All I have is a 400w hps bulb and seedlings I am trying to get going (all germinated and now in soil) but if this is all I have is there maybe a partivular distance to keep them all at until I see growth? I already overheated one of my seedlings *my set up is in a closet fixed it with fans temporarily until I can get an adequate intake and what not going? sorry if this is vague.1600 watts is a bit much for a seedling, and a waste of electricity unless you are starting a lot of seedlings. You could pick up a 250 watt HPS bulb, or I use LED for starting and vegging then switch to HPS for flower. I like the LED's for vegging, and mine are just some relatively cheap China ones. The ballast should be set to match the bulb with HPS though...It's not good to dim them, although people do.