Lighting Magnetic or digital please reply

C

conservativegro

Member
Ok so Im setting up my flower room and Im wondering what kind of lights I should go with. I will start by saying that my veg room is about 4x6x5 and I run T5 for that and everything is doing great. Im set up in a basement for now that doesnt have much room. My flower spot is going to be about 6x7x6. I used to run with magnetic ballasts which I loved and nver had a issue with but digital wasnt out yet. So my question is I have right now about 600 bucks to put towards lights. I can either get one 1k digital ballast along with the Raptor xxxl hood. Or I can go with 2 1k mag ballast and cheaper hoods (Im still unsure what kind of hoods I would go with) The only thing that scares me about running 2 1k is the heat. Im prepared to set up some kind of ventilation in the basement to where I can exhaust the heat from my lights outside . Theres only one window down in the basement though so I am limited on what I can do. I cant afford a stand alone AC right now BUT im def going to get one in the future just because thats what I used before and my temps never had a issue. Any inout would be greatly appreciated. Also any tips on ventilation (brands of fans) any input on my set up I woould enjoy. Ive been out of the gro scene for about 10 years and a lot has changed.
Thanks
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
conservativegro said:
Ok so Im setting up my flower room and Im wondering what kind of lights I should go with. I will start by saying that my veg room is about 4x6x5 and I run T5 for that and everything is doing great. Im set up in a basement for now that doesnt have much room. My flower spot is going to be about 6x7x6. I used to run with magnetic ballasts which I loved and nver had a issue with but digital wasnt out yet. So my question is I have right now about 600 bucks to put towards lights. I can either get one 1k digital ballast along with the Raptor xxxl hood. Or I can go with 2 1k mag ballast and cheaper hoods (Im still unsure what kind of hoods I would go with) The only thing that scares me about running 2 1k is the heat. Im prepared to set up some kind of ventilation in the basement to where I can exhaust the heat from my lights outside . Theres only one window down in the basement though so I am limited on what I can do. I cant afford a stand alone AC right now BUT im def going to get one in the future just because thats what I used before and my temps never had a issue. Any inout would be greatly appreciated. Also any tips on ventilation (brands of fans) any input on my set up I woould enjoy. Ive been out of the gro scene for about 10 years and a lot has changed.
Thanks
Click to expand...
http://botanical.com/hydro/air/calculating_fan_requirements.html

https://www.rollitup.org/hydroponics-aeroponics/546006-world-hempy.html

Visit in the order posted. Tell Moebius I sent you. He can help save you loads of money from the get go. Good luck. Go big to grow big on air, containers and lights. Go little on water, nutrients and anxiety.
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
BTW for all to know - your digital ballasts fuck up WiFi signals. If you see a scanning van near your house, they might be trying to locate the source of the RFI/EMI interference your neighbors are now complaining about. Supposedly there is now a paint that blocks WiFi - in your house and out of your house. Keeps hackers away but if I had digitals I would paint my grow room with it. Or expect a knock on your door. Has happened to others here on RIU. This is not a concern with older EM ballasts - a selling point at last.
 
iDC5

iDC5

Active Member
i have heard of this but i also beleive u can get rf protected ballasts, i use a lumatek, and i have wireless interent. Wireless from my house to isp tower.. NOT WIFI, my isps rural internet!

and wireless router inside my house as does my neighbor, never had any issues yet.
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
iDC5 said:
i have heard of this but i also beleive u can get rf protected ballasts, i use a lumatek, and i have wireless interent. Wireless from my house to isp tower.. NOT WIFI, my isps rural internet!

and wireless router inside my house as does my neighbor, never had any issues yet.
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I'm certainly no expert on the issue. But playing guitar, using wireless, I can tell you some frequencies can be jammed with "traffic" in some places and free in others. I would play it safe. Probably why I'm 60++, been smoking and growing since 1963/64 and never been busted. Luck and playing it safe.
 
iDC5

iDC5

Active Member
Agree with ya there playing it safe, geuss would also depend on ur area, where i live i'm free of alot of issues like that due to the services provided. Besides all that magnetic b's have been used obviously for years. I'm sure it would serve you fine untill maybe digital b's are more refined
 
209 Cali closet grower

209 Cali closet grower

Well-Known Member
iDC5 said:
i have heard of this but i also beleive u can get rf protected ballasts, i use a lumatek, and i have wireless interent. Wireless from my house to isp tower.. NOT WIFI, my isps rural internet!

and wireless router inside my house as does my neighbor, never had any issues yet.
Click to expand...
same here, running a jd light ballast though
 
Sencha

Sencha

Active Member
I'm running three different digital ballasts, from cheap to expensive. No problems with WIFI.
 
Straightjacket

Straightjacket

Well-Known Member
I'm runnin 2 digitals. One is a couple years old, the other about a year. I have a network cable and a coax for tv runnin right next to it in the attic. tv reception is fine and network traffic is fine. Also have wifi that has no issues. Got both ballasts cheap on ebay. If I put an AM radio up by the ballasts you can here plenty of noise, move it a few feet away it goes away.
 
herballuvmonkey

herballuvmonkey

Well-Known Member
Digital ballasts should be no problem with wifi as long as ur not using a large amount of them. I have one dig and one may. I have had problems with the magnetic one from the start. The good thing about magnetic is if u r handy u can exchange components and pretty much fix it is something goes wrong. I would think if u don't live right on top of ur neighbor u don't have much to worry about, I'd go with the digital.
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
Just because something doesn't happen to your lucky ass doesn't mean it doesn't happen. There are ways to mitigate these issues and we musicians know most. But no problem? No solution needed.
 
Straightjacket

Straightjacket

Well-Known Member
hotrodharley said:
Just because something doesn't happen to your lucky ass doesn't mean it doesn't happen. There are ways to mitigate these issues and we musicians know most. But no problem? No solution needed.
Click to expand...
I didn't say it never happens, I merely reported my experience with digital ballasts so that the OP could make an informed decision. So don't put words in my mouth. Sorry my report upset you so much. BTW, I made a living playing guitar from 1979 thru 2002.
 
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