MH or HPS?
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3patas
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yes is the best light to flower with (hps) but when you are on a low buget you have to go with whatever is available still what ever you get out a plant is shiper the buyin it on the streets + you know what you are smoking peace outTURKEYNECK said:
T
theyorker
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3patas said:
The best light for MJ is the sun. For growing indoors, you can get excellent results using flourescent.
These plants have been grown entirely under T12 flourescent tubes. They are 63 days from germination and 17 days into flowering.
http://www.marijuanapassion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9007&page=4
Fretless
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Yeah, the 2600k 42watters was what I used. Got them in a Lowe's. Worked great for veg, super tight internodes, beautiful plants. The color spectrum in much wider on floros even if it does say 2600k, there is still plenty of blue. When the HPS is on, the 2600k CFL's appear to glow blue. I'm still using the little guys along with the HPS to beef up a couple of thinner plants that couldn't be under them previously. I made a common error and hatched too many.
To the original poster ~ my additional 2 cents is to wait until you can go for a digital ballast if possible. Best price I found was Hid Hut, next best I found was HTG Garden Supply.
To the original poster ~ my additional 2 cents is to wait until you can go for a digital ballast if possible. Best price I found was Hid Hut, next best I found was HTG Garden Supply.
HydrO PasSiOn
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hey bearfoot whats the difference between a digital ballast and a regular one?
Fretless
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The digital ballasts run much cooler, and are pretty much silent. They save a fair bit on electricity (claims vary but its probably around 10%), are easier on the bulb (longer bulb life), and have a safety feature where if there is an open circuit for some reason, it stops applying juice and tries again several minutes later. Initially they caused RF interference, but the new ones don't have this problem.
So, they're just all around better and safer. Will cost around $100 more. The main reason I sprung for the digital was I didn't want to deal with a humming noise all the time. Although as it turns out, the exhaust fan is pretty loud anyway. Oh, and the other thing is, digital ballasts can run MH or HPS. Though I'm not sure about the one I've got, it is labeled for HPS for some reason.
I think its well worth it even if it meant saving for another month. In the meantime you could LST your plants with the CFL's, I wish I had.
I did, fortunately/unfortunately, get a demonstration of the digital ballasts safety feature when I first attempted to light my 600 watter. The wire connections from bulb socket to power supply were put together with wire nuts, and they'd come loose in shipping. So the bulb wouldn't light, the ballast cycled several times, and eventually there was a flash of blue lightning out the back of the hood. When I checked the wires, they just fell apart, and the wire nuts had a slight bit of carbon on them. I'm not sure, but I think an old-school ballast would have burned the socket right out, maybe started a little fire. I relayed this whole experience to Hid Hut, and from now on they will be using crimped wire nuts, which might just mean he's giving them a good squeeze with pliers.
So when you do get a HID, whichever kind it is, if it doesn't light at first, don't be an ape like I was and keep trying to light it. Check the socket wires.
Which type really depends on your grow location. If you have a lot of space and don't live in a 1BR apartment, I'm sure a magnetic ballast will be just fine.
So, they're just all around better and safer. Will cost around $100 more. The main reason I sprung for the digital was I didn't want to deal with a humming noise all the time. Although as it turns out, the exhaust fan is pretty loud anyway. Oh, and the other thing is, digital ballasts can run MH or HPS. Though I'm not sure about the one I've got, it is labeled for HPS for some reason.
I think its well worth it even if it meant saving for another month. In the meantime you could LST your plants with the CFL's, I wish I had.
I did, fortunately/unfortunately, get a demonstration of the digital ballasts safety feature when I first attempted to light my 600 watter. The wire connections from bulb socket to power supply were put together with wire nuts, and they'd come loose in shipping. So the bulb wouldn't light, the ballast cycled several times, and eventually there was a flash of blue lightning out the back of the hood. When I checked the wires, they just fell apart, and the wire nuts had a slight bit of carbon on them. I'm not sure, but I think an old-school ballast would have burned the socket right out, maybe started a little fire. I relayed this whole experience to Hid Hut, and from now on they will be using crimped wire nuts, which might just mean he's giving them a good squeeze with pliers.
So when you do get a HID, whichever kind it is, if it doesn't light at first, don't be an ape like I was and keep trying to light it. Check the socket wires.
Which type really depends on your grow location. If you have a lot of space and don't live in a 1BR apartment, I'm sure a magnetic ballast will be just fine.
HydrO PasSiOn
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thanks for the advice bro
HydrO PasSiOn
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3patas said:
chillen how you doin patas? how are you ladies doin
chestylarue
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man, i would NOT be using any lights that you can find at a Lowe's or Home Depot. its a great investment to just spend the money on HID lighting. you'll get your money's worth, that's for sure!
i just spent $275 on a sunleaves 400wt with an internal switchable ballast. i dont like to keep rotating crops, so when my girls are in veggie i will use a hortilux MH($100) and then switch to a HPS bulb at the first signs of flowering.
maybe though...if i can afford the HPS bulb. right now i'm using the hortilux MH Blue which has a great deal of yellow/orange/red spectrum, and the guy at the shop says it suitable for flowering, too.
anyone have experience with those bulbs?
i just spent $275 on a sunleaves 400wt with an internal switchable ballast. i dont like to keep rotating crops, so when my girls are in veggie i will use a hortilux MH($100) and then switch to a HPS bulb at the first signs of flowering.
maybe though...if i can afford the HPS bulb. right now i'm using the hortilux MH Blue which has a great deal of yellow/orange/red spectrum, and the guy at the shop says it suitable for flowering, too.
anyone have experience with those bulbs?
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chestylarue said:
Don't want to rain here but I have an incandescent bulb that I'll sell you for $1000.00 and it is suitable for flowering.
Any bulb is "suitable" for flower...is it the correct bulb that will in anyway give you a descent harvest NO...making a MJ plant flower is easy keeping it productive during flower is the desire. Although a MH will flower a plant the buds will be lighter, have more air, and generally be smaller.
There are reasons we do what we do.
chestylarue
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i meant the MH blue bulb is more suitable than a standard cheapy MH bulb
here is a link for the spectrum:
http://www.eyehortilux.com/blue.html
here is a link for the spectrum:
http://www.eyehortilux.com/blue.html
