My First grow! 400 W HID digital ballast, grow tent, vic's super soil

[Rumpleforeskin]

Originally Posted by JoeGrow420

OK guys, I've been at it straight since the last post. I hooked up all the equipment and mounted it nice and neat, using the bars that the tent comes with, string, rope, chain, and zip ties.

I also did all the duct work (except for the 6 inch clamps I need to buy, I forgot those) using 4" duct and some 4" clamps and duct tape. I worked for a couple of hours trying to get stuff clamped off either in place inside the tent or removed from their place, clamped, and then returned to their place. It was a lot of work and the clamps didn't seem to be affixing solidly. I had a couple of pop offs and I wasn't even halfway done. I threw in the towel and started using the duct tape everywhere. I checked for air leaks when I was done by running the fan and everything seemed fine. (by the way, I have both of the 6"->4" converter pieces for the cool tube, and they are in place)

Of course I've got to take the ducting off from around at least one side of the cool tube when I get my bulbs.

Guys, I need some help with the bulbs.

Today, I took my ballast and my cool tube to get the cool tube rewired so that it would directly plug in to my ballast. The guy at the hydro shop didn't sell the converter but offered to rewire it if I bought the cable from him. So for $15 I had a solution. It was the same price as an ebay auction for a converter piece, but I didn't have to wait for shipping. It was a winner.

Anyways, he had this light -> UltraGrow SuperLux 400 Watt HPS Hoticultural Grow Bulb for $59.95 and this bulb -> UltraGrow SuperLux 400 Watt Hoticultural Grow Bulb for $69.95. I almost bought them from him.

I got a chance to let him deal with another customer before ringing me up, and I checked google shopping for the bulbs and I saw that he was double-tripple charging, so I backed out and just gave him the $15 for the cable / rewiring job(which he said was free, nice guy, he was really cool).

Before checking the price online, I asked him why I should buy his bulbs and not go to home depot. He said that his bulb was tuned specifically for growing plants with the right
color temperature. I see now when I check the onlnie vendor's information that the temps are showing to spec out @ 2000 kelvin and 4200 kelvin. Well, according to growing basics.pdf on my machine the most desirable are 5500 @ 2200. I think I picked up the file here but not totally sure. I reference it occasionally when I'm reasoning things out.

But anyways, what I'm getting at here is what bulb is the best bet for this cool tube and this ballast?

Should I buy those two bulbs that I've linked up there? I am thinking they are probably good buys but I'm a little wary of the temperature discrepency.

A few years back I went through the whole high-end bulb test. None of them did better then the ones I buy at Lowes. They did not do any worse either.

[Master_Kush]

The diffrence in bulbs is that the home depot brands as opposed to Hortilux is the lifetime. I use a 1000 watt so I can't get mine @ home depot or lowes.

All bulbs lose intensity after a while. It is recommended you change your bulb when using a Hortilux every 4 to 5 cycles. The home depot grade bulbs will lose intensity far sooner.

You would have to probably see a decrease in yeild after your 3rd cycle if not before. If your trying to keep costs down I would get the home depot bulb for your 1st cycle.

What you save growing your own will buy you the nicer light at another time. It is always good to have a spare on hand & defenitly not a waste of money to get you going.

There are so many ways to skimp & cut corners & still come out a champion in the end. Your light source is very important so I always get Hortilux. I DIY in many areas but never skimp on your lighting, plan to buy the better quality light for your next grow.

[JoeGrow420]

Guys, I had a real bad day. I've been bent over with my neck crooked up into the bottom of my sink for the past 12 hours. I'm hurting. This reverse osmosis equipment has been a terrible ordeal. The thing is leaking in 3 different places, currently, and my sink is now leaking in several different places as well.

I bought 3 bulbs from home depot. they had 2 different kinds for 400 watt metal halide and one kiind for high pressure sodium. I think they were way overpriced, also. I'll return the MH that I don't want. Hell, I might return all 3. They were $30, $40, and $22, with the $22 being the HPS bulb.

the $40 one is a MH bulb, says it for use in a m95/s balast
the $30 one is a MH bulb, says its for use in a m95/e balast
the $22 one is the HPS bulb

i looked up m95/e and m95/s on google, and google looked at my like I was crazy.

Which one is what I need? Before I open it, because I'd rather not, if I'm taking it back.

Thanks homies

[Master_Kush]

Return that shit. HPS can be used for the entire plant growth. Instead of buying the $35 MH bulbs go the other side of the isle & pick up a 4 ft 2 tube T5 fixture for 34.99

You will have to buy the cord. This will add more lumens & mix up your spectrum. Me personally would pick up a few units & place them to get max output. You get the whole system for the price of a MH bulb.

If your using a magnetic ballast which I believe you are, you could get the hortilux super blue & that you could run for all cycles.

You will eventually start vegging outside of your tent & flowering inside so you always have something coming out. There isn't much stink in veg. You will eventually want these T5 tubes anyway for veg lights while your 400 flowers.

There are many ways to do this & it shouldn't be nerve racking.

Try this for more happiness. Forget that MH & get yourself some T5s to veg outside your tent. This cost the same as what your doing now but gives you a veg room & a flower room since you have a tent for flower & vegging plants can run on 18 or 24hr cycles. It is all preference.

100 watts of T5 per plant is whats recommended. The 4ft tubes are like 54 watts. They don't get really hot & you can veg a hell of a plant with them & even mix spectrum w/ diffrent color bulbs.

You could just harvest 3 or 4 times or harvest all year long. Up to you. Don't be in a rush & think of what will work for you. I use T5s to vegg & I have the equiv of almost an 800watt HID but I can give light accordingly to save power & again they don't produce bearly as much heat & work just as well.

My 1000 watt makes the magic. Veggin don't take much but an over kill of lighting is always good. You getting the grow bulb could buy you a 4ft 2 tube system which will vegg nicely & you can add as the plants grow if you like.

Gear that tent up for flower only. You will see alot more buds & not be stuck to any schedules allowing you to grow freely.

[JoeGrow420]

Honestly, Master Kush, I might veg using a different method later.

Right now my mind is made up and I'm gunna veg in this tent, using the cooltube which Rumpleforeskin recomended that I purchase. Thats not because I am OK with harvesting 3-4 times a year. Its because thats what I WANT to do. I'm not selling, this is for personal consumption, and its just a hobby. Right now I'm putting an inordinate amount of time into it, just to get it started. Once its up and going and my setup is fully functional, I'm gunna be real happy everything is contained in the one tent (+ potentially the other smaller enclosure) and stuff isn't everywhere in that closet. I use that closet for other things, after all. My mind is made up, and I'm not buying more/different lamps. In the future, I'll likely buy or build another enslosure for rooting clones/holding my mother plant. But it will be very small.

I'm in one mode, with respect to my lighting setup, and that's bulb mode. I just want the right bulbs for the stuff I've got. I spent a lot of money on this stuff, its been in the transfer from DCHydro to here process for a long time, and setup took a good while. I want to get rolling here.

Maybe its best to just buy a single HPS bulb and not spend money on the metal halide.

Should I take back both MH bulbs and keep the HPS bulb and consider myself finished? I like the idea of NOT opening this cooltube at any point during the grow cycle. But I think I maybe shorting myself on the speed in which I can Veg up, at least a few days. Can I get other opinions on this question: Is HPS that much better for vegging than MH to justify spending $20- $30 right now?

[Master_Kush]

That was my 1st recommendation.

You are missing some of the spectrum using straight HPS but it will do the job fine. Of all the ways to take shortcuts don't take one on your lighting. You have so much $$$ and time invested you kinda have to go through it if you seek perfection.

Since you have your heart set on vegging in the tent did you buy a switchable ballast ? If not no biggie. Hortilux made a bulb called Super Blue. It is for use from beginning to end & will work with your HPS ballast.

It is a dual arch bulb that shine 60% HPS 40% MH . Personally I would run just the HPS & add the cheap 2 tube T5 to mix spectrum. More lumens

You also leave the T5 beneath your leaves to shine up for best results.

[Rumpleforeskin]

He bought a digital ballast so he needs no switches or conversion bulbs.
MH for veg. I can't tell you what one is the correct one because I dont speak spanish. You took pictures of the spanish side of the container. It good to use MH for veg, I get better growth rates and more branches. Switch to the HPS when you go to flowering.
My lowes sells the Sylvania HPS bulbs and they work killer.

[JoeGrow420]

OK, here's the English language side of the bulbs.

These came from home depot. I've got a lowes nearby as well, if I should take all these back to HD and try to buy sylvania products from Lowes, I will. Knowing my luck they don't carry the same stuff that your's carries, Rumple.

At issue here is WTF is m95/e and m95/s

Like I said, I googled both of those terms and google didn't respond positively.

[JoeGrow420]

and another point to be had here,

the bulbs that the shopkeep showed me, that weregunna run up about $75 and $60 for just a single MH and a single HPS bulb were available online for like $18 and $25, respectively.

I have time to wait.

Were those bulbs AS GOOD as the ones rumple is recomending, the sylvania from Lowes? If so, I should just order those and take this stuff back to home depot. I'll save money.

[Master_Kush]

Originally Posted by Rumpleforeskin

folks I let try it agreed that it was the best weed they have ever smoked.
I said it was a sad story, and it is. I never cloned that plant and was unable to get anything like it again.

I feel your pain brother. I got turned onto the old West Hollywood Center for their clones a long time ago. They never had much of a selection but what they had was unbeatable everytime. Usually OG,Master,Bubba Kush.

I just went there everytime I needed clones & the dankest shit I have ever seen always came out. The last year worth of grows have been a genetic search up until a month ago meeting another grower & floweing the genetics from Green Angel Of Malibu.

I will always keep atleast 6 mom's now cause I never want to go on that flip of the coin search & end up w/ mediocore quality. I like my variety. Right now I have 13 strains & the best 6 I will mother. I have friends to keep the others alive. They agreed to make a mom aslong as I provide the clone.

They know I'm so picky so they are eager to grow them & anytime I need a clone it will be on hand @ no charge. Friends helping friends. Anyone who reads this, always keep a clone. What happens when you find that special quality & than you can't get it again ? It is sad like rumple says & can be a nightmare.

[Rumpleforeskin]

Yeah, I buy both mine at Lowes. The MH bulbs is huge, like the size of a softball and hardly fits in the cool tube..

[sensi13]

Originally Posted by Rumpleforeskin

Yeah, I buy both mine at Lowes. The MH bulbs is huge, like the size of a softball and hardly fits in the cool tube..

I had a look at them today, and I was surprised to see how big they are. It made me wonder if there would be enough room to get airflow through there, lol.

[Don Piano]

400W HPS Mogul Base Grow Bulb - Plantlighting Hydroponics
I have used this and it works fine. Did 3 cycles with no diminishing results, but would replace for the next.

Sylvania 400W 4000K Universal Metal Halide Bulb - Plantlighting Hydroponics
I am currently using this for veg, and again, works fine.

both bulbs shipped and all for $40.

[JoeGrow420]

Can you guys see the problem inside the container for one of the Reverse Osmosis filters?

What a pain in the ass.

That RO system I bought has caused me such headache.

[Mechanibus]

That sucks, man. Which one did you buy so none of us get it? Really sorry you had to be the one to take the hit on it though.

Can you buy new filter cups or whatever? I'm sure the threads on it are some kinda standard. Or am I seeing the problem wrong?

Hope you get it sorted out soon, but at least around here I get distilled water for 44 cents a gallon. Maybe that could hold you over until you get it figured out. Don't overtighten plastic fittings! You can make a good connection leak!

Luck to you, -Mech

Hey I also meant to say- don't sweat the bulb. Get a cheap MH and a cheap HPS to start, any old ones, and get growin'. Even a cheap HID is 10x better than the next competitor so don't worry. Mine is no-name brand and it works fine so far.