Hello All, I just purchased an AIO 1000watt hood, digital ballast and MH/HPS light combo kit from amazon. I realize that the included HPS and MH bulbs are not the highest quality compared to the market leader EyeHortilux. This is where my questions comes in: Which stage is it "more ok" to use a "cheaper" bulb if it is even ok at all? Can I use the included MH or would it be too detrimental to my grow during vegging? Similar goes to flowering. Am I sacrificing bud quality, density, etc... if I do not use the super hps? I realize that the optimal way to grow would be to purchase separate new EyeHortilux Super HPS and a EyeHortilux BLUE Metal Hallide bulb but since i was given the bulbs for free with the AIO I was thinking why not make use of them and attempt to save a little money. I trust this sites user's and recommendation and I was seeking the best knowledge base so if i need to spend more to get the best bulbs I will. If any clarification is needed or any questions please feel free to ask. Thank you for your consideration.
I'd just go with the bulbs you have now...bulbs should be replaced at least every 6 months/3flower cycles. Just upgrade to horti's when you have to replace them. I've run with both cheepos and hortis and there's not a huge difference, I doubt you'd notice any difference till you get your room/strains dialed in. OR...you could buy horti's now and save the cheapos for backups. Depends on your budget.
Thank you for your reply Bongsauce. Budget inst really an issue. I mean I am not looking to go to like 4 gavitas or anything nuts but if the better choice would be to get the Horti's right out of the gate then spending that money is not difficult. I like the logic of keeping the chepo's as spare but if they stay spare forever what is the point of having them as spares. I get your point though. When you say not a huge difference what was the difference you saw? Are we talking like .5 gram a watt or like .01 gram a watt? In your opinion, would you have run the cheapo over the horti's if you had a chance to redo that same grow again? I have my room kinda dialed in. Can anyone really say that their room is perfect at all times.? I am a little on the colder and less humid side but both of those can be easily remedied. Better then the opposite.
I can't say exactly cuz I never bothered to compare weights..but I'd say maybe 10% more yield at best, but that's just a guess. I didn't notice a difference in quality, but my old partner thought the horti's increased quality a bit too. In a perfect world you would have a spare and never use it.....but how does that saying go? hope for the best, plan for the worst. I personally feel that having spares of everything is a huge weight off my shoulders...sometimes you can't put a price on peace of mind, in this case you can. Keep in mind that bulbs will get weaker over time. So generally speaking (don't quote me on this!) an eye horti bulb with 4 months of use might be weaker then a brand new cheapo bulb. If budget isn't an issue and your room is already figured, just go for the horti's then...why hold yerself back till the next bulb switch. It would only take a small increase in weight for them to pay for themselves. So many options...lol at this point I feel I'm rambling.