CFL vs HPS

[whitewidow2]

Ok so into flowering and im using a 150w red spectrum CFL...

Ive been told i can get 1/4 to 1/2 oz approximately per plant by doing it this way

My question is.... how much roughly could i expect per plant if i used a 400w HPS instead - my only concern would be the increase in electricity - thx.

 

[armlengthbuds]

it really dpends on several things: strain, nutes, distance from light, and watering schedule. If you go with HPS say 400 watts and u use the 60,000 lumen bulb that typically comes with these lights you can get from an once , if your plant is a lowrider of sorts , but if you grow say white widow, give it full veg, and then full flower, you could pull close to a lb. Many factors are involved, but most are simple or simple to solve. What kind of plant are you growing???

 

[whitewidow2]

ive got 2 white widows which i gave 2 months vegging which are flowering up nicely now and i also have 3 big bang's which only got 4 wks vegging.

Its week 2 of flowering and the bigbang hasnt shown any signs of flowering yet, i basically wanted them all to flower at the same time although it seems that its delayed in the big bang - im thinking possibly due to not enough vegging?

 

[chitownsmoking]

400 watts is not alot of electrity

 

[whitewidow2]

400 watts is not alot of electrity

So you reckon that wouldnt show up as a spike in my electricity? - its just a small grow as im totally new to this but if its gonna make the difference between me getting a 1/2 oz to at least an oz per plant then surely its gotta be worth the switch?

So would a 400w be ideal for a small cupboard grow of 5 plants max.

 

[chitownsmoking]

it wont hurt your bill, and how small a cabinet wetalking abou 400 watts is good for a 4 by 4 area

 

[whitewidow2]

it wont hurt your bill, and how small a cabinet wetalking abou 400 watts is good for a 4 by 4 area

To be honest vetilation aint great and it has a cubic capacity of approx 20 feet...

heres a pic

I know the CFL wont burn my plants even if it touches - is it a different matter for the HPS? Is that too small an area to have HPS in - im thinking about buying a grow tent for my next grow.

 

[chitownsmoking]

i would use a 250 for that cab

 

[whitewidow2]

i would use a 250 for that cab

Why... will a 250 still give me better yield than my CFL?

 

[chitownsmoking]

hell yeah it will and its easier to cool then a 400

 

[whitewidow2]

hell yeah it will and its easier to cool then a 400

Ok so i might just scrap the cfl for now and go get a 250watter from the hydro shop, makes sense eh? What about the lack of ventilation in the growroom, there is no intake or exhaust on it and im just using ona to get rid of the smell and opening the growroom doors occasionally for fresh air. Do you think it will be ok to run a 250w HPS in there with just occasionally opoening the doors to vent the room until i can afford a proper setup?

Also will the reflector that i already have be able to handle a 250w bulb?

 

[chitownsmoking]

your still gonna need vent. or at the last a good ass fan. check ou www.insidesun.com thy got cheap ass lights

 

[whitewidow2]

when you say im still gonna need to vent, do you mean to get rid of the smell or to cool the light? I have no carbon filter or exhaust or intake and the ona seems to have killed the smell so far?

 

[whitewidow2]

when you say im still gonna need to vent, do you mean to get rid of the smell or to cool the light? I have no carbon filter or exhaust or intake and the ona seems to have killed the smell so far?

I just checked and to run a 250w HPS apparently it wont just screw in to my original reflector - i need a ballast and wire kit which costs about £90

Why do we need ballasts for HPS - what do they do? Does anyone know?