Help a new farmer with lighting! - GreenPassion.org - Dedicated to Medicinal Cannabis Cultivation and Education

Dr. GreenThumb420 · #1 (**permalink**) 05-25-2009, 08:22 PM

So my box is 1.5' x 1.5' x 4' and i have a t5 ho 6400k bulbs 4680 lumens a piece on either wall slanted.So there is a total of 2 one bulb fixtures. There is also a cheap $10 reflector with two CFLs one daylight one soft white 23w 1600 lumens a piece. The T5 Ho will be about 9" away at the start but figure when the tomato plant flowers it will be alot closer... Do you think it will be fine or should I mount another t5 on the back wall.

Should I get rid of the reflector and add the T5 or is it important to keep light on the top of the plant.

[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, 'lucida grande', arial, helvetica, sans-serif]What do you think[/FONT] about the verticle lighting... would love to hear some input

Also do you think its possible to fit 2 plants in it that range 2' to 3' tall??

Thanks

Hatch · #2 (**permalink**) 05-25-2009, 11:12 PM

Pictures Would Be Nice, But It Sound's Like You Will Be Ok, 2-Plant's Might Be A Little Tight If You Are Going To Veg. Them To 2' Or 3'.

If You Are Talking About A CFL??, The Light Comes From The Sides Not The End, So if You Have It Above Your Plant's It Will Need To Be Horizontal, If You Have Them To The Sides Of The Plant's They Can Be Vertical.

justanotherbozo · #3 (**permalink**) 05-25-2009, 11:38 PM

high bro and welcome to GP.

now, those T5 HO fixtures will be a nice addition for side light but you'd
need more than 2 for them to really do the job.

here is a picture of a CFL set-up you could build for under $20.00 that will
work really well and a few pictures of some buds of mine grown under my
version which is virtually the same except that mine is suspended by chains
so height adjustable. (all pictures are of my stuff except the first one)

Dr. GreenThumb420 · #4 (**permalink**) 05-25-2009, 11:50 PM

The t5 ho i have put out 4680 lumens a piece i only need 12k total for the box i think im gonna put another one on the back side to make a total of 17k for the box.

Over head light is really that important? the verticle t5's go all the way to the top of the box light will be relected throughout the whole box top to bottom.

roughly how wide do you think a plant will get a rough estimate. I know it depends on the strand but im jus wondering the average.

justanotherbozo · #5 (**permalink**) 05-26-2009, 12:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. GreenThumb420

The t5 ho i have put out 4680 lumens a piece i only need 12k total for the box i think im gonna put another one on the back side to make a total of 17k for the box.

Over head light is really that important? the verticle t5's go all the way to the top of the box light will be relected throughout the whole box top to bottom.

roughly how wide do you think a plant will get a rough estimate. I know it depends on the strand but im jus wondering the average.

there's a couple things you need to understand, first, the more light you
have, the more bud you'll get so any light you add will help.

second, fluorescent lights are low intensity light and so need to be very close
to the plants, 9 inchs is too far away and will lead to a tall, stretchy plant
which will lead to small fluffy buds.

and third, because there are so many styles of growing there is just no way
to give you an 'average'. here are a few pictures to illustrate my point.

in any event, i assure you you can grow some very respectable buds from
fluoro's if you do your homework.

medicinecloset · #6 (**permalink**) 05-26-2009, 01:03 AM

There are still a few of us die hard HID fans as well.

justanotherbozo · #7 (**permalink**) 05-26-2009, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by medicinecloset

There are still a few of us die hard HID fans as well. 800watts of HPS can do wonders as well.

he's limited in space and cash med, that's why we're discussing fluoro's.

medicinecloset · #8 (**permalink**) 05-26-2009, 12:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justanotherbozo

he's limited in space and cash med, that's why we're discussing fluoro's.

Oh ok sorry about that I should have read the post abit more closely. My mistake.

Dr. GreenThumb420 · #9 (**permalink**) 05-27-2009, 01:44 PM

alright i think i've come up with a good plan now. Im goin to mount a track on the top of the inside of the box. Then ill mount the T5 on a board and mount that to the track. This will allow me to slide to T5 from the wall to right up against the plant. Im goin to put another t5 on the back side on a track as well.

this will give me three t5 high output 4860 lumens a piece mounted verticle against the sides of the plant. Im goin to take off the reflector on the clamp light and leave the two 23watt cfl's hanging right above.

Also I saw these reflectors that can be mounted on the T5 what do you think about them???? I can't find the site i saw them on but they were just a clip on.