GANJGUY420
Active Member
I'm curious as to when would be the best time to switch from my CFL's to my 400 Watt metal halide?? Any pros advice would be awesome.
When should I switch from CFL to Metal Halide!?
- Thread starter GANJGUY420
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thexception
Well-Known Member
I am not a pro, nor do I have experience with growing with MH from the start. I can tell you with my current grow, I had them under a 54w CFL tube in party cups for 27 days before transplanting & putting under MH, 6 days after I ideally would have liked to transplant.... anyway, they were 8 inches high at 21 days from sprout (when I felt they should have been switched) and had 5 beautiful sets of leaves. I think the advantage of keeping them under the CFL approx. 1 1/2 inches away, kept them from stretching & made for nice internode distance & allowed them to adjust into the more powerful light, when older/stronger. So I use CFL, MH, & HPS. JMO
Werry420
Active Member
but if you also keep your MH close, but obviously not that close maybe 12inchs to a foot and a half they will not streatch at all,,,, i keep my HPS with a MH conversion bulb at 2 feet away all through out vegging stage and have very very little streatching,,, thats one of the reasons why we use a MH or a blue spectrum bulb in veg is to have less streatching,,
tomahawk2406
Well-Known Member
id say sell the MH on ebay get some good cash and put it back into your grow. cfl for veg is easier to control heat and saves you lots of money on your electric bill. but if thats not an issue than id say like two and a half weeks maybe even just two weeks and a good distance. im always for making changes based on the plants reactions. try something and pay close attention to the plant. if it shows weakness or stress move the light further away.
WeHoChoiceNugs
Member
MH blows all around. Its a waste of electricity. Go HPS all the way and never look back. I could be wrong, but im not 
Werry420
Active Member
haha no you are not wrong on that one,,,, all i use is my 400HPS,, just thought id try to help out with the question he asked.... HPS are the best ballast in my opinion..... and tomahawk2406 a 400watt MH or HPS cost next to nothing on the power bills man... easily under 90 dollars canadian a month where i live..,, where i live my power bill for everything grow light (400HPS), all the cooking i do my computers on all day my tv on most of the days,, doing laundry, having my normal lights on so i can see what im doin around the house all day, only costs me no more then 110 dollars canadian per month during the vegg stage, and is even cheaper during flowering,, they are cheap cheap cheap to run in my opinionMH blows all around. Its a waste of electricity. Go HPS all the way and never look back. I could be wrong, but im not
ratatoolie
Active Member
yup hps is the way to go i got 3 inches of growth in 5 days 3rd set of leaves were poking out no stretch what so ever at 3 weeks she was a little over a foot all you just need a good fan and you can hang the light 6-10 inches away
tomahawk2406
Well-Known Member
my point is your saving yourself bucks when you veg with cfl and flower with hps. instead of using up 400watts through veg AND flowering when you switch to HPS. and yes it does save money. I've experienced it first hand bro. and 110 bucks??? lol do you live in a shed? my electric bill crushes that shit. i live in a small apartment and i can tell what months my lights are on and off when i get my bill. the power grid is a little different up here.
Werry420
Active Member
ya i believe it dose save money cuz its useing less wattage obviously,, if he is really worried about it then i would stick with cfl.... but if it was me and knowin what my power costs i would gow with the 400watter..... hahaha a shed no i live in a 1400 square foot house with a detached 11x16 foot man room in the back yard ,,, i dont consider my house a shed haha but where my G-room is in that detached room is a shed, but my power bill is my house and that 11x16 room added together, i also have no room mates i live alone, so that helps save power all month,,,, and yes im dead serious my power is never over 110 bucks,,, my house is also heated by a natural gas,, so my heat is not electric which also helps save money on bills, but it added a gas bill haha,,,you must not be a big power saver..............think of it this way most PC computers are anywhere from 300-1400 watts..... so basically if you were to run your computer for 18hours on and 6hours off for as long as you vegg your plants under a 400watt MH,,i WILL cost you more per month you run the computer haha......a 400watter light doesnt put out a lot of power ussage.
tomahawk2406
Well-Known Member
well fukin let me know when a house is for sale on your block lol cause your power company is pretty sweet. im just telling you first hand, not trying to be a dick. my rates go up all the time. my power company is surrounded by 5 states with the same company wanting to buy it out. instead of selling they just jack our rates. i have a 800 sq foot apartment and my electric bill is more than yours and i know for a fact your using more kWh than me. damn canada, always steppin it up.
Werry420
Active Member
no worries bro i dont think your being a dick... states and canada are different and i understand that.... i guess im just luckey to have a power bill of that low,,, haha and i know for a fact i am prolly using more KWH then you are cuz i use the 400watter through out the whole show... for an exact kWh i use per month is 900kWh and the electric bill was only $87.39 canadian money, and that was for a month of vegging with my 400HPS set to 18/6 lighting time
Imaginathan
Active Member
This thread is old as shit but Canada is fucking EXPENSIVE for hydro (power).
ISK
Well-Known Member
Canada has a lower average price than the USA and most of the world.....places in the extreme north like the NWT are very expensive, but the rest of Canada is not bad at all.....where I live is 8.58 cents per kWH, and New York City is 28.57 cents per kWH
https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/electricity-rates-around-the-world.html
https://www.bchydro.com/news/conservation/2016/how-our-rates-compare.html
https://www.ovoenergy.com/guides/energy-guides/average-electricity-prices-kwh.html
http://o.canada.com/business/markets/interactive-map-the-cost-of-electricity-city-by-city
Imaginathan
Active Member
I stand corrected. All I knows is I came from the South to Ontario 4 years ago and holy balls it’s much more, then again the South is pretty cheap compared to the rest of the states 
TurboTokes
Well-Known Member
I also live in southern ontario and like said above you, its like 8c per kwh during off peak, and 23c per kwh during peak hours.
So obviously you use all your high power stuff at night when its cheap I hope
I run a 600w hps and have done the math and it costs me $45/month for veg and $35 for flower. Im no gonna cry about that
I have a friend that likes tending to his plants during the day so he runs his 1000W during peak hours and ive seen his bill over a grand with mine around $120 with the same overall output at the end of the run. Gotta be smart... er
So obviously you use all your high power stuff at night when its cheap I hope
I run a 600w hps and have done the math and it costs me $45/month for veg and $35 for flower. Im no gonna cry about that
I have a friend that likes tending to his plants during the day so he runs his 1000W during peak hours and ive seen his bill over a grand with mine around $120 with the same overall output at the end of the run. Gotta be smart... er
Imaginathan
Active Member
No I def run from 7pm to 1pm the next day, and my bill with a 400w/fans/heater/humidifier is about an extra 45-50 right now. You know about dealing with low RH as well I bet