What lamp to start growing (cheap)?

1 plant. Most autoflowers will be okay in there, but some may need pruning to fit. Probably have more control over size with a photoperiod and do a short 2 week vege at most -- would be same timefram as an auto, but 12hours vs "18h" of light means you need a stronger light (same wattage expended per day, but more heat in those 12 hours produced - which in some contexts can be good or bad) Little over 1 sq ft.. just calling it one, because a little breathing room around the plant is wise. 32-33 watts with an extreme efficient light, but i doubt you find one in that size. so 40-50 watts is a good number for photos... 2/3rds of that on a 18/6 cycle for autos would be about 26-33 watts. Autoflower - 30-35w is a good number with a cheap light. photoperiods, just in case you use those i'd go with 40-50watts with a dimmer and it'll work well with both. run at 2/3rds power on 18/6 cycle compared to 12/12 at same hanging distance. Hanging distance should be about best light coverage across entire area... reduce difference from middle to edges without sacrificing overall average. From there, adjust power based on plant growth -- no matter what this is necessary trial and error to fine-tune how much light you give. stretchy = more light. nodes too tightly packed = less light. Can always use hours of opearation to adjust light given per day too -- even with autoflowers. It is not about hours of light. it is about DLI and there are more than one way to amount to 35-40* DLI (*general cap for ambient co2.) read up on daily light integral to get the gist... it's about photons received per day, not hours of operation. 40 dli over 12 hours will have same results as 40 dli over 18 as far as grams/sq ft.

I'm doing it with 2x grow bulbs 14W - 3 - 6500k 14W Leds . and a small "full spectrum " panel for 10 bucks. All in all they grow ok'ish

I am the king of cheap grows lol I have a space similar for clones. I use mylar space blankets on walls, they are cheaper than foil and more effective. you only need 40-50 watts @ around 18-12 inches from canopy. Any flat shop style light for around 25 dollars at walmart or similar shop store. Also add or remove smaller bulbs in leu of a dimmer. to get enough light for cheap. Good grow lights are 200 lm/w vs most regular shop lights @100 lm/w its slightly more heat but you'll need some ventilation regardless! You will not find much over 150w grow light in that size but they have a dimmer which is handy, you will not need more than like 50%, and if you are going to expand 150 watts will do up to a 2x2. 👍(P.S. the IMVSINCERE BC100W on amazon for 50 dollars ATM)

In such a small space, a 50w LED panel, perhaps dimmed to 80% of the power, is certainly enough. I also recommend covering the walls with tinfoil and (if you have a ventilation system to maintain correct humidity and temperature) adding 10w of LEDs which they point from the bottom up so as to increase the yield in your small space. Avoid 100w, 150w or over panels (unless you intend to dim them to 50% maximum) as they would produce too much heat and light which could be harmful to the plant. Take a look at Aliexpress, look for panels with non-violet light and Samsung LEDs. Good luck with your project :)

That's a tight space. I'd do only one in that. You need air movement in there as well. Look at Mars hydro and Viparspectra and spiderfarmer lights, anything around the 100w mark will be more then enough.

You need to drill holes for exhaust and intake fans, as well as electrical cables. Usually it's done before cabinet is assembled.

The Viparspectra XS1500 (150w) would probably be a good lamp for that job. It boasts very nice coverage, 660nm deep red diodes, and white diodes. It's affordable at only 100 dollars I use two Viparspectra V1000 (100w) in my veg set up and I haven't had a problem with either one of them!

36x36x140cm is a pretty tight space to grow in. I'd probably only run a single plant. You might consider doing vertical florescent lights(or tube style LEDs) in the corners if you're building a custom box.

Any 100W LED with a full spectrum, especially those equipped with Samsung 301B, 301H, 301H EVO diodes and a dimmer, should suffice. You can find some recommended options in this video:www.youtube.com/watch