CFL Grow Lamps

CFL Growing Light Bulbs

Sunshine is ideal light for your plants but when growing indoors it is almost impossible to all the light necessary for proper growth and health of your plant. Fluorescent light bulbs are the next best thing because CFL grow lights have the widest spectrum offered today. Their popularity has increased dramatically over the past few years among hydroponic enthusiasts because of the exceptional results and relative lower costs.

The advantage of using a Compact Fluorescent for growing is that they are small and produce very little heat that might damage your plants and increase your energy cost. They waste very little energy and most of the light is focused on your plant. Because they produce less heat than HID bulbs, they can be positioned closer to the plant (4-12 inches) and are more ideal for smaller areas. Increase in technology also has allowed for high output lamps (i.e. 200W CFL) that can produce as much as 10,000 lumens per energy saving grow bulb.

Growth and Vegetative Compact Fluorescent
There is much debate on what Kelvin to use when growing indoors. According to a study conducted by a leading Canadian University found that spectrum ranges from 5000K to 6500K were the best for vegetative and growth stages. It is a popular belief that 6500K are the best for the growing/vegetative stages but this recent study found that the 5000K CFL bulbs produced similar results. We decided to do an unscientific study ourselves and found the same results when growing tomatoes. The myth of 6500K seems to be perception and not based on facts. Metal Halide is a popular choice but they usually fall in the 4200K spectrum, so reasoning would say that growing with CFL's is more effective method.

Flowering and Budding Compact Fluorescent
According to the same study, the researchers found that 2100K to 2700K were the best for the flowering and budding stages. They concluded that the 2100K bulbs produced slightly better results (about 10%). The 2100K is more prevalent in HPS bulbs, while 2700K is more common in compact fluorescent models. This gives the slight advantage to the HPS system but if your on a budget, CFL systems would be the economical choice.

In conclusion, using these energy saving grow lamps make sense for growing indoors when your area is small and you need the most "bang" for your buck.