I have one plant that's about 4 weeks into flowering (picture is 2 weeks old). My cabinet is 14.5" x 14.5" x 60" high. I have 151W of CFLs and the temps are about 79 - 81F. I'd like to get a 150W HPS light, but my choices are limited because the cabinet is so small. I could get the mini-floralux with an enclosed ballast from HTG supply. At 14" x 10" it would just fit: http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=49255 The remote ballast kits I've found are too big for my cabinet. There is one with an electronic ballast from HID hut, but the hood is 16" x 8", so I would have to hang it at an angle -- one side would be about 2" higher than the other side (I think). Discount Grow Lights - - 150W HPS Ballast, Bulb and Economy Reflector Combo Closeup of reflector: Economy Reflector/ Drip Guard There is also a remote magnetic ballast kit from HTG supply, but the reflector is 6" high and closed on both sides so it looks like it wouldn't fit at a reasonable angle: http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=53025 Close-up of reflector: http://www.htgsupply.com/viewimage.asp?ID=818 So, what do you all think? Should I get the enclosed ballast unit from HTG because I could hang it properly? Or should I get a remote ballast unit and hang it at an angle? I have another question: I probably have about 4 - 6 weeks 'till harvest. Will an HPS light make a difference at this point? (It would make it a lot easier, that's for sure.) Thanks!
As long as it is hung securely and no risk of fire then yes, you can hang it at an angle. And you should get a unit with a remote ballast, you don't want the ballast in the grow box adding heat. One note of caution: some remote ballasts are hard-wired between the ballast and the socket/reflector assembly. This means that to have one part outside the grow space (and obviously one part inside) that you will need a hole large enough to pass the entire ballast through (that hole then needing to be light-sealed). On some other models the cord between the ballast and the socket plugs in at one end, which allows you to only have to pass the cord through a much smaller hole.
Thanks Organic and Toasty. I guess what I should do is find out the height of the HID hut reflector and make a mock-up. I used the pythagorean theorem to figure the 2" "leg", but that's only 2 dimensional. Toasty -- good point about the cord, I hadn't thought of that, and there's no way I'm gonna make a hole big enough for a ballast to fit thru! The HID hut ballast does have a plug-in cord. After posting this question I thought of something -- the HPS light will be further from the plants, so my temps might actually get better. Does that make sense? (The exhaust fan is in the ceiling of the cab.) BTW, Organic -- I'm using Blue Mountain Organics Flower Power and Super Plant Tonic. Have you ever heard of them? Here are links: Flower Power Super Plant Tonic For veg I used miracle gro orchid food 'cause I already had it, but for flowering I decided it would be easier to go organic so I wouldn't have to worry about micro-nutes & bacteria & fungi -- everything seems to be in the BMO. For the first watering with the BMO I fed 1/2 strength Flower Power, but I accidentally double dosed it with the Tonic! Plant seems okay, though. For the second watering (yesterday) I fed it ~1/3 strength Flower Power and no Tonic. (Apologies for the OT)
yea those nutes look awesome shit i might try them... haha make sure you flush out all that nasty MG chemical shit before you start your microherd...
Thanks Organic! I didn't flush but I was only using like 1/2 strength miracle grow. I think organic is great, but I don't think the chemical stuff is actually "bad". It's just that it has only the macro-nutrients. Even though it's synthetic, it's pure, so you know what's in it. But at the same time, it's sterile, so not good. Recently it occurred to me that with organic, you really don't know what's in it. For instance, straight manure is organic, but if it's uncomposted it could have residues of antibiotics or whatever else the animal ate. Don't get me wrong -- I'm not hatin' on organic -- I love it and in an ideal world that's all there would be. But if you don't make it yourself, you really have to trust whoever you buy from. Just wondering what you think about this?
well... the main difference is how your plant will uptake the nutrients... myco fungii needs food to live, and it helps your roots uptake nutrients... the microherd pretty much brings out a buffet for the plant to feed off, and if everything's set up properly, you'll notice the difference in growth... the MG stuff won't feed your myco, and may kill the microherd... so it kinda fucks up everything you're trying to accomplish using organics... homemade compost teas with humic acid, or products of the like, will feed all your microorganisms and keep them working for your girl but yea i like what's in those nutes, a lot... nice choice bro
I've grown plants (not MJ) all my life, but honestly I don't know what I'm doing. By microherd you mean the microbes, like bacteria & fungi? (I like that term -- microherd -- makes me think of an army of little beasties serving food to my plant!) I don't know if I have things "set up properly", and I'm too cheap to invest in nutrient meters, pH meters, etc. I know the day will come when a plant gets sick and then I'll be racing out to buy diagnostic tools. I did buy some pH strips but they're worthless. pH 5 & 6 are the same color on the color chart! For the soil I used stuff I had laying around -- part MG, part Hyponex(?). To that I added a quart of worm castings that I bought from BMO (this was before I bought their nutes), a bunch of perlite, and some bone meal. 2.5 gallons total. BTW, I like bein anonymous, but I am a sis'! Funny how most MJ growers seem to be male. My husband has no interest in this grow (but he'll enjoy the product, knock on wood!)
Update -- I added another 23W CFL (total of 174W now), and the inside temp is 76. Room temp. outside the cab is 67. (Yes, I'm freezing with the windows open, for the sake of my plant.) So, the cab is 9 above room temperature. This is good now, but will be a problem when summer comes. My apartment is usually about 80 in summer (sometimes 85). I have two window A/Cs, but that's the best they can do. Still, I'm leaning toward getting the Floralux enclosed ballast. If heat becomes a problem, I can figure out how to remote the ballast (I hope). I can hang the floralux level and that way I won't lose any direct light to the wall. Is that a good plan? BTW - my plant is smelling wonderfully skunky. Last night I could smell it when the lights were off. I guess I should run the fans 24/7?
for the money i'd get the HTG 400watt hps system...119$ same price as that hid hut 150watt.. at HTG they only cost me 145 shipped! and they pay the extra for fast shipping for free! lol come with bulb and all, push 55,000 lumens i like there company they alway's get my stuff right and for a really good price... the 400 will jam, you will be so much happier than with a 150w.. a 400w is only as much power as 4 household 100w lightbulb's to put it in perspective... to save that power just by using 23watt cfl's for your house bulb's..it will counter the power bill of your grow...you prob will not even see a difference this way.. your going to have to vent your room either way you go, with an hps, cfl's or whatever.....150w or 400w...does not matter, you need air flow and good vent regardless just to grow decent indoor.. but take the advice of toasty about the ballast...keep it outside the grow area...the htg 400w is remote and everything is on 10' cord's...you can run wiring very simple with these...there is a panel on the back of socket housing with these...take 3 of 4 screws out and shift the panel so you can get to the wires...there are only 3 wires and 2 butt conector's inside the panel...color match ..a slow person could figure them out i swear..lol it's a simple + (white) , -(black) , and ground wire(green) just unhook the cord there and get it out of the housing...run the small power wire from the ballest were ever you want...really easy now...then reconnect it with your reflector hung were you want it...boom your done..no cutting big holes to run wiring or to remote the ballast from your grow.. with several week's left, the 400w now, will make a huge difference.. like to add: i've grown for about 25-26 years in soil without a good ph meter...(hydro is different stoy..lol) with a good knowledge of soil mix and how to properly mix your soil before growing, and proper flushing between multiple feeding's(like your supposed to)..you will not need any ph kit or expensive digital meter...this kinda takes care of that..., but research on soil structure and mixes is key... hope this makes sense i'm pretty right now..lol cheer's
yea i grow with cfl's and sunshine... get the remote ballast, i wasn't aware of the heat difference... and by set up properly, i just mean feeding your beneficial bacteria and fungi... those nutes will do all the work for you... that's why i'm ordering some
i think mention has already been given to the heat factor of adding an HPS, but i'll add that the bulb itself will still be giving off quite a bit of heat, remote ballast or not. perhaps you've mentioned air-cooling it and i just missed it, but i can't imagine having reasonable temps in that small of space with any HID.
i run 3 400's no air cooling in a 5x7 tent...as long as she has a/c air from her house going in via fan or intake, proper exhaust and the ballast out side of it, it will be fine..just keep it 18-24" above canopy
For exhaust I have 2 PC fans in the ceiling of the cab. One is 88CFM and the other is 68 CFM. This is 156 CFM (supposedly) of exhaust, but PC fans are not very powerful. I have a home-made carbon colander filter mounted under the exhaust fans, and it's taking care of the skunk odor. For intake I have a 4" hole at about soil level. I put a PC fan in the hole to blow on the plant, so it does double duty as circulation and intake. So, with this set-up and 151W of CFLs the temp. was about 79. Today I added another 23W CFL and the temp went down to 76. (It's colder outside today.) I'm really confused now. Custom thinks I should get a 400W HPS and Zack wonders if my cab can handle any kind of HID light. Oy, what to do. The A/C in my apartment is pathetic, and I don't have enough circuits for more A/C (I have 6 x 20 amp circuits, but 4 of them are relatively new and have only 1 outlet each, not conveniently located.) So I have to hurry up and finish this grow before summer!! Also, my grow is on the same circuit as the refrigerator, which is not a problem right now, but if I had 400W, and the light were to start up when the fridge was on, I might blow a fuse...er...I mean trip a breaker. Assuming I do go with HPS, I guess the main reason to get the floralux is that the reflector fits in my cab. Custom -- If I remote the ballast I need to find a metal box to mount the "parts" in, right?
what i can tell you is this. i once grew in a tent slightly bigger than your space (it was 36" x 20" x 64"), using a 250w hid, plus a few 105w cfls to supplement. even without the cfls on, temps were hard to control. using a 160 cfm exhaust with passive intake as well as multiple other small fans blowing air around, i was lucky if i didn't have to leave the zipper doors wide open in order to keep it in a reasonable range. oh and i may add, this all took place in a tiny apartment with a crappy window ac... so basically, using an HID in your space will bring about further temperature obstacles. however, this is not to say that such a light cannot be used in your space, you'll just have to use an air-cooled reflector.
no it comes pre built from htg this way for you, there not that hot but you don't want it in your grow area, it will just up your temp's... the htg 400 watter's have a 10 foot cord from hood to the ballast, then 10 foot cord from ballast to plug...the ballast is already remote...it really is great for the 119$ can't beat it and they give you the bulb for free pretty much.. i am no way a part of htg by the way people i just love there stuff and it's affordable, they don't rip you off... you can see here what your getting exactly...the ballast is already remote for you..all set for your space, easy install..even has hanger holes in the handle to hang it from something if you want.. if you got a all in one with the ballast inside it instead,(like most 150watt mini system's) you would need to gut it and make a plate for your ballast...but this system would cure all for ya really cheap.. there are folk's running these same light's in dresser's and using pc fan's...but axial fan's are not that powerfull like you were saying... but they get the job done most times... check discount hydroponic's or htg's selection of axail fan's and inline's...there cheap! and pull way harder..i know discount hydro has them for pro setup's all the way up to 180cfm i think, they have there own cord's and everything...but what you have will work.. i still say get a small fan to blow around air in there, that makeshift one your using that's doubling as an intake...not cutting it..it's just an intake so leave it there it will only help...but actual wind on the plant's top's and stem's will strengthen your plant's limb's and help cool way better, ...just get your exhaust up high...and use your current intakes..and a oscillating fan in there ...get this light and love your plant's ...you will be amazed..
no you don't ... and your design flaw was the passive intake...your expecting to magicly pull air in without using a fan to force it in and hid lighting? big no no.. plus with passive intakes the rule is that you must use twice the exhaust cfm than your grow space cf, other wise your passive intake does not work at all..and it becomes a hole in the floor... the passive intake hole must be as big or bigger diameter than the exhaust port as well... plus i don't see to many remote ballast 250's out there...those are known as mini-system's usually and the ballast is right there heating up next to a hot bulb...inside the hood...not remote ballast at all.. no need for air cooled hood..that's a waste of good money and extra fan's
well i stand corrected! and i must say i appreciate the tips as well! nothing like advice straight from an old school grower himself. i guess i must have calculated wrong when i determined my fan size for that grow in terms of getting proper ventilation... based on the info i had i thought that fan would pull air in through the passive intake of a tent my size. oh well...still managed to harvest some nice bud with the setup if i remember correctly. i gotta say though, i'm still drawn to the air-cooled reflector for using the hid in such a small space. it just makes life a little easier, inmho. oh...and my 250 watter has a remote digital ballast.
no wait! i think you're wrong by your own logic.... cfm must be at least twice in cfm the cubic feet of the tent? i had 160 cfm in 26.6 cubic feet. plus, the intake was definitely bigger than the exhaust port. after all, it was a quality product from HTG. i like shopping there too.