2714W 5 pound CFL MICRO GROW ikea box idea! comments please!

urbanlights · Nov 1, 2009

Basically I wanted to take DrBud's SOG idea https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=88449 and multiply it by two... I wanted to take one of these:

the measurements are approximately Width 38.25" x Depth 22.875" x 90.0" Tall (these are approximate measurements of the INSIDE of the cab).

My idea is basically this: I want to have 5 seperate compartments using shelves.

Top Shelf (10" High) - Clone/mother room + Panasonic Whisperline w/Carbonscrubber.. I figure moms will only get around a foot high, and i'm going to have just a 26w 6500k CFl over the clones and mom's beside, if you can imagine what i'm saying.

Second shelf (12" high) - First flowering box. I've basically calculated that around 84 20OZ soda bottles can be fit on each shelf. I am going to be shooting for 80, as there still needs to be space to place vents and run wires. Basically, the 80 clones will be planted into 80 soda bottles in a 12" high shelf. 16x42W CFLs on this shelf.

Third Shelf (19" high) - 16x42w CFLs

Forth Shelf (23" high) - 16x42w CFLs

Bottom Shelf (25" high --Just like DrBud) - 16x42 CFLs..

I hope by now you can see where I'm going with this.. Plants will basically be cycled down the cabinet into chambers with higher celings (because plants grow high!)

BIGGEST PROBLEM: Will definitely be controlling the heat. This proposed setup has 64 42watt CFLs and 1 26watt (is 1 26w bulb good enough for 80 clones and 3-4 moms?) thats a total of 2714W! That's an insane amount of heat to deal with, and I dont even know if it's possible. Is it? What options do I have in reducing the heat? Would 10 or so bulbs on each shelf be enough to I have a decent budget to work with. I am planning on making an investment on a high end inline quiet fan. Probably Panasonic whisper and attach it to a manufactured carbon scrubber. If one fan wasn't enough to cool the entire box, maybe I could just make 4 seperate 80 plant boxes?

Advice will be appreciated, you will be rewarded with a guinea pig to test heat issues with CFLs!

MrBomDiggitty · Nov 1, 2009

or you could just get one 600watt HPS!

just because you _can_ fit that many cfl bulbs into a space doesn't mean you _should_

...you do realize there is a point you reach where you have _enough_ light?

beyond this point you're just wasting $$$ and time

urbanlights · Nov 1, 2009

one 600watt HPS per level? That's not a bad idea. Would 1 600W HPS be less heat than 16 42w CFLs? Another problem is, CFL's i can just mount right at the top, while HPS takes up a lot more space, and therefore less headroom for my plants to grow.

nnep · Nov 1, 2009

urbanlights said:
one 600watt HPS per level? That's not a bad idea. Would 1 600W HPS be less heat than 16 42w CFLs? Another problem is, CFL's i can just mount right at the top, while HPS takes up a lot more space, and therefore less headroom for my plants to grow.

putting 5+ 600watt HPS lights in that small of a space spells disaster. I'm sure he meant one for the entire cabinet.

medmaker420 · Nov 1, 2009

how much would 64 cfl's be after tax LOL

fuck that lol.

I dig the cfl grow ideas BUT at some point ALL cfl growers turn to hps and those who think otherwise IMHO are bullshittin.

Less headspace for your plants to grow with hps sure BUT imagine the LIGHT DEPTH compared to the two types. Who wants to move plants and or lights up/down 1"-4" every day or multiple times a day.

As far as temps, any inline fan can cool what you are talking about whether hps or cfl. As far as temps, 64 different heat sources versus one heat source MIGHT be harder to control.

Lets say a 42w cfl is only $5 WITH tax that would be

64x$5 = $320

and I know they are more than that including tax right?

Then add the fixtures and or different rigs to screw all those cfls into.

Maybe $10+ invested PER 42w cfl or $10 x 64 = $640

now compare that to the power of a hps setup and simplicity as well.

apples to oranges for sure.

not trying to shit on your idea because I once tried a few cfl grows and after buying a good 20+ cfls and the fixtures I started adding everything up and said fuck that. Used all the lights I bought in my house and got on the mh/hps bandwagon and WILL NOT go back.

Yield + less time moving plants/lights = reason to leave cfl behind.

I find it great that someone COULD yield amazing with cfls but you can do that with damn near any light source. However with micro lighting comes a ton of daily ups/downs that end up bugging the shit out of you.

If you do end up going with 64 cfls please let me know what the end total was and hope you do end up with a deal.

feral · Nov 1, 2009

thats a hell of a lot of heat for that space. your gonna spend so much $$$$$ on electricity because of the wattage and number of fans you'll need to try to keep that box somewhat cool, not to mention the fire risk.

freeride high · Nov 1, 2009

wow dude thats intense!
i would cut the cfl number in half or more, lighting such small area wont need that much light.
i would also cut the number of chambers in half, grow them bigger for more yeild per plant and much less work on your part.
90w-150w cooltubed hps for your flower chambers would be much better than cfl.
:lurk:

watching..

urbanlights · Nov 1, 2009

The style of growing I'm using is no-veg SOG.. Chambers don't need to be much higher than that, even high-leaning sativas like DrBud uses top out at around 20".. so like 30" max for lightbulb and pot factors..

Each "chamber" is 6 square feet.. Do you think less lights will be suffice in lighting 6 square feet?

medmaker420 · Nov 1, 2009

seriously though,

those who have or do cfl grows can you honestly say that you STILL are doing that AFTER having tried hps lighting? Micro or not doesn't really justify NOT using hps for me personally. Just wondering?

You could do something amazing with a 250/400 in there odds are AND save a bundle on up front costs + heat issues.

---

How are you planning on running the wiring for that 2700w+? I assume not into one plug or anything right?

hilbie · Nov 1, 2009

to me your ambitions sounds retarded. just get an hid if your going to go that nuts. over a couple two or three hundred watts of clfs whats the point? :pumpkin:

urbanlights · Nov 1, 2009

JUST A NOTE: that 'small' box isn't as small as people think. It has around 45 cubic feet, which is bigger than some closets. I think the best option would be to reduce the number of lights. In my current set up, i have 16x2700 = 42300 over approx 6sq ft.. meaning i have around 7000-7200 lumens per SQ ft. What is an acceptable number of lumens/SQ ft with DrBud style micro grows?

corkushy · Nov 1, 2009

he is right i started with CFLs moved to the hps best decision i made. lol instead keep two cabs one for veg one for flower you can also keep your mother and your clones in the veg room put a 400 or 600 watt in each cabinet with a cool tube and inline fan along with some circulating fans and your ready to grow .. personally id put a MH in the veg room and hps in the flower room/

freeride high · Nov 1, 2009

how about use t5's instead, that many cfls kinda defeats the point of the cfl.

spadedNfaded · Nov 1, 2009

At 75w per sq foot it comes to ~10 42w'ers, not 16. That'll knock off 18 total bulbs.

As far as a good perpetual thing goes i think it's a great idea, less veg time for the individual plants but more "mother" required.

If you're looking to keep a mother at 12"s you're going to find it very difficult to get it to provide 80 cuttings. Think of what taking 8 cuttings off of a 1foot plant will make it look like, then multiply that by 10. Is this something you've considered?

EDIT* i forgot to mention t5 fixtures. You can use t5s to flower and you'll find they shoot less heat and are more productive. It will cost less money to buy a few dualt5 fixtures, it'll run cooler and be less parts. Less parts is priceless!! You can get decent wattage bulbs in 3ft length. Not to mention more priceless headroom!!!!! The CFLs will hang an inch or two lower than the t5 fixtures.

- SubN

urbanlights · Nov 1, 2009

Dr Bud yields approx 2.7 g / w dried with CFLs.. i'm not an ass-kisser, but none of you CFL haters can come close to that on your HIDs.. I love HIDs, I worked for a long time for an HID company that actually produced car headlights and other commercial HID lights. Not very familiar with HIDs as grow lights.. I know the benefits to them, but I garauntee you, in that type of cabinet, 1 600w HID light is not going to outproduce even 1000 watts of CFLs. Micro growing is more than lights. If i had a 20 square foot room to grow in, i'd use HIDs. In micro grow, space is just as important as light quality.. HIDs take up twice the amount of space (if not more).. Is the increased light quality going to show in my yield? I DOUBT it.

Why do CFL bashers waste their time talking shit to CFL users? Stay on HID posts if you hate CFLs so much!

urbanlights · Nov 1, 2009

T5's are a great idea. They have better dimensions for this type of project anyway. Are there any you'd recommend?

I never thought about the clippings issue. I guess i'm going to need 6 even 9 mothers.

I guess the main question was what kind of lighting requirements would they need?

spadedNfaded · Nov 1, 2009

The good thing about linear tubes is they output lighting from the length of the bulb, so where you would need 4 42w to light up an area you can run 2 2ft bulbs and light the same area, ya dig?

I definately think you'd benefit from using tube flouros in this setup. I switched from 4 27w CFLs to 2 13w T5s and the t5s outproduce them. They keep all of my moms growing fast and healthier!! no lie!!

In that space i'd see how many 34inch t5 bulbs you can fit. If you can fit 4 dual bulb setups i think that would work excellent and use less power! Less heat!

- SubN

spadedNfaded · Nov 1, 2009

They only make them in certain sizes, i found a few search results for 21w 34" fixtures.

I would check your local homedepot or lowes if you have one and ask them what they have.
I got my dual 2ft 14w bulb setup at homedepot for ~$30. Its 2ft long and accept (2) 14w t5 bulbs. It came with 2 bulbs, too!

- SubN

Fuzz420 · Nov 1, 2009

Around my parts 40w+ bulbs are just shy of $10 a pop. That just seems unreasonable in the grand scheme of things. I like pushing the envelope but thats too much. How bout trying some 70w or 150hps per level. Put 4-5 cfls in the mother/clone cab,and call it a day.

urbanlights · Nov 1, 2009

What about 8 39watt floro tubes? So far i've found a fixture that is 3feet with 6 tubes not 8. 8x39 = 312 watt per level... Not bad for better light distribution. So this will be a hybrid grow. DrBud style no-veg SoG with high output flouros... Cut the watts in half too from the original plan and more headroom! I love it. Also I read that plants can grow closer to T5's than CFL's by a few inches. May not seem much but huge for a microgrower..

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