LIGHTING QUESTION. Please help with my idea

Rekall

Member
Hi everyone. I apologise in advance for my English slashing your eyes but it isn't my first language so I will do the best I can. Also as a newbie I don't know much about growing terminology (yet ;-) ). I hope I don't make too much of a fool of myself and you guys understand what the idea is.

After doing a fair amount of research I have come up with an idea that I would like some help with. My idea is to have a grow tent with 4 big yielding plants. I'm going for a hydro setup (I know I'm a newbie and I should do dirt first for experience, but if I get stuck I have you lovely people to help me out. ;-)) Besides I have done lots of research and its my opinion that the best thing to do is to get stuck in and gain experience through practice. I'm obviously going to make mistakes, who doesn't? But I have been reeding a lot about other peoples mistakes in order to prevent my own. I have been looking at different strains and I'm not sure which one I will be getting yet, but I have short-listed: Light of Jah, Northern Lights, G13 Haze, Ultimate or Tangerine Dream (smoked it in Amsterdam and its my favourite). Suggestions and remarks on the strain are also more then welcome.

My main doubt at the moment, as the title of the thread states, is regarding the lighting that I would need. I have read that a 1000w hps lamp would be more appropriative for the kind of setup that I want to do, mainly due to light penetration. But would it not be too much for a plant at an early stage of growing to be under a 1000w hps lamp? I'm worrying that they would get burn or eventually die from too much heat, dry up or something. I know I should be doing the veg phase under a MH lamp, unfortunately at this point I do not have the money to buy one, but if I did have the money what MH lamp would be better to get? A 400w MH, a 600w MH or a 1000w MH lamp?

Another doubt on my mind is, would a 1000w hps lamp be that much better then a 600w one during the flowering stage? Would it make that much of a difference in quality and yield bearing in mind that I will be using a 120x120x200 grow tent fully coated with mylar? Also what do you think of the Eurowing reflectors? Whould they be a good purchase or invest on some air cooled lamps? (as I said money is tight, but it is always good to know)

My final question is, if I feel confident enough and decide to go from 4 to 8 plants on a later crop, but using exactly the same tent and pot layout would a 600w hps lamp be enough for all 8 plants? Or would I then need a 1000w hps lamp for light penetration?

Thanks a lot for taking the time to read this. I hope it does not sound too boring and stupid, I'm struggling with the whole lighting thing, and hope that someone can clear these doubts for me. Thank you. :lol:
 

MysticMorris

Active Member
Hi there, I think a 1000w might be a bit overkill for your tent. The main reason that comes to mind is that the extra intensity of the 1000watter will require a greater distance between bulb and canopy, and will also generate a formidable amount of heat. I know that a 600w will sit comfortably in a tent your size, it will cover 1.2mx1.2m nicely with good light levels and good penetration. A 1000w would defo require a cool shade, a 600w would likely need one, and a 400w will be fine in a basic reflector. If your ambient air temp is high though, even a 400w can sometimes cause heat issues.

As far as seedlings and young plants go - I would defo consider using small CFLs to start them with. Its just so much cheaper and easier.

I use a 400w hps with a 1mx1m tent, and I'll admit I'm wanting to put a 600w in there.
 

drolove

Well-Known Member
rule of thumb is you want a minimum of 50 watts per plant. i have grown 8 plants under a 400 watt hps in a small tent with no problem. i would get a 600 watt hps with a air cooled reflector. my 400 watt was way too hot for my tent without being air cooled.

1000 watt is a little much for a tent with 4-8 plants i would say and would create tons of heat. as far as what lights you start your plants, think of it this way, the sun puts out way more light then any of these lights and all plants take off just fine under it, just watch your heat on the little guys. even then plants still grow out of some crappy soil in some places under the sun, in temps over 100F.

all of your strains look good although im not familiar with light of jah. i would throw some white widow in there too.

good luck and happy growing!
 

Rekall

Member
Thanks a lot for your help you guys. :-P Although I'm far from being any expert, when I was reading about the 1000w I did think that it would probably turn a growing tent of that size into a sauna. Not exactly ideal. lol If I was using a bigger space I would probably go for 1000w .When in doubt nothing better then ask for help.

I will go for an air coolded 600w hps lamp then. I will also try and find a cheap CFL that would fit my budget.

Again, thank you for you speedy replies you guys. :-D
 

JiggyPop

Active Member
If you can, get a dual digital balast so you can go from MH to HPS as you need too. But if you are only going to have one bulb...HPS all the way.
 

drolove

Well-Known Member
this ^^^ and not a problem man. this is where i come for all my help. everything you need on this subject is right here on this wonderful site if you take the chance to look. you can get away with most light as long as you have proper ventilation but the higher in watts you go the further your plants need to be away from the light. bulbs like cfls can be placed 3 inches or so from the tops of the plants compared to 12 inches or more with HID lighting. a lot of people grow with cfls and they are cheaper but i would really suggest HID LIGHTING. check amazon.com to find deals like this.

http://www.amazon.com/iPower-Premium-Dimmable-Digital-Reflector/dp/B002TNDCVK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337479438&sr=8-1

that right there solves your lighting problems for the most part. get some 6 inch flex ducting and a 6 inch duct fan that will push at least 240 cfm and with that kit you'll be set. all of it would be a little over 200 dollars US currency and has everything you need for your tent :D
 

drolove

Well-Known Member
Damn Dro, I'm bout to order one now. That's an insane deal i was ready to pay $250 for a digital 400 hps.
haha ya there are some good deals out there if you take the time to look. btw i pretty much buy all of my stuff from amazon. they have some great deals. im using the same set-up i linked above but the 400 watt version and its working awesome.
 
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