How To Set Up Cfl Grow Lights

by Nebula Haze

CFL lights being used to grow cannabis

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CFL Abound Setup (For Curt Spaces)

Average Yields: 1-ii ounces
Recommended one-ii plants
Abound space is 2'x2'x4' or larger
Larn more than about growing cannabis with CFLs

Almost This Setup

CFLs (Meaty Fluorescent Lamps) are what about people used for standard household lighting upwards until a few years ago. Although they've mostly been replaced by the household LED (which tin can be adapted for the same purpose), they can all the same be used as a starting abound light for growers who are hesitant to buy a dedicated abound light. You lot can get these bulbs almost anywhere, and pretty much any of them volition work or an entire grow in a compression. Their broad availability is a huge part of their (former) popularity in the indoor growing world.

You probably won't demand an frazzle fan forcoolingin this setup, but if you don't have an frazzle fan you can't utilize a carbon filter, which means yous won't have a great way to prevent smells from leaking exterior your abound space.

Cost Estimates

Total Setup Price: $471.00
Estimated Monthly Electricity Cost: $27-59/month (based on $0.12/kWH to $0.25/kWh – run across breakdown)
Total Cost for Entire First iv-Month Grow (Setup + Electricity): $707 ($353-707/ounce)
Total Cost for 2d Abound (Nutrients + Electricity): $266 ($133-266/ounce)

Summary of what you need for this CFL grow setup

Example of everything on the shopping list for the CFL cannabis setup

CFL Grow Journal Examples

The following grow journals feature setups that are similar to this one (though some growers may use more or fewer CFLs) – encounter what to expect when growing cannabis with CFLs!

First Timer CFL Bubbleponics Abound – 5 oz in three months
CFL Dresser Microgrow in Pictures – Clone to Harvest – two.69 oz
$200 CFL Microgrow – one.02 oz (this grower cutting some corners!)

Complete Grow Supply List

This cannabis grow room setup list includes all the supplies you need to get to harvest.

Grow Light

CFL Grow Lights (at least 200W)
- Start out in the vegetative stage with at least 160 actual (not equivalent) watts of daylight CFL bulbs.
- In the flowering stage, you'll want to add together a minimum of 80 watts of soft white CFL bulbs. If you lot want to add together more bulbs, add them during flowering for the well-nigh value.
- The low-cal emitted by CFLs won't go far, and then information technology's usually a good idea to have more than of them and keep them all within 4-6 inches from your plants.
- Cost: ~$77

An example of a 40-watt daylight cfl bulb A 40W soft white cfl bulb
40 watt CFLs in daylight spectrum (left) for the vegetative stage and soft white spectrum (right) for flowering

Grow Infinite

Grow Tent Recommended Sizes
- two'x4'x5′ tent – an case is Absurd Grows 48"x24"x60"
- Learn more about grow tents
- Cost: ~$lxxx
Exhaust Fan
- Although an exhaust fan isn't absolutely necessary for this abound, information technology's keen for expelling heat and makes it so yous can use a carbon scrubber which isstrongly recommended.
- Larn more well-nigh choosing and setting up an exhaust fan.
- Recommended: 4″ Air conditioning Infinity CLOUDLINE series of inline frazzle fans. These run tranquility and have the power to plough the speed way down if necessary.
  - S4 is the cheaper, simpler version which works well and gives y'all bones fan speed controls
  - The programmable T4 version has handy extras like a Temperature/Humidity Probe and Display Screen
- Budget choice: Vivosun 4″ Fan – 203 CFM (adept cheap fan but runs loud)
- Cost: ~$55-120
Carbon Scrubber
- If you don't hook upwards a scrubber to your exhaust fan, your tent will speedily fill the surrounding area with a pungent weed smell!
- Recommended: four-inch TopoLite Carbon Filter, iv″ x 10″ version
- Cost: ~$45

Institute Pots

Growing medium: Coco coir, soil or hydroponics for advanced growers
Recommended containers: Smart pots or Air Pots between 2 and five gallons (here's the brand I use)
Recommended Soil: One 1.v cu ft bag of Play tricks Farm Ocean Wood will fill iv ten 3-gallon textile pots
Recommended Coco: One 50L bag of Mother Globe coco potting mix will fill up 5 x three-gallon material pots
Cost: ~$70

Nutrients

Almost food systems volition come with at least one bottle for vegetative and ane for bloom. Many nutrient lines carry 3 bottles or fifty-fifty more!
Whether it's on the bottle or online, near nutrient lines come up with a schedule. Use the schedule at half-strength in the first as the recommended forcefulness is typically too high for cannabis.
Learn well-nigh different nutrient lines we recommend
Recommended Base Nutrients: General Hydroponics Flora trio (employ at half forcefulness) + CaliMagic (use at full strength)
(Optional) Bloom Supplement: Full general Hydroponics Floralicious Bloom
Cost: $fifty-100

General Hydroponics CaliMagic Cal-Mag supplement
General Hydroponics Flora Trio and CaliMagic

Other Supplementary Items

Go your seeds – $5-12/seed (on average, can be more than or less depending on the breeder)
24-60 minutes Timer (to put your grow lights on a timer so the plants get a day and night period on a schedule). Why do cannabis plants need to be on a day/night schedule? What about autoflowering light schedules? – $10
Water containers (I personally use a 3-gallon or five-gallon water jug to mix up nutrients, merely anything tin can work) – Much cheaper at Wal-Mart ($v-15) than online!
Thermometer/Humidity Monitor with a probe so you lot can continue rails of the temperature inside the tent – $15
PH Test Kit – Foreclose potential nutrient deficiencies by testing the water pH: https://www.growweedeasy.com/ph – $15
Measuring spoons for measuring out your nutrients (many people already have these) – $ten
Learn about other absurd growing tools

Estimated Toll:$471 plus the toll of seeds

Check Out Different Grow Setups!

Examples of Like Setups

CFL grow lights being used with improvised reflectors