What kind of lighting should I use?

[Soulstik]

I'm new to this forum and this would be my first post and my first grow, currently my grow room is a good sized walk-in closet that I don't use in my home (I have a carbon filter and good ventilation with an ONA gel bucket after doing some re-modeling) I culled six seeds from about 4 ounces that I procured so I don't know the strain that I'm growing, two of the seeds were damaged and unusable.
Here's a good pic of the room.

These are the types of lights that I'm using right now.

I the grow is going well, but I'm wondering if there are better lights I can use other then CFL and if so some good information on them as well? I have done some research on it myself though there are just so many its a bit confusing.

 

[TanR]

Hi Soulstik.

Welcome to 420 Magazine.

Your right that lighting can be an overwhelming issue on which to educate ones self and make decisions about. I know I read and pondered the topic for a month or more.

I guess one of the primary question I would evaluate is budget? How much are you comfortable spending on the initial purchase and monthly electric usage.

 

[Soulstik]

Hi Soulstik.

Welcome to 420 Magazine.

Your right that lighting can be an overwhelming issue on which to educate ones self and make decisions about. I know I read and pondered the topic for a month or more.

I guess one of the primary question I would evaluate is budget? How much are you comfortable spending on the initial purchase and monthly electric usage.

My budget is very tight at the moment, electric bills are no issue, but buying the lights is a bit more of a jump (some LED lights are expensive over $100 and up to $1000) I know there are metal halide lights and high pressure sodium lights that I can use, but that would have a huge power drain and they're a bit pricey. So I'm willing to spend up to $200 on a lighting system, but whats the best I can get for the least spent?

 

[uptheholler]

TanR is spot on and so are you to give your lighting a good deal of consideration. But know this for certain, lighting is probably your biggest single most important investment. They always will pay you back in better harvests no matter what cultural system you decide upon.

 

[Soulstik]

TanR is spot on and so are you to give your lighting a good deal of consideration. But know this for certain, lighting is probably your biggest single most important investment. They always will pay you back in better harvests no matter what cultural system you decide upon.

which is why i need some good advice on what types of lights to use. I need the best I can afford so I'm not wasting time on a bad harvest.

 

[TanR]

Well, in that price range I think your looking at either a midsize High Intensity Discharge (HPS/MH) light or Fluorescents. I guess my next question in the decision would be to evaluate how much area your going to be lighting?

I'm sure you've read the pro's and cons of fluorescents although I will say that some very good smoke has been grown under fluoro's so don't discount them completely.

My electricity cost per Kilo Watt Hour is super low though, so I chose a 600 watt digital HID that I found on Am*zon for around $165.00 delivered. It costs me about $20.00 a month during veg (18/6) and about $13.00 month during flower to run it. But as I mentioned my electricity is comparatively inexpensive at around 6 cents per KWH

My budget is very tight at the moment, electric bills are no issue, but buying the lights is a bit more of a jump (some LED lights are expensive over $100 and up to $1000) I know there are metal halide lights and high pressure sodium lights that I can use, but that would have a huge power drain and they're a bit pricey. So I'm willing to spend up to $200 on a lighting system, but whats the best I can get for the least spent?

 

[Soulstik]

Well, in that price range I think your looking at either a midsize High Intensity Discharge (HPS/MH) light or Fluorescents. I guess my next question in the decision would be to evaluate how much area your going to be lighting?

I'm sure you've read the pro's and cons of fluorescents although I will say that some very good smoke has been grown under fluoro's so don't discount them completely.

My electricity cost per Kilo Watt Hour is super low though, so I chose a 600 watt digital HID that I found on Am*zon for around $165.00 delivered. It costs me about $20.00 a month during veg (18/6) and about $13.00 month during flower to run it. But as I mentioned my electricity is comparatively inexpensive at around 6 cents per KWH

Well I haven't discounted fluoro's just yet, as i'm using CFLs which are a bit different from actual fluorescents. How big was that digital HID light? Its a good sized closet but that being said it is small enough that normal fluorescent lights don't fit in it well.

this is the grow closet before I remodeled it for ventilation and what not. it looks completely different from this image, this just shows the room itself, there are no longer cables everywhere and its much more tidy and less shabby looking now then in this image.

 

[TanR]

The hood of my lamp is maybe 22 inches long and 12 or 14 inches wide. The ballast is only 8inches or so by 4 or 5 inches. A 600 watt light will cover an area about 4 ft. by 4 ft.

Is your space (or the portion you will be using) larger or smaller than that? I can see that 4 ft. long T-5 in the pic and it seems to fit alright but I can't see the whole room. Is it sticking out the door or something?

 

[Soulstik]

The hood of my lamp is maybe 22 inches long and 12 or 14 inches wide. The ballast is only 8inches or so by 4 or 5 inches. A 600 watt light will cover an area about 4 ft. by 4 ft.

Is your space (or the portion you will be using) larger or smaller than that? I can see that 4 ft. long T-5 in the pic and it seems to fit alright but I can't see the whole room. Is it sticking out the door or something?

It has to be held diagonally for it to fit, the room is 3ft by 4.5ft

 

[TanR]

So the decision as I see it comes to down to balancing the monthly electric cost and getting the most and/or best product from your grow efforts.

I am still curious to if you plan on utilizing ALL the of the closet space or will need to leave some room to get in their and tend your plants. Have you considered or are you planning on growing in SCROG style? I'm also wondering what level of stealth you need to achieve in this room?

I am aware of an LED that you might want to consider. It's a sponsor of the site Top LED while the light I'm thinking of wouldn't cover your entire space it would cover an area 3ft. by 3 ft. (so most of the room) is only 209.99 before shipping ($50.00) and would be the best of both worlds. You might even be able to get the shipping discounted as I know they have a warehouse in the US and I believe their website is geared toward the lights being shipped from China. There are a numbers of members on the site using them with very positive reviews. I know this a little more than you indicated wanting to spend, but thought I'd mention it in case you could stretch a little.

It has to be held diagonally for it to fit, the room is 3ft by 4.5ft

 

[Soulstik]

So the decision as I see it comes to down to balancing the monthly electric cost and getting the most and/or best product from your grow efforts.

I am still curious to if you plan on utilizing ALL the of the closet space or will need to leave some room to get in their and tend your plants. Have you considered or are you planning on growing in SCROG style? I'm also wondering what level of stealth you need to achieve in this room?

I am aware of an LED that you might want to consider. It's a sponsor of the site Top LED while the light I'm thinking of wouldn't cover your entire space it would cover an area 3ft. by 3 ft. (so most of the room) is only 209.99 before shipping ($50.00) and would be the best of both worlds. You might even be able to get the shipping discounted as I know they have a warehouse in the US and I believe their website is geared toward the lights being shipped from China. There are a numbers of members on the site using them with very positive reviews. I know this a little more than you indicated wanting to spend, but thought I'd mention it in case you could stretch a little.

I will take a look into it, might have to wait a little bit but it sounds like a great suggestion to me. Any other cheap-ish suggestions anyone could throw at me? This one seems to be the best for my buck with the rumor of good reviews, but I would like something a bit cheaper, I looked into a saucer grow light, but they're small for the lowest price of $60.

 

[Soulstik]

I am still curious to if you plan on utilizing ALL the of the closet space or will need to leave some room to get in their and tend your plants. Have you considered or are you planning on growing in SCROG style? I'm also wondering what level of stealth you need to achieve in this room?

I have no idea what "SCROG" means, but I am only going to grow two plants for my first time.

 

[TanR]

Good to know Soulstik. You might be able to consider a slightly smaller light then, making it even less expensive.

I have no idea what "SCROG" means, but I am only going to grow two plants for my first time.

 

[bmarcb]

If youre not planing on taing over the entire room you could go for a 400w dimmable ballast (or 600) and you could also use one of the lower settings i.e. 250w would be a good start. You should definitely look into ScROG and LST growing techniques, those will most likey become your new best friens as far as light penetration is concerned.

If you dont feel like dealing with high temperatures and ventilate a whole binch, you could start with a dozen cfl bulbs and a diy reflector - again keeping you plants short will help you in the long run.

Good luck!