Quote:
Originally Posted by pilotguide
How about some simple inexpensive compact florescent lights? I know the results are certainly not like MH or hps but they do work. |
That's a nice simple design. Although there a couple of things to keep in mind about using
cfl's. First, the video says 42 watt
bulbs but does not specify if that is the actual wattage or replacement wattage. To clarify, a compact florescent light (
CFL) is a energy saving light. They tell you what the actual wattage is and what wattage bulb it's designed to replace.
example:
a 60 watt equivalent will probably be about 14 actual watts. That is a energy savings of 46 watts.
But using CFL's to replace a 150 watt HID light you would need to calculate it by the actual wattage of the CFL' and NOT its equivalent value. That would be 14 x 10= 140 watts or 14 x 11= 154 watts. So how well the CFL's work depends on the actual wattage of the CFL's used as compared to what wattage you are wanting to replace or compensate for.
Second is the distance from the plants. The lights effectiveness is greatly reduced the farther the lights are from the plants. This is true for all lighting, though I believe is even more critical for CFL lighting.