For anyone looking for lights but limited on funds..Home Depot, 170 watt MercuryVapor

for only 13 bucks, and yes thats the bulb ballast everything. Its made for outdoors, but i have it nicely mounted on the wall of my closet next to my high pressure sodium. it comes with the mount too, awesome price

pics? Is it an HPS? Any modifications need to be done?

no its not HPS.......its Mercury vapor...like the topic says..
You have to create the cord for it..theres instructions if u dont kno any electrical but its real easy .just pull one out of an old space heater or something if u dont wana buy one..but thats it, it comes with everything else

hmm, is the mercury vapor like the MH lights? Thats just what it looks like to me. Nice find. +rep!

mercury vapor is baiclly the exact same thing..its older and was replaced basicly by the slightly more efficient, slightly better spectrum metal halide..

but other than HPS its as good as its gets really

But for 13 fukn bucks its better than anything..im ordering a 600 watt HPS this week..and i think ill go to the depots around boston and pick up any 13 dollar mercury vapors i can find..170 watts included too not fukn badd

Plus rep to you my friend,this is exactly what we need at riu is members chipping in & sharing kick ass finds such as this,ya got a link to the exact same light ?

For the guy's who are not aware you can run Metal Halide bulbs in a Mercury Vapor light to get the best spectrum.

Lamp Type Watts Lumens per bulb Total efficiency
Fluorescent Bulb 40 3000 400 watts = 30k lumens
Mercury Vapor 175 8000 400 watts = 20k lumens
Metal Halide 400 36000 400 watts = 36k lumens
High P. Sodium 400 45000 400 watts = 45k lumens

Notice the Mercury Vapor lamps are less efficient than the fluorescent (FL),


Yeah its cut and past from a guide online thats been around for a long time... no worries not pissing in cheerios but the 25 dollar hps from econolight is better... ANd plus rep pan head had no idea you could run Mh on a mV ballast!!

Mercury vapor lights are horrible at growing bud. There are no 170 watt mh bulbs, and though close, these ballasts aren't designed to run a 175 mh. Save the headache of wasted money, wait a little longer if you're broke, and buy a proper hid. I appreciate the enthusiasm, but a lot of mistruths are spoken in the original post, and responses by the original poster. Your understanding of the differences between hps, mh, and mv are not on par with most others, or the accepted science in the industry. Mv put out a horrible efficiency and poor spectrum and should only be used in the event your hid breaks and you have one to use between it breaki g and getting a new one, IMO.

Yep, if you are going to run it at least put a 150 metal halide bulb in it. It will be fine doing that but it's not as good of an option as the 150hps. Bulbs may (probably will) degrade faster than normal.

Landragon said:

Mercury vapor lights are horrible at growing bud. There are no 170 watt mh bulbs, and though close, these ballasts aren't designed to run a 175 mh. Save the headache of wasted money, wait a little longer if you're broke, and buy a proper hid. I appreciate the enthusiasm, but a lot of mistruths are spoken in the original post, and responses by the original poster. Your understanding of the differences between hps, mh, and mv are not on par with most others, or the accepted science in the industry. Mv put out a horrible efficiency and poor spectrum and should only be used in the event your hid breaks and you have one to use between it breaki g and getting a new one, IMO.

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I swear the negativity on this site is getting old

Why would you post such a negative post when so many guys here struggle to even buy a few cfl's,its a damm good deal as far as im concerned.

There is no mistruth in any way that a mh bulb can be ran in a mv ballast plain & simple,i run mh bulbs in my mv ballast that hangs over my barn & have done so for years,and please dont start in on the fire hazzard stuff unless you have doccumented evidence of such horror stories,as long as the switch of bulbs is kept at 400 watts or below the bulbs are interchangeable,running mh bulbs in a mv balast has been going on for years by many many people including myself.

Yes mv sucks as a growing light but the ballast alone is worth the coin,& while there is no 170 watt mh bulb it need not be that close a match,a standard 175 watt metal halide will work perfectly,so for the $13 bucks the fixture costs plus the $7 dollars for a mh bulb you got $20 into a fully functional 175 watt metal halide system,its an unbeatable scenario.

yea i was gonna do the same thing but i was intimidated by re-wiring.like the dawn til dusk auto timer in there. did u just leave the dawntil dusk thing on

Is there a link to this $13 light?

Interesting, maybe ill get a 150hps and a 175mh for under $50 bucks

panhead said:

I swear the negativity on this site is getting old

Why would you post such a negative post when so many guys here struggle to even buy a few cfl's,its a damm good deal as far as im concerned.

There is no mistruth in any way that a mh bulb can be ran in a mv ballast plain & simple,i run mh bulbs in my mv ballast that hangs over my barn & have done so for years,and please dont start in on the fire hazzard stuff unless you have doccumented evidence of such horror stories,as long as the switch of bulbs is kept at 400 watts or below the bulbs are interchangeable,running mh bulbs in a mv balast has been going on for years by many many people including myself.

Yes mv sucks as a growing light but the ballast alone is worth the coin,& while there is no 170 watt mh bulb it need not be that close a match,a standard 175 watt metal halide will work perfectly,so for the $13 bucks the fixture costs plus the $7 dollars for a mh bulb you got $20 into a fully functional 175 watt metal halide system,its an unbeatable scenario.

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mmm, so you're saying I can run a MH bulb in that Mercury Vapor ballast? Definitely a lot more affordable; though, I don't know where I would get a 175 watt MH bulb, that's kind of rare. Online I guess.

I cant find these, all i see are 175w MV bulbs for about $14, any link

tasteskindasalty said:

mmm, so you're saying I can run a MH bulb in that Mercury Vapor ballast? Definitely a lot more affordable; though, I don't know where I would get a 175 watt MH bulb, that's kind of rare. Online I guess.

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Yes you can & it is perfectly safe as long as the wattages are 400 watts or less,after 400 watts the voltages change & it will not work.

My local home Depot carries a good line of all HID lights in various sizes,just so you know the 150 watt mh light that Oregonmeds reccomended will work as well as a 175 watt mh in that ballast,this gives you another option.

If you cant find the bulbs at home depot or lowes open your phone book & look under "LIGHTING",somewhere in your town there will be a lighting store,call em & have them order you what you need but chances are that they have all sizes in stock,the 150 through 250 watt HID bulbs are standard wattages for low level street lighting & security lights in most city's & will be super easy to score a bulb,cheap too.

Chlorophyll does not absorb all the wavelengths of visible light equally. Chlorophyll a, the most important light-absorbing pigment in plants, does not absorb light in the green part of the spectrum. Light in this range of wavelengths is reflected. This is the reason why chlorophyll is green and also why plants (which contain a lot of chlorophyll) are also green. Note in the graph above that the absorption of light by chlorophyll a is at a maximum at two points on the graph 430 and 662 nm. The rate of photosynthesis at the different wavelengths of visible light also show two peaks which roughly correspond to the absorption peaks of chlorophyll a. Plants do not depend only on chlorophyll a in their light harvesting machinery but also have other pigments (accessory pigments) which absorb light of different wavelengths.



Reference Link:http://www.bcb.uwc.ac.za/ecotree/photosynthesis/spectrum.htm

low-pressure mercury vapour discharge lamp
380-490 nm, 490-590 nm, and 590-700 nm,
Link:http://www.freepatentsonline.com/5136206.html




If you look at the pretty pictures, you can see that the MV spikes before 400nm and after 400nm another spike around 530nm and 560nm
If we look at the chlorphyll absorption graph we can see that we'd hit
Chlorophyll A, pretty good, between 500nm and 600nm theres isn't much
Chlorophyll absorption. The best bet with this light would be to use it with
CFL's.

Or Buy a MH, as suggested.
Link:https://www.hardwareworld.com/175-Watt-Metal-Halide-Bulb-p38H1YD.aspx

The Problem
You can run a MH bulb in a MV light. The only problem is the Start up voltage to get the gas hot enough to arc and start to make the light.
This link talks about MH in a MV light and some of the possible solutions to
overcome start up problem. No big deal if you leave it on all the time, might be a concern if it was on a timer.
Link:https://www.gardenscure.com/420/lighting/45656-need-help-mh-bulb-mv-fixture.html

panhead said:

I swear the negativity on this site is getting old

Why would you post such a negative post when so many guys here struggle to even buy a few cfl's,its a damm good deal as far as im concerned.

There is no mistruth in any way that a mh bulb can be ran in a mv ballast plain & simple,i run mh bulbs in my mv ballast that hangs over my barn & have done so for years,and please dont start in on the fire hazzard stuff unless you have doccumented evidence of such horror stories,as long as the switch of bulbs is kept at 400 watts or below the bulbs are interchangeable,running mh bulbs in a mv balast has been going on for years by many many people including myself.

Yes mv sucks as a growing light but the ballast alone is worth the coin,& while there is no 170 watt mh bulb it need not be that close a match,a standard 175 watt metal halide will work perfectly,so for the $13 bucks the fixture costs plus the $7 dollars for a mh bulb you got $20 into a fully functional 175 watt metal halide system,its an unbeatable scenario.

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Whoah. How am I being negative by suggesting using matched bulbs and ballasts, or for recommending one spend a little more for the right tools? You are not the OP and I took no issue with you in my post yet you felt the need to assume I claimed you spoke a mistruth. Yes, they can run mh bulbs, but it is outside of their design to do so and will cause premature failure and possible spectrum shift depending on the bulb. I've personaly tested more bulbs and ballasts then most stores have sold in my former career, and feel the ANSI codes serve a good purpose.

For your information, the specific mistruths I have issue with are the op's claim the mv bulbs are about as good as other hids for growing cannabis, and that they are only slightly less efficient than mh. These statements are false and suggesting otherwise is doing a disservice to the members of this board.

I suggest to all, and it has always been my stance, to purchase reputable, quality tools that were designed for the job. Sure there is much room for improvisation in this hobby/career, but, and again this is IMO, lighting, ventilation, basic plant needs are not areas this behavior perform best in.

I stand behind my statements and believe there was no negativity in them. I agree many are struggling, and good advice allowing others to save should not be met with negative comments and attacks. I just don't feel the op's suggestions fall into that category. I have yet to attack anyone and don't intend on starting. I do have strong opinions on muffin fans, cooltubes, diy carbon scrubbers, and mismatching ballasts/bulbs. Each of these opinions are based upon science I would be happy to discuss with you in a seperate thread.

Peace to you.

MV does not have the useful spectrum that MH or HPS has. Its a waste of money. Lowes has the same thing (you were looking at outside security lights, right?). You can actually buy a 70w MH and 150w HPS from lowes. 80-120 bucks, depending on which one you want. IMO, strip the fixture apart, bypass(remove) the photocell, and extend the wires to the lamp socket. then you have a remote ballast.

Home depot doesnt carry MH or HPS, so stay away from the temptation of buying a MV and stay outta that store if you can.

Also, check out http://www.plantlightinghydroponics.com/sunlight-budget-gro-1000w-hps-120v-econowing-grow-light-p-2380.html

they have some cheaper ones, and lower wattage, but this is by far the best deal i have found.

topfuel29 said:

Chlorophyll

cut

blah blah blah

The Problem
You can run a MH bulb in a MV light. The only problem is the Start up voltage to get the gas hot enough to arc and start to make the light.
This link talks about MH in a MV light and some of the possible solutions to
overcome start up problem. No big deal if you leave it on all the time, might be a concern if it was on a timer.
Link:https://www.gardenscure.com/420/lighting/45656-need-help-mh-bulb-mv-fixture.html

Click to expand...

This information is completely innacurate on differences between MH and MV ballasts and trouble sparking up the light. He just had a bad cap on the ballast or the bulb was old or loose or something...

A mercury vapor ballast is IDENTICAL to a metal halide ballast and shares the same parts and works the same way. Completely interchangeable in every respect.

The only issue may be finding 175w halide bulbs, but like I said, 150 works fine.

peace...