Printable View
ive got a 2x8 area
thats
16 sq ft
im thinking
5 180cfm cfm fans exausting to the attic
3 400 watt hps
is that to much / will it bleach my plants and is that enuff cooling / ventilation for 3 400watt lights
i was gunna try and grow 8 plants in 5 gallon buckets
its not to much but you would probably be better off with just 2 400 watt lights as per cooling it will probably work ok just to many variables to tell you for sure like intake air temp and how its hooked up.
i would go with 2 x 400watter, otherwise you will be constantly batteling the temps, plus you could put the extra cash to buying top of the range bulbs/ballast/reflectors rather than budget items....if you can stretch to it, cooltubes or cooled hoods are the way forward.
you could grow 8 plants, 10 at a push. you should be looking at least 12 ounces per crop, and that a low estimate.
just dont get greedy and buy the third light, spend it on 2 better lights and better ventilation.
why not 2 600 watters, and get better penetration
600W lights are also the most efficient.
1000W puts out ~ 140,000 lumens
600W puts out ~ 90,000 lumens
400W puts out ~ 50,000 lumens
That's from my head so the numbers might not be 100% correct but they should be close. :jointsmile:
If I were you... I would get three 400 watt digital HPS lights. They run cooler and put out many more lumens while saving power. I would run 4" or 6" aircooled hoods and exhaust it with a 4" inline fan or a 6" inline fan if you ever feel like youll upgrade. Get a speed controller so you can turn the fan down. Keep the first hood open on the end so your pulling the air from your grow room and exhausting it out. 400 watts shouldn't light a 4 foot long area. But a 2x2.5 area...you could take a pound out of each light with practice.
my grow space was very similar and i divided it in half, 1 side for veg/clones/mums and 1 side for flower. my point is that the 2ft depth is hard to work with. it is doable but raises a few problems, heat being the biggest. with 3 400hps bulbs you should use 3 cooltubes daisychained with a 8 inch vortex type fan. that sounds like overkill as the 8inch vortex is 747cfm but you will be supprised at the speed those lights will heat such a narrow space. also your best grow technique would be scrog or sog. large plants do not do well because the narrow space is awful for light penitration and the larger plants will end up extremely "leggy" with only decent buds at the very top of the canopy. i worked with the 2x8 space for 2 years so i am speaking totally from experience here. good luck. btw i don't know if i've told you this before but my 2x8 closet with 1 veg chamber and 1 flower chamber gave me just under a lb every 8 weeks.
HA HA.... Go big man.... Atleast 1 1000hps... I run 1 1000watt hps and 1 400MH and I dont even have 4'X8' and definately not 8' high more like 6'5".... Yes there will be cooling issues but i mean after your first room it will pay off the extra equipment it took to keep it cool.... For the extra dough It was so worth it to me.... Mine are nothing special but look at my room
http://boards.cannabis.com/indoor-gr...questions.html
i also support 6 600W. your goin to get more light than 3 400's for the same power.
Dont go for 1000W. They are too hot and you cant get em as close to the plants. 3 600W will give you much better results than 2 1000W.
i dont know your set up but long skinny growing areas arn't efficient. idealy you want a circle around lights, . If you could get thatn to be 3ftx 8 or 3 x 6. you'll get better results
a 400 can sufficiently light a 2 by 4 area if it is positioned right there is plenty of cabs that are 2 by 4 with a 400 that had great results however they were all scrog wich was why they yielded so good 2 400's is right at 50 watts per sq ft.
the most you should use is 1200 watts whether it be 3 400's or 2 600's wich is 75 watts per sq ft and if you dont intend to do a scrog 2 600's would probably be a better choice.