help with auto ak/blueberry

[middieman440]

hey guys i just did an order of auto ak x auto b-berry 10 regulars i plan on doing 3 of them indoors to make babies..my plan is to use cfl lights that are equivalant to 150 watt lights i plan on buying 4-5 of them..but also have an option of using a metal halide lamp but no ballast or anything..i wanted to go 4 weeks cfl 4 weeks MH..i never done anything indoors before..how does it cost to run a metal halide unknown wattage bulb ..can the 5 cfl's do the job im only trying to make babies but the smoke is a plus..any help would be good thanks

 

[pcduck]

I prefer to use Mh for veg, they show more of the blue spectrum(which is better for veg). But you need a ballast for Mh. Those cfls will work but try to get something in the 6500k or as close as you can get for veg. 2500k for flower.

 

[Waspfire]

bro i am currently growing 3 LR2 and i am using cfls and there doing just fine so far just rember if use the cfls keep them close as possible to the plants i keep mine like 2-3inches away

 

[middieman440]

ok so how many lights should i buy for 3 plants possibly just 2..i forget the exact wattage but it = 150 watt light for these ones at wallywart..how bad do the plants stink...my grow area is just an extra bedroomand the setup will be in the open"no windows in room"so will have to open a door and window in kitchen to ventalate..will 1-2 female plants stink that bad to be noticable im on top floor so the smell should just catch the wind and go away..and we do have skunks around here..lol..i have a fan i can run on low to circulate air or just on plants..what should i do about that..and also what/how should i fertalize..since theres like really no veg stage why use diffrent bulbs??

 

[fellowsped]

You should be fine if its just a couple LR plants they shouldn't get to big to stink your house up. Anyways i wouldn't use just some random bulb you picked up. MH bulbs need a ballast and to get a ballast you need to know the wattage. Your best bet would be to just go out and get yourself a digital ballast and a new mh and hps bulb give your the best of both worlds. As far as ferts i would just get a soil that had enough stuff for veg and only feed it flower ferts. Anyways good luck with the grow.

 

[ShecallshimThor]

if i was growing 2 plants with cfls i would have 6 as close to the tops as possible then i would try and put 4 light around the side of each plant to make sur my lower budds were as big as my top buds but thats best case if you can do the math min is 5000 lumens a square foot

 

[middieman440]

ok so how do i find the "k" rating the cfl bulbs i can get are equivalant to 150 watt light bulb and put out 2000 something lumens

 

[pcduck]

They should tell "K" on the box or on the base of the cfl. I also think that people use "Daylight" bulbs for flower and "Cool White" for veg or vise-verses. Only problem with that is each bulb manufacturer uses different "K" values for such said bulbs

 

[middieman440]

idk i work at wally world pt for extra money and im looking at the lights everyday darn day and all i see is 150 watt equivalants _however you spell it_ nothing about cool or warm light and i even opend and looked on the bulb its self and none have the k rating....*** this sucks im just going to use the ones i can find and the one i do have is a very bright light white/blueish...maybe i should paint the walls yellow to give them a diffrent color hahaha j/k but im just going to buy 6 of these 150 equivalants and hope for the best..im basically just doing 3 to get seeds plus smoke but not looking for much maybe an ounce or 2 or whatever...well ima go to ocean state joblot after this and check them out and see what they have...

 

[TerrorAP2]

I believe the 150W equivalent CFL's are 42W. The ones I have seen and bought at home depot were available in a variety of Kelvin choices, from Cool Blue to Daylight, to name a couple. I believe it depends on the brand, but most of the 150W equivalent lights, put out around 2000+ Lumen each. That's not to terribly bad for such an inexpensive light.

I believe I only spent around $20 or so for my lights and they were working like a charm, before I decided to scrap my latest project. I had one plant per light and kept the light about 2 to 3 inches from the light. Keeping them as close as possible will prevent stretching.

If you are worried about not having enough light, give Liquid Lumen (I believe that is the correct name) a try. From what I have seen, this mixture that you spray on the plants, will intensify any light available. If you do use this, be sure and move the lights a little farther away from the plants tops, as it can burn them easily.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Equivalent wattage doesn't mean squat when we are talking about growing plants. You really need to use the real wattages--they are the only figures that count. Well, that and the lumens--you need 5000 lumens per sq ft.

 

[middieman440]

the 42 watt cfl from walmart is for general purpose and i read one post somewheres its 2700k is this true?if so i can use these to do the job

 

[Waspfire]

my 42 wat cfl's from wal mart has a orange type glow same as my 2700k 26 wat cfls so i am using them havent hurt mine yet

 

[leafminer]

"so the smell should just catch the wind and go away":confused2: :rofl: