A bit of a pickle! (lighting)

Sadista

Sadista

Member
Hi all, setting up my grow room soon, and need some lighting advice.
I plan to put 4 flood & drain tables in,each is 80cm L x 80cm D which gives me a total grow area of 2.56 m² or 27.5sq ft.
I read previously on a thread by Al B. Fuct that 50 watts per square ft is recommended so that would be a requirement of 1375 watts.

Thats where I have the problem. I can either sacrifice 175watts and install 2 x 600w HPS which brings the wattage per sq ft down to 44watts or I can put in 2 x 1000w HPS, but would this be overkill? Also wouldnt be very kind to my pocket and would be a waste of light as I cant manage to grow any more that what ive mentioned above.:wall:

So what do you guys think? 2 x 600w or 2 x 1000w?? If anyone else has an alternative solution please let me know! Cheers!
 
Cow Tea

Cow Tea

Active Member
I dont have exp with either, but if I was doing it, I would go with 2 x 600w, since they are more efficient and can get closer to the plants. Even though watts per plant may be a constant, your lumens per plant are variable, depending on the distance to the light. So, yeah, if I had your space I would def go with 2 x 600w w/ cool tubes. You can make them yourself on the cheap, like I did, with pyrex bake-a-rounds ($20 each). Do some Googling to see what optimum lumens per plant (*edit - or maybe per sqft) is, if the info exists.
 
tat2ue

tat2ue

Well-Known Member
Sadista said:
Hi all, setting up my grow room soon, and need some lighting advice.
I plan to put 4 flood & drain tables in,each is 80cm L x 80cm D which gives me a total grow area of 2.56 m² or 27.5sq ft.
I read previously on a thread by Al B. Fuct that 50 watts per square ft is recommended so that would be a requirement of 1375 watts.

Thats where I have the problem. I can either sacrifice 175watts and install 2 x 600w HPS which brings the wattage per sq ft down to 44watts or I can put in 2 x 1000w HPS, but would this be overkill? Also wouldnt be very kind to my pocket and would be a waste of light as I cant manage to grow any more that what ive mentioned above.:wall:

So what do you guys think? 2 x 600w or 2 x 1000w?? If anyone else has an alternative solution please let me know! Cheers!
Click to expand...

I recently changed out my 1000w HPS with 600w Digital setups. I went from 83w per sq. foot to 75w per sq ft doing this. My yeilds increased with this change up
 
Sadista

Sadista

Member
tat2ue said:
I recently changed out my 1000w HPS with 600w Digital setups. I went from 83w per sq. foot to 75w per sq ft doing this. My yeilds increased with this change up
Click to expand...

Thats a relief to hear! Thanks mate! I will be using Lumatek digital ballast aswell so can turn the juice up even more if needs be with the super lumen switch. Would that make up for the lost watts?
 
tat2ue

tat2ue

Well-Known Member
Sadista said:
Thats a relief to hear! Thanks mate! I will be using Lumatek digital ballast aswell so can turn the juice up even more if needs be with the super lumen switch. Would that make up for the lost watts?
Click to expand...
Don't have much knowledge on Lumeteks or the Super Lumen switch. I use Quantum dimable digitals....sorry bro
 
tat2ue

tat2ue

Well-Known Member
Sadista said:
Ah, Im guessin they are similar. Im a sis not a bro lol, thanks bro!
Click to expand...

Sorry sister, I meant no disrespect.

Q. Are these tables going to be in separate rooms? Or are they going to be butted up against each other in the same room?? The reason I ask is this, depending on how you set up your tables, it is possible to utilize your lighting to its max potential without wasted light hitting the floor. This can be avoided by proper planning and design and/or the type of reflectors you use.
 
Sadista

Sadista

Member
Hi sorry for the delay in replying! yeah the four tables are going in the same room which is 6ft x 6ft, so two on each side of the room with narrow walkway down the middle. Im gonna be using mantis pro adjustable reflectors for the 2 600w bulbs
 
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