so basically i got 2 free 150w hps ballasts from a friend. thing is that I don't have the ballast or even any knowledge on it. Bear with me as these are probably stupid questions. I'm an electrical noob... is the ballast just like the mechanism work? does it still have a powercord to the wall outlet? when it says 400w ballast does it only work with 400w bulbs? I have 2 bulbs; is there a way to utilize both of them using only 1 ballast and like 2 sockets? Are there such things as like preconfigured ballasts with sockets and plugs ready to be used. prehaps ballasts with 2 sockets. how much would a ballast run me approximately? I hope I don't need 2 to run both of them. Does anyone recommend any place to buy them? I couldn't find 150w HPS ballast on eBay. Thanks
Hey, How you doin. Generally speaking, (and im no electrical guy either), ballasts can only have the same wattage bulb as the ballast is made for, in other words, you can only install 1, 150 watt bulb into each ballast. The ballast should have one wire going to your wall socket (you need to make sure the voltage is the same as your outlet) and one wire going to the socket which holds your bulb. Did you get bulb sockets/reflectors/bulbs with them? Those are necessary. If they are both HPS like you say, I would run both if you want to do more than 3 plants As you want about 100 watts per square foot. And just in case your not aware, MH is generally used for the early vegitation stages, whereas HPS is better for flowering. You might want to think about getting conversion bulbs for vegitation stages, which allows you to run an MH bulb to an HPS ballast. Good luck, read up all you can before getting started, pictures and other details will help us help you.
thanks bud. i don't think i want to buy 2 ballasts either anyways. guess ill have an extra bulb just in case or something. each plant already has two 28w and one 46w cfl as well as a 28w "plant and aquarium" tube and a "Ott-light" in a worklight resting on my mylar-ed box. do you think thats enough light to vegetate it big enough to flower? I was thinking if thats enough then i'll just use the 150w hps for flowering. should i use the hps light along with the flouros? and do i really need a reflector? i mean i got mylar in the box already. if I had the hps set up w/out reflector hanging in the middle of the 2 plants and i rotated the plants every 12 hours then it should be fine right? heres a link to my grow journal: http://forum.grasscity.com/grow-journals/120550-first-grow-project-green-w-pics.html sorry for so many questions, i just wanna get this right
Yea, ive been watching that thread for a lil while now. Looks like you got a good setup going there. Im not a CFL grower, but I think youll be ok for a little longer. You can never have too many lights however, so as long as you have them at the right distance, and the proper ventilation, you should add all the lights you can. While doing 24/7 lighting you shouldnt spray the leaves, after 2-3 weeks, switch to some dark hours, and then you can spray when your lights turn off. You dont have to have a reflector, specially with all that mylar you got, its just a nice thing to have to direct the light more efficiently, and allows you to keep the air above the bulb free of light which can also be handy sometimes. Whats your fan situation? Airflow relieves stress as well I believe. Have you been checking the PH?
well, it'll work with no reflector but it'll work better with one. with mylar up you should be able to pull it off. and imo when you flower add the 150w hps, but keep your floros on it too. you can get a inexpensive "batwing" reflector for about $30 though.
so no spray on leaves eh? I usually mist the leaves and squirt water from a bottle around the base of the plant every other day or so. I'll just stick to the watering now. thanks. For ventilation, i just got a portable everyday fan sitting on the floor near the box blowing indirectly in the box causing movement of air. I don't think its too hot in there yet. I don't have a pH tester yet but I'll probably look into that sometime in the future. i don't know how im going to put up the HPS lamp because the ceiling wall is weak and it won't hold S-hooks with weight so i duno about the reflector. I was just thinking of putting the HPS bulb in the middle of the box somehow near the top besides the worklight.
Spray the leaves as soon as the light turns off. Make sure you have a temperature/humidty reader, digital is better, and they are cheap. Make sure you have a fan blowing directly on the plant atleast during the light hours. This helps relieve heat stress and makes the stem stronger so it doesnt fall over. Definitly want a PH tester as a plant wont last long in bad soil. What you want to do is buy those screws that have hooks on the end, like the ones you see holding plants from cielings. Those will then support your "s" hooks, which will in turn support your chain so the light can be adjusted almost daily. HPS bulb will be hot in that box. Youll want it higher up with some sort of mylar build to reflect it down upon them, that is ideal anyway. Good luck. Check out other peoples grow jounrals with pics also, will give you good box ideas.