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 icanfeeltherain
Newb Mycologist
Registered: 10/26/08
Posts: 53
Last seen: 14 years, 4 months
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 Vegging Lights : what are the options? 
#210956 - 04/01/09 12:11 AM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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After reading through several previous posts I'm still not clear about the best options for veg. lighting.
Are there two types of CFLs that should be used to create the best spectrum?
Is height adjustment only necessary for flouro tubes? Can CFLs be permanently mounted in the top 1/3 (horizontally of course) of a 3x3x2 foot veg space and be efficient without adjusting the height?
Would I be better off by simply getting Metal Halide bulbs for my veg space? Do MH bulbs offer easier temperature regulation? How many MH bulbs should be used in an 18 cu. ft. space? Can I get these bulbs from Lowes or Home Depot?
Lay it on me!
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"We are here to awaken from the illusion of our separateness" - Thich Nhat Hanh
"Yes, Cuban B."
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Dr. Awesome
Registered: 01/17/09
Posts: 55
Last seen: 7 years, 1 month
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Re: Vegging Lights : what are the options? [Re: icanfeeltherain]
#211081 - 04/01/09 02:42 AM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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for vegging with CFL's you will want the highest wattage you can find, and usually look for ones that are called daylight, with a 6500K color temperature. as with any CFL light, you will want it to be as close as possible, usually only a few inches away from the top of the plants. you dont want to move them too far away from the plants since you will be losing the benefits of using a CFL in teh first place.
my personal preference is to use daylight CFL's for rooting clones, and seedlings, then moving up to a metal halide for veg. all HID lights get very hot, including MH bulbs. in a 3x3x2 foot space i would personally stick with CFL's unless you have a way to move the heat out of the grow space efficiently.
i have never been able to find MH bulbs at home depot or lowes.
im sure it is possible if you were to go to very great lengths to get rid of the heat, you coudl possibly use a 250 watt MH, but in such a small space, some high powered CFL's would be your best option.
i hope i was able to answer most of your questions.
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icanfeeltherain
Newb Mycologist
Registered: 10/26/08
Posts: 53
Last seen: 14 years, 4 months
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Re: Vegging Lights : what are the options? [Re: Dr. Awesome]
#211088 - 04/01/09 03:43 AM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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thanks for the reply Dr. Awesome, your advice is a great help and your information was concise. Just a couple of other points of discussion:
I saw a thread that I can't seem to find again that demonstrated two different kinds of CFL (spiraled) bulbs in the veg space. Three gave off a blue light and the other two gave off an orange glow. Together the five bulbs illuminated bright white inside the veg box. What is this combination and does it help a considerable amount?
Also, in these pictures the five CFLs were mounted permanently to the top, back end of the veg space. If I need to keep these blubs horizontal then how should I go about adjusting their height? Can I put the rooting clones on stilts or something? Should these CFLs have a reflector or is panda film enough? How do you suggest I set these bulbs up?
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"We are here to awaken from the illusion of our separateness" - Thich Nhat Hanh
"Yes, Cuban B."
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 Dr. Penguin
Registered: 05/19/08
Posts: 1,036
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Re: Vegging Lights : what are the options? [Re: icanfeeltherain]
#211107 - 04/01/09 09:56 AM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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CFL's come in a variety of spectrum's, you can mix them like you saw in another post in order to maximize their effectiveness, or you could get a good general spectrum like Dr. Awesome suggests. If you aren't going to flower with CFL's I tend to disbelieve that a wider spectrum from mixed bulbs will be worth the effort to find them; your time will be better spent building a well designed mounting system for your CFLs.
If you are going to leave your plants under a single light for long periods of time (all of veg), I would suggest a HID light of some type because they are simply more efficient. You can find small (150w) HPS security lights at home depot as well as replacement bulbs for cheap. The HPS spectrum is not entirely the most ideal spectrum for vegging but the watt:lumen ratio far outweighs that issue I believe.
Either of these lights can be moved or mounted permanently, it is a matter of personal philosophy. Do you want to move the light or the plants? I would prefer to move my plants generally but that doesn't mean its any better than moving the light as long as they accomplish the same thing (keep the plant the proper distance from the light.)
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Dr. Awesome
Registered: 01/17/09
Posts: 55
Last seen: 7 years, 1 month
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Re: Vegging Lights : what are the options? [Re: Dr. Penguin]
#211229 - 04/01/09 08:29 PM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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i think if you are just using white poly inside your box that would be adequate for reflecting light. since you are working in such a confined space you have to make the most of your space. mounting the bulbs permanently would probably work best, or depending on how many plants you are putting in the box, if you are using CFL's you coudl do something like this...
http://www.stealthhydroponics.com/product.php?xProd=120&xSec=3
and maybe have a rail mount on the back wall and attack the reflector unit to it, and thus be able to just move it up and down on the rail as needed.
i agree with Dr. Penguin 100% on the use of HID lighting, they produce much higher lumens per watt, so as long as you can keep the temperature in check they are definitely THE way to go. i dont have any experience with the lower wattage HID bulbs so im not sure how hot they get, but im sure you could have sufficient cooling with a couple of 120mm computer fans mounted to the box, 1 for intake, and one for exhaust.
with something like this im sure you dont want to over complicate things. in my experience, simplicity is often teh best way to go.
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icanfeeltherain
Newb Mycologist
Registered: 10/26/08
Posts: 53
Last seen: 14 years, 4 months
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Re: Vegging Lights : what are the options? [Re: Dr. Awesome]
#211289 - 04/02/09 12:14 AM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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Is this the 150w HPS I should get from Home Depot for the vegging?
Will one bulb and a reflector do the trick? I plan to use a 4" inline Vortex w/ 170CFM (in a 54 cubic foot space, total for the veg and flower tent), will that keep heat under control? If not I will use the computer fans like Dr. Awesome suggests.
Edited by icanfeeltherain (04/02/09 12:16 AM)
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Dr. Penguin
Registered: 05/19/08
Posts: 1,036
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Re: Vegging Lights : what are the options? [Re: icanfeeltherain]
#211415 - 04/02/09 09:18 AM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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If you will be trying to cool another space as well (with its own HPS) you might want to think about stepping up the fan size.
The link you posted is the 150w bulb that home depot has, but you need the ballast as well. It is under the outdoor lighting section and it's labeled as a security light. Make sure you get one that says 150w HPS on it, they make other types as well but they won't work.
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impgl
Registered: 04/20/08
Posts: 1,666
Last seen: 11 years, 9 months
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Re: Vegging Lights : what are the options? [Re: Dr. Penguin]
#211653 - 04/02/09 09:32 PM (15 years, 8 months ago) |
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i cant add any more ventilation, so i just bought some t5 bulbs to build a mom veg clone room. they dont make heat and dont give much stretch.
i see mh and hps bulbs at home depot all the time, but only up to 400 w
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