fluoro tubes vs cfl's - Growroom Lighting - International Cannagraphic Magazine Forums

watermelon · 07-17-2006, 06:02 AM

it seems that not many people use tubes these days now that cfl's have become more availiable.

from my knowledge cfls are essentially the same as tubes, but they are coiled up to reduce thier length and create the same amount of light in a smaller space. with a smaller size you can fit more in a given space and in places traditonal lights wouldnt fit.

however if space permits surely you could fit the same wattage and lumen output with tubes as with cfls. just increase the amount of them and fit as many as possible in the grow area.

with that all said, how good are tubes for micro growing? i know they are used in veg alot and i dont expect HID results, but are they comparable to cfl flowered bud? or worse?

Trev · 07-17-2006, 06:25 AM

the problem with tubes is, they're wattage/lumens are spread out in a greater space, thus not allowing the plant to sue all lumens efficiently. when with a CFL you can direct your light more accuratly increasing porductivity.
one situation tubes would be good, is SOG with alot of 4 foot fluoros you can do a decent sog.

MICROgrowing with tubes wouldnt even bother.
anything under 4 foot in tubes wont have nearly enough watts or lumens to make it worth wild. think of this.. you'd need 2- 2 foot fluor tubes a 20 watts each to get the same output of 1-40 watt CFL!??! less space used, and more ability to direct your light. so unless your doing large scale grows with many plants, tube are just not practical.

watermelon · 07-17-2006, 06:42 AM

i was actually planning on doing a sog, but i can only fit 3 foot tubes in my small growspace.

the space is about 1.5 feet deep by 3 foor wide and i dont know how many i could fit in there. maybe 6 or 7 if tightly packed.

bah well, may stick to cfl's then

Trev · 07-17-2006, 06:46 AM

stick with CFLs or low wattage HID and you'll be fine!.

pieceofmyheart · 07-17-2006, 06:57 AM

I agree. I used tubes for my first grow....I don't recommend it.

Makavellian · 07-17-2006, 07:05 AM

ive seen 24inch t5's which look pretty good. 24w/2000 lumens. they are pretty pricey though. last i seen, a 2ft 4tube 96w/8000 lumens rack costed 100+

07-17-2006, 07:06 AM

Tubes will work but growth will be slow. Tubes are okay for clones and seedlings......after that, you'll just need more light to do very well.

Bh

cid420 · 07-17-2006, 08:54 AM

yeah get a few 200watt CFL one for growing another for budding. then build box 2'wide 4.20'high 3'deep mylar each chamber 1'x3' vent from top 2 fans, or if u got the money co2 tank works good on small scale like that . cfls ok in my book 17,000lumens not bad when u can get it that close to plants.

Azra3l · 07-17-2006, 11:54 AM

Hi,

in my opinion, CFL is just a bunch of marketed light. It depends on your way of seeing it.
If this grow is just gonna be a one-shot try, you can go with CFL.
But if you're gonna keep a stealth cabinet, go on with tubes for the simple reason that you can change your tube every 6month to 1 year. That is not the case with CFL, after a year it's dead.
And there is some turbo fluorescent lights 60cm long with a 2x55w power that are as efficient as CFL

+++

Makavellian · 07-17-2006, 01:22 PM

^-- what are turbo fluorescent lights? also, t8s and t5's are way more efficient than cfls, i dunno about envirolites though because there are a lot of diff output number floatin around for 125 and 200watters

07-17-2006, 06:02 AM	#1
watermelon Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 106	fluoro tubes vs cfl's it seems that not many people use tubes these days now that cfl's have become more availiable. from my knowledge cfls are essentially the same as tubes, but they are coiled up to reduce thier length and create the same amount of light in a smaller space. with a smaller size you can fit more in a given space and in places traditonal lights wouldnt fit. however if space permits surely you could fit the same wattage and lumen output with tubes as with cfls. just increase the amount of them and fit as many as possible in the grow area. with that all said, how good are tubes for micro growing? i know they are used in veg alot and i dont expect HID results, but are they comparable to cfl flowered bud? or worse?
	Quote

07-17-2006, 06:25 AM	#2
Trev Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 292	the problem with tubes is, they're wattage/lumens are spread out in a greater space, thus not allowing the plant to sue all lumens efficiently. when with a CFL you can direct your light more accuratly increasing porductivity. one situation tubes would be good, is SOG with alot of 4 foot fluoros you can do a decent sog. MICROgrowing with tubes wouldnt even bother. anything under 4 foot in tubes wont have nearly enough watts or lumens to make it worth wild. think of this.. you'd need 2- 2 foot fluor tubes a 20 watts each to get the same output of 1-40 watt CFL!??! less space used, and more ability to direct your light. so unless your doing large scale grows with many plants, tube are just not practical.
	Quote

07-17-2006, 06:42 AM	#3
watermelon Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 106	i was actually planning on doing a sog, but i can only fit 3 foot tubes in my small growspace. the space is about 1.5 feet deep by 3 foor wide and i dont know how many i could fit in there. maybe 6 or 7 if tightly packed. bah well, may stick to cfl's then
	Quote

07-17-2006, 06:46 AM	#4
Trev Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 292	stick with CFLs or low wattage HID and you'll be fine!.
	Quote

07-17-2006, 06:57 AM	#5
pieceofmyheart Banned Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: my secret garden Posts: 1,854	I agree. I used tubes for my first grow....I don't recommend it.
	Quote

07-17-2006, 07:05 AM	#6
Makavellian Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 406	ive seen 24inch t5's which look pretty good. 24w/2000 lumens. they are pretty pricey though. last i seen, a 2ft 4tube 96w/8000 lumens rack costed 100+ __________________ 2007
	Quote

07-17-2006, 07:06 AM	#7
Guest Guest Posts: n/a	Tubes will work but growth will be slow. Tubes are okay for clones and seedlings......after that, you'll just need more light to do very well. Bh
	Quote

07-17-2006, 08:54 AM	#8
cid420 Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 85	yeah get a few 200watt CFL one for growing another for budding. then build box 2'wide 4.20'high 3'deep mylar each chamber 1'x3' vent from top 2 fans, or if u got the money co2 tank works good on small scale like that . cfls ok in my book 17,000lumens not bad when u can get it that close to plants.
	Quote

07-17-2006, 11:54 AM	#9
Azra3l Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 141	Hi, in my opinion, CFL is just a bunch of marketed light. It depends on your way of seeing it. If this grow is just gonna be a one-shot try, you can go with CFL. But if you're gonna keep a stealth cabinet, go on with tubes for the simple reason that you can change your tube every 6month to 1 year. That is not the case with CFL, after a year it's dead. And there is some turbo fluorescent lights 60cm long with a 2x55w power that are as efficient as CFL +++
	Quote

07-17-2006, 01:22 PM	#10
Makavellian Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 406	^-- what are turbo fluorescent lights? also, t8s and t5's are way more efficient than cfls, i dunno about envirolites though because there are a lot of diff output number floatin around for 125 and 200watters __________________ 2007
	Quote