the other day was in home depot and they had 150w hps bulbs it said i would need a ballast will that be enough to try a pratice grow the bulbs were about 21.00 i didnt look at ballast just a thought will it work in small space for one or two plants?
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the other day was in home depot and they had 150w hps bulbs it said i would need a ballast will that be enough to try a pratice grow the bulbs were about 21.00 i didnt look at ballast just a thought will it work in small space for one or two plants?
You will not find the proper ballast at either home depot or lowe's. You will though find a 150 watt quasi-fully assembled hps security lamp.
you should be able to buy a ballest at a electrical supply company in your city for about 50 bucks. Afte rthat you will need a socket and a power cord. Make sure you follow a schematic on how to wire the thing together.
If you looking for somthing simple as its your first grow or practice grow. Compact florecents are good and you can get them at home depot and they fit into a regular socket. They are also good because they dont emit much heat. Look for the biggest ones you can buy. They should be 75W equilivent to 150W Incadessent light bulb (the normal Lamp style light bulb).
The heat Colour is important 2500K (Kelvins) for Flowering and 6500K for vegitaion. you want about 2000 lummes per square foot. So one 75W bulb per square foot.
Search around the forurms fro CFL info. As opposed to HPS.
kd_special
thanks for info:thumbsup:
A couple of pics of the Home Depot 150 watt hps version of a night light. $70 last I saw. Good for lighting a small area...needs some minor moding before plugging it in.
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The Lowe's version is a joomungious pain in the ass that is good for only one thing...its handy by being available in store...and returnable once you figure it just aint gunna work out. It's a thing I'd use to bake pizza or bisquits on.
What is the difference between buying something like this http://www.e-conolight.com/Product/E...ber=E-HR4H25QZ or buying a bulb and ballast separately? Is there that much of a difference in quality?
yes, their can be a difference, your link goes to a company that sells "better" than average commercial kits, I have found modifying a security light is quite easy (since having the ballast outside the grow area is very desirable) and works well.