400w hps in a dresser???

Hey all,

i'm thinking of making a new flowering cab. I used a 400w hps for a whole grow, but now I think I'll use that in a flowering cab and use cfls for vegging in my current cab.

Question is:

Can I use a 400w hps in a dresser that is 33" long, 19 " deep and 40" high? The light is an attached ballast model. It's hood has a glass pane and is air-cooled with a Dayton 265 cfm blower. The blower will be attached to a can 9000 carbon filter. I'll have an 8"x8" darkroom louvre at the bottom for passive intake.

How does this sound to everyone? Doable?

Also, this will be in a closet and I can keep the room temps between 68-70 F.


Thanks for all the help as usual :)

if you can keep the temps down you should be able to use the 400 but a 250 would probably be a better choice for the space, you should look into doing a scrog for the best yield.

Thanks for the rely.

Yeah, a 250 may be better, but I already have the 400 w/ attached ballast and cool tube.

Has anyone grown with a light like this in a box of similar dimensions?

Thats not a Smart idea, to use any HID in a dresser, it will be way too hot even with 250, Thoes arent ment to be enclosed like that, your going to start a fire when the thing blows up because its being used improperly. Bejay your gonna get someone hurt telling them to do that stuff, think befor you give out retarted info like that.

bongo its not uncommon to use hid lights in wooden cabs in fact, it is quite common with some common sense installing the light and good ventilation it doesn't pose any fire risk.
manowar have seen 400 hid used on scrog in 2 by 3 and 2 by 4 foot cabs with similiar heights with good results however you may want to pick up a 250 ballast and bulb as it is more adequete for your size with the 400 you are over 90 watts per sq ft with the 250 you are still at 58 watts per sq ft and it would save energy and be easier to cool. with the limited height you almost have to do a scrog as by the time you factor in the light and pots or hydro system you dont have much space left to grow a plant in a traditional way.

Bongo...
Glad to see someone step up and say something. However I have to say that I agree only to an xtent.
As a newcomer to indoor growing, You'd expect the person to be limited in knowledge, and experaince, and perhaps this is the way you responed.
IMO, once a person has the knowledge, then I see no reason why a cabinet (box) couldn't be built with wood. As long as you comfortable with your equipment., and design.
In bejay's case, I'd have to say that a 400w would leave me worry while I'm away from the garden though.
Ya might be able to do something with it, but call it a stress free garden might not be the case.
Good luck

i havent read any of the posts in here but i used a 400wtt in a box set up 4x2x5 and it worked well. that cool tube will help mucho. U may expeirence high temps but i dont think they should get too high, just make sure u have proper venting and a high cfm fan. if your balast is safe u have nothing to worry about, your light will not cuase a fire unless u have it directly touching the wood. which to any one would seem stupid. just give space where it is needed.

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

I finally ended up getting a dresser and gutted it out last light. The useabe space inside the dresser is 42" high, 36" wide and 18" deep (about 4.3 square feet) and 15 feet of cubic space.

Yes, I'll be doing a scrog similar to CCIE and Jamstigator. I'll try and get three plants in there and lst and FIM first before the screen comes on.

As far as burning down my house with a HID in a dresser, I don't see that happening at all. I'll have it air-cooled with a 265 cfm Dayton blower. The only thing causing me concern is the attached ballast even though its air-cooled.

I've been doing a lurker here for about 6 months reading up on everything I could and I think I have a good depth of knowledge. We shall see soon enough I guess...

Does anyone have any idea (or experience) with how much the ballast heats up a grow box?

I may try and post pics of this stealth set up if I can get my hands on a digital camera...

while the ballast does produce a little heat your blower should take care of it the only concern would be the carbon filter may reduce the cfm by quite a bit.
if you are using clones wouldnt really bother with lst that is what the screens for so you can position them under the screen and tie where ever you want.
also might read up on light position for best effeciency while it probably wouldnt make to much difference in your case as you are using a 400 in a small area but the link is below.
http://www.drugs-forum.com/growfaq/1163.htm

Thanks for that link Bejay! It's always a good thing to have more infomation about light placement.

As far as the carbon filter, I've heard a rule of thumb is that it cuts your efficiency of the fan in half, leaving me with 130 cfm if I don't dial it down. I'm thinking that should more than suffice for a 15 cubic foot space. Anyone with a can 9000 filter have a guess on how much it reduces fan efficieny?

Also, Bejay, I'll be using feminized seeds instead of clones. I was planning on lst and FIM after 3 weeks or after the 4-5 node (which ever happens first) I'd continue to lst up until 6 weeks and then flip them.

Any suggestions anyone?

Hey bud...
What seeds are you gonna be using?
I'm looking at making a purchase this week for some fem. seeds. Thinking I might go with Great White Shark, or something from DP. Just can't make up my mind.

You can detach and remote mount the ballasts - It's no problem at all, as long as you keep the lamp leads as short as you can. I added a 70W MH security light to a 150HPS housing and remoted out both ballasts to keep heat down. Get a metal junction box that'll fit everything, and get some heavy duty wire and wire nuts, and extend it out and strap everything down in the box. I can post some pics of mine if ya like.

Rollone -- I've already ordered DP's Skywalker and FS Grapefruit. I'll grow one each and scrog them. Damn, it's gonna be fruity.

As far as building a remote ballast, let's say I'm not the most electrically inclined and if I started messing with bare wires, the house may actually burn down. Also, how can you stick a 70w MH bulb in a 150w ballst. I though the wattages needed to match up, or the ballast would be fried.

Peace

You are correct - the ballasts/bulb must match or else. I had a 150W HPS Grow light/reflector. I added in another 70W MH light to the housing, so now its 220W. I remoted out both of the ballasts to a metal box that sits on top of the cabinet.

All you are doing is basically extending the lamp leads and physically mounting the ballast elsewhere, but if you are not comfortable with wiring then perhaps its best to not do it. There should be a wiring diagram on the ballast itself if ya decide to give it a try, or lemme know, I'll help the best I can

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BONG0

Thats not a Smart idea, to use any HID in a dresser, it will be way too hot even with 250, Thoes arent ment to be enclosed like that, your going to start a fire when the thing blows up because its being used improperly. Bejay your gonna get someone hurt telling them to do that stuff, think befor you give out retarted info like that.

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you sound a complete idiot with absolutely no knowledge about growing