Building a Setup for around $220

Yeah, taowolf was right. Lumens don't stack.
Same principles work for the LED system. Sure all 90W's have 90 led bulbs. The UFO with 90x 1w leds is not as good as the one with 90x 3w leds. 3w bulbs are seriously brighter.

This is an extremely nice UFO.
http://www.advancedledlights.com/products/NEW-%2d-120w-Extreme-Flower-LED-%2d-3w-USA-LEDs-%2d-11-Wavelengths.html

LEDs are new technology there are a lot of journals with people using LED's. That 50w is good, because thats fifty decent 1w leds. The leds on xmas lights are like quarter-watts. The UFOs are made with quality growing leds. The mixes are debatable. I'd kinda like having just one red ufo and one blue ufo, but the purple is growing on me.

Wow, all along I figured that lumens stacked... and 17 x 1,800 lumens would end up being better than 32,000 lumens. Hmm.

I Googled LED grow though, and found that most people said that they cannot make good buds : /.

Would you suggest that 50w LED over a 250w cheap HPS set up?

Well yeah, one would try to compensate for using lower wattage lights by using more and positioning them as close as possible all around the plant(s). I'd get the highest wattage you can afford to start with though, and then add more of the highest wattage you can afford over time and as the plant grows and requires more.

If money is a bigger concern than heat, I'd stay away from LEDs (they aren't the most cost effective solution for what you get).

Your corner space in your closet is going to give you a 4foot by 2 foot(8squarefeet) canopy? The 50w UFO is good for 1square-meter(9squarefeet). Supplemented with a few of the CFLs you already have, it might just be everything you need. It will be a lot cooler, so it can hang closer to your plants and keep your closet a lot cooler.

For some reason, I'm attracted to getting and LED instead of the HPS, and using as 150w of cfl to help out. Think that's what I'm deciding on.

I just ordered this 400 watt setup with a ballast and reflector + 1 HPS bulb and 1 MH bulb for $155.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002J7PYSU/ref=oss_product

I would let you know how it works but I am supposed to receive it tomorrow.

I think you will be happy with that or your money back.

I didn't know a 400w would be so cheap. But still think it's out of the budget ]:. I can't get a really good light, and grow them in a pot with no soil.
Are there any other good ~$100-$150 LED's available I should look at before deciding? Still really worried that they won't compare to a 250w the same price.

I'm pretty sure that one is pretty darn legit. Maybe something like this
http://shop.sunshine-systems.com/product.sc?productId=10

But of course most people recommend to roll with the 90w. But maybe xmas, right?
By the way happy birthday mang44

I've decided to go with the 250w HPS I found, incase the 50W for whatever reason fails and leaves me with almost nothing. This will be along with a homemade fixture holding 3 25w bulbs of each spectrum. When flowering comes, I'm going to buy 2 68w 2700k's and add them to the setup, as well as that fertilizer for flowering.

By the time I am ready to grow my second time, I'll have plenty to get the 90w UFO, and another 2x 68w cfl addition to grow big time. Sounds good to me.


250w HPS & MH = $140
Adapters for CFL Addition = $15Fox Farms Ocean Forest
2 Big Mylar Space Blankets that I will tape to the closet walls = $5
3 cubic ft of Fox Farms Ocean Forest = $50 (it's roughly 25 a bag in stores right? Fox Farms shows several places around me to buy it at)
Seeds = $20

Only $230 man, I guess close enough to the $200 I already have towards this.

Already have a timer, hangers for the light, and pots gladly. 5 gallon grow bags, which are just pots practically. Hopefully this grow will be a success, I plan to order everything tomorrow.

Also, does anyone have a strain to recommend? It has to be somewhat low odor, so that my neighbors can't smell it all the way from outside or I'm screwed. It's grown in an apartment complex. It can't stink up more than my room and closet! I'm wondering if there are any nice strains as far as that goes.. not to specific but has to finish flowering in 8 weeks or less.

And thanks . My birthday was today!