Slow grow. Does my light suck??

[GanjaFarmer123]

I have a 120 watt Philips Agro Lite. My plant has been under it for about a week and has grow about 4 cm and thats it. Its going sooooo slow and im getting mad. Should i return my light and get like a 400 watt HPS or CFL. I think so. Any advice?

[marijuanavillebilly]

well how much room do you have in your grow area?
and if its the light i think it is i would just take it back.

and is your electric bill a big issue?
if so i would take a trip to lowes and pickup a few 300W Pre-ballasted CFLs and watch that Fother Mucker grow. :thumbsup:

[GanjaFarmer123]

how do 300 watt CFL's cost?? How much more lumens could i expect out of those?

[Mr. Clandestine]

If you've got the money to spend on a 400w HPS system, I'd go with that. It'll require stricter ventilation than a cluster of CFLs would, but the speed of growth and propensity to grow HUGE fast makes up for it IMHO.

[GanjaFarmer123]

so if i went with something like that would i need to keep a window open 24/7. How much does a system like that cost and could i get one at say a HOME DEPOT or LOWES or ACE hardware??

[Mr. Clandestine]

You'll be able to find low wattage HPS systems at Home Depot and other hardware stores, but they're all pretty much the streetlamp style lights, and will need to be modified before you'll be able to put them to use. Here's a cool little tutorial for converting a streetlamp into a usable growroom light:

How do I convert a common home security light into a remote ballast grow light? (http://cannabis.com/growing/lighting-How_Do_I_Convert_a_common_home_security_light_into _a_remote_ballast_grow_light.html)

If you aren't very comfortable working around electricity, or are unsure how to follow diagrams, safety procedures, etc., then you shouldn't attempt to do this project. Electricity is no joke, and if wired wrong, you might have a fire on your hands. For a little over $100, you can get yourself a pre-built HPS system from online horticulture websites. I don't think I'm allowed to post a link, but Discount Hydroponics is a very reliable site. Just Google it, and see what you can come up with.

Take care, and be safe! :thumbsup:

[GanjaFarmer123]

hmmm that sounds difficult for me to do.....and id rather not order something online that costs alot. Do u think i could find a high wattage CFL at homedepot? Like under 300 but over 200. watts that is.

[Mr. Clandestine]

Wish I could answer that question, bud. Sadly, I've never bought any CFL over 50w... so I'm not quite sure what they sell. If you can't find a high wattage CFL, you can find socket extenders which can allow you to hang several CFLs from one socket. Just make sure that that ACTUAL wattage of the CFLs doesn't exceed that of the socket. (It should tell you on the light fixture how many watts they can take.)

I generally hang 4-23w CFLs from a 100 watt socket... which gives you an extra 8 watts of leeway. Those clamp lamps are cheap, come with reflectors, and can easily be hung anywhere you need them.

Best of luck! :jointsmile:

[GanjaFarmer123]

yea i just realized that about CFl's. So i think i would like to buy a HPS bulb thats under 300 watts because my lamp that hangs above my plant cant excede a 300 watt bulb. Do u think hardware stores sell HPS bulbs only ( ones that have 150 + wattage).

[marijuanavillebilly]

here in ky the 300W CFL is only 20 bucks.

[Mr. Clandestine]

Most hardware stores sell HPS and MH BULBS, but you have to remember, an HPS bulb (regardless of how small the wattage) will NOT run off of a standard light socket, even if the mogul bases (bottom screw-in part) is the same size. Even if it's just a 100w HPS bulb. The reason for this is because standard incandescent, halogen, and fluorescent lights operate off of an uninterrupted current that is provided by the power cord via the electrical outlet. But HPS and MH bulbs operate by supercharging compressed gases inside of an arc tube, and actually require an ignitor (as well as several other components) in order to light those gases. So don't waste your money buying an HPS bulb unless you have an HPS ballast to light it up. It won't work without a ballast. That's why I recommended either building one yourself, or ordering one online.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's a common misconception for low-watt HPS bulbs. Take care, and best of luck in your lighting endeavors. :jointsmile:

[justanotherbozo]

well how much room do you have in your grow area?
and if its the light i think it is i would just take it back.

and is your electric bill a big issue?
if so i would take a trip to lowes and pickup a few 300W Pre-ballasted CFLs and watch that Fother Mucker grow. :thumbsup:

i shop a LOT at Lowes, much of my stuff comes from there including most of my CFL's and i've never seen a 300watt cfl there. shit, i've never even heard of a 300watt cfl, equivalent yes, actual no.

[justanotherbozo]

Most hardware stores sell HPS and MH BULBS, but you have to remember, an HPS bulb (regardless of how small the wattage) will NOT run off of a standard light socket, even if the mogul bases (bottom screw-in part) is the same size. Even if it's just a 100w HPS bulb. The reason for this is because standard incandescent, halogen, and fluorescent lights operate off of an uninterrupted current that is provided by the power cord via the electrical outlet. But HPS and MH bulbs operate by supercharging compressed gases inside of an arc tube, and actually require an ignitor (as well as several other components) in order to light those gases. So don't waste your money buying an HPS bulb unless you have an HPS ballast to light it up. It won't work without a ballast. That's why I recommended either building one yourself, or ordering one online.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's a common misconception for low-watt HPS bulbs. Take care, and best of luck in your lighting endeavors. :jointsmile:


what he said, everthing he say's here is true so listen up.
if your new to growing and on a budget, buy cfl's, you can buy them one at a time for under ten bucks and, you can buy them locally, and, because you'll be using several smaller blubs rather than one BIG bulb, you can tweak your light spectrum. keep in mind though that you need to look at the ACTUAL wattage and not the equivalent wattage. also look at the color of the light (and i don't mean the bulb, they're all white lol), that will be printed right on the plastic part of the bulb (that's the ballast housing) and it will say something like 6500K, or 3000K, or 2700K etc..., the K stands for Kelvin and it refers to the spectrumor temperature of light the bulb produces.
in veg (which is where your at right now) you want mostly blue light (blue is at the high end or 5000 to 6500K), not ALL blue, but at maybe a 4 - 1 ratio, watt for watt.
when your ready to flower, switch to mostly red (the low end, 3000, 2700 and 1900K).

in the meantime, start reading the FAQs, you'll gain a lot of respect around here if you show a willingness to find your own answers to simple questions. that's not to say you shouldn't ask for help when your stumped, just don't be stumped 'cause your too lazy to look for the answer, be stumped 'cause you can't find the answer.
if you show a willingness to help yourself, people will be more than willing to help too
anyway,
peace, love, dope