first off this is my first attempt at growing. i have a couple different seeds. i have 2 seeds that came from a ak47 plant and 2 seeds that came from above average mids. my main concern is the grow room its self. there is a water heater in tis room. it will be about 5 feet away from my plants. any affects of this? all 4 seeds are on plates using the paper towel method. in the mean time ive been setting up my grow room. here is my plan. i was going to get 3 of these... Shop Bayco 8-1/2" Clamp Light with Aluminum Reflector at Lowes.com i was going to hang them from a line above the plants. i am also doing it right with mh and hps bulbs. ive had trouble finding out which wattage i would need for the set up since i have the area to do so i was going to try and keep the plants outside in the sun as much as possible. are there advantages of doing so? if so what are they. also what stage would be the best to do so in. thanks for the help. as soon as i buy a camera i will post the pics of my setup.
how big are you trying to grow them. personally i would do at least a 400w for 4 plants. full 400w set for 119 here this bulb works with the kit i posted above and I'm going to run it for veg on my next grow then switch to hps for flower with those two things you can switch to the hps bulb if u want or u can just use the cmh but u just need that one ballast
hey man I'm no expert at this by no means and i am using that same lamp with a CFL (took off the reflector) but if u were 2 put a MH or HPS in it u would end up with a nice exploding bulb or maybe even a fire. I'm pretty sure u gotta buy a hood and ballast 2 run an MH or HPS
Yeah man, gotta get an actual HPS or MH light fixture to even put one of those bulbs in, and a ballast of the proper wattage to run whatever wattage of bulb you want to use. Those fixtures you linked to are only good for standard bulbs, and you could use CFLs with them. You'd need at minumum 250 actual watts of CFL lighting (not equivalent wattage) to grow 4 plants, more is better. You'd be better off with a 400W HPS light, as fresh31 said, but those can be pricey. The water heater may make the room slighty warmer than without, but either way you need a way to control your room's temperature. Ideal temp should stay between 75-79 degrees. Putting the plants outside would do them a world of good, as sunlight is the best light for plants. Someone more experienced than me would have to say what the best method to do this is, as I would fear that the transition from nice sunlight to less than nice artificial light would be a lot like a 12/12 cycle and might induce flowering early.
alright well i did some reading online and on some other sites and i read in more then one places that miracle grow soil is no good because it is to acidic. i also read that jiffy starting soil is good to use in the earlier stages because it has a good amount of vitamins and good stuff in it. any takes on jiffy starting soil? any more information about growing in pots out doors for the beginning stages(before it really stands out) then moving them into a grow room?
I have heard bad things about MG soil but that's what i used and i have had no problem. I use the potting mix so idk if that's any different than what you're talking about.