mix of the two 2 x 6500 and 1 x 2700 for veg then swop a 6500 out for a 2700 when you see signs of flower

 

[lexort420]

Re: Does a CFL or LED bulb have to be labeled as a grow light to be able to grow with

IMHO it doesn't make alot of difference when it comes to spectrum with cfls i veg with the ones meant for flowering and they do just fine but if you want get a mix like Mramazing said.