[cloneX]

Where is the best place to get CFL's and which brand is best for clones, micro grows, looking for your 2cents?

[Hundred Gram Oz]

Anything from 125w - 250w is good, I'd recommend the T5 lights, they are great.

[TheBioMaster]

Personally like the 85Watt CFL's which I think is a better value as they can be had for less than 20 bucks each.

The 125Watt would be about the highest IMO to use as anything higher and you would be better off with a HID light.

A buddy tried the 250watt CFL and did not like it at all. The trick with CFL's is you have to keep them pretty close to the plant to get any kind of penetration. You can do that easily with the lower watt CFL bulbs as they produce little to no heat, but the 250watt produces a good bit of heat and you can not get the plant as close to the light as it needs to be to get coverage and penetration.

If your going to be using them for cloning, you want "less" intense light anyhow so again the lower wattage's would be a better idea.

The best use for them found so far was when they were used as side and lower lighting for a flowering plant with HID lights on top. Adding CFL's to the mix with HID lighting on top is a excellent and cheap way to gain yield.

Heres what I use. The 35 watters are about 15euro and the 23 watters are 10. 35 watters are warm and the 23 watters are cool in the spectrum. Homebase sell the TCP lights but the eco pals can be a bit tricker to find. Check out you local hardware and you might get them. All you need are a few light clips and your away. I just clip them on to my cheap euro hood.
CFLs kick ass for veg

[cloneX]

ninja bud what are those light clips your on about have you a pic of them? I was just going to use 100w bulbs from tesco's and fix them to a board so I can higher them easily

its just a light socket on a spring loaded clip with about a metre of cable with a plug on the end.

you can see them in this pic.

[cloneX]

Are those lights not too far away from the plants, won't they strech?

[GetUpStandUp]

Best place is Lowes, and if your doing a grow with em from start to finish use 23 watt warm for flower, mix in cool at 10% ratio like 10 total bulb you should have two cool, just so you get a full spectrum of light, well not exactlly full, but added lets say.

You should know do not waste money with reflectors, hoods, or any kind of reflecting material, as most of your cfl power lies within the first 6inches from light, so this means if it (lights travels to reflector back down it would be to weak to matter. Best solution, Flat white paint. cheap stuff like 6 bucks a gallon.

Second, dont waste time with ventalation, unless stealth is the purpose, and if so make this your top investment along with others, but depending on the size, the cabs build heat very quick, yes cooler than HPS or MH but still reach well over 100 which kills plants! You will thank me if you do, so many things happen with temps over 86degrees, the plants lose water faster in transpiring to stay cool, the soil can also dry too fast, your ph can be affected from extream fluxuations in temps, and moisture patterns, and worst of all, thinking you fixed everything and one day in flower you find out one plant couldnt take the heat, and popped a nanner turn into Lady GaGa on you and pollenates all your ladies, now you have a cab full of trannys, and well really rather have the ladies!

I say If your stealth is no issue keep a open cab, or even better have a table top grow, this allows for manageable air movement around the whole run instead of blowing your ladies tops off with fans trying to cool the tops since they are so close, this will definatlly stress them also, as no one drives on the freeway with their head out the wind. So with this always try to stay under 86 degrees, cuz with all the factors of small soil, small confined stagnat space, false lite, then throwing heat into it will always prove making the grow pointless, even angry if you bought good seed stock.

Also, for veg, get a t5 strip, two tubes is ok, unless your going for mass growth, but plants do fine with it, and when you clone, you want little to but a spec of lite, like bottom shelve in veg room out of direct light, you can test this if you want but suddle lite works best.

I am no expert just throwin my penny really the govt got the other penny. I rock 600watt in a 4sft of space like over 9000 lumens a foot. I used small 20 ounce cups at fits throwin them in with no veg time after clone, but was to hard to dial in, and manage, also dried the pots out to quick, and way to many problems. So since then 1gal pots, and using mulch as a 2 inch top dress is a must, it has multipal purposes with more than great results, oh and I grow organiclly, High Brix method.

Dont let your clones get to big over 6 inches as the bottom of the plant will be scarse little buds not worth the time, try pruning to get one main colas, or try LST to get more out of the sq ft. I grow indicas, Nightshade, pakistan valley, afgan kush, and have no problems with streach in the first couple of weeks in flower, but sativas will try to reach the moon if you let em, so not very Ideal for CFLS, but some can not hang with indicas, so LST would be your best gainer.

One more last thing and I will shut my pie hole. I mix my cfl lite with natural sun lite when I can, it saves on the bill, and gives them some form of natural sun, I cant leave em out at all times, but even a couple of hours is better than none. Be careful not to bring pest in, keep up on pest, specially spider mite sons of b's the indoor cfl cab is problablt the most ideal for them to thrive. Good luck, happy learning, you will never stop doing that, as mj makes you smarter regardless of what ppl say, you will see, the more you know the more you get out of your effort, leave no stone unturned!

Originally Posted by cloneX

Are those lights not too far away from the plants, won't they strech?

Yeah they will stretch, the hood is up for the picture is all. I try and get them as close as possible.
Anyway seeing as you asked where to get the cfls in the Irish forum I take it your in Ireland so I dont know why the americans are giving you advice on where to get them.