Light concern

[Rocker420]

Alright, so to start off im gonna be growing in a small 20x8 trailer that i am currently working on. In the begining i was gonna buy 4 1000w HPS/MH lights(two rooms).
But then i started getting alittle worried when i heard and relized that even if i layer it with polyshield, there would be so much power coming out of there that the electric company would notice. So then i started thinking maby ill do 2 600's and 2 1000's. My rooms are both about 8x3, so that does mean 2 lights per room. My question is should i be worried about the power company, and what lighting set up should i go for?

 

[Mutt]

with an 8'X3' area...you will only need 1200 watts per area. I would do either (2) 600W or (3) 400W...reason is that 8' stretch you'll have very dissapated light on each end. Its better to have more fixtures @ less wattage to cover the entire canopy than one big one in the middle. unless you implement a light mover.
You are packing a lot of wattage in there. you're looking at a 2400 watts. I would wait for some others to chime in....I never went over 800watts.

 

[Stoney Bud]

Sudden spikes in your electric usage could throw up a flag to the electric company *if* they care about that in your area. Some do, most don't. Mine goes all over the place every year. I don't grow in the very hot months any more so the air conditioner during those months evens out the electric some.

With the wattage you're talking about, you'll have a hefty increase in your electric usage.

Now, if you had 20 1000 watt lights burning at once, it could really raise eyebrows. With only 1200 watts, I don't think anyone will notice. I have a dishwasher that uses 1,300 watts of power while it's running.

 

[maineharvest]

I have a dishwasher that uses 1,300 watts of power while it's running.[/quote]


Hey Stoney does your dishwasher run 18 hours aday? Just kidding. I couldnt resist.

That seems like a lot of power that would be coming out of a little trailer man. Personally I would be nervous about that. I have just a four hundred watt hps and a couple little floros but I got rid of my ac just because ive heard of people getting busted for having a huge increase in the electical bill. Im just paranoid I guess, but I look at it as a good thing.