Ok, so on the 4th. of July i plan on putting my plants into flowering, what kind of timer do i need. A lot of them i see say 3 or 2 on off settings per day, does that mean i wont be able to do it 12-12? Can someone maybe send me a link on one that they have and will work? Thanks for the help..
you can get a timer at any local hardware store like home depot. You will only need a one start time: 6:00am and end time: 6:00pm of course you dont need to go with those times, whatever suits you, im just sayin. 12/12 sched
Little tip for you here: if you're incapable of securing light leaks, put the timer on a schedule so the lights are off at night and on during the day, that way lightleaks will be very uncommon if at all, and will be during the times when the lights are on .
I got mine at Lowes (same as Home Depot) yesterday, Had pins so could set 2 different settings ($9.98). I just took the extra on off pins out. The one I got was for outside use. incase I ever have a wet situation. but not needed. I chose this one though, becouse you could plug a 3 prong plug into it instead of the 2 prong the cheaper one had. Also the cheaper one had the prongs stickign out the back so that you had to plug the unit dirrectly in the socket. Wich can take up room sometimes. The one I got, has a like 12" of cord, wich is more convenient for me.
yeah i need a 3 prong one its for my 400 watt hps. So those ones with the pins you can take them out to make it only 1 on/off per day?
you don't even have to damage the unit. They are designed to be able to have as little as 1 on/off setting, or one every 15minutes should you so desire, no need to physically remove the pins. Also, I would strongly recommend to everyone here getting a "heavy duty" timer which can handle the high amperage draw of a 1000w HPS, so you don't start a fire. Also, NEVER break the third prong off to fit in a two prong outlet. THE PRONG IS THE GROUNDING PRONG AND IS THERE FOR YOUR SAFETY. If you rip it off, and a short occurs, the electricity will no longer have a path of least resistance, and the chances of a fire are greatly increased.
All good advice. Get a heavy-duty, 3-prong analog (dial) timer for under $10. Make sure it can take a 3-prong plug. You can plug a power strip into it and then run several lights and fans off the one timer (just don't go crazy and overload it, several CFLs off one timer is OK but if using HID only run one per timer). There are two kinds of analog dial timers that I have seen, those that have removable pins and those that have the pins built in. For the kind with removable pins just use one red one for the time you want it to go on and one black one for the time you want it to go off, no need to use the other pins. For the kind with built in pins, there are pins for every quarter-hour around the clock, you push the pins up or down depending on what time you want the lights on and off. I forget if up is on or down is on, you can figure that out. Just make sure all the pins from on time to off time are in the on position, not just the pin at the start time. Digital timers are good too, but I have heard they don't work for powering CFLs. Berlette, your advice is true for working with light leaks, but it is far better to fix those light leaks or you can mess up your plants (light leaks work both ways, letting light out that you don't want people to see but also letting light in that you don't want shining on your plants during dark cycle). I actually do the opposite of what you advise -- my light cycle is during the night and dark cycle during the day to manage heat better, no point in adding heat during the hotter daytime. Swa_Swa, what mean you 9-9?