Hey Guys, I'm a total beginner. I have a wooden growbox of about 6 ft tall and 2 ft wide with tinfoil attached to the inside. Maybe it's a crap of a growbox but that's not the point. My concern is not to burn down the house when I'm away. I have 0 education/knowledge in electricity: If I'm simply gonna attach a HPS bulb or regular wolfram wire bulb (200-600 WATTS) to the screw base core and plug it in the socket, what are the risks for the box to catch fire? I've heard about using the ballast, can you use a stabilizer instead? Question arises from the fact that I have no idea how to connect a ballast to the wire and have no desire to make experiments regarding electricity. Any suggestions? Thanx
I am not sure tin foil is the best to use i am told it adds more heat that frys the plants. Instead use mylar or that white panda. Maybe look into led to keep the heat in the box down.
An HPS bulb has to be connected to a matching ballast or it just won't work. A 400w is plenty for and even a 250w would be enough in a 2x2 box. If you buy a new ballast and bulbs it should all just be plug and play. MH for veg, HPS for flower. Tin foil will be fine but have the dull side out. Folds in the shiny side can focus light to make hot spots on your plants and burn them. They won't catch fire but it will bake leaves. Same with mylar but it doesn't have a dull side. Flat white paint or panda film as mentioned above is a good way to go.