Few Questions from n00b_farmer.

So I have a 4x4 tent (for all of those of you who thought I wouldn't do it, who's laughing now! haha), Lumatek LK1000AC, Eye Hortilux 1000W HPS Super Lumen bulb, 6" Cool Tube XL, and all the other stuff [filter, fan, timers, etc...].

My seeds are Amnesia Haze from Royal Queen Seeds.

I'm considering getting a MH bulb for vegging, is it really worth the added cost?

I'm debating on how many plants to stick in the tent, while maximizing yield. How many should I go with? 1 monster plant or 5 mid-size?

Metal halide is a lot better in veg for keeping tight internodes and nice green foliage...if you use hps in veg your plants will strech too much with the hps having more on the red spectrum...but hps put out alot more lumens than metalhalide does...thats why there best too use in flower....i grow in the same space as U..u can get 4 good sized plants in there with about 6-7 week veg....the more plants the less veg time needed....and less plants need more veg time...know matter how many U grow U want to fill your space for max yeild...hope this helps...

Nah.. veg with CFL... I have an area where I veg clones under a 100W MH and its not so great compared to my ~100W of CFL.

With a 4x4, you dont want to veg say.. over 8-12 inches. you can do that (clone, mom, veg) out of the tent and just dedicate that all to flowering.

I prefer smaller plants, one may be easier to manage, But I like the even ripening of smaller plants, thats why SOG is so popular, you get more main colas, and you can stage your grow perpetual style, or get some different strains in there, Running one strain is fun.. but you need some space to sort phenotypes.. etc.. And I think the yield is higher with SOG,

If I was running from a cut, I would run a tree in there, but something that big, unless you keep up with it, by trimming the lower half you'll have alot of popcorn.

I also run a 4x4x6.5 and with a 600x MH. I get height issues with my 600. I clone for 2 weeks under 2x4' 6500k tubes, then 2 weeks under 2x4' 6500k tubes, then 3 weeks under 600w MH @ 75% power, then finish under 600w 100% power for 5-6 weeks. at this time the plants are 4-4.5' tall. after flipping and the stretch my plants are 6-6.25' tall. im still playing with my light and timing schedules. all tho I have my grow dialed in, theres always little things to tweak and test.

I had my best yield in a 4x4x6.5 tent with 600mh for veg, then swapping in a 600w hps for flower, I netted 17.63 zips (dried and cured). this was my FIRST ever grow. not bad for a newb.

Im a newb when it comes to MH/HID lighting, but can you put a MH light in whatever fixture you have your HPS in? Or would you need another light setup to run your veg with the MH?

If its a lot of hassle dont forget that there are all blue LED's you can use, T5 light panels that have the spectrum you need, and CFL's as others have mentioned. If its easy as swapping out a bulb though, might be worth your while just to get the MH and give it a shot to see how things play out

Rentaldog said:

Im a newb when it comes to MH/HID lighting, but can you put a MH light in whatever fixture you have your HPS in? Or would you need another light setup to run your veg with the MH?

If its a lot of hassle dont forget that there are all blue LED's you can use, T5 light panels that have the spectrum you need, and CFL's as others have mentioned. If its easy as swapping out a bulb though, might be worth your while just to get the MH and give it a shot to see how things play out

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From my reading (I'm a noob too), you can use mh and hps bulbs in the same fixture. What it all comes down to is your ballast. Your ballast has to be able to run both types (I dont think magnetic can, while most digital are able to run both types).

N00b_Farmer said:

From my reading (I'm a noob too), you can use mh and hps bulbs in the same fixture. What it all comes down to is your ballast. Your ballast has to be able to run both types (I dont think magnetic can, while most digital are able to run both types).

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Correct, the base (aka socket) is the same, Mogul base, medium base.. etc.. so either will fit given it will fit in the fixture itself. Now just to confuse you more there is a newer bulb style called double ended, I do believe its only HPS. (Gavita, epapilons)

There are switchable magnetic ballasts, and some are not.