HPS system question

justin21

Active Member
Hey guys,


so I have a closet which has a dept of 2feet by 5 feet long by 5 foot 6'' high.


I want to get a HPS setup of either 250w or 400w.

The prices are the same for the 2 setups but i dont know if the 400w is too much overkill. plants can not be closer then 2 feet right? or?


Please give me your opinions on which setup you would go with in my closet space.
 

justin21

Active Member
go with the 400 hps get a reflector with glass perfer with vent fixtures so u can vent the heat out of the room thru the ceiling.
It wouldnt be too close to the wall when its only 2 feet wide?

+ there is no way or venting through ceiling, best thing i can do is put a fan inside to circulate air. Would that do?
 

justgrowit

Active Member
It wouldnt be too close to the wall when its only 2 feet wide?

+ there is no way or venting through ceiling, best thing i can do is put a fan inside to circulate air. Would that do?
Unfortunately no man, it won't. You need a passive intake and a fan to exhale the hot air from your growing environment. It's also going to be kind of loud. There are accessories for lowering the fan speed to quiet it down, but a Vortex has a sizable hum to it. Not that you asked about sound, just fyi.

A cooltube is an efficient way of managing the hot air. In that case you'll need a small fan to circulate the air.
 

justin21

Active Member
Unfortunately no man, it won't. You need a passive intake and a fan to exhale the hot air from your growing environment. It's also going to be kind of loud. There are accessories for lowering the fan speed to quiet it down, but a Vortex has a sizable hum to it. Not that you asked about sound, just fyi.

A cooltube is an efficient way of managing the hot air. In that case you'll need a small fan to circulate the air.

Even with the 250w I would need the same amount of ventilation?

can i just take my fan and make it blow out the air? Its a window fan and square, can blow out or in. Whichever is best.

Would a second fan be needed to circulate air inside? or ?

Not worried about loudness, just need to be safe and cheap.
 

justgrowit

Active Member
Even with the 250w I would need the same amount of ventilation?

can i just take my fan and make it blow out the air? Its a window fan and square, can blow out or in. Whichever is best.

Would a second fan be needed to circulate air inside? or ?

Not worried about loudness, just need to be safe and cheap.

Depends I suppose on the temperature outside the grow closet. If you are in a cold climate maybe you can get away with more. It also depends on the strength of your fan. The hydro store by me lets you turn on a 400w or 600w vortex to hear how loud they are and so you can feel the pressure. It's pretty decent.

Why don't you pick up the 400w and make it happen. Try out your fan and if a thermometer says it's too hot, well, go to plan be and up the fan strength. You'll know within an hour. Just my thoughts. GL!
 

justin21

Active Member
Depends I suppose on the temperature outside the grow closet. If you are in a cold climate maybe you can get away with more. It also depends on the strength of your fan. The hydro store by me lets you turn on a 400w or 600w vortex to hear how loud they are and so you can feel the pressure. It's pretty decent.

Why don't you pick up the 400w and make it happen. Try out your fan and if a thermometer says it's too hot, well, go to plan be and up the fan strength. You'll know within an hour. Just my thoughts. GL!

Well temperature outside the closet is room temperature.. and the closet is located in my bedroom lol . so i would just want 1 fan going really.
 

T.H.Cammo

Well-Known Member
FYI, 400 watts of HID, spread across 10 sq. ft. of floorspace is not overkill! If anything it is "Stretching it!" a little.
 

justin21

Active Member
FYI, 400 watts of HID, spread across 10 sq. ft. of floorspace is not overkill! If anything it is "Stretching it!" a little.

im just worried about heat, dont want to get a bunch of fans and a huge ventilation system, if the 400w is too hot with 1 good fan blowing out or in( which is best?)

if its too hot i'll get the 250w, that one is probably way less hot.

so is the 400w too hot with 1 fan going? the 250w fine?
 

ataxia

Well-Known Member
im just worried about heat, dont want to get a bunch of fans and a huge ventilation system, if the 400w is too hot with 1 good fan blowing out or in( which is best?)

if its too hot i'll get the 250w, that one is probably way less hot.

so is the 400w too hot with 1 fan going? the 250w fine?
from what i understand (i'm looking at getting a 400w cool tube) 250 will give you pretty much the same amount of heat as a 400. PLUS. 250 is not enough wattage for your space unless your going to supplement with cfl's or fluorecents which is going to lead to more heat for you. GO with the 400 and get a good vent fan. do what im going to do for a 2x4x5. get a cool tube and at least one good fan to vent it and another for your plants to move. Just my opinion, I'm still learning about HIDs though.
 

justin21

Active Member
from what i understand (i'm looking at getting a 400w cool tube) 250 will give you pretty much the same amount of heat as a 400. PLUS. 250 is not enough wattage for your space unless your going to supplement with cfl's or fluorecents which is going to lead to more heat for you. GO with the 400 and get a good vent fan. do what im going to do for a 2x4x5. get a cool tube and at least one good fan to vent it and another for your plants to move. Just my opinion, I'm still learning about HIDs though.

thanks for the answer, btw what is the difference between the cooltube?

And i think i will go with the 400w, i might have one fan blowing air in, and one fan inside blowing at the plants and stuff. Unless i should use the 2 fans differently?
 

slimandy

Member
i got a 250 digital and i made 2 holes with some dryer vent line and a fan beside the ballast but above the light the exuast the heat and it works amazing my closet is 2.5x3.2x 8' my big baby is 6 ft and has a cola like a 2 litre pepsi bottle my second fan blow air between my bulb and my cola keeping it within a good range for growth the fan blows the heat away it 3 weeks since i got the HID the cola has gained atleast 5x its size and my small baby who didnt grow nearly as fast nor a big has some buds almost ready to harvest they are both NL5xSK1 also known as shiva skunk i have taken a few nugs off the small more developed one to try out and its amazing numbs me so much my back pain is gone for hours and she is still premature and i use organic nutes and its the smoothest even being immature i have ever had
 

ripe fruit

Member
Depends I suppose on the temperature outside the grow closet. If you are in a cold climate maybe you can get away with more. It also depends on the strength of your fan. The hydro store by me lets you turn on a 400w or 600w vortex to hear how loud they are and so you can feel the pressure. It's pretty decent.

Why don't you pick up the 400w and make it happen. Try out your fan and if a thermometer says it's too hot, well, go to plan be and up the fan strength. You'll know within an hour. Just my thoughts. GL!
i had a 400w in a smaller closet and ran a 165cfm booster fan through it and it cooled the light just fine. i also used a 6in circular fan to blow air around.
 

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T.H.Cammo

Well-Known Member
from what i understand (i'm looking at getting a 400w cool tube) 250 will give you pretty much the same amount of heat as a 400. PLUS. 250 is not enough wattage for your space unless your going to supplement with cfl's or fluorecents which is going to lead to more heat for you. GO with the 400 and get a good vent fan. do what im going to do for a 2x4x5. get a cool tube and at least one good fan to vent it and another for your plants to move. Just my opinion, I'm still learning about HIDs though.
He's right, listen to him! Your primary concern should be "putting out enough light". Dealing with the heat is just something you have to do!

As for your earlier question, a "powered exhaust" (at top of cabinet), with a "passive intake" (at bottom of cabinet) is the most efficient!
 

justin21

Active Member
He's right, listen to him! Your primary concern should be "putting out enough light". Dealing with the heat is just something you have to do!

As for your earlier question, a "powered exhaust" (at top of cabinet), with a "passive intake" (at bottom of cabinet) is the most efficient!

alright so i will put a fan inside blowing at the plants and have a fan blowing air in and get the 400w light.
Thanks for the tips.

Btw what temperature is too hot and which is passable in degrees celcius? And what is an optimal temperature in degree celcius?
 

Leftorium

Member
up to 23 with lights on & as low as 18 with lights off - 40 -50% humidity

alright so i will put a fan inside blowing at the plants and have a fan blowing air in and get the 400w light.
Thanks for the tips.

Btw what temperature is too hot and which is passable in degrees celcius? And what is an optimal temperature in degree celcius?
 

stinkbudd1

Well-Known Member
alright so i will put a fan inside blowing at the plants and have a fan blowing air in and get the 400w light.
Thanks for the tips.

Btw what temperature is too hot and which is passable in degrees celcius? And what is an optimal temperature in degree celcius?
I'll tell you one thing and that is, a 250 watt hps or mh is no where near the heat of a 400, thats straight B.S i just swapped out my 400 watt because of my size of grow room 2x3x4.5, just be careful in making your choice. I have 4 fat ass ladies in my box now under a 250 and they are thriving right now and im using a 180cfm pushing through the cool tube and running a 80 cfm exaust with passive intake for the box.Just take your time man and do your homework and test runs before you dive in the pool nobody get burned but you if you dont do it right..Peace
 

EdGreyfox

Well-Known Member
My closet is a bit bigger then yours, but not by all that much, and I haven't had any real problems with my 400w producing too much heat as long as i have a standard house fan blowing through the partially opened door. I wouldn't be that concerned about it right now unless you live someplace thats hot even in the winter, since it's easy to fix heat issues by cracking a window or adjusting the houses thermostat. Summer is a different story, but thats a few months off and it gives you some time to decide what will work best instead of rushing ahead and possibly spending more then you need to.
 

stinkbudd1

Well-Known Member
My closet is a bit bigger then yours, but not by all that much, and I haven't had any real problems with my 400w producing too much heat as long as i have a standard house fan blowing through the partially opened door. I wouldn't be that concerned about it right now unless you live someplace thats hot even in the winter, since it's easy to fix heat issues by cracking a window or adjusting the houses thermostat. Summer is a different story, but thats a few months off and it gives you some time to decide what will work best instead of rushing ahead and possibly spending more then you need to.
Oh by all means, if you are doing an open door closet grow thats cool, but not for a enclosed grow box like mine. I thought he said he needed to control heat and smell thats a different story..Ive done an open closet grow on my first attempt temps were fine but the smell gave me the blues..Peace
 
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