I was looking at lighting by Eye Hortilux and noticed they have both HPS and MH ballasts that allow you to use the opposite light in it. Eg the HPS ballast can hold both HPS and MH lights and likewise if I were to get the MH ballast. (I can use MH for seeds right?)
My question is I’m sure you’ve heard of this before. Is this a more cost effective way to go? Does it work fine or should I only operate an HPS light in a HPS fixture?
My plan was to get the least expensive ballast (either the MH or HPS)
and let’s say it was the HPS. I would buy that and the MH lights for it first for the seeds. Does this approach make sense? Thx so much
Also. I received my seeds but do not plan to use them until I get all my necessary gear to grow. Can I keep them in the envelope or should I remove them? Right now they are in a dark, medium cool/warm place that’s dry of course. I wasn’t sure if I should remove them
If the ballast is designed to operate both lights then there is no problem with doing that.
I have used MH for seeds before but in my experience it was a bit too intense for seedlings light and heat wise if you have the extra money I would use T5’s for young seedlings until they have a few leaves on them and used to the nutrients then put them under MH for veg then swap the globe for the HPS for the flower stage I hope I understood your question and I hope this helps.
I think you are talking about using a conversion bulb as an alternative to what the ballast is rated. I would get the HPS and use an MH conversion bulb during veg cycle.
I agree with statement above; T5’s are a lot more forgiving, and I just bought a 2’ model off ebay for $56.95. Cannot believe how bright it is.
If you want to use MH and HPS and control it with one ballast; Look into Ipower digital light systems. Comes with everything; Automatically reads which bulb you screw into the base. Check it out. on ebay
I would take the seeds out and put them in a film canister or something with some desiccant to absorb moisture and put them in a freezer for storing them for a while but don’t keep taking them out of freezer because condensation forms when they go from freezing to room temp. Hope this helps.
MacGyver, i have a question about the 1000 watt ballast.
it has 3 settings, 50%,75% and 100% i was told that to use the 50% while my plants are in flowering and
to use the 100% for my vegging. Would this be correct ?
Sounds backwards to me, you want stronger light for Blooming/Fruiting.
It’s all about the total lumens/lux/flux/par at the canopy or at the leaves. And this will change dramatically depending on the distance from the leaves to the lights.
You can use this as a loose guide as to what you need as minimums:
Seedlings and clones require about 400-1000 lumens per square foot.
Vegetative growth requires about a minimum of 2,000 to 3,000 lumens per square foot.
Flowering requires about 5,000 to 10,000 lumens per square foot, ideally, and can take possibly much more.
With a 1000w your distances should be able to range around 48" – 72" and maybe as close as 12" from the plant’s leaves/canopy.
It’s not hard to do a little research and figure out how many lumens are reaching your plants at various distances, lumens are just a measurement of light watts per area anyway. Learn a little about the inverse square law and how it geometrically reduces the amount of lumens reaching an object as the distance increases. A 1000 watt could be used even for seedlings and clones if you got it high enough away from them, a waste of a good light and a lot of power for that stage of growth though, lol.
Ok got it I thought that it wasn’t
Right. I’ve checked it with my light
Meter and there was not e ought lumens
Now would I be able to put 2- 36
Watt ( Full Spectrum ) Cfl lights along
With the 2-1000 watters?
Would this be beneficial for flowering
(Budding)?
The 2 x 36 watt CFL’s would be a drop in the bucket compared to the 2 x 1000 watters. However a few more scattered around as side lighting could very much benefit the lower side growth of the plants during flowering. Bringing a low wattage CFL very close to the plant will give quite a bit of lumens in the few inches around the bulb as the intensity of lumens will dramatically increase as it gets closer to the bulb, again as described mathematically with the inverse square law.
Just got a 1000 watt HPS. It has the 2 8in holes for fans and venting but I don’t have a fan yet. Can I stil run the light 24 hours a day till I get it?
